After this pod, it's just babies and memories. The Ringer’s Bill Simmons and Mallory Rubin must be perfect as they rewatch the 2004 classic ‘Friday Night Lights,’ starring Billy Bob Thornton, Lucas Black, and Garrett Hedlund. Producer: Craig Horlbeck Video Producer: Chia Hao Tat Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
Chapter 1: What are the main themes of 'Friday Night Lights'?
Yeah.
Three and a half stars. He loves story. He loves characters.
Love story. Yeah.
The movie demonstrates the power of sports to involve us. We don't live in Odessa and are watching a game played 16 years ago and we get all wound up. You're goddamn right, Roger Ebert.
I have no notes on that review from Roger.
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No, just have some allergies, I think. The air quality here.
How many times are you sick in 2024? Mm-hmm.
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Chapter 3: What are the significant differences between the movie and the TV series?
Yep.
I'm going to skip to halftime. Preacher gets pissed. They're building the whole year. He finally gets mad, goes nuts, gives his speech. And then Billy Bob's like, hold my beer.
Yeah. Being perfect is not about that scoreboard out there. It's not about winning. It's about you and your relationship to yourself and your family and your friends. Being perfect is about being able to look your friends in the eye and know that you didn't let them down because you told them the truth. And that truth is that you did everything that you could.
There wasn't one more thing that you could have done. Can you live in that moment as best you can with clear eyes and love in your heart, with joy in your heart? If you can do that, gentlemen, then you're perfect.
And he does his big speech, which apparently was improvised the night before. Great nugget. They had it written differently, and then he was just, something had happened to him in his personal life. Um, so many good stuff in this, but being perfect is about being able to look your friends in the eye and know that you didn't let them down because you told them the truth.
You and I have had, we've said this to each other for a long time. Um, I want you to take a moment. I want you to look each other in the eyes, put each other in your hearts forever. He's just running, running on. I want you to think about boobie miles. He's your brother. He's right there. His eyes are rolling up. And then boys, my heart is full. My heart is full.
Uh, if you're going Kyle Chandler versus Billy Bob, uh, This makes it tough to not make a Billy Bob case.
I strongly disagree. With respect for this movie and respect for this podcast, it's just not close. And frankly... Why?
Tell me why. Well, you just love Kyle Chandler.
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Chapter 4: How does the film portray the pressure of high school football?
We got to get an MRI immediately. He's acting like Boobie had COVID or something. Is Boobie's COVID done yet? No, we don't know yet. Maybe one more day. It's like, this fucking knee. This guy's going to college next year. Where are the scouts calling, finding out more about Boobie's knee? The movie just kind of, I guess they only had two hours.
This drives me crazy. Because like, again, a movie I love, but this just doesn't make sense. And it's also like, we have the scene before he lies to the team, but after the injury where like the team doctor, one of the assistants is like, it's definitely like a tear. So he knows. And yet he's content to let Boobie and LV lie to him. multiple times when they're like, yeah, we're fine.
Put your brace on? We're fine. Yeah, put your brace on and let's try it in game six?
Why is he not insisting that he has surgery for the good of his life? Because we get that little scene early in the movie where it's coach... and his wife Sharon and LV and Boobie. It is the four of them having a family dinner and he's like, everything that happens to you this year, you deserve.
That is there to tell us one thing, that he genuinely cares about this kid and that there's a closeness between these families that transcends whatever happens on the field.
And then he doesn't back up any of it. And then he's giving the speeches to Winchell about trying to elevate those guys. And it's like, you just sent Boobie out on the side. But my guess is this was probably based on some real life stuff. And I haven't read the book in a while, but I'm sure, you know. Bizarre. I don't know why it took an extra game to start airing it out with Mike Winchell.
Mm-hmm. Mm-hmm.
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Chapter 5: Why is the role of Billy Bob Thornton as Coach Gaines so impactful?
I don't know why he didn't play Preacher at tight end, at least on like third and short. Preacher was 6'8", 490 pounds, and was Miles Garrett. Just like maybe have two plays on offense. It's high school. The best guys play both ways. I don't understand why he didn't have more info on Boobie's knee before he throws him in in the last game. Doesn't play him for three and a half quarters.
Brings him in and then immediately runs two sweeps on him where he's clearly hurt in the first sweep. He's like, run it back. What could go wrong? Deranged. And then you mentioned earlier the Billingsley. So my fullback has a separated shoulder. Here's my idea for a trick play. Against a much bigger Dallas Carter team.
Surprise handoff and just try to knock off nine of these guys with your injured shoulder. That was his trick play.
And I love the way that they caught to him when they're popping Donnie's shoulder back in and he's like nodding.
Yeah. What other coach games, nitpicks did you have?
Well, you hit almost all of them. I think there's like a lot of Mike stuff and just how he's coaching Winchell that puts him into the actually is in the, again, with respect to the real coach, like in the fixture fictional portrayal, like, are we sure he's a good coach camp? Everybody after the booby injury is like, you designed your entire offense and your entire team around one player.
You didn't get anyone else ready to really have to carry the load. And then the way he's coaching up Mike is by calling him a village idiot in game two. When Mike is crying and saying, my mind's not right and he clearly needs help, we do get the touching exchange, as you noted, but we also get him... We get Coach Gaines saying... your mom, you know, you're going to have to leave her.
You're going to have to leave her. It's like, what? This is your advice for this kid who is just like falling apart in front of you? I also think on the, are we sure he's a good coach front? It is bizarre. And this would be for the whole coaching staff, not just the head coach.
It is insane and bizarre to me that they seem astonished that their third string running back, third string running back on a potential favorite to win state in Texas is a star. And they're like astonished that he's got speed and can run. It's just, I had that as a nitpick later, but it felt appropriate to hit it here. Just bizarre.
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