Necessary Roughness
National Broadcasting Company (NBC) | Release Date: September 27, 1991 CRITIC SCORE DISTRIBUTION
45
METASCORE
Mixed or average reviews based on 23 Critic Reviews
Positive:
5
Mixed:
13
Negative:
5
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Critic Reviews

Critic scorePublicationBy date
60
Washington PostRita Kempley
An infectious albeit formulaic game of Cinderella football, this happy athletic romp seems to know just how wheezy it is, but the team grunts "hut, hut," and puts it right on the numbers anyway. It's "Hoosiers" with a pigskin pumpkin and a lot more sis-boom-bah. Read full review
60
Los Angeles TimesKevin Thomas
The film itself is a genial, slight, entirely predictable football comedy, but it serves Bakula well. Read full review
50
TV Guide MagazineStaff (Not Credited)
While NECESSARY ROUGHNESS admittedly traverses highly familiar territory, with few surprises, it does deserve to be appreciated as a genuinely entertaining, albeit old-fashioned, college football yarn that's great fun to watch. Read full review
50
The Seattle TimesJohn Hartl
This sports comedy starts out as a rowdy delight in the tradition of "Slapshot," but it loses its sense of the outrageous and quickly turns ho-hum. Read full review
50
Philadelphia InquirerDesmond Ryan
The muddled huddle that is Necessary Roughness is one long fumble strewn with offensive lines. Read full review
50
Boston GlobeJay Carr
Essentially, the film's strategy is to fight predictability with bonehead amiability, and on this level it's a crowd-pleaser. [27 Dec 1991, p.28]
50
USA TodaySusan Wloszczyna
At least Necessary Roughness strays from the usual game plan, but it ends up strictly Bush league. [27 Sept 1991, p.2D]
50
Chicago TribuneGene Siskel
Hector Elizondo and Robert Loggia are fine as the team's coaches. [27 Sept 1991, p.C2]
50
The Globe and Mail (Toronto)H.J. Hirchhoff
Just enough laughs to make up for predictable plot. [1 Oct 1991]
50
Miami HeraldJuan Carlos Coto
Necessary Roughness, a football comedy of unnecessary blandness, has the same problem as the Miami Dolphins: It dies in the second half. [3 Oct 1991, p.F4]
40
EmpireKim Newman
Although adequately put together, this is entirely unnecessary as a movie, with nothing to add to its limited interest sub-genre, no surprises at all in its by-the-numbers script, and no credit at all to the various servicable members of the cast. Read full review
40
The New York TimesStephen Holden
If the movie were a farcical free-for-all ridiculing the hyper-competitive world of college football, it might be amusing. But it can never decide whether to be an athletic answer to "National Lampoon's Animal House" or icky-inspirational like "Rocky." Read full review
40
VarietyStaff (Not Credited)
Essentially, this is a football version of the equally contrived and only slightly less hokey baseball comedy Major League. Read full review
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