Early Reviews of ‘100% Julian Edelman’ Positive, Praise Comedic Tone

Julian Edelman’s sports documentary, 100% Julian Edelman, premieres Friday, June 28 on Showtime. In addition to doing all he can to promote the film by touring the talk show circuit, Edelman is also benefiting from some positive early reviews.

Boston Globe media critic Chad Finn praised the documentary for being unconventional with a light-hearted tone (though it does have intense moments) that makes the film easy to like. In that regard, Edelman’s documentary is a good reflection of the New England Patriots receiver himself.

Not following the typical sports documentary formula was important for Edelman’s business partner and co-producer on the film, Assaf Swissa.

“I hate sports documentaries,” Swissa told Finn in an interview. “It’s always like, here’s the athlete, and… Let’s put it this way: Athletes go through media training, and they’re designed to have a degree of resistance toward the camera. That’s why you see all these sports docs, and it’s, ‘Here’s my place, here are my boys, oh, I got hurt, now I’m going to work out hard and get back on the field.'”

The New York Post‘s George Willis writes that the unexpected star of 100% Julian Edelman is the receiver’s father. Frank Edelman pushed his son from a very early age to achieve his potential in football, which didn’t always result in the two having the best relationship. But the results, with Edelman playing college football and being drafted into the NFL, show that tough love paid off.

Edelman’s father played a big role in coaching his son through his recovery from a torn ACL injury and a four-game PED suspension. But Frank wasn’t pleased when Julian told him that he had tested positive for performance enhancers.

“Frank was upset,” Edelman said. “After that, we didn’t talk for a while.”

Here’s one last teaser for the documentary, which explains Edelman’s journey from playing quarterback in junior college, then Kent State, to being drafted by the Patriots and having to change positions to win a job in the NFL.

“We decided to make a story of overcoming adversity,’’ Edelman explained to the Globe‘s Finn. “But we did it in a way that represented how I am. Family-oriented, determined, fun, and funny.’’

100% Julian Edelman premieres this Friday, June 28, at 9 p.m. ET on Showtime.

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