Antonio Banderas, Woody Harrelson, Lolita Davidovich

Best friends Vince (Woody Harrelson) and Cesar (Antonio Banderas) are both down-on-their-luck boxers who've suddenly been given a highly visible fight and a promised shot at the middleweight title--o...( read more  read more... )nly they're fighting each other. With Grace (Lolita Davidovich), Cesar's current girlfriend and Vince's ex, they drive to Las Vegas. Unsurprisingly, the trip opens up hidden resentments, regrets, and mistakes from the past. What's more surprising is how meandering and shapeless Play It to the Bone is; writer-director Ron Shelton is responsible for such charming and sprightly sports films as Bull Durham, White Men Can't Jump, and Tin Cup, but boxing doesn't seem to have inspired him. The actual boxing match does achieve a kind of brutal energy, though it's curiously filled with gratuitous hallucinations of female nudity. Still, Harrelson and Banderas have a nice rapport, and in their best moments they just yammer at each other, not exactly listening but still communing in a kind of rhythmic groove. Also featuring Lucy Liu from TV's Ally McBeal and dozens of famous cameos at ringside during the bout. --Bret Fetzer

Flixster Users

33% liked it

9,090 ratings

Critics

12% liked it

78 critics

R, 125 min.

Directed by: Ron Shelton

Release Date: December 24, 1999

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DVD Release Date: August 28, 2001

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Stats: 196 reviews

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Flixster Reviews (196)


  • November 23, 2007
    really fun flick to watch if you wanna see something brainless but entertaining
  • January 5, 2007
    not great was ok
  • December 5, 2006
    I didn't despise it but I didn't give it another thought until I typed this up.
  • September 15, 2006
    Too much macho-bravado sinks this one but it does have good performances from most involved. As far as boxing comedies go, this one is a far cry from Diggstown.
  • May 30, 2008
    Not very good.
  • October 14, 2009
    If it wasn't for Woody Harrelson I would stop watching this movie in the first 15 minutes. Boring. Lucy Liu was cute.
  • September 1, 2009
    Two boxers who are bestfriends, who even dated the same woman, one that is currently still with that woman and gets dumped on their way to a big fight between eachother. But, she still loves the both of them, professionally speaking of course. The film follows them on their way t...( read more)o the fight with some comedic lines thrown in. What do you expect? You have Woody Harrelson in the cast. You also have his character very religious, which might I add, also gets some play from Lucy Lui at a truck stop. Something I thought that was kind of funny.
  • August 26, 2009
    At first it was if this movie didnt know what to be a serious boxing movie or a comedy road movie. First half was a little lame with a weak comedy script harrelson saved it with some funny lines but its when they get to vegas and you see harrelson and banderas boxing match its wo...( read more)rth watching.
  • August 14, 2009
    What a guilty pleasure! You can list out 100 reasons to dislike this film (for its small-scale, hybrid, fragmented) but you can't deny it is truly entertaining. The duo Woody Harrelson & Antonio Banderas are amazing, Harrelson in particular.
  • March 26, 2009
    decent story, two wonderful actors antonio and woody and a great boxing finale help makes this film worth looking at

Critic Reviews


January 1, 2000
Roger Ebert, Chicago Sun-Times

Doesn't have enough of a boxing story to occupy the running time. full review

January 1, 2000
Stephanie Zacharek, Salon.com

Doesn't quite have the goods. full review

January 1, 2000
Mick LaSalle, San Francisco Chronicle

This boxing movie is one of [Alan's] best. full review

January 1, 2000
Steven Rea, Philadelphia Inquirer

This is no Raging Bull.

View more Play It to the Bone reviews at RottenTomatoes.com

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Play It to the Bone Trivia


  • Can you name this 1999 movie with the tagline "No one hits as hard as your best friend" ?  Answer »
  • Which of these movies did Wesley Snipes and Woody Harrelson both not appear in together ?  Answer »
  • Who connects : Zig Zag, The Art Of War, Passenger 57, Play It To The Bone , down In The Delta, Blade, The Fan ?  Answer »
  • In the movie "Play it to the Bone" Woody Harrelson's character has a vision of what person?  Answer »

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