Semi-Tough

Semi-Tough
film poster by Robert McGinnis
Directed by	Michael Ritchie
Written by	Walter Bernstein Dan Jenkins Ring Lardner Jr.
Screenplay by	Walter Bernstein Ring Lardner Jr. (uncredited)
Based on	Semi-Tough by Dan Jenkins
Produced by	David Merrick
Starring	Burt Reynolds Kris Kristofferson Jill Clayburgh Robert Preston Lotte Lenya Bert Convy Brian Dennehy
Cinematography	Charles Rosher Jr.
Edited by	Richard A. Harris
Music by	Jerry Fielding
Distributed by	United Artists
Release date	November 18, 1977 (1977-11-18)
Running time	108 minutes
Country	United States
Language	English
Budget	$5.7 million[1]
Box office	$37,187,139[2]

Semi-Tough is a 1977 American sports comedy film directed by Michael Ritchie and starring Burt Reynolds, Kris Kristofferson, Jill Clayburgh, Robert Preston, Lotte Lenya, and Bert Convy. It is set in the world of American professional football.

The plot involves a love triangle between the characters portrayed by Reynolds, Kristofferson, and Clayburgh. Semi-Tough also includes a parody of Werner Erhard's Erhard Seminars Training (est), depicted in the film as an organization called "B.E.A.T.".^[3]

The film is based on the 1972 novel of the same name by Dan Jenkins. It was adapted for the screen by writer Walter Bernstein and director Ritchie, who added a new storyline that included a satire of the self-help movement and new religions.

Semi-Tough follows the story of pro football friends Billy Clyde Puckett and Marvin "Shake" Tiller, who have a third roommate, Barbara Jane Bookman. A romance develops between Shake and Barbara Jane when he becomes self-confident after completing a self awareness course called "B.E.A.T.", at which point Billy Clyde slyly makes a play to win her for himself.

The film received mixed receptions. Some reviewers praised its parodies of the est training, Erhard and other new age movements such as Rolfing. Others criticized the script and direction, noting that some of director Ritchie's previous films had more of a personal tone. Still other reviews lamented the film's departure from the novel Semi-Tough, which dealt with football rather than the new age movement.