Down the years there have been some pretty good sporting movies - Grand Prix, Slap Shot, Rocky, Raging Bull, Chariots Of Fire, and Any Given Sunday spring to mind. One sport that film-makers haven't done to death is beach volleyball. It's not a sport I know much about (in England, where I live, it is not a widely played game), but clichéd and totally predictable hokum like "Side Out" hardly encourages the uninitiated to want to become fans of it. Perhaps the biggest issue I have with this movie is the way that it suggests an inexperienced kid could go from zero to hero in the beach volleyball rankings within the space of two weeks. You don't have to know ANYTHING about ANY sport to know that things like that simply don't happen. Becoming a champion at anything takes years of sweat, tears, dedication and sheer determination. "Side Out" is an insulting movie - to its sport, to sports generally, and to its audience.
Milwaukee law student Monroe Clark (C. Thomas Howell) comes to Los Angeles for the summer, where he is meant to be gaining some work experience with his wealthy Uncle Max (Terry Kiser). It isn't long before the cocksure Monroe starts sniffing around for the affections of Samantha (Courtney Thorne-Smith). And it only takes him a little longer to make friends with Zack Barnes (Peter Horton), a faded beach volleyball player who had the talent to reach the top but never quite made it. As the boring paper-work piles up, Monroe becomes more and more interested in learning how to play beach volleyball and he believes Zack is just the man to show him the ropes. Pretty soon, Zack's passion for the game is re-ignited, leading to him and Monroe becoming a two-man team who enter an AVP tournament. Will the old pro and the young pretender be able to battle their way to victory?
A quick summary of the plot synopsis is enough to confirm that "Side Out" is a formulaic, predictable sports drama of the most simple-minded kind. If you find yourself doubting at any point what the outcome of the movie will be, then you ain't seen many films of this kind! But it is not merely the predictability that spoils the film. For one thing, the people who made the movie are so much in love with California that they virtually paint it as paradise on earth, sugar-coating every facet of life in Los Angeles with embarrassingly over-the-top glitz and glamour. Another weakness is the performances - Howell's cocky youngster comes across as too smug and irritating to truly root for; Horton acts better from the neck down; Thorne-Smith is undone by a typically weak "pretty face" role; and Kiser still seems to think he's playing a corpse (as he did in the previous year's "Weekend At Bernie's"). Those knowledgeable about the sport might find some pleasure in spotting several real players in guest roles, and those who admire toned female bodies in tight bikinis will find sufficient eye candy to occupy their mind. But for everyone else, "Side Out" is a tiresome trip down a road travelled too often in cinematic terms - the sport might be different, but the clichés and the outcome are as obvious as ever!
Milwaukee law student Monroe Clark (C. Thomas Howell) comes to Los Angeles for the summer, where he is meant to be gaining some work experience with his wealthy Uncle Max (Terry Kiser). It isn't long before the cocksure Monroe starts sniffing around for the affections of Samantha (Courtney Thorne-Smith). And it only takes him a little longer to make friends with Zack Barnes (Peter Horton), a faded beach volleyball player who had the talent to reach the top but never quite made it. As the boring paper-work piles up, Monroe becomes more and more interested in learning how to play beach volleyball and he believes Zack is just the man to show him the ropes. Pretty soon, Zack's passion for the game is re-ignited, leading to him and Monroe becoming a two-man team who enter an AVP tournament. Will the old pro and the young pretender be able to battle their way to victory?
A quick summary of the plot synopsis is enough to confirm that "Side Out" is a formulaic, predictable sports drama of the most simple-minded kind. If you find yourself doubting at any point what the outcome of the movie will be, then you ain't seen many films of this kind! But it is not merely the predictability that spoils the film. For one thing, the people who made the movie are so much in love with California that they virtually paint it as paradise on earth, sugar-coating every facet of life in Los Angeles with embarrassingly over-the-top glitz and glamour. Another weakness is the performances - Howell's cocky youngster comes across as too smug and irritating to truly root for; Horton acts better from the neck down; Thorne-Smith is undone by a typically weak "pretty face" role; and Kiser still seems to think he's playing a corpse (as he did in the previous year's "Weekend At Bernie's"). Those knowledgeable about the sport might find some pleasure in spotting several real players in guest roles, and those who admire toned female bodies in tight bikinis will find sufficient eye candy to occupy their mind. But for everyone else, "Side Out" is a tiresome trip down a road travelled too often in cinematic terms - the sport might be different, but the clichés and the outcome are as obvious as ever!