I never particularly liked this film but I thought it was alright – an interesting insight to the world of sports agents and an interesting kind of romance to boot. Watching the film now it’s a disappointing romantic comedy with a tacky message of soul-searching and selflessness thrown in.
I’ll admit Maguire’s character is interesting. A man who makes a living from projecting the idea that everything he does is for his client’s benefit when really he is seeking to run his own business as successfully as possible. It takes the love of a simple woman and the needs of a demanding but talented football player for him to realise a little generosity and compassion. Unfortunately, the film shies away from this and makes it just about a guy who can’t be alone, who loves his business because he gets to schmooze and know every face in the room, and who will do anything to keep a woman at his side.
There are memorable moments: “Show me the money!”, “You had me at hello”, or even singing ‘Freefalling’ at the top of your lungs in the car (as I have done in the past), but none of these are particularly great moments. There is a good early performance from Renee Zellweger, before she went weird and skinny. Cuba Gooding Jr got an Oscar for his exuberant turn but Tom Cruise is just irritating and unlikeable, coming across as smug even when he’s supposed to have had his eyes opened.
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