Synopsis
A three-way friendship between two free-spirited professional football players and the owner's daughter becomes compromised when two of them become romantically involved.
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Cast
- Burt ReynoldsBilly Clyde Puckett
- Kris KristoffersonMarvin "Shake" Tiller
- Jill ClayburghBarbara Jane Bookman
- Robert PrestonBig Ed Bookman
- Bert ConvyFriedrich Bismarck
- Roger E. MosleyPuddin Patterson Sr.
- Lotte LenyaCarla Pelf
- Richard MasurPhillip Hooper
- Carl WeathersDreamer Tatum
- Brian DennehyT.J. Lambert
Recommendations
- 80
The New York Times
A funny film that is as much satire as parody, as much about our time as it is about some of our more bizarre culture heroes. - 80
Time
Semi-Tough may or may not turn out to be the year's best comedy—there's Annie Hall to remember and Mel Brooks yet to be heard from—but it is without a doubt the year's most socially useful film. - 80
Time Out
Though not as sharp or as unusual as Ritchie's earlier Smile, this is still a delightful, gentle satire on the American ideal of winning, which also takes broad but often hilarious swipes at fashionable health fads. - 75
TV Guide Magazine
Semi-Tough is periodically funny and frequently on target in its satire, and it boasts a strong performance from Reynolds. - 75
Washington Post
Well supplied with both raunchy humor and star appeal, particularly in the person of Burt Reynolds, the film seems certain to become a crowd-pleaser. - 50
Variety
Semi-Tough begins as a bawdy and lively romantic comedy about slap happy pro football players, then slows down to a too-inside putdown of contemporary self-help programs. - 50
The Globe and Mail (Toronto)
Although Ritchie has blown Semi-Tough as a film, many individual moments are very funny and worthy of praise. [18 Nov 1977] - 50
Newsweek
With such a broad satirical target, it's a shame that Ritchie's aim goes awry. Because Semi-Tough covers fresh territory, you keep rooting for it to connect. [28 Nov 1977, p.98]
