Number one is an American sports drama following Ron “Cat” Catlan, an aging professional football quarterback. Ron “Cat” is the veteran starting quarterback for the New Orleans Saints. At 40 years old, he faces the harsh reality that his professional football career is nearing its end. Rather than accepting his fading skills and preparing for life after sports, Catlan clings desperately to his glory days and his identity as a star athlete.
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Catlan’s physical decline becomes impossible to ignore when he suffers a serious knee injury. As he tries to recover and fight his way back onto the gridiron, he faces intense pressure from team management, critical sports media and a talented younger rookie threatening to take his spot. His refusal to step aside gracefully creates friction with his coaches and exposes the unglamorous, brutal physical toll of professional football.
Off the field, Catlan’s inability to cope with his professional mortality destroys his personal relationships. He alienated his intelligent and supportive wife, Julie, by remaining emotionally distant, arrogant and self-absorbed. Seeking comfort and a distraction from his failing career, he turns heavily to alcohol and pursues an extra-marital affair with a woman named Ann Marley.
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Catlan attempts to numb his anxieties through drinking and partying, but his temporary escape only deepens his troubles. As his body breaks down, his marriage deteriorates, and the reality of retirement closes in, he realizes that his coping mechanisms cannot hold his life together. The film culminates in a sobering look at a once-celebrated hero forced to confront an uncertain future stripped of his status, pride and the game he defined himself by.
Directed by: Tom Gries
Cast: Charlton Heston, Jessica Walter, Bruce Dern, John Randolph, Diana Muldaur.
Running time: 100 minutes
Watch movie trailer here:
