We’re finally hours away from the biggest day in American entertainment. For months, millions of people across the country have been keeping themselves entertained by closely following the careers of their favorite athletes. They had watch parties every week; They tracked statistics online; They bet thousands of dollars. And it all comes down to one inevitable, seamless event in February: the theatrical release 80 for Brady.
If you thought for a second that I might be talking about the Super Bowl, you simply weren’t paying attention (or, you came here without reading the headline). This year, the biggest day in sports is overshadowed by the biggest weekend in cinema. Jane Fonda, Rita Moreno, Sally Field and Lily Tomlin will be hitting theaters this weekend for a much more interesting performance than anything Rihanna’s “Mike” will “pick up” this weekend.
pride of 80 for Brady One of those inevitable popup ads is some kind of clickbait (yet vaguely meaningless) headline designed to attract internet users. “Four grannies go to the Super Bowl, what happens next will warm your heart.” Moreover, in the case of 80 for Brady, there is no virus that will instantly download to your hard drive for your curiosity. It’s a fantasy world where we get everything we’re promised, four lovable seniors are rewarded for being big enough to have the time of their lives.
In the movies it may seem relatively straightforward, but it is 80 for Brady Offering: A dose of simple, cheeky fun.
80 for Brady It introduces us to four best friends in the late seventies or early eighties. Lou (Tomlin), Trish (Fonda), Maura (Moreno) and Betty (Field) gather at Lou’s house every Sunday during football season to watch their beloved New England Patriots play.
The tradition began years before the accident when the women all helped to care for Lou after his final round of chemotherapy. A dead remote battery forces them to endure the landing channel’s football game, until they all become so enamored of hunky Tom Brady that they start watching happily and tune in to the game.
The four best friends, who have dubbed their group the “80 for Brady Club,” have spent so many games together that they’ve even developed their own superstition. Trish has to stand on the ladder at kickoff; Lou wants to spill a bowl of chips; Maura needs to drink her tea.
Photos by Scott Garfield/Paramount Pictures
Their eccentricities have strengthened their bond over the years, and when the Patriots advance to the 2017 Super Bowl, Lue decides it’s time for them to take their love of the game to the next level in person. The true group of loyal friends on which the film is based never make it to football’s biggest game, yet the film gives them a wild vision of their wildest dream.
This, of course, proves more difficult than expected. Super Bowl tickets don’t come cheap. Each woman comes up with her own plan to try to win tickets through a local radio contest, but Lou is more inspired to team up with them. She buys the tickets herself, convincing her friends that they have won the contest. But moving from Massachusetts to Texas for the game presents its own challenges. Maura has to move out of the retirement home she’s been living in after her husband’s death, while Betty needs to draw some clear boundaries with her loving but needy husband.
It’s all just a rollercoaster ride to the top as Brady hits the 80 street, ready to embark on a thrill ride of twisty fun. Although she avoids taking too many risks, 80 for Brady Sounds a lot more believable than disappointing.
There are plenty of gags in the script that come close to raunchy, like Trish’s penchant for writing Rob Gronkowski fanfiction. In a particularly funny moment for Field, Betty urges the other women in the group to call the fanny pack where she keeps her Super Bowl tickets “strap-on.” Wearing it around her shoulder changes its name, as it is more responsible to be “strap-on” than close to her fanny.
Photos by Scott Garfield/Paramount Pictures
Every actor in 80 for Brady A version of himself playing with ease. Field’s character is reliable and headstrong; Moreno is adventurous and energetic; Fonda is sexy and commanding; And Tomlin is feisty but sweet. The film isn’t complicated by any stretch of the imagination for these actresses, but it doesn’t have to be. 80 for Brady One of its ultimate luxuries is that it feels like it’s happening far left of reality. There isn’t an ounce of work that his audience has to do; This is true sit-down-and-comfort fare.
Still, for such a simple film, there’s certainly a lot going on 80 for Brady To fill all 98 minutes of it. Cameos and familiar faces keep the pace of the film consistent like a fully charged jazzy scooter. Guy Fieri makes a pilgrimage through Flavortown to grace the film with his presence, helping our heroes get from point A to point B on several occasions, as well as providing a delightful calm to Maura when she accidentally trips too hard on cannabis gummies at Fieri’s grand location. Super Bowl Party.
There’s also Harry Hamlin and Billy Porter, who play two fictional proxies of their real-life selves, who exist solely to help the Brady Club 80 reach their ultimate goal: a prime spot in the biggest game of the year.
But it’s Moreno, Fonda, Tomlin and Field who pour 80 for Brady With its eternal charm. Each of them is so game to play that they turn the movie into their own can’t-miss sport—more heartwarming than any eight-layer Super Bowl party dip for those of us who love to help mother cinema. Each actress is so committed, so embrace the most silly jokes to their fullest potential. These are the real MVPs (Most Vibrant Pensioners).
80 for Brady Anyone paying to see it in a theater is smart enough to know it won’t be taken too seriously. Even its most sincere moments are fleeting, always returning to the strength of its core club’s wonderful friendships rather than being too whiny or saccharine.
Photos by Scott Garfield/Paramount Pictures
This leads to some thrilling acting efforts from Tom Brady, who does his best to convey even an ounce of emotion from his lifeless lizard eyes, while all four members of the main cast can swing it with a split-second look. As if there weren’t enough reasons to see this movie in theaters, I don’t know that I—or the audience I was with—laughed harder than when Brady gave Tomlin an emotional speech in 2023. movie
Fortunately, that’s easy to forget 80 for Brady Exists as an egotistical vanity project for its title creator. His witty humor and dedicated performance help the film transcend any misplaced narcissism and instead settle nicely into the pantheon of wacky road trip comedies.
Why on earth anyone would want to spend a lazy Sunday afternoon in February in front of their television watching a football game—when they could be watching this movie instead—is beyond me. Who cares which team wins the Super Bowl? 80 for Brady It’s a sure win where no one loses and everyone goes home a champion.
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