Starring Mark Wahlberg and Greg Kinnear, "Invincible" is based on the true story of Vince Papale, a down and out Italian guy in 1970s Philadelphia who against all odds, made the Eagles squad and played in the NFL. In other words, Rocky plays football.
No, but seriously, this sounds like a great story, right? If you want a sports movie that will inspire and thrill the masses, you couldn't ask for a better plotline. Unfortunately, "Invincible" will neither thrill nor inspire you, unless you have never seen any of the numerous, formulaic movies about sports underdogs.
The film fails to live up to its potential for several obvious reasons. First and foremost is the poor acting of Wahlberg. Wahlberg mopes about with a sullen look painted on his face through most of the movie, despite the fact that his character is going through something that should be incredibly exciting. As a lifetime Eagles fan and regular joe who gets to play on his dream team in front of thousands of fans, Vince should be ecstatic. But that's not Wahlberg's style. One gets the impression that he's just too cool for all that.
If Wahlberg thinks he's too cool to put in a decent performance with some real emotion, then he needs to find another profession. It's understandable that Vince isn't happy-go-lucky all the time; after all, he's broke and his wife just left him. He has reason to be depressed at times. But still, Wahlberg fails to balance that out with all of the times that he should be amazed and giddy with his good-fortune. You might count three or four smiles from him the whole movie. On the bright side, the rest of the acting is not bad. Kinnear is fine as legendary Eagles coach Dick Vermeil, and most of the supporting cast are at least adequate for their roles.
To be fair, it's not all Wahlberg's fault. Disney played it way too safe with the direction of this movie. The studio heads must have thought that the story would just tell itself, and forgot to include most the elements of an entertaining movie. "Invincible" has some decent scenes depicting the brutal physicality of football, but nothing we haven't seen in countless other football movies before. The plot itself is layed out as predictably as possible, with the token love interest thrown in at just the right time. At no point in the movie is the outcome of the whole story even remotely in doubt. The only surprises to the viewer might come when Wahlberg barely reacts to amazing events in his character's life.
There are a few things about "Invincible" that will make you laugh; for instance, several cliche-ridden, cheesy dialogues between Vince and his love interest, and Vince and his dad. If that doesn't do it, the ridiculous number of slow motion scenes probably will. Almost every time Wahlberg hits the football field and starts running, the cameras automatically shift to a snail's pace, complete with overly dramatic close-ups.
The film's flaws become most obvious at the very end, when highlights and footage of the real Vince Papale are shown. You can see the passion and love of the game in his diving tackles and in his toothy smile. Every scene they show him is more heartwarming and exciting than those from the Hollywood account of his tale. If you are looking for an entertaining and inspirational sports movie, look elsewhere. "Invincible" has all the ingredients of a great underdog story, but falls flat thanks to unmotivated direction and even less motivated acting from its star.
