Rudy

Like the Gipper, Rudy Ruettiger (Astin) is a Notre Dame walk-on who inspires his whole team. He’s a blue-collar runt who doesn’t have the grades (or the football scholarship) to attend ND in the first place. That, of course, is what makes him such an inspiration. Downplaying the usual underdog cliches, Rudy, a true-life story directed by David Anspaugh (Hoosiers), gets its heart from Astin’s affecting performance as a feisty kid who just doesn’t know when to quit. You’d have to be a total cynic not to cheer him on. B+