samkan Short of captivating, TSR is truly intriguing. The acting, script and scenery are all excellent. What really keeps you watching, though, is the story that you hope (against hope) will go somewhere dramatically. It doesn't so you watch the end credits looking for another meaning. Such led me to read a lot of the other comments for TSR listed here.One viewer (Paul-8) says, "Not finding true love with women, Gid searches and grasps for intimacy the only way he has known: football". That is an interesting idea and supported by Gid's admission that he'd been with only prostitutes, never having been kissed by a woman. Also backing up this idea is Sky's belief that football types in the American West culture will never be intimate enough for a true relationship. Gid and Sky might disagree on which gender is at fault, though the result is the same.On reflection, I've a tough time buying the above idea, though truly such may be what the makers intended. The heavy dose of brutal climate seems clearly intended to serve as a key element. And its this Nature that shapes things. Gid is a closet homosexual, that's HIS nature. Floyd warns Gid early on that "it's gonna happen again". What's leading Gid's charge, the football or his sexual urges? I'm going with a more realistic approach, though it doesn't prevent this movie from being a very good one.Some notes. Check the deleted scenes? It shows Gid watching Roy's early HS football practices. Also factor in the jock "circle jerk". Finally, I share a viewer's feelings that mom crying naked on the bed lacks adequate treatment. However, I matched it along side Sky's loneliness and longing for intimacy.

rgtharp95 This movie has recently been playing on Showtime in my area and I was interested in watching it because I am a fan of both Ryan Gosling and David Morse. I first became a Ryan Gosling fan after seeing him in The Notebook. I have to say his performance in this film did not disappoint. David Morse's performance was one of his best. After reading all the comments and replies here I just wanted to add some of my thoughts about the film and what I felt the filmmakers were going for.First of all, I am not a fan of movies that are neatly bundled into a happy ending by the end of the film. I like those films that portray life as it really is and that make you THINK. The most memorable aspect of this film, indeed the most heartbreaking, is Gid's torment and loneliness in life. I don't think he was gay, just a lost soul looking for acceptance, friendship, indeed reciprocal love if you will, and a sense of purpose in life. Roy's character seemed to be looking for most of the same things. He had a father who wasn't there for him in life and a mother so bitter over the divorce that she was too busy trying to find love of her own to take the time to nurture her own son.I found the comments regarding the relationship between Gid and Studebaker very interesting re: were they homosexuals? Just because two men form a friendship in life doesn't mean they are gay. To me, Studebaker's jealousy over Gid's interest in Roy is just a natural human emotion. Haven't you at times been jealous when a friend of the same sex showed interest in someone new? Does that make you gay? Also, it doesn't seem there was anyone else in the town who gave a damn about him (Studebaker) so any threat to that bond frightened him. Their friendship was most likely just that of two lost souls trying to get by in life. It made me think so much more of Gid that he did not pass judgement on Studebaker -- he cared enough about his well being to try to stop his drinking, to give him his insulin injections, to try to get a room for him at the shelter on that last bitterly cold night.The scene in which Gid is hugging Roy and won't let go was very powerful. Roy, who had been told by others that Gid was gay, must have had that thought foremost in his mind and misinterpreted Gid's demonstration of affection. Perhaps Gid, remembering that Roy had just lost his father, wanted to show him that he is not alone, that there are people in the world who really care. Perhaps Roy reminded Gid of the boy who drowned and he was transferring his feelings of guilt over that tragedy into that embrace. For whatever the reason, Roy's embarrassment which quickly progressed to rage that Gid might be demonstrating some sort of homosexual intent, are a damning indictment of our society. Homophobia at it's worse.The scene in the hospital at the end of the movie when Gid takes Roy's hand and places it on his forehead was very moving. Roy did not pull his hand away; instead, in this simple, gentle gesture, the filmmakers were showing us that Roy had overcome his fear of demonstrating affection toward another as well as overcoming any homophobic thoughts he might have had about Gid.The acting was first rate all around. Compelling story line. Beautiful Montana scenery. Sound quality not the best but I would definitely recommend this film to others.

Silence91 "The Slaughter Rule" is an interesting, moving study of male relationships, with the movie portraying how the limits of male bonding are tested through past and natural emotion. Ryan Gosling is deep and effective as a teenage jock who's life has seen it's rocky roads, and then he meets a quiet, mystifying older man who wants to recruit him for a six man football team. What Gosling doesn't know is about the Man's past, which turns out to test their growing relationship. It's an often slow but alluring tale, absorbing you in to the story of characters that are both familiar and alien, and ending up with an odd but truthful ending that pulls out all the raw, closeted emotions that the two men have for each other, and it's home-movie-style video shoot and beautiful country scenery brings it to life.

IndieKing This is a prime example of a flick that breaks all the rules and is still damn good. You always hear filmmakers blather on about how they work their own way, and then you see their junk and think that maybe they should have read a book. This is not one of those times. it's an intense look into sports and rural life and how they interplay with one another in the Midwest. I was drawn to it by the title, and although it is about football, i could totally relate because when i played Youth baseball, I was on a team so bad one year that literally half of our games were called off early.Not that this has to do totally with sports, it is more about male relationships, as Roy, the lead character deals with the death of his father through his participation in six-man football. As the story unfolds, he is cut from his own team and hooks up with a new team coached by a strange outsider played by David Morse. he starts off just being intense, but then becomes creepy (there is a homoerotic undertone between coach and player). Ryan Gosling, who plays Roy is solid and Morse is terrific. This ain't "Remember The Titans" but still very much worth checking out. It got good press at this past year's Sundance Film Festival.