gbkmmaurstad
Joe Paterno coached at Penn State from 1966-2011 and was considered one of the most successful football coaches of all time and was affectionately known as JoPa. That all changed when Jerry Sandusky, a former defensive coordinator under Paerno's watch was accused of sexually abusing boys while at Penn State. During an FBI investigation it is found Paterno had concealed the allegations and delayed in reporting them to the appropriate authorities. The public is shocked and his family is dumbfounded as the Sandusky scandal unfolds and Paterno only wants to focus "on the game." The film accurately depicts how unconscionable it is that a man of this standing and influence could have allowed allegations of child sex abuse to be given so little attention. I can remember growing up and watching the college bowl games with my Dad and how much we looked forward to it. After watching this film I'm not sure if I'll every quite feel the same about "the game" again.
prog-58654
I thought the movie was going to be your typical made for TV movie and that's exactly what we got. Not good, not bad just somewhere in the middle. That being said this movie wasn't meant to be uplifting, it was meant to be dark and brooding because of the subject matter. This movie absolutely should have been about Paterno because he is the story here. The most powerful person in the state who could have stopped this long ago but was too worried about his sport, his university and his legacy to lift a finger. Paterno was made out to be a idiot in this movie because when the scandal broke that's exactly how he acted, the portrayal is spot on. He played the old man card in the most transparent way possible, blaming his memory and feeble mindedness when asked questions after it broke that he knew what was going on. I kept expecting to hear him say no habla ingles towards the end. Far as I'm concerned he was portrayed accurately I could care less about his legacy and even the most loyal and diehard Nittany Lion fan should feel the same.
fanaticusanonymous
I'm not going to talk about the film as a film because, it seems to me, a pointless exercise. We all know the story. Painful, bitter, shattering. What we didn't know, what we couldn't even imagine is what was in Joe Paterno's heart in mind. Now we have a plausible, profoundly human version of it, in Al Pacino's eyes.
I saw a decent man of his generation confronted by the new approach to decency. I saw in his eyes a sort of resignation, the kind of resignation suffered by the decent man who knows he's guilty. Al Pacino is still breaking ground, still at the vanguard of his own profession. Hurrah !
Danny Blankenship
Again "HBO" does it with a beautiful and informative life like original movie as this latest called "Paterno" is hard hitting and revealing and very informative as it sheds light and exposes the cover up at Penn State when sexual abuse allegations became national news.However despite a montage and clips of footage of news about Jerry Sandusky the film is a focus on Joe Paterno(in another brilliant turn from Al Pacino) and how he and his family handle the scandal. As after many years of sexual abuse allegations are revealed against former assistant coach Sandusky, it shows Joe as a surprised yet conflicted and hurt man.The picture raises the question of moral obligation and it's a clear showcase of institutional failure as Paterno should have reported what he had known and not been so tight lipped. As it's clear the legacy of college football's all time wins coach has been badly damaged due to scandal and cover up. Also notable is Riley Keough as Sara Ganim who was the award winning reporter who helped break the scandal national. Overall good revealing film that's provocative and revealing and truth finding.
AD
