You could start by bringing the Cary Grant-style movie to George Clooney's era. And that's what Clooney did in his latest movie "Leatherheads," which he also directed. Clooney plays "Dodge" Connelly, a soon-to-be washed up football hero in 1925, before there was a professional league. Dodge is the captain of a failing football team, and gives himself the task of convincing a college football star and military hero, Carter Rutherford (John Krasinski), to join the team to boost ticket sales. Lexie Littleton (Renee Zellweger), a female journalist in a very male world, is assigned a story to poke holes in Rutherford's war stories. That's where the boys collide as both Carter and Dodge find a love interest in Lexie.

In "Leatherheads," physical comedy plays a key role, not just in over-the-top fight scenes, but in the way facial expressions are used to create laughs. The cast convinces us that it's real. If other actors had played these roles, it may have come off as cheesy. George Clooney is a master of the facial expression; he is definitely in his element in this film. While Clooney carries the film, his co-stars of Zellweger and Krasinski deserve some credit for playing well in the stereotypical roles they were given. Zellweger delivers one-liners reminiscent to a Lois Lane character, while Krasinski brings a new spin to the all-American football star with his goofy grin.

The key to comedy is pacing, and the film's direction and editing played into it well. One of the devices that made this film work particularly well was leaving the cameras rolling for an extra beat after a scene. Usually characters will talk to each other, one will storm off and then the movie cuts to another scene. Instead Clooney lets the camera linger to catch the reaction of the poor fellow left standing.

"Leatherheads" is rated PG-13 and has a runtime of 1 hour and 56 minutes. You can catch it at Regal Movieland 7, Regal Lancaster Mall Stadium 11, and Independence Cinema.