The Mighty Ducks (1992)

A self-centered Minnesota lawyer is sentenced to community service coaching a rag tag youth hockey team.

Director:

Stephen Herek

Writer:

Steven Brill

Stars:

Emilio Estevez, Joss Ackland, Lane Smith

2 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Emilio Estevez	...	Gordon Bombay
Joss Ackland	...	Hans
Lane Smith	...	Coach Reilly
Heidi Kling	...	Casey
Josef Sommer	...	Gerald Ducksworth
Joshua Jackson	...	Charlie Conway
Elden Henson	...	Fulton Reed (as Elden Ratliff)
Shaun Weiss	...	Goldberg
M.C. Gainey	...	Lewis
Matt Doherty	...	Les Averman
Brandon Quintin Adams	...	Jesse Hall (as Brandon Adams)
J.D. Daniels	...	Peter
Aaron Schwartz	...	Dave Karp
Garette Ratliff Henson	...	Guy Germaine
Marguerite Moreau	...	Connie

Storyline

Gordon Bombay, a hotshot lawyer, is haunted by memories of his childhood, when, as the star player in his champion hockey team, he lost the winning goal in a shootout, thereby losing the game, and the approval of his coach. After being charged for drunk driving, the court orders him to coach a peewee hockey team, the worst in the league, Gordon is at first very reluctant. However, he eventually gains the respect of the kids and teaches them how to win, gaining a sponsor on the way and giving the team the name of The Ducks. In the finals, they face Gordon's old team, coached by Gordon's old coach, giving Gordon a chance to face old ghosts.

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Plot Keywords:

hockey movie | team | hockey team | coach | lawyer | 

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Taglines:

He's never coached. They've never won. Together they'll learn everything about winning!

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Genres:

Comedy | Drama | Family | Sport

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated PG for mild language

Details

Official Sites:

Disney's Official Site

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

2 October 1992 (USA)

Also Known As:

The Mighty Ducks

Filming Locations:

Cook Memorial Arena - 11091 Mississippi Boulevard, Coon Rapids, Minnesota, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$10,000,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend USA:

$6,035,133, 4 October 1992

Gross USA:

$50,752,337

Company Credits

Production Co:

Avnet/Kerner Productions, Touchwood Pacific Partners 1, Walt Disney Pictures

Technical Specs

Runtime:

100 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

The Banks' home address as stated by the hockey league worker, 450 North Hennepin Ave, is a real address in Minneapolis, Minnesota but it is for a parking lot.

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Goofs

In the scene where the players shoot at Goldberg One of the players has a remaining puck however in the next shot the puck is gone.

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Quotes

Dave Karp: You said we were losers! You said we didn't deserve to live!
Gordon Bombay: Karp, I was being sarcastic. Do you know what that means?
Dave Karp: [sarcastically] Noooooo!
Gordon Bombay: I see that you do.

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Crazy Credits

In the closing Credits, Joshua Jackson's character 'Charlie Conway' is misspelled and listed as "Charlie Conroy"

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Alternate Versions

Two versions of the movie's soundtrack exist (along with two representations of the music list in the credits, usually paired correctly but not always). In one version, when Charlie wins the game with his penalty shot, Queen's "We Are the Champions plays for about 70 seconds, then as the bus drives away and the end credits begin, Queen's "We Will Rock You" starts, followed by "We Are the Champions". In another version, the musical score continues uninterrupted throughout the victory scene, and the end credits have "Winning It All" by The Outfield and then "We Will Rock You". (One version of the song list has Rock and Champions, and the other has Rock and Winning.) The US DVD has the Champions versions on its English, French, and Spanish dubs, although the French credits list Winning. The US Blu-ray has the Winning It All version in both its English soundtrack and credits list. One possibility is that Champions was always intended, but the rights couldn't be set up in time for the theatrical release and were arranged by the home video releases (then in an earnest effort to be faithful to the original release the Blu-ray lost it again).

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Connections

Referenced in The Ben Stiller Show: With Dennis Miller (1992)

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Soundtracks

WE ARE THE CHAMPIONS
Written by Freddie Mercury
Performed by Queen
Courtesy of EMI Records

User Reviews

Is To Hockey What "Little Big League" Is To Baseball

Though perhaps unknown to the warm-weather climates of the nation, youth hockey (and even hockey in general) is a big, big real. "Mighty Ducks" taps into that fan base with a fun little movie set in Minnesota that captures the fun, drama, and emotion of the experience.

For a basic plot summary, this movie tells the story of Gordon Bombay (Emilio Estevez), a corrupt lawyer who his forced into community in the form of coaching Minneapolis, MN youth hockey (an area in which he had some childhood experience). While at first, Bombay is hesitant to give even a modicum of effort towards the cause, he gains inspiration (whether positive or negative) from old-time mentor Hans (Joss Ackland), former coach Jack Reilly (Lane Smith), and bright-eyed youