ChanBot i must have seen a different film!!

Numerootno A story that's too fascinating to pass by...

Maleeha Vincent It's funny, it's tense, it features two great performances from two actors and the director expertly creates a web of odd tension where you actually don't know what is happening for the majority of the run time.

Staci Frederick Blistering performances.

SeriousJest This one gets by with me based on the awesomeness of the true NFL story. I also like that it effectively portrayed some issues without over- explaining them, like the racial undertones. Other than that, I was severely underwhelmed. First, the cinematography was extremely low- budget. I haven't seen the 1971 original, but I'm guessing there's not much of a difference in camera quality. Also, the acting from just about everyone, even Phifer during his "shy" scenes, seemed forced. Both Phifer and Maher were pretty charismatic, at times, however. And although I know that this movie isn't really about football, they really skimped on the football scenes! I don't know what they thought they were doing with that blurry first-person view, but it wasn't working. I have a feeling that if I was to see the original flick, I would downgrade my rating of this remake.For more reviews and a kickass podcast, check out: www.livemancave.com

rostlyn I just discovered this film on Netflix instant viewing and decided to give it a shot. I was introduced to the original film in high school when our gym teacher showed it in class, and I'm eternally grateful for that... the original version of Brian's Song is an amazing film and you should check it out if you get the opportunity. (It happens to be on instant viewing at the moment as well.) At first I didn't think I was going to like the film since it seemed so different from the original; it was hard to get used to the new actors as Pic and Sayers since I had James Caan and Billy D. Williams in my head as owning those roles for so long. I'm glad that I gave the movie a chance, though, because by the end I was absolutely loving it.There are a number of differences between this movie and the original, though I don't think that the remake suffers for them. The tone of this film is much more serious and toward the end is much more focused on Pic's illness, but I think that this serious tone helps to show that even someone who jokes around and takes life as lightly as Pic can be overwhelmed. It helps to add humanity to the film which it would have otherwise lacked, and the actors all do a wonderful job of bringing the characters and their pains to life.Some reviewers and commenters have said that this remake shouldn't have been made and that ABC should have just shown the original again to introduce it to younger audiences but I disagree. All too often, older movies just don't hold up well in the eyes of a younger generation. I know when I was young I'd much rather watch a new movie than some old film that came out when my parents were young; I think that this remake did a good job of honoring the 30th anniversary of the original while introducing the story to young people who might not have known about it otherwise. Once they've seen this film it might be easier to introduce them to the original as well.I scored this remake 8 out of 10 because I liked it but not as much as the original movie. The original would be a straight 10.

donsturm I just read all of the comments on this movie and some people did not like this remake. "Brian's Song" is my favorite movie of all time and when I saw the remake, I was impressed. The first part of this remake was word for word to the original but then they started to go in depth. The original 1971 version showed more of the friendship of Brian Piccolo and Gale Sayers, which was great, but the 2001 remake showed more of Piccolo's struggle with cancer. The title of the movie is "Brian's Song" so I thought it was great to show this aspect of his life. If you do what I did and watch both DVD's back to back, starting with the 1971 original, you will get the full story of Brian Piccolo. It doesn't matter that the Michel Legrand theme song isn't featured as much in the remake; this is the story of a man's life, not a song. If you liked the original movie as much as I did, take these comments to heart and rewatch this remake. If you have never seen the original movie, I highly recommend it. Like I said up front, 1971's "Brian's Song" is my all time favorite movie but on a scale of 1-10, I have to give this remake a 10.

john_baur The original was the best football movie ever. It also was the one movie that made it all right for guys to get weepy (just TRY not to sniffle during the "I love Brian Piccolo" speech) and it featured actual game footage of Gale Sayers and Brian Piccolo. The new version adds nothing.