Home Team Review: A Perfectly Fine Family Film

With a Kevin James movie viewers pretty much know what to expect, and that’s certainly the case with Home Team. 

Home Team tells the story of Sean Payton, long-time head coach of the New Orleans Saints. When suspended for his team’s scandal, he returns home and helps coach his son’s football team. 

Home Team would still make a fine feel-good family story without the realistic backdrop. The fact that Sean Payton, the scandal, and many of the characters are real is honestly a little off-putting. It does, however, make for some fun cameos!

As a feel-good family film, though, Home Team does its job. It’s a sweet story about a (relatively absent) father and son finding some common ground and bonding. It’s relatively common for father and son to find common ground over sports, so you can tell this movie is made with a wide audience in mind.

But truthfully? It works. 

Sure, it has every rag-tag sports movie trope, like a player with a girl to impress and multiple practice and game montages. 

No one is saying that Home Team is particularly innovative, or that it will win awards. It doesn’t really hold up as a biopic of Sean Payton, either. But a Happy Madison production starring Kevin James sets a certain expectation that Home Team meets without incident. 

For instance – is there sophomoric humor? Of course there is. Even kids vomiting all over a football field in the rain! 

Are there appearances from the Sandler/Happy Madison repertory company? Of course!

Jamie: You guys up for some vegan ice cream? It tastes just like regular ice cream…as long as you’ve never eaten regular ice cream!

Aside from James, the Home Team cast has a full array of Adam Sandler’s family members, plus Rob Schneider and Gary Valentine! Taylor Lautner is close to earning his membership card for that group, too. There’s even one of Chris Farley’s siblings!

Schneider and Valentine do most of the comic relief, as James plays Payton totally straight. As strange as it is to see James stay serious throughout the movie, it helps strike the right balance between humor and heart. 

The entire cast does a fantastic job not taking itself too seriously and leaning into the funnier moments. The balance between the silly and serious is just good enough to keep viewers invested. 

Home Team is silly, certainly. But it fits in the formula that makes sports films about fathers and sons so powerful. It’s a perfect choice for a Friday night family flick — just don’t eat any super logs.

A few stray thoughts:

• As an Indianapolis Colts fan, I nearly shut off the movie in the first minute. I didn’t feel like reliving one of the most devastating moments of my football fandom (the 2010 Super Bowl). It wasn’t a pain I expected to experience when taking this assignment.
• Maxwell Simkins (You might know him from Mighty Ducks: Game Changers) steals nearly every scene he’s in. The pizza gag is one of the film’s best. 
• Next time I play pick-up football, I’m calling plays exclusively with Mexican food analogies.
• “I get the soft hands from Jamie. He makes his own lavender soap.”
• Best cameo award for Home Team is a tie between the real Sean Payton (the janitor) and Coach Cowher. 

What did you think of this episode of Home Team? Share your thoughts in the comments below!

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Home Team is now streaming on Netflix.

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