guacamoledeath Replace Clarence the angel with football, and you have "Touchback." Except instead of all the good qualities that motivate George Bailey to time and again sacrifice his plans for fame and fortune, you're left with a has-been quarterback who blames everyone but himself for his series of misfortunes since his crippling last high school football game.Consider George Bailey of "It's a Wonderful Life." He can't wait to leave his hick hometown for a successful career in the city. Yet, at every opportunity, he instead selflessly chooses to sacrifice his plans in order to come to the aid of his neighbors and the town itself. Years go by. He never gets to leave Bedford Falls, and slowly grows bitter. When his life hits rock bottom, he opts for suicide. At the last instant, he gains new perspective and finally appreciates how his life turned out, despite his long-gone grandiose plans. As he makes this realization, the entire town turns out to help him in his time of need.Enter Scott Murphy of "Touchback." He can't wait to leave his hick hometown for a successful career as a quarterback. But when he sustains a crippling injury in a high school football game, it derails his far- fetched plans of one day playing for the NFL. Years go by. He never gets to leave Coldwater, and slowly grows bitter. When he finds himself at rock bottom, he opts for suicide. At the last instant, he gains new perspective and finally appreciates how his life turned out, despite his long-gone grandiose plans. As he makes this realization, the entire town turns out to help him in his time of need.The difference is, Scott Murphy's only great dilemma in life is whether to choose a successful football career or a successful marriage. Either decision enriches his personal life, so it's really not much of a sacrifice, and doesn't garner much sympathy from the audience. Sure, he could have more money as a professional football player, but when the alternative is sticking with the future mother of his children, it's really not much of a choice. Furthermore, neither decision is for the benefit of the town or its people. Whatever he chooses, it's motivated by selfishness. Scott Murphy is all about Scott Murphy.Whereas George Bailey's livelihood is repeatedly hindered by his self- sacrifice for the sake of his neighbors, Scott Murphy's own series of poor life choices keep him struggling to support his family. The only plan he ever had in life was to play football. The only act of kindness he ever visits upon his friends is dropping them off unceremoniously at their houses as a designated driver. So, between the two protagonists, George Bailey is hands down the more generous, morally upright individual. Scott Murphy is just a bitter, poor bean farmer who can't stop reliving his final high school game.

dansview This is not a good movie, but....it has many lovely qualities. That comment supports my theory that just because a movie is bad overall, does not mean you will waste your time watching it. I take note of setting, photography, acting, and any aspects of plot that jar significant thoughts in me.I'll go the next step...this movie is terrible, but I had a good time. I don't regret my Red Box purchase at all. It cost 4 dollars less than it would have at Blockbuster too.Before I go any further, let me call this a cross between Peggy Sue Got Married, It's a Wonderful Life, and Dancer, Texas.The movie takes place at the end of a high school football season in Ohio. I am not a Meteorologist, but wouldn't it be kind of cold? There is no indication of cold weather.The main character is one of the top football quarterbacks in the state, heading for a scholarship at Ohio State University, a football powerhouse. But he is only 5'10 and one half, according to IMDb's bio. of the actor who played him. That is clear throughout the film, as he looks up, literally, to his coach and teammates. Elite quarterbacks are never that height, with the exception of Doug Flutie. They are usually between 6'2 and 6'7. So I had to try to ignore that.The character goes back in time, but there is exactly ZERO explanation for how that happened. A 10-year-old could come up with that plot device without explanation. Just have a character fall asleep or pass out, and wake up in the past. It's like not doing your math homework, but expecting a passing grade anyways. It was too hard to think of some kind of Science Fiction explanation, so they just said, "Forget about it." The characters were around 35 in real life, while playing high school students. Perhaps it would have been wiser to have young actors play the youthful versions of our protagonists.Almost every cliché of a film about a broke farmer and/or small town football, is exploited in this film: loan problems, crop failure,corny locker room speeches, buddies, jocks, nerds, shallow cheerleaders, you name it.OK. Enough criticism. What I loved about the picture, was the emphasis on the unity and subtle delights of a small rural town. I also loved the fact that a couple winds up together due to happenstance, because that is true to life. Often we plan for one thing, but life happens while we are making those other plans, as the saying goes. Unlikely couples are more common than we realize.The acting is decent. Kurt Russell's character is clichéd, but he has a few good moments, when he explains the value of a small town. The girl from the T.V. show Two and a half Men was excellent. She looked the part and pulled off the role with commitment. Christine Lahti's role was not super demanding, but she gave it some soul, and the main guy, Brian Presley, whom I have never heard of, did an adequate job, considering the fact that jocks are not known for a range of emotions.I would have liked to see him show more emotion, but perhaps the writers and Director did not ask for that.Overall, a film worth watching, for its' basic message of appreciation for the life and love you have, mild football action, and a quaint setting.

