Possums

"Possums" is formulaic, yet fantastic. An almost excessively cute film with a predictable ending, you'll like it nonetheless.

The "name" actors -- like Mac Davis, Andrew Prine, and Cynthia Sikes -- offer their usual, professional performances, but with that added enthusiasm which comes from really enjoying the story being told. Veterans like Clive Revill and Dennis Burkley are expertly cast in more minor roles. Also of note are a number of locals, folks like then-Nowata, Okla., newspaper publisher Ken Murnan and Coffeyville, Kan., musician Rodney Lay (formerly of Roy Clark's band) who took roles and gave credible performances. (I lived near the real-life town of Nowata, Okla., where this flick was shot.)

But most important here is the story -- a twist on the typical "local boy makes good" tale. The Nowata Possums don't exactly make "good," but in a town desperate for any sign of life from its high school football team, the boys make "good enough" for now, and finally offer Nowata a ray of hope for the future.

Heartwarming fun for the whole family, it deserves a whole lot more exposure than it has received.

I had never heard of this movie until seeing it in the $5.50 DVD bin at Wal Mart. Because it's a football movie, it grabbed my attention and the synopsis on the back of the DVD case seemed funny and clever to me, so I bought it! As it turned out, I discovered a rare gem! Made with a largely unknown cast on a phenomenally low budget of $1.4 million, "Possums" apparently got very little theatrical distribution, which is a shame. Hopefully its new DVD release will help it get the attention it deserves.

"Possums" is a family oriented comedy about a colossally inept high school football team, the Nowata Possums, and its eternally optimistic radio commentator, Will Clark (played by Mac Davis). Clark passionately loves the team and never loses his zeal for them despite their embarrassing play. My wife and I both see a lot of myself in that character!

But shortly after completing their 13th consecutive season without a touchdown, Nowata's snobbish mayor, Charlie Lawton (Andrew Prine), attempts to shut down the team. Clark leads a heroic effort to save the Possums, but at a town meeting, residents overwhelmingly side with the mayor and the school's football program is dropped.

The next Autumn, Clark is feeling broken, as if a big piece of his life is missing. To make matters worse, plans are underway to tear down the football field and build a Wal Mart type store there. Clark deals with his broken heart by going into the radio station studio and continuing to broadcast Possums games - even though there are none anymore! People think he's nuts and his wife, Elizabeth (Cynthia Sikes) is furious as he buys radio time to air the fictional games at the expense of their family hardware store.

Evntually Nowata loves Clark's broadcasts, which have exciting finishes that culminate in the Possums winning. But the claims of victory anger the opposing teams, especially state champion Prattville, who challenge the Possums to a real game. Pratville's coach is played by former Dallas Cowboys and Oklahoma University coach Barry Swizter - the only person in the movie other than Davis who I was previously familiar with - who gives a great performance.

The Nowata-Prattville game brings out an interesting sub-plot as Clark attempts to bring in his estranged son, John (Jay Underwood), to coach the Possums.

I was strongly expecting Nowata to win the game and thought that would be a bit too much of a stretch - a team that hasn't scored a touchdown in 14 years and hasn't played a game all season beating the state champions. The ending didn't turn out quite the way I expected but it did give me a warm fuzzy feeling! If you're looking for a good football movie, a heartwarming comedy or some great family entertainment, it's hard to beat "Possums!" 8/10.

It's too bad that a movie with a good heart and some potential for being inspirational or even important would succumb to ridiculous screen writing. Don't get me wrong, I am firmly on the side of 1.) inspirational fantasy, 2.)rebels who do things differently than the mainstream and 3.) appreciating honest effort for its own sake and not just record-of-success.

These are the themes and attributes that could have been examined and enjoyed in Possums, but instead, we see one vigilante (Will Clark) who is too short-sighted and delusional to see the gaping hole in the credibility of his actions: he has not addressed the issue of training, tactics and development of a better football team!

Without the consideration of better theory, practice and performance for the Possums, the picture becomes a joke.

Another issue I have with the movie is: How do the individuals (pseudo players) named on the weekly broadcasts feel about having their names used and reputations fictitiously and permanently altered? Clark could have been sued for using these names to promote his hardware store business.

It was painful for me to see the young men in street clothes playing an informal game at the field, emulating the fake Possums as they listened to the phony-but-well-meaning broadcast.

Screenwriter Max Burnett did a severe injustice to all involved in Possums by creating one of the most un-believable movies of all time.

Not giving up is one thing... Creating a fantasy world of delusion is quite another: Hard work and innovative thinking, instead are the answer. Application, not vacation.

This movie could have been great had it been re-written with plausibility: Interaction of the coaches, players, and community.

Clark should have been coaching the players himself, all along, being a former player. Then again, did the players even want to become better, individually, and as a team? We will never know. (I can dismiss the one quitter at the town meeting).

Three years prior to Possums, Max Burnett reportedly worked, in some capacity, on the good film, The Tuskogee Airmen. I can not find any reference to him on the IMDb page for that film. I hope he was just "additional hair" or "assistant grip".

This movie sends a message to the audience that if you do not achieve success, then retreat: Give up: Do anything but work harder. This is inexcuseable and reflects a mentality that is so blinded as to be clinical.

I live in a town that's about 20 mins from where this movie was filmed. I had 2 friends that were used as extras. I rented it simply because I knew one of the guys that played a football player in the movie. I was very much impressed with what I saw.

This movie is sweet, uplifting, and fun. My friends and I got into it as if it were really a game. This movie should have been pushed more than it was. It's a nice lil film...

9/10

I watched this film with my 11 year old grandson and we both enjoyed it a lot.

On the surface it is pretty similar to the standard Disney small town saga. There is the bumbling middle aged parent, the high school in-crowd looming over the new boy in town. There's the venal mayor and the greedy developer. There is the standard conflict of generations between father and son. And, of course, there's the cute girl whom the new boy is crazy about but is afraid to ask out.

But as things turn out the bumbling hero doesn't need any magic or duex machina to move things his way. He is quietly persistent, aware of his follies, and knows when to back off. The new kid in town is accepted in short order, both by the town's perennial loser of a football team and by the pretty girl. And wonder of wonders, the female teen love interest is an honest to goodness pretty girl, not some Britney clone.

The plot and writing stumble a bit toward the end but the ending is both satisfying and believable.