The Dallas Cowboys. America’s Team. Doomsday Defense. The ‘boys.
Those are all nicknames for the NFL’s most successful and valuable team. With 5 Super Bowl wins and 8 conference championships, it’s easy to see why they own this title. After all, they have an ingenious owner in Jerry Jones, who has since raised the value of the team to 10.32 billion dollars, making the Cowboys the most valuable team in sports.
But beyond all the prestige the Cowboys’ name holds, there is still one piece missing from the story: the cheerleaders.
The Dallas Cowboys Cheerleaders (or DCC as commonly known) is the most popular cheerleading team in the NFL. Founded in 1960, DCC has been cheering at every home game for the Cowboys for almost sixty-four seasons. Beyond the talent of the dancers, the more well-known attribute of DCC is the uniform: a mini skirt, boots, vest, and the Kelli knot.
While it is easy to overlook the cheerleaders for the NFL players, the documentary on Netflix America’s Sweethearts: Dallas Cowboys Cheerleaders highlights a behind-the-scenes look at what it takes to be a part of DCC.
I watched the documentary in July, a month after its release on Netflix. It consists of seven hour-long episodes, from tryouts to the Thanksgiving day game. In short, the documentary highlights the difficulty of making the team beautifully, but there are some obvious flaws in the show.
The Negatives:
1. The episodes aren’t planned out well
The first two episodes of the documentary are the entire audition process, with some interviews mixed in. This would be fine if the series is longer, but for seven episodes, you can’t waste 2 hours on only the auditions. I would’ve liked to see one episode of the auditions and training camp combined. Similarly, the last episode of the series was the only part that incorporated a regular or post-season game. I understand that not every team has a good season, and post-season games aren’t guaranteed, but for a documentary focused on the cheerleaders, I would like to see more behind-the-scenes for cheering at an actual game. I would’ve wanted to see the first episode cover auditions and training camp, while the last six episodes covered the regular season and post-season.
2. There’s not enough sit-downs
When you watch a documentary, you expect sit-down interviews or someone narrating. With this documentary, you get none of that. The entire documentary is similar to a 7-hour-long movie broken up into episodes. You get maybe 3-5 short interviews in the whole show with the same people. While the documentary offers some insight into the home life of a few cheerleaders, it doesn’t do it enough justice. I would’ve liked to see longer sit-down interviews and more variety with the people getting interviewed. I also would’ve liked some more at-home interviews. I think this way viewers would get more of an insight and understanding of the difficulty and sacrifices made to be a part of DCC, rather than just watching what they do at practices.
Looking beyond the flaws in the documentary, there are also some major strengths to the structure.
The Positives:
1. It addresses issues that most people struggle with
I think that the documentary does a good job of addressing mental health and eating disorders. While it isn’t explicitly stated that DCC is looking for certain body types to allow on their team, it is obvious that they are. I appreciate the way the documentary doesn’t explicitly come out and say who is struggling with what, but they touch on the subject enough that it is understandable. I will admit they somewhat narrow in on one of the cheerleaders (Victoria) and her struggles, but they take it on as more of a teaching moment. The documentary promotes good eating habits and advises its viewers to pay attention to mental health, which is very important in today’s society.
2. It beautifully highlights cheerleading
When it comes to cheerleading, most people overlook it. They often say cheerleading is not a real sport, but I beg to differ, and this documentary does too. It does a good job of showing the dedication, sacrifice, hard work, and commitment that DCC requires. Almost all of the team members work regular 9-5 jobs and do DCC as a hobby, as it is revealed that cheerleading isn’t a stable job because it doesn’t pay much. Also, most cheerleaders can only go five seasons before retiring due to injury, and some even push through their injuries to continue. My favorite part of DCC, however, is the fact they are involved in the Dallas community and are seen at many events.
While there were some major flaws in the series, there were also major successes. Not every show is perfect, but America’s Sweethearts: Dallas Cowboys Cheerleaders is one of the better sports documentaries I’ve seen. Overall, I give it a 7/10. I recommend everyone who likes sports watch it, and even if you’re not a fan of cheerleading, you should still watch it. America’s Sweethearts: Dallas Cowboys Cheerleaders is the best cheerleading documentary.
