Given that Howard Deutch’s 2000 film The Replacements is based loosely on the 1987 NFL strike, we can be forgiven for going into it expecting a great deal of celluloid sexism. American Football is a male dominated world, full of large, hyper-masculine fellows throwing other large fellows around on a field while women in skimpy costumes dance on the sidelines – it’s the perfect breeding ground for sexist movie tropes. But, The Replacements is a curious film. It manages to venerate all of that hyper-masculine, male gaze nonsense, while making notable commentary on feminist themes. It all combines to create a subversive tone that fits perfectly with the premise of the film....

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