Playing for KeepsMovie Reviews

No
Avg. Critic Score: 27 out of 100 Generally unfavorable reviews Metascore® based on all critic reviews
Information for Parents:
13 OK for kids 13+
Read Common Sense Media review

Critic scores range from 0 to 100, with higher scores indicating more favorable reviews.

  • 50
    San Francisco Chronicle | Mick LaSalle

    As a movie, it's not much. But it's the best showcase for his charm that Butler has ever had. Read full review

  • 50
    Chicago Sun-Times | Roger Ebert

    Jessica Biel all but steals the show as Stacie. Read full review

  • 42
    Entertainment Weekly |

    The central question of the movie becomes: Can George triumph over his inability to stop hot women from throwing themselves at him? Read full review

  • 40
    The Hollywood Reporter | Stephen Farber

    This is a good premise for a comedy, but somewhere along the way, it got diluted and turned into a sappy, feel-good story of family togetherness. Read full review

  • 40
    New York Daily News | Elizabeth Weitzman

    Perhaps, if this movie fails, studios will finally accept that we all deserve better. Biel knows it already, and Butler keeps up in their scenes together. Read full review

  • 38
    Philadelphia Inquirer | Carrie Rickey

    This saga of a former soccer star coaching his son's team in order to worm his way back into the heart of his ex-wife aims to be warm and funny. Alas, it is mechanical and exhausting, like a windup toy of a monkey crashing together cymbals for 106 minutes while incrementally winding down. Read full review

  • 38
    Boston Globe | Wesley Morris

    This isn't a genre-less character study, it's myopic romantic comedy, and watching a woman of Catherine Zeta-Jones's easy carnality and fathomless beauty compete for the attention of Gerard Butler, who's pining for Jessica Biel, is dismaying, like spotting Anna Wintour in line at a soup kitchen. Read full review

  • 38
    USA Today | Claudia Puig

    The shenanigans of randy soccer moms and their obnoxious blowhard husbands are intended as comic relief. But the sappy plot of this formulaic romantic comedy is just as silly as its inane attempts at farce. Read full review

  • 30
    NPR | Mark Jenkins

    Style can be a risky thing in a movie like this, which aspires above all to inoffensiveness. Originally titled "Playing the Field," which was deemed too racy, this rom-com would have been more aptly renamed "Running Out the Clock." Read full review

  • 0
    Rolling Stone | Peter Travers

    Just stay away. It's awful. Read full review

View more reviews for Playing for Keeps on Metacritic

Information for Parents
Common Sense Media says OK for kids 13+ Ho-hum sports romcom lacks both laughs and chemistry.
What Parents Need to Know Parents need to know that Playing for Keeps is a romantic comedy about a faded former soccer star (Gerard Butler) who ends up coaching a youth soccer team in an effort to reconcile with his 9-year-old son after years of being an absentee dad. There are several scenes with people drinking (and sometimes getting a bit tipsy) and a moderate amount of swearing (including "s--t"). Some of the soccer moms pursue George quite aggressively and are anything but subtle about their intentions -- up to and including one who sneaks into his bedroom and strips down to her underwear while waiting for him to come home. Expect some kissing and the implication of a sexual hook-up, but nothing graphic is shown on-screen. While the movie has worthwhile themes about the importance of teamwork, parenting, and responsibility, women are mostly portrayed as needy and manipulative, which undercuts the positive take-away.
  • Families can talk about how Playing for Keeps portrays George as a dad. What do you think of his parenting? What does he learn during the film? How does he compare to other movie/TV dads?
  • How does the movie depict the women in George's life? Is it fair/accurate? What about the men?
  • Why do you think George and Stacie originally broke up? Should they get back together?
The good stuff
  • message true3 Positive messages: Playing for Keeps has messages about the importance of being a good parent, the value of teamwork, and the possibility of growing and changing enough to be worthy of a second chance. The movie makes the point that the biggest part of parenting is simply being there, a lesson that's at first hard for George to grasp as he tries to reconcile with his 9-year-old son after years of being a mostly absent dad. But he tries hard and makes progress.
  • rolemodels true2 Positive role models: George is a charming flake who's irresistible to the local soccer moms. But he's a harder sell to his ex-wife and their son, who know that he can't be relied upon. But eventually he grows up (a bit) as he tries to reconcile with them both and learns some important lessons about life and responsibility. Unfortunately, most of the women in the movie are portrayed as needy and manipulative.
What to watch for
  • violence false1 Violence: Two men get into a pushing and shoving fight and end up wrestling on the ground. Shoving during a soccer match. One scene features characters watching a gory horror movie.
  • sex false2 Sexy stuff: Several scenes show women blatantly flirting with and throwing themselves at George, and he doesn't always fend them off. It's implied that he hooks up with one of them. One scene shows a woman in bed in her underwear, propositioning a man. Kissing. A married man discusses his philandering, and some of the women pursuing George complain of their unhappy marriages.
  • language false3 Language: Relatively infrequent swearing includes "s--t," "crap," "hell," "ass," "damn," "oh my God," and "wankers."
  • consumerism false3 Consumerism: A red Ferrari convertible has a starring moment, but George usually drives around in an Alfa Romeo. Another character is frequently seen in her Jeep. Several scenes show Apple products, including an iPhone and a Mac laptop. Other products are visible in the background of some scenes, including cans of Coca-Cola. Both Nike and Adidas sportswear get some prominent screen time, and a bottle of Gatorade makes an important cameo.
  • drugsalcoholtobacco false3 Drinking, drugs and smoking: Several scenes show people drinking wine, beer, champagne, and liquor -- at parties, during meals, or while relaxing at home. A few characters get a bit tipsy at a nostalgic lunch. One character is implied to be somewhat drunk most of the time.
An independent nonprofit dedicated to providing families the information they need to help kids thrive in a world of media and technology. © Common Sense Media Inc. 2010. All rights reserved.

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