Fresh and Exciting

The film makes a home in your brain and the only cure is to see it again.

This story has more twists and turns than a second-rate soap opera.

An old-fashioned movie made with new-fashioned finesse.

I came to this film off a throwaway comment on a satirical podcast; the comment was that if you wanted to see how Trump approaches business, then watch Small Potatoes. With this motivation it did not occur to me that it may have mattered that I had never heard of the USFL, and that really my only interest in American Football at all is to occasionally watch the highlights of the Super Bowl.In the end this did seem to make a massive difference, and I confess that part of the reason that I took very little from the film was that I was not target audience or even close; one could argue that a good documentary draws the viewer in, but I do not think that argument really applies here. As a result, I was mostly left cold – I had no knowledge of the characters, the situation, and the very limited involvement of Trump (in a truncated interview) meant that my only point of interest was not really key to the film. For sure people dislike him for what he did, and it certainly was a selfish act to benefit himself at the cost of others – but really is this all stuff we already know about him.For those who remember the USFL, there is probably a good slice of history here, presented at brisk pace with plenty of highlights; however, for those just coming with the very limited interest I had, there is not enough here for the casual viewer. Not really the fault of the film, but something worth keeping in mind if considering watching it.

While I am not a sports fan, I must admit that ESPN's sports documentaries are very well done and are well worth seeing even if you aren't a sports nut. In this case, I wanted to reminisce about the defunct football league. When it was in operation, I was in college and, frankly, I was so busy in school that I never watched a single USFL (and very few NFL) game during this time--so I was curious.According to this film, there were many reasons why the USFL failed. It expanded too fast, had progressively lower ratings over time and lower attendance than anticipated. However, THE big reason the film seemed to make as interviewee after interviewee blamed Donald Trump (owner of the New York/New Jersey franchise) for the league's demise. It came off, after a while, as a long succession of folks saying why they hated and blamed Trump. As for Trump, he came off as a bit arrogant during his interviews for the film. The bottom line is that this is an interesting film AND great for anyone who dislikes Trump (such as Ivanna). Oddly compelling and worth a look.

30 for 30: Small Potatoes: Who Killed the USFL? (2009) *** (out of 4)Fun filled and sometimes heated documentary about who killed the USFL, the springtime football league, which seemed to be doing decent until Donald Trump bought a team and soon, after three seasons, the league was no more. It's interesting to note that director Tollin was actually working for the USFL when they started up so he's certainly got some insight as to what was going on and I think for the most part this documentary is quite open and honest about the events that would bring the league down. It's also worth noting that everyone interviewed blames Trump. What was most fascinating about this documentary, for someone not too familiar with it, is how many legends of the NFL started their careers in this "under" league. Jim Kelly, Steve Young, Herschel Walker and Reggie White are just a few of the people who started in the league and coaches Jim Mora, Lee Corso, Rick Neuheisel and Keith Jackson were also working there. All of these folks are interviewed here and again, they all blame Trump. The old hair piece Trump is also on hand here and it shouldn't shock anyone that he doesn't take a bit of the blame. It's clear he isn't too fond about this story and eventually ends the interview without offering too much up. It's pretty funny to see what a great villain he makes here especially with a former player, still highly upset, talking about how many people lost their job over his greed. There's plenty of footage from the old games as well as original news reports of various games, stories and of course that infamous court case where the league went after the NFL.

...but not his ego, as it's still turned up to "11".Nice job by Mike Tollin and his crew on this one. I didn't really remember too much about the USFL, other than the fact that they lured some real talent (Herschel, Steve Young, Flutie, Mike Rozier, Jim Kelly, etc.) away from playing in the NFL, and played a fun brand of football in the spring. I maybe watched a few games on the tube, but living in No. Dakota at that time, I was more interested in getting the hell outdoors after a crappy winter than watching more football when mid-March rolled around. But this league really did have some avid fans around the country to go with their credibility, especially when compared to that crap XFL league Vince McMahon tried unsuccessfully to shove down America's throats earlier this decade.Tollin's film brought it all back, including showing how the league really did thrive in a bunch of markets (including Philly, Tampa & NYC). But then the owners got greedy and awarded 6 more teams the 2nd season, pocketing their expansion cash but also overextending themselves in markets where the demand for the product just wasn't there. I especially liked Rick Neuheisel's story about the San Antonio Gunslingers' owner bouncing paychecks and having their players race to a bank to cash make-up checks.When "The Donald" bought the Big Apple team and pushed for fall football, including filing an anti-trust lawsuit against the NFL that really didn't work (it netted $3.00 total in damages), the end of the league came quicker than it really should have. I think people hated seeing his mug all over the sports news then and kind of soured on the USFL (and things really haven't changed much in that regard---do you know anybody that actually watches "Celebrity Apprentice"?). Being an all-around asshole to Tollin in a present day interview makes Trump look even more pompous, it that's possible.P.S.-it was also worth the viewing just to see (future Minn. Viking) Anthony Carter catch a curl route, turn upfield, and blow by two defenders to pay dirt. That guy could really motor back in the day, and I'm still mad the '87 Vikes didn't make it to the Super Bowl after A.C. went off for 227 receiving yards in a playoff win against the 49ers.