Two-Minute Warning (1976)

A crazed sniper is set to kill spectators at an L.A. Coliseum football championship game and the police races against time to eliminate him.

Director:

Larry Peerce

Writers:

George LaFountaine (novel) (as George La Fountaine), Edward Hume (screenplay)

Stars:

Charlton Heston, John Cassavetes, Martin Balsam

Nominated for 1 Oscar.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Charlton Heston	...	Capt. Peter Holly
John Cassavetes	...	Sgt. Button
Martin Balsam	...	Sam McKeever
Beau Bridges	...	Mike Ramsay
Marilyn Hassett	...	Lucy
David Janssen	...	Steve
Jack Klugman	...	Sandman
Gena Rowlands	...	Janet
Walter Pidgeon	...	The Pickpocket
Brock Peters	...	Paul
David Groh	...	Al
Mitchell Ryan	...	The Priest
Joe Kapp	...	Charlie Tyler
Pamela Bellwood	...	Peggy Ramsay
Jon Korkes	...	Jeffrey

Storyline

A psychotic sniper plans a massive killing spree in a Los Angeles football stadium during a major championship game. The police, led by Captain Peter Holly and SWAT commander Sergeant Button, learn of the plot and rush to the scene.

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Plot Keywords:

hyphen in title | three word title | suspense | tension | cult film | 

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Taglines:

For some...too much time to wait. For the rest...too little time to run.

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Genres:

Drama | Thriller

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Certificate:

R

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

12 November 1976 (USA)

Also Known As:

Pánico en el estadio

Filming Locations:

Angeleno Hotel - 170 N. Church Lane, Los Angeles, California, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$6,700,000 (estimated)

Company Credits

Production Co:

Filmways Pictures,Universal Pictures

Technical Specs

Runtime:

115 min 180 min

Sound Mix:

Mono (Westrex Recording System)

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

A marketing gimmick devised by Universal Pictures to promote the film, stated that patrons were not allowed to enter theaters showing the picture once the film's football game's "two-minute warning" had started.

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Goofs

Near the end of the movie, Sgt Button and Capt Holly are stalking the sniper in the tower where he is hiding. Visibility is almost nil because of darkness and the smoke from a smoke grenade, yet the two officers are wearing sunglasses. All this would have made it near impossible for them to see the sniper, yet Holly spots him immediately and shoots him.

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Quotes

Lucy: Are you a doctor?
Al: Yeah, how'd you know?
Lucy: Dirty shoes and clean white hands.
Al: A lot of guys have clean hands.
Lucy: But not that clean. It must have taken you ten years at least to get them that clean.
Al: What are you, a commercial or what?

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Connections

Featured in Los Angeles Plays Itself (2003)

User Reviews

"Don't be a hero sergeant."

An all-star cast led by Charlton Heston with likes of John Cassavetes, Martin Balsam, Beau Bridges, Mitchell Ryan and Jack Klugman feature in this well directed, but thinly written semi-disaster fare that never goes beyond its one-dimensional framework. Its central focus follows that of an unknown sniper planning a massacre at a championship football game at the Los Angeles Coliseum, as the coming and going personal dramas of certain people at the game intertwine. Slow to get going and rather one-note in its dramas never being as interesting as it should have been, but it opens up when the SWAT team enters and the sniper finally let's loose for a thrilling final third. As the joy and excitement of the match transforms into confusion and anxiety, where the stadium turns into a shooting pallor. I've read some people complaining about a lack of a motivation for the killer, but really one wasn't needed and the ambiguous nature only made its frenetic climax more effective. For most part it's a waiting game preying upon the inevitable build-up, even though the authorities know about the sniper they don't want to start a panic of hysteria. So it's a scary idea, exploitatively handled and director Larry Peerce creates a large scale look giving it an intense scope. The performances are stalwart, but no one really makes much of an impression.

"Lets not get too nervous about it. "