Audience Rated by buyers G (General Audience)
Type of bind: Video On Demand
Release Date: October 01, 2008
Running Time: 72 minutes
Sale Popularity Level: 3715
Studio: Sony Pictures Home Entertainment
Theatrical Release Date: November 29, 1971
Other books you might be interested in perusing:
User popularity level:
Rated by buyers -
I ordered the video late on a Saturday night and it was here Tuesday by 3:00pm. I wasn't expecting it that fast. I had bought the newer version of Brian's song but it just didn't have the same feel that the James Caan, Billy Dee Williams version does. When I watch this one, I feel like I really am watching Gayle Sayers and Brian Piccolo. I was really surprised that it was in my hands within 24 hours. WOW
Rated by buyers 
-
I recently screened the original BRIAN'S SONG for a film series on "Friendship In Film." It's not easy to find American films that explore that theme on a deeper level than the typical buddy-buddy flick. There are any number of films out there about deep and lasting friendships between women, but male friendship has been significantly less attention paid to it--understandable given the still strong cultural taboos against men expressing emotions and the implicit fear that too strong an emotional bond between men might imply at least latent homosexuality.
This 1971 made-for-TV movie can be seen as something of a cultural watershed, in a way. I actually missed the original broadcast back in the day (I was away at college and had other concerns), but I do recall that it was something of a media event. And understandably so. When the cinematic Gale Sayers, receiving an award for "Most Courageous Athlete," announces that his gallant teammate and friend, the mortally ill Brian Piccolo is infinitely more deserving of that award and that he (Sayers) will present it to him personally the subsequent day, well, there's not a dry eye in the auditorium--or, for that matter, in any of the millions of living rooms where the film is being viewed. And when he expresses his love for his dying friend, well, no one's going to misinterpret that statement.
Is it easier to express such sentiments about someone who's dead or dying? Probably. BRIAN'S SONG actually is kind of predictably buddy-buddy for the very first hour or so. Like many male friends, these guys express their affection for each other by bantering back and forth and playing silly practical jokes. Viewers understand from the get go, of course, that a deeper bond is being forged, one that transcends race, or the fact of their sports rivalry, or of their decidedly different personalities.
But it does take personal tragedy for that affection to be articulated. Some might find that something of a shame. Others will just say that's just the way things are (or WERE back in those storied days of those yore). BRIAN'S SONG, like most bio-flicks--and ESPECIALLY like most bioflicks on TV--is often frustratingly sketchy. But it does make plain an implicit truth found in many close friendships between men. The bonds are not just superficial--even when the banter mainly is.
I recently did a solo performance of the old Louis Armstrong song "Wonderful World" in my church, and was struck anew by the lyrics, "I see friends shaking hands, saying, 'How do you do?'/They're really saying, 'I love you.'" In the case of Brian Piccolo, when he learns that his good friend has donated a pint of blood to him, what comes out of his mouth is, "Well, no wonder I woke up with a craving for chitlins." But we know he's really sayin' "I love you."
And "THANK YOU!"
Rated by buyers -
I remember it was shortly after my divorce and I was laying on the sofa fliping through the channels and happened on Brian's Song. I'm 61 years old and to this day I have never been so moved by any film. I remember many films over the years where I teared up and had trouble talking but I've never had a movie hit me as Brian's Song did when I was laying on that sofa. I was glad I didn't have anyone else around because I cried like a baby and couldn't stop for some time. The story is about true friendship not something that's manufactured it's real and honest and something we all wish we had which is a friend that you can count on no matter what. It touches me just as much yesterday as it did many years ago.
Rated by buyers -
My dad told me about this movie a year or so ago and mentioned that he hadn't seen it in a long while. I looked in a few stores and couldn't find it anywhere but here. This movie is so touching, I could see tears welling in my father's eyes from the beginning and he is now the sensitive type of man. One of the best t.v. movies of all time, and has a large amount of special features, especially for a movie made before dvd's came around. Overall, great movie, and my dad loved the gift :)
Rated by buyers -
It is a TV movie from the 70's. The time TV used to produce marvelous films without "state of the art" computerized effects. It tells the simple and marvelous story of a real friendship between two American football players. One helps each other on the most difficult times of their lives. Even if you are young and think the film is old and outdated, give it a try. Real friendship is ageless and a precious thing to be cherished. James Caan and Billy Dee Williams are outstanding in the beginning of their careers.
Find other books like this one:
