It’s the Prisoners vs. the Guards in the ultimate field of battle: the football gridiron, in Robert Aldrich’s The Longest Yard. Burt Reynolds is Paul “Wrecking” Crewe, a disgraced former NFL pro imprisoned for drunk driving, cornered by a sadistic warden into QB-ing against his prized team of correctional officers. Crewe has to put together a ragtag team or face an extended sentence in this abusive Georgia prison (filmed on location). It’s a hard won chance to take a free crack at the guards in what’s supposed to be some good, healthy competition. But not everyone’s playing fair. Are you tough enough?
“For all its bone-crunching collisions, the picture is almost irresistibly good-natured and funny.” – Pauline Kael, The New Yorker
“The Longest Yard is an outstanding action drama, combining the brutish excitement of football competition with the brutalities of contemporary prison life. Burt Reynolds asserts his genuine star power” – Variety
“The story is both clever and unsubtle, the action riot-gun fast from start to satisfying finish, the characters vivid and boldly drawn, the jokes set up and paid off with old-pro efficiency” – Charles Champlin, Los Angeles Times
