The Big Green

This movie is great for kids, and any kid should see it. Many teens and adults may find this movie wasteful, but anyone who keeps an open mind and makes efforts to "read between the lines" can really see that there is a lesson to be learned. As in reality, there are many towns such as the fictional rural town this movie takes place in. In such towns (with closed industrial mills and no jobs,) you will find kids with too much time on their hands like in this movie. At the beginning, the kids didn't see a point to their lives and just didn't care. Sheriff Tom Palmer (Guttenberg) didn't have much of a life either. Anna Montgomery comes to town as the school teacher and really turns them around. She really teaches them to believe that they are no less of people than anyone else and that with hard work and persistence, one can achieve their goals. They don't even know how to play soccer in the beginning, but it goes to show that hard work, heart, persistence, belief, and teamwork can go a long ways. Anna Montgomery is a terrific teacher, coach, and leader. Towards the end, anyone can tell that they are changed for the better and learn to believe in themselves on and off the field, thanks to true leadership. I admit, this is not a movie with tons of adventure and excitement. Though it may not be a classic like Forrest Gump or Citizen Kane; it really is a great family movie and really goes to prove a point. I recommend it to anyone with a family and a heart to see the good that can come with good leadership and teamwork.

The movie is great and i love it to this day. It starts out by showing a hick town in the middle of nowhere. I can relate to this because i live in a hick town. These boys are buying Cheeto's to feed the birds. They lay down in the middle of a field and let birds eat off of them. This looks like fun, actually. A beautiful woman runs up with a water hose and scares the birds off in an attempt to save the children. They then find out she is their teacher. For some reason, there is only two classes. I guess the little kids are elementary. They tell the sheriff there is big news. Their new teacher is hot. The next morning, she tries to teach them only to find out she knows nothing about them. THe way she finally connects to them is to play soccer using a kickball. For some reason, they think a football looks like a lemon. I don't know why. They need another player to be an official team so they get this kid, Newt. he is always dragging a wagon full of junk. The fact that he has show and tell just goes to show how little he is. At their first official game, they lose badly and feel horrible. They don't even have a name. It is decided the next day to call themselves the big green after their field of all things. Anna starts them on training, which involves a lot of running. She even makes Tom join in the running, although she is the only one not exhausted after the workout. She seems to be in exceptional shape. They train but still lose until they get uniforms and all of the sudden feel like a real team. They talk to this Mexican dude's mom and get him to join. They start winning and eventually get to the final game. Their opponent turns out to be the jerk that beat them the first time. He hits on Anna and they make a deal. If he wins, she will kiss him. If they win, he has to kiss the goat, who is eating trash at that moment. It is quite funny considering the deal they just made. They lose for a while and then Tom brings the Mexican brat up there. He gets the game going again and they actually get good points and tie it in the last inning. The game goes in overtime and it get close but, in classic Disney format, they win and are all happy and proud. Come on, did you think they were gonna lose? Like Disney would let that happen. The coach has to kiss the goat and everyone laughs when he kisses her, because of course kissing a goat is the climax of all that is funny. Tom picks up Anna and gives her a big wet one. The kids pick her up and cheer. All the parents are so proud and everyone is so happy now.

If you're looking for a sophisticated piece of art, "The Big Green" is not it. This is a family film for elementary school kids. I watched this movie for the first time when I was nine, and I absolutely loved it. I loved cheering for the underdog, and from my nine-year-old point of view, all the events were realistic and all the characters were believable. I especially loved Larry, who was hilarious in his delusions. I watched this film again tonight and realize that it is a clichéd film, but only because I'm much older and more cynical. However, this does not take away the fact that it brought back the days when I resolutely believed that the harder I worked, the more it would pay off and that anybody could be a winner. It is optimistic, heart-warming and uplifting for that inner nine-year-old.

Elma, Texas is a small struggling town. Anna Montgomery (Olivia d'Abo) is the new teacher from England. Sheriff Tom Palmer (Steve Guttenberg) is taken with the beautiful newcomer. The kids are bitter and defeated. Anna gets them to play soccer. They are soundly defeated by the reining champs Knights coached by ruthless Jay Huffer. Kate Douglas and Juan Morales are the team's best players. Kate's father is a drunk. Juan is new and his mother is actually an illegal immigrant. This is weak even for a formulaic Disney family movie. It fails for several reasons. It's not funny. Guttenberg is still trying to be his devil-may-care rascal character but he's finally finished. He's no longer funny. The kids should be the central characters anyways, but they're not. On top of that, the kids playing Kate and Juan are not the most charismatic. The soccer is boring and predictable. There is nothing good although there is nothing offensive either.

Even at 13 this film is still one of my favorites I borrowed it from my friend and got it for christmas one year. One day a group of misfit kids decide to go for a bike ride and feed some birds and a lady thinks their being attacked she claims that she is their teacher. These kids are playing around at the police station and are told off by sheriff Tom Palmer. Determined to motivate her students Anna forms a soccer team with the help of Tom Palmer. At the field they meet a group of bullies also a soccer team called The Knights coached by the snobbish Jay Huffer Tom's old nemesis. The Knights wind up winning by a final score of 18-0. But they soon become a winning team and defeat The Knights in the championship game 4-3. In the end Jay Has to kiss the goat. 9/10

Before this movie was released, The Sandlot and The Mighty Ducks had already been released. Two good Disney movies dealing with kids and sports. The way I saw it, The Big Green was just another attempt to cash in on that trend. Sadly it failed. The movie isn't exactly bad. But if you have a choice to watch it, it be best to skip it. If anyone would find it the least bit enjoyable, it would be children which was the original target audience to begin with. But if you must watch a kids soccer movie, instead watch Rodney Dangerfield's "Ladybugs." Alot more enjoyable plus the kids should like that one. I did when I was kid.

A great family film about soccer. I've loved this movie ever since I was a child. The plot isn't anything special and is rather predictable but the numerous comic scenes make up for it. the film not only deals with soccer but also with some more serious issues including one family's immigration problems and another child with an alcoholic father. The name The Big Green refers to the team's name which was what the field they play on used to be called. One of my favorite scenes in the movie is when the children are practicing while the parents look on, when it starts to rain the kids wont give up the ball and the coaches and parents try and get the ball. what happens is a cute moment between all of the families playing soccer in the rain and mud together. overall this film is just very cute and I highly recommend it especially for families with young kids. or even for elderly people who can no longer understand a very complicated plot, my grandmother really enjoys this movie. anyways if you haven't seen this movie you should seek it out and watch it when you get the chance.

This movie is great for kids, and any kid should see it. Many teens and adults may find this movie wasteful, but anyone who keeps an open mind and makes efforts to "read between the lines" can really see that there is a lesson to be learned. As in reality, there are many towns such as the fictional rural town this movie takes place in. In such towns (with closed industrial mills and no jobs,) you will find kids with too much time on their hands like in this movie. At the beginning, the kids didn't see a point to their lives and just didn't care. Sheriff Tom Palmer (Guttenberg) didn't have much of a life either. Anna Montgomery comes to town as the school teacher and really turns them around. She really teaches them to believe that they are no less of people than anyone else and that with hard work and persistence, one can achieve their goals. They don't even know how to play soccer in the beginning, but it goes to show that hard work, heart, persistence, belief, and teamwork can go a long ways. Anna Montgomery is a terrific teacher, coach, and leader. Towards the end, anyone can tell that they are changed for the better and learn to believe in themselves on and off the field, thanks to true leadership. I admit, this is not a movie with tons of adventure and excitement. Though it may not be a classic like Forrest Gump or Citizen Kane; it really is a great family movie and really goes to prove a point. I recommend it to anyone with a family and a heart to see the good that can come with good leadership and teamwork.

This movie is beyond terrible. I have rarely seen a combination of directing, cinematography and screenplay that is this bad. Seriously...go do story problems in an 8th grade math book before you watch this...honestly. You will thank me later. The story is of course a complete cliché that has been done a thousand times...but the effort put forward here is beyond reprehensible. Even the songs in the movie are bad. Little giants, heavyweights, both bad news bears movies, ladybugs...these are all 10/10 compared to this disgusting wad of complacency. How Steve Gutt could actually read this script and say yes is beyond me, but hey...money is money. If you need to kill some time, try a screwdriver to the brain for a couple hours....at least the pain will remind you life is worth living.