kalesha whitner Touchback of the Football Nation This was a pretty good movie. If you play sports or football, this would be a perfect movie for any high school sports player. But there were some part of the movie that could have been better, but overall a pretty good movie. It was slow but interesting, I honestly wish there were more suspense in the beginning but in the end, it was a good movie. The main character is Scott Murphy, he live in Ohio. A small town called Coldwater. He went to Coldwater high school; he was a good student and the star football player, he was also injured in a game and it put a strain on his life. It really made his life hard. This movie had a lot of good moments; the football games were really cool and really interesting. I also think that the story is slow but as you actually watch the movie, then it starts to get better but there were some other good parts to the movie. I think after the injury, it was okay but as the movie got to an end, it was good. The effects and the music in the movie were perfect. The setting was also good because it was based out of Coldwater, Ohio. So that was a plus, I also think the plot was a good idea and I think the animation was amazing. Its effects, music and game footage were the best parts.There were A LOT of negative things about this movie as well, it was slow, boring, not interesting and confusing. It was honestly one of the worst high school football movies ever; it was boring and didn't have a lot of footage of the football games. It was like the beginning was confusing at first; it pretty much stayed that way through the whole movie. Also, it was in need of improvements and changes. Like I said, it needed a lot of improvements. It was boring and not interesting. The characters were okay for the movie I guess. I think if they would've had better and more experienced actors, then it could've been a way better film. Scott Murphy was a good actor for his part, I think for his part in the movie, it was easy, so pretty much anyone could've aced that part. I think the audience is for teens in football or involved in sports. It's a good movie for high schoolers. It could've had more famous football players or just experienced football players. Also, could've had longer football footage or more football games. The movie could've been better and it needed a lot of improvements but it was an okay movie. I guess it just wasn't an interesting movie could've had better moments and better actors. I don't recommend this movie to anyone who likes sports movies.

tdean-498-939289 Touchback gets lost in flashback.Touchback was slow to start. Nothing seemed to change all the way through the movie. The flashback didn't change anything in the end. The future was not changed at all. Scott Murphy was called Mr. Football during high school. He was the star player on Coldwater's football team. Coldwater was a small farming town with very little to offer. His dreams were to go to Ohio State to play football and to live in a big city.Scott Murphy permanently injured his leg playing football. He was crippled and in a leg brace. He was a fireman and a farmer. He didn't make a lot of money to raise his family. He and his wife had two children. They were both girls. His high school football coach, Coach Hand was played by Kurt Russell in the movie. Scott was offered a scholarship to Ohio State. This was his dream and what he wanted. This could only happen if he was not injured and able to play on the team. His dreams were shattered but new dreams emerged.His mother worked so he would have a truck to drive to collage. He really liked his truck and kept it. His mother never watched his games. She knew he was good.The parts I liked about the movie were the football game scenes. The action shots showed the players working as a team to score and win the game. The parts of the movie I did not like were the scenes of the town and farm fields. I don't care for small towns and country living.I thought that Scott was portrayed very well in the movie. Coach Hand, played by Kurt Russell, did a very good job. He played a really good coach in the movie.I would only recommend the movie to people who like small town football teams. I would rate this movie, Touchback, as a three star movie.