Billy Lynn's Long Halftime Walk

[fgoodwin]

I haven't seen the movie or read the book.

I did see some still pix of Faison, and the uniform she was wearing was clearly not a Dallas Cowboys Cheerleaders uniform, although it was obviously meant to suggest their traditional uniform.

Also, I read a comment in an online discussion forum, and the commenter said that, although the Cowboys are mentioned by name in the book, the team in the movie was never referred to as the Cowboys, and the team colors were not the familiar silver, blue, and white of the Cowboys.

This suggests that perhaps the Cowboys chose not to cooperate with the production of the movie. I'm guessing they are not listed in the credits.

Does anyone know the scoop?

 

[TheCount]

My guess is the NFL isn't a part of it at all, not specifically anyway.

It's probably for the best. Last thing you need is the NFL machine having a say in this sort of movie.

 

[gimmesix]

It probably has more to do with the NFL than the Cowboys. The NFL is very strict about controlling the use of its product.

 

[ragman]

Saw one review of this movie on TV. The reviewer said she didn't like the movie because director Ang Lee portrayed Texans as being ignorant.

 

[viman96]

Just watched the trailer on youtube you can can see they made some changes to the Star on the field and uniforms.

 

[fgoodwin]

Saw one review of this movie on TV. The reviewer said she didn't like the movie because director Ang Lee portrayed Texans as being ignorant.

That's what I was afraid of. I know the book was written as an anti-war novel, what I wasn't sure of, was it also anti-football, anti-Cowboys, anti-Dallas, etc. If anyone has seen the movie or read the book, I'd love to hear your take on it.

 

[fgoodwin]

I still haven't read the book, but I finally saw "Billy Lynn's Long Halftime Walk" a couple of days ago. If you want to see the movie to see how Jerry Jones, the Cowboys, and the DCC are treated (as I did), save your money.

The NFL and the Cowboys did not assist in production of the film, so the team colors are changed, the team itself is never called the "Cowboys", the two actual football players in the movie (JJ Watt and Richard Sherman) are not Cowboys, the cheerleader uniform in the movie is not the iconic DCC uniform, and the stadium is called Lone Star Stadium, although it does look like Texas Stadium from the outside (the story is set in 2004, before AT&T Stadium was built).

In fact, except for a few very brief action shots, and a brief scene in the locker room, the football team isn't featured at all. The owner character (played by Steve Martin) overdoes it with his Texas twang, but I expect that out of Hollywood, they think we are all rednecks. The owner is made to look like a greedy cheapskate.

Bottom line: as an anti-war film, it makes its point very well. But if you want to see scenes of the Cowboys and DCC, skip it.