‘80 For Brady’ Review: Tomlin, Fonda, Moreno, and Field Score a Touchdown in Sweet Football Comedy
80 For Brady
PG-13: Brief strong language, some drug content, and some suggestive references
Runtime: 1 Hour and 38 Minutes
Production Companies: 199 Productions, Fifth Season, Watch This Ready
Distributor: Paramount Pictures
Director: Kyle Marvin
Writers: Sarah Haskins, Emily Halpern
Cast: Lily Tomlin, Jane Fonda, Rita Moreno, Sally Field, Tom Brady
Release Date: February 3, 2023
In Theaters Only
Just when you thought Brady couldn’t quit, returning from a brief retirement and heading to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, he had to up and produce a vanity project. Then, he announced his second retirement ahead of his vanity project’s release. I was utterly confused when I first saw the 80 For Brady trailer. Why was this studio comedy with multi-cam sitcom vibes getting an exclusive theatrical release when it should've had the Paramount+ logo at the bottom right corner of the screen? Preconceived notions aside, 80 For Brady pulled my cynical butt aside and delivered the first great campy comedy of the year.
In 2001, Lou (Lily Tomlin) completed her chemotherapy treatment with her best friends Trish (Jane Fonda), Maura (Rita Moreno), and Betty (Sally Field) at her side. Back in her living room with her friends, Lou turns on the TV and comes across Super Bowl XXXVI. Instead of changing the channel, the ladies agree to watch the game as a palate cleanser. They also become obsessed with quarterback Tom Brady. After the Patriots win, a new tradition is born: the girlies agree to gather around and watch Tom Brady do his quarterback thing every season.
Cut to 2017, and Lou’s entire living room is full of Patriots memorabilia. Now at the tender ages of 75-80, the friends feel a lack of fulfillment. Lou receives a doctor's note implying that her cancer could return. Trish—despite a career as the NFL’s E.L. James, writing erotic novels about Rob Gronkowski—goes through her umpteenth divorce and is burdened by romance. Maura is lonely as she grieves her late husband while residing in a retirement home with condescending caregivers. Betty, a responsible former MIT mathematician, only operates as her teacher husband’s (Bob Balaban) editor and fact-checker. With the Falcons vs. Patriots Super Bowl game looming, Lou presents a plan for her and her friends to ditch their lives and head to Houston for the game. After winning tickets from a local radio contest, the ladies head to Texas, and wild shenanigans ensue.
Do you know how elderly relatives squeeze your cheeks and affectionately call you the cutest thing? I wanted to reverse that and do it to the cast of 80 For Brady. It’s criminal to underestimate the talents of veteran actresses Lily Tomlin, Jane Fonda, Rita Moreno, and Sally Field. It’s no surprise that their comedic chops remain top-notch. Though throwing 9 to 5 and Grace and Frankie co-stars Tomlin and Fonda in a project together for the umpteenth time is technically cheating, Moreno and Field add to the familiar fun. Despite the broadest of comedic tropes that 80 For Brady is full of, the camaraderie shared between the cast keeps the laughs coming. Most of the comical punchlines were hilariously natural. The performers had a great time filming this movie, and it's hard not to get swept up in the fun.
Screenwriting duo Sarah Haskins and Emily Halpern (Booksmart) successfully avoid the female buddy comedy tropes, such as the overly dramatic squabble, the falling out scene, or prolonged liar reveals. To use Booksmart as an example, which veteran readers of this site know I hold dear to my heart, the 80 For Brady group operates on the same supportive sisterhood that Molly and Amy shared. They cuddle in hotel rooms and constantly say “I love you” to each other. Man, this film joins Jackass Forever as the sweetest depiction of adult friendship I’ve seen from a studio comedy in a while. The warmth of their friendship felt so refreshing, especially after watching a mean-spirited misfire like You People. 80 For Brady is aware of its familiarity and plays it straightforwardly without letting cynicism or self-awareness get in the way.
Of course, Tom Brady had to appear in the movie. Man, he is one BAD actor. The climax, which becomes drastic historical revisionism like Once Upon a Time… in Hollywood, features a major Brady cameo. His lifeless glare had me more lightheaded than M3GAN did during the “Titanium” acapella moment.
I had fun with 80 For Brady, and my rating might make you question my journalistic integrity. However, I will admit that some of its straight-up laziness ruins the pacing. When the women hit Houston, the movie begins a game of broad comedy bingo. It crosses off: the obligatory drug scene (gummy edibles taking the girls on what looks like an acid trip), a forced dance sequence, comically violent sequences, a prison breakout scene, etc. Heck, this film unapologetically features back-to-back deus ex machina moments.
I would’ve written this off as lazy if it wasn’t for how strongly the film encompasses the message of community amongst sports fans, which I’ve never felt from a sports film.
80 For Brady might be the first movie that encapsulates the connection shared by loved ones through sports. My late dad and I would always spend Super Bowl Sunday together. We’d feast on pizzas, homemade buffalo wings, chips, soda, beer, etc. I wasn’t always caught up with the season, so half of the game would be him explaining how it all went down. On the rare occasion that a NY team (let's be honest, only the Giants) made the playoffs, we would watch those games religiously. It was our love language. I haven’t tuned into a single football game since he passed last year, so 80 For Brady enveloped me with the treasured memories of watching football with my old man.
Carried by the delightful chemistry between Lily Tomlin, Jane Fonda, Rita Moreno, and Sally Field, 80 For Brady is an instant winner of a studio comedy that tributes the spirit of football and the loving relationships we share from it.
