Today's bracket.......Morgan Freeman.
1. Red - The Shawshank Redemption vs. 16. Frederick Douglass (voice) The Civil War PBS
Match: This is a tough opening round for the top seed. Red again misplaces his bet, going for the "tall drink of water" Abe Lincoln instead of Frederick Douglass. Soon, though, Red realizes that despite Douglass's great voice, imposing hair, and large size, he is only a collection of still photographs and narration, not a real character. Red simply tapes Douglas to the wall where he remains for years and years until the Warden throws rocks at him.
Winner: Red
8. Scrap Iron Dupree (Million Dollar Baby) vs. 9. Hoke Colburn (Driving Miss Daisy)
Match: These guys might not have the best pedigrees. One is blind in one eye, sleeps on a dirty old mattress in a gym. The other and illiterate old black man who drives around an old Jewish woman. Both very good characters, but Scrap Iron wins due to his great name.
Winner: Scrap Iron
5. Lucius Fox (Batman Begins, the Dark Knight) vs. 12. John Rawlins (Glory)
Match: Tough match here for Fox. He'll start out well with lots of weapons, but he cannot put away the Civil War vet. Bruce Wayne does not show up and we have an upset.
Winner: Glory
4. Azeem (Robin Hood) vs.13. President (Deep Impact)
Match: Large Sword
Winner: Azeem
3. Ned Logan (Unforgiven) vs. 14. Gen. Billy Ford (Outbreak)
Match: This is the Wild, Wild West son! Ain't no diseased monkeys out here. If you can't catch Dustin Hoffman, you ain't taking down Mr. Logan.
Winner: Ned Logan
6. Nelson Mandela (Invictus) vs. 11. Alex Cross (Along Came a Spider, Kiss the Girls)
Match: Morgan Freeman on Nelson Mandela "It was the part I was born to play!" But Nelson Mandela is old. It was nice when he put on that Springboks jersey, but Alex Cross was in two movies. A close battle. Cross calls in Ashley Judd to distract Mandela for the upset.
Winner: Alex Cross
7. God (Bruce Almighty) vs. 10. Mr. Clark (Lean on Me)
Match: Maybe God should really be the top seed. But true to form, God gives his power to Mr. Clark. Mr Clark uses it to clean up his school of gangs and drugs, pass the state tests, and shut up the woman from Carmen San Diego. After all that, he defeats God.
Winner: Mr. Clark
2. Detective William Somerset (Seven) vs. 15. Theodore Joadson (Amistad)
Match:Amistad is a great film with some great performances, but Freeman's was overshadowed. Seven was a great film with some great performances, and Freeman's was the best of the bunch.
Winner: Somerset
SECOND ROUND
1. Red vs. 8. Scrap Iron
Winner: Red, easy.
12. John Rawlins vs. 4. Azeem
Winner: English! English! Behold, Azeem Edin Bashir Al Bakir. I am not one of you, but I fight! I fight with Robin Hood. I fight against a tyrant who holds you under his boot! If you would be free men, then you must fight! Join us now, join Robin Hood!
3. Ned Logan vs. 10. Alex Cross
Winner: Ned
2. Somerset vs. 10. Mr. Clark
Winner: Mr. Clark - a big upset here. Mr. Clark gives up his God power to return to the school. Someone sends him Sams' head in a box, things get wild.
Morgan Freeman Final Four
1. Red vs. 4. Azeem
Match: Wow, this could be the final. Azeem is a lot like Xavier or maybe Boise State in football, a great team in a bad conference, or in this case, bad movie,who always gets ubderrated. Azeem is a great character, but not many people look back fondly on Robin Hood Prince of Thieves. Red on the other hand is the best character in one of the best movies ever. Sorry Azeem, you are cool, albeit missed placed in Nottingham, but Red is a man who knows how to get things. In this case, he's getting the W.
Winner: Red
3. Ned Logan vs. 10. Mr. Clark
Match: Mr. Clark has come a long way from Eastside High, but does he have what it takes to survive in the Wild, Wild West? Things heat up when Mr. Clark learns "some guy is beating up Kid Ray". Logan rolls in with some guns and the fight is pretty much over before it began. No contest.
Winner: Ned Logan
Final
1. Red vs. 3. Ned Logan
Match: One thing is for sure, Ned Logan's portly Native American wife is going to be pissed! These characters are actual pretty similar. Both make mistakes as young men and mature as they grow older. Both are the moral compass of their respective films without being the main characters. Both bring compassion and goodness to places it is often times lacking. In the end, though, Red uses his roof tarring skills, his getting things skills, his library experience, and his map of Zihuatanejo and defeats the reluctant outlaw.
Winner: Red. There really was no other way anyone else was going to win.
Get busy living or get busy dying.
3 comments:
Outstanding tournament!
I was not a big fan of Million Dollar Baby, but I wanted Scrap Iron Dupree to go a little further. He was a comic book fan, remember? Snuck in a little FF under the covers with a flashlight at night. Too bad he had to run in to the Red Juggernaut.
Also, good call on Kid Ray.
Yeah, me again. I gotta learn to log out.
Having just watched Invictus, I was hoping Mandela could have done a little better. After spending all that time in prison, he would have been able to win with the power of forgiveness.
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