The Bad News Bears in Breaking Training (1977)

A troubled, rebellious teen drives his rambunctious baseball team out to Houston where they play an exhibition game and the boy meets his estranged father, and hires him as the teams coach.

Director:

Michael Pressman

Writers:

Paul Brickman, Bill Lancaster (characters)

Stars:

William Devane, Jackie Earle Haley, Clifton James

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
William Devane	...	Mike Leak
Clifton James	...	Sy Orlansky
Jackie Earle Haley	...	Kelly Leak
Jimmy Baio	...	Carmen Ronzonni
Chris Barnes	...	Tanner Boyle
Erin Blunt	...	Ahmad Abdul Rahim
George Gonzales	...	Miguel Agilar
Jaime Escobedo	...	Jose Agilar (as Jaime O. Escobedo)
Alfred Lutter III	...	Ogilvie (as Alfred Lutter)
Brett Marx	...	Jimmie Feldman
David Pollock	...	Rudi Stein
Quinn Smith	...	Timmy Lupus - The Big Looper
David Stambaugh	...	Toby Whitewood
Jeffrey Louis Starr	...	Mike Engelberg
Lane Smith	...	Officer Mackie

Storyline

The Bears, the little league champions of California, are invited to play a between-games exhibition at the Houston Astrodome with the local champs, the Toros. Kelly Leak, the Bears' star player, decides to rejoin the team and go with them to Houston to make amends with his estranged father, Mike.

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Plot Keywords:

baseball movie | budweiser beer | shirtless boy | watching a movie | young boys | 

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Taglines:

They've fired their coach. They've "borrowed" a van. They're on their way to the Houston Astrodome...with girls on their minds, cops on their tails, and the game of their lives at stake.

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Genres:

Comedy | Family | Sport

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Certificate:

PG

Did You Know?

Trivia

During the game at the Astrodome, a Toros player comments that Jimmy Feldman looks like "one of the Marx Brothers". Brett Marx, who plays Jimmy, is the grandson of Gummo Marx, a brother of the Marx Brothers.

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Goofs

As the bears are driving towards Houston from Los Angeles (Van Nuys), they are driving into a sunset, which sets in the west, not the east.

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Quotes

Mike Leak: LET THEM PLAY! LET THEM PLAY! LET THEM PLAY!...

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Connections

Featured in Todd's Pop Song Reviews: "Fancy" by Iggy Azalea Ft. Charli XCX (2014)

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Soundtracks

1812 Overture
Written by Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky

User Reviews

Watchable sequel

"The Bad News Bears in Breaking Training" is a cute sequel to the classic original. By know means does it come close to it predecessor but it is a fun time waster.

The Bears head off,unchaperoned, to play an exhibition game at the Astrodome against the Texas state champs. (One major flaw is that it is never adequately explained why the Bears would be making the trip since they lost the championship game in the original). The usual juvenile hijinks ensue on the road as they make their way there.

Once there team leader Kelly Leak enlists the aid of his estranged father (nicely played by William Devane) to coach the team. This leads to the opening of some old wounds between the two. It's a nice distraction from the main story and handled well until the cornball, cliched scene where the hatchet is buried.

The big game is handled well with the Astrodome surroundings a big aid.

While Walter Matthau and Tatum O'Neal (the star pticher in this one is played by Jimmy Baio who is given nothing to do)are sorely missed, the cast does an adequate job of making the film amusing for kids.

The final result is a nice little film. The game is the best part but there are plenty of amusing moments (including the requisite bad language from the kids) to keep you mildly interested. If you don't agree, just take a peak at "The Bad News Bears Go To Japan." This film will look like a classic compared to that disaster.

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

8 July 1977 (USA)

Also Known As:

The Bad News Bears 2

Filming Locations:

Mason Ave. at Devonshire St., Chatsworth, California, USA

Box Office

Gross USA:

$19,104,350

Cumulative Worldwide Gross:

$19,104,350

Company Credits

Production Co:

Paramount Pictures

Technical Specs

Runtime:

100 min

Sound Mix:

Mono

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1