Une chance pour tous

Amanda Peterson! Peter DeLuise! Jami Gertz! AMANDA PETERSON! Wow man.

This is a kick down memory lane. Amanda Peterson, afflicted with "The

Limp": "No - YOU be careful. I'M fine. I'll walk again - normally -

someday. And I'll ride a horse again. And maybe I'll even, dance, again

someday. So don't you or any of the rest of you here - feel sorry for

me, because I won't f**king stand for it." (massive applause from

debating audience).

Can you feel it? CAN YOU FEEL IT? Leave your cynicism at the door and

let this movie wash over you like warm bath water. I don't know what

else to say.

Now to you, the layman this movie may seem like a contrived piece of crap. Sure the acting is awful, the writing cliche, and the plot looks like something thrown together from some beverly hills 90210 episodes. And I know that for any debators out there the accuracy to real debate is slim to none. But if you are a sensitive person you can look deeper and see what is probably the most compelling story ever conceived. This is a true morality play. The rich kid dies after trying to rape a girl, granted the rape made no sense but go with it, kirk cameron pulls off a southern accent!!!! And those harvard jerks! THEY HAVE SLICKED BACK HAIR. If you don't see this movie you will go to hell.

Granted this movie is a horrible representation of college debate. That being said, the movie itself is not horrible. It's not a thought-provoking power movie either. However, unlike the previous review I enjoyed this movie for it's entertainment value. If you enjoy dramatic movies that are a bit "cheesy" then you will enjoy this movie. It's not ever going to win any awards, but it was not produced to either. Do not take this movie so seriously and you will get some enjoyment out of it. It also does deal with some serious issues and although others may not like the way it was done, those you have a personal attachment to the topic will take comfort in knowing that the emotional side was handled in a considerate fashion. All in all, there are positives to this movie, so don't take it as a "How To" on college debate, as it was not meant to be one and does not portray it accurately. It's just a movie, get over it already!

This film brings up the tail end of the 1980s "John Hughes-ish" movies about earnest teens and young adults. As a tail-ender, it's not as rewarding as The Breakfast Club, St. Elmo's Fire, or even Some Kind of Wonderful. It's not a great movie, not even that good of a movie, but if you like its kinfolk, you may enjoy it.

One caution: its portrayal of college debate is utter fiction. Do not imagine for a moment that college debate resembles this film's view of it in the slightest.

OK already! The debate scenes don't reflect true-to-life college debating environments. The characters were clichéd and one dimensional. Some of it is preachy. I grant you all that, other reviewers. But first of all, what a cool concept for a movie...a debate team at Pepperdine. I love it. I consider myself creative, but I could never have come up with that idea. Score one for the screenwriter, or whomever pitched the idea. Roy Scheider is so appealing on screen. I love that guy. I understand he was a Liberal in real life. I don't care. I still like him.His best scene is when he tells a story about his mother. Kirk Cameron's best scene is when he is trying to get his debate partner and date to loosen up in his dorm room. He played it with down-to-earth realism and sincerity. The biggest mistake of the film is Cameron's accent. Why not just make his character be from a small town in Eastern Oregon, OR hire an actor who is actually from Oklahoma or Texas?? His earnest attempt to do the accent drew away from his effort to portray the other aspects of his character. Abortion?? Come on. College kids debating that before the Supreme Court in the late 80s? What a lazy choice. It was like the writer or the film makers didn't want to rack their brains a bit and come up with something more original. That choice kind of ruined the film for me, although I realize that the whole Jami Gertz character was based on it's tie to this issue. Wow, Tim Quill nailed the noblesse oblige patrician with a hankering for the written word. But can't you be both a politician and a writer at the same time, or maybe write, before or after a political career? His character was choosing between the two career paths, but maybe he didn't need to. The politician Fred Grandy was an actor on the Love Boat before politics. Fred Thompson combined the two. Law and Order and politics. So I don't buy the conflict. Get rid of the sketch artist. I didn't get it at all. There is a kid who keeps sketching the people we see, but he never speaks. It was gratuitous. I loved the use of the classic 80s tune "Forever Young," set to a driving sequence on the Pacific Coast Highway, as well as the Celine Dion opening track, long before her fame. Watch it for its' camp, for the early resume of Gertz and Cameron, for the beach setting, and for the unique plot vehicle, college debating.