Friday Night Lights MPAA Rating: PG-13 Entertainment: +2 Content: -2

In this football drama based on the book by H.G. Bissinger, Gary Gains (Billy Bob Thornton) is the coach of Odessas Permian High School Panthers, the most successful football team in Texas in the 1980s. In this town, football is not just a game. Its a way of life. Parents hopes and dreams for their sons are that their team will make it to the state championship, giving them a shot at football scholarships. The pressure is so great for these young men to perform that they sometimes play when theyre hurt. Football coaches are forced to move when they do not produce a winning team. Every Friday night, the faithful fans fill the 20,000-seat Ratliff Stadium to cheer their team on to victory. But the pressure is too great for some of these young men, and they are pushed toward the breaking point.

How hard should parents push their children to perform? In one instance after a boy drops a ball, his father ridicules him and then tapes the ball to his hands with duct tape. In another case, a mother spends time with her son reviewing plays. Players are looked up to when they do well and looked down on when they fail. On a radio talk show after a loss, a caller says, They spend too much time learning in that school. The coach challenges the team to be perfect and then explains that the game is not about points but rather if you can look others in the eye with a clear conscience because you gave it your all. The team is seen reciting the Lords Prayer and is encouraged to have love in their hearts for their teammates. There are a couple of instances of sexual situations, and bad language is used throughout the film, which is the primary reason it is not recommended by Preview.

Preview Reviewer: Alan Boyer
Distributor: Universal