The Mosquito Bowl Is in Cinemas Now and Reaches Netflix on November 25

Photo: Gage Skidmore, CC BY-SA 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons

The Mosquito Bowl, Peter Berg's World War II football drama, began a limited theatrical run on October 30 and streams on Netflix on Wednesday, November 25, the day before Thanksgiving. It is reportedly the first Netflix film to play in AMC Theatres since KPop Demon Hunters last year.

Photo: LucaFazPhoto, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons

The story follows college football stars who enlisted in the Marines after Pearl Harbor. While preparing for the invasion of Okinawa, they play a legendary game against each other, the Mosquito Bowl of the title. The film draws on Buzz Bissinger's nonfiction book. One report places the real game on Guadalcanal in 1944, with the men then heading to Okinawa, so I will not describe the exact setting beyond that.

Photo: Gage Skidmore, CC BY-SA 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons

The cast is strong. Nicholas Galitzine plays John McLaughry, Bill Skarsgard plays Bob Bauman, Ray Nicholson plays Tony Butkovich and Tom Francis plays David Schreiner. Pat McAfee appears as a drill instructor and Brent Comer plays the Notre Dame quarterback George Murphy.

Photo: Brycenrichter, CC0, via Wikimedia Commons

Berg's films are patriotic and physical, and a sports film with a sad ending is a delicate balance. The trailer leans on brotherhood, and I expect the football to feel like real hits. The risk is a film that treats a real tragedy as a rousing story.

Photo: Corporal William C. Beall, USMC, public domain, via Wikimedia Commons

I will see which way it goes. Will you try a cinema screening, or wait for Netflix?