Gridiron Gang (2006)

User Rating:

6.9/10   

Director:

Phil Joanou

Writers (WGA):

Jeff Maguire (written by)
Jac Flanders (film "Gridiron Gang")

Release Date:

15 September 2006 (USA)

Genre:

Crime | Drama | Sport

Tagline:

One goal. A second chance.

Plot:

Teenagers at a juvenile detention center, under the leadership of their counselor, gain self-esteem by playing football together.

Plot Keywords:

Murder | Juvenile Delinquency | Fight | Fighting | Shot In The Arm

Cast

Dwayne Johnson	...	Sean Porter (as Dwayne 'The Rock' Johnson)
Xzibit	...	Malcolm Moore
L. Scott Caldwell	...	Bobbi Porter
Leon Rippy	...	Paul Higa
Kevin Dunn	...	Ted Dexter
Jade Yorker	...	Willie Weathers
David V. Thomas	...	Kelvin Owens (as David Thomas)
Setu Taase	...	Junior Palaita
Mo	...	Leon Hayes
James Earl	...	Donald Madlock (as James Earl III)
Trever O'Brien	...	Kenny Bates
Brandon Smith	...	Bug Wendal (as Brandon Mychal Smith)
Jurnee Smollett	...	Danyelle Rollins
Michael J. Pagan	...	Roger Weathers
Jamal Mixon	...	Jamal Evans

MPAA:

Rated PG-13 for some startling scenes of violence, mature thematic material and language.

Runtime:

125 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital | SDDS | DTS

Certification:

UK:12A | USA:PG-13 (certificate #41479) | Singapore:PG | Malaysia:U | Germany:12 | Ireland:15A | Australia:M | Finland:K-13 | Argentina:Atp | South Korea:15 | Denmark:11 | Canada:13+ (Quebec) | Canada:14A (British Columbia/Nova Scotia) | Canada:PG (Alberta/Manitoba/Ontario)

Filming Locations:

Agoura High School - 28545 W. Driver Avenue, Agoura Hills, California, USA

Company:

Columbia Pictures Industries

Trivia:

Gridiron Gang (2006) scored SONY an industry first, awarding a studio its first 10th No. 1 box office hit in a year.

Goofs:

Continuity: In their final game before the playoffs the announcer states the score is 17-14 and when they show the final score, it's 21-7 after Willie runs in his touchdown.

Quotes:

Sean Porter: Most sixteen/seventeen year old kids, they make a bad choice. Something gets broken, they screw up in class, hurt somebody's feelings, show up at the prom drunk. They get sent to the Principal office, have their car keys taken away or get grounded. Then there's kids that make a bad choice, somebody ends up shot dead in a parking lot. Those kids get sent here.

Movie Connections:

Spoofed in The Comebacks (2007)

Soundtrack:

Celebration

When A Strong Man Shows Them The Way

Other than some bad language, I can't see why The Gridiron Gang rated a PG. It's a really nice inspirational story about a man with idea to slow down the rate of recidivism among juvenile offenders.

Based on the true story of Sean Porter, Dwayne 'The Rock' Johnson plays Porter a former college football star who thinks that if he can get some of the kids to organize as a football team in his ward of the Los Angeles Juvenile Detention Center it might keep them from going back to the gangs and returning to jail or winding up dead.

The Rock, trading in on the name and image that professional wrestling gave him, maybe for the first time is playing a normal human being albeit a former sports star. No superhero heroics for once in this film, just a man with an idea who inspires a bunch of kids to not think of themselves as losers.

Dwayne Johnson dominates the film just as he dominated the ring in his wrestling matches. He's got his own troubles as well, a mother who is dying well he's dealing with the problems of his juvenile charges. But he does persevere and he turns losers to winners.

It's a nice film about what can be accomplished when you believe in yourself.