8O FOR BRADY
Shame on Jane,
80 for Brady was much better than I thought it would be. Because it is about four women sharing their journey to the end of their lives, and smiling all the way. But why Jane Fonda, took such a mindless part after she has such a body of work boggles my mind. She has won two Oscars, seven Golden Globes, fought causes like Vietnam, and began her successful gyms for Tom Hayden to support his anti-war movement, however, I’m afraid her values have disintegrated. She is far above the mediocrity of this material. Her part was so mindless. She did not need the money I suspect, but this kind of cheap publicity and attention is so beneath her. Her glamorous man-eating part allowed Sally Fields to steal the film because of Field's sincerity and genuine moments. 80 for Brady is an endless attempt at humor, silly jokes, dumb situations celebrating the NFL, and slapstick eating contests, but the love of four women held the film together, not the writing, which was really abysmal. Lily Tomlin improved as her part had some meat to it which she met with aplomb. While Rita Moreno at the age of 90 held her own against the other stars that were once shining but tarnished by this film
And as far as Tom Brady, whose final words were, "Why quit when you still got it?" Well, the reason he should quit is he has two children and an incredible wife who wants him to live. His wife left him due to his gargantuan ego and need for a stadium's attention. Sad. He is 45 and could suffer a concussion any minute, broken bones, and severe brain damage. but his ego and need to be hero-worshiped keep him back on the field when he is too old to play. His values have him back on the field because he’d rather have the attention and the roar of the crowd than his wife and children. Double shame on Tom Brady. So to make a movie around the hero worship of Tom Brady is wrong.
I don’t really care that it’s a true story because I find four women worshiping a football player in their 80s is banal and absurd. Mindless. When you go through life and you reach 80 you have a lot of wisdom or you should. Apparently, these four women lack wisdom. Instead, they worship and are amused by a pigskin being thrown around a stadium with brutality and violence being the focus of the game. This is sad and empty. I wonder what kind of lives these women led if they enjoy so much brutality and testosterone on the loose. They are turned on by the outside of a man, his brawn, and muscular strength, instead of his mind. Almost like teenagers. When we grow older, I would hope we learn to respect the mind over the body. I had an affair with a fat old man, and he was terrific, because he had a great mind, and I enjoyed those years with him more than the All-American football player to whom I was engaged who became a coach for the Steelers who won two super bowls because I could not talk to him.
And as far as brain damage and its relationship to football. I’ve been there. I have hydrocephalus, water on the brain, and could’ve gotten it from being beaten by a man I thought I loved. And you can get water on the brain from football by being beaten by a player for a sport you think you love. Going through a brain operation is not fun. Not being able to walk afterward for a long time is not fun. Aviciis's song Wake Me Up was the first song I was able to dance to when I first was able to walk and I'll never forget it. These football players are going to go through brain injuries, concussions, and possibly brain operations. I don’t find the sport fun. I don’t find a movie about this sport fun. I value my health, and I value the health of the players, and I hate to see them beaten up for sport. Shamefully I admit that when I was a cheerleader, one of our favorite cheers was, "Hit 'em again harder. HARDER!" And this is what football is about-- beating each other up. This is not a sport. This is savage abuse and making a movie about it, absurdly a comedy-- where you hero-worship a player-- in my opinion is pathetic.
