Leatherheads (PG-13, 2008)

If there was ever a doubt that George Clooney is an actor straight out of the Cary Grant playbook, LEATHERHEADS banishes it forever. As Dodge Connolly, a pro footballer back in the day when the game played second banana to its more refined, civilized collegiate counterpart, Clooney (who also directed) is winning. When his scrappy, beloved team, the Duluth Bulldogs, is disbanded, its members scattered to the mines and the fields, Dodge hatches a plan to save the league by recruiting war hero/college football legend Carter Rutherford (John Krasinski). His plan is a success: The fans descend in droves. But ace reporter Lexie Littleton (Renee Zellweger) is out to prove Rutherford a fraud, and pro football's ascent may prove its undoing, after all. That leaves Dodge -- who's falling in love with the fiery Lexie, whom Carter fancies, too -- in a pickle. What's a guy to do?

Krasinski, whom fans probably know best as The Office's sardonic Jim, steps into Carter's cleats with ease. Who knew he could hold his own with the impossibly debonair Clooney (who, even when he's rumpled, still looks suave)?. Zellweger pursues success with a panther-like zeal and ably trades barbs with Clooney, and they do have chemistry, though she's no Nora to his Nick.

Clearly, Leatherheads is a fun way to pass the time. The art direction is fantastic, it makes football history compelling, and it brings up interesting, still-relevant points about how the press shapes public figures and how those public figures allow half-truths to go uncorrected. And kudos to Randy Newman for the lively soundtrack. But somewhere along the way, you get a sense of promise unfulfilled. A small twist in the end that saves the day feels rushed, and the witty banter, while engaging, isn't really all that clever. Though you expect the movie to wrap up nicely, as movies of this genre do, it becomes clear that Leatherheads is more of an homage than a true original.

Studio: Universal Pictures
Director: George Clooney
Cast: George Clooney, John Krasinski, Renee Zellweger
Genre: Comedy
Run time: 113 minutes
Theatrical release: April 2, 2008
DVD release: September 22, 2008
MPAA Rating: PG-13
MPAA explanation: brief strong language.