Heartland: A Woman's Work: The NFL'S Cheerleader Problem

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"A Woman's Work: The NFL'S Cheerleader Problem" is a searing indictment of a major sports organization, one that should be outrageous and stunning.

But for the National Football League, the group that has had to be forced to take care of its players health, has repeatedly valued the almighty dollar over principle, and has gladhanded patriotism and activism as marketing strategies, it's hardly even surprising.

"A Woman's Work" is follows Lacy Thibodeaux-Fields and Maria Pinzone, two cheerleaders who spearheaded a lawsuit against The League to, you know, get paid for what they did for the league and their teams. In a sport where concessions workers make thousands, players and coaches millions and owners billions, cheerleaders have for years received exactly nothing.

And, it turns out, they are expected to fund certain ventures at their own expense, without compensation or reimbursement. And are expected to serve and represent the teams and leagues at various functions outside of work hours. When they complain, their groups are disbanded or they themselves are cast aside.

And we haven't even mentioned the handsy reps of the league.

Director Yu Gu paints a portrait that should horrify us--good people trapped by quasi-fame virtual prisoners who find themselves shouted down by a merciless public that expects them to grin and bear it for reasons as diverse as "they are tramping themselves out" to "they're lucky to be there."

Yu creates a workmanlike ambience, showing the women as mostly lower-middle class women who have worked thousands of hours to get where they are, only for very little actually on the other side. A scene where Lacy hopes to go out to teach dance to children, only to find a husband who is less than eager to stay with the kids, is a subtle moment that you could miss (since presumably Lacy doesn't want her husband made to look bad), but is a microcosmic display of her entire life.

If there is a criticism to make of the film, it's that it ends too early. The film's resolution is neither final nor satisfying, either as a social justice piece or as just storytelling.

But maybe that's part of the point: NFL cheerleaders have been trotted out for our enjoyment for decades, with little to show for it. Maybe it's time to stop that practice too.