GRACIE [PG-13]
“Life is like a shit sandwich,” says Elisabeth Shue to her young co-star Carly Schroeder, “and everyone gets to take a bite.” The year is 1978, and women, though officially equal to men, are still relegated to eating it on the b-team in a male dominated society. Schroeder, as Shue proxy Grace Bowen, attempts to bridge that gender gap by playing on a competitive male soccer team as a means of honoring her late brother. The film, based around the lives of co-stars Elizabeth and Andrew Shue, follows Gracie and her family as they attempt to deal with the pain of losing one of their own so tragically. Gracie’s father, played with conviction by Dermot Mulroney (Georgia Rule), internalizes his grief, shutting himself off from his family emotionally. Initially unwilling to train his daughter, her steadfast determination eventually wins him over, and the audience is treated to an obligatory but enjoyable training montage. In addition to intense physical demands, Gracie is forced to endure social pressure from both her classmates and a governing body of adults, which threatens to keep her from achieving her, umm…goal. Though fun and uplifting, the movie cannot ultimately, uhh…kick its indecisiveness. Seemingly targeted to an adolescent female audience it contains, perhaps, one too many suggestive scenes which makes it somewhat inappropriate for younger audiences. It should find a comfortable niche, however, in the needful embrace of female athletes everywhere, but would have benefitted from adhering to a more stringent, oh, man…game plan. –Gregory Johnson

Read our interview with Andrew & Elisabeth Shue and Carly Schroeder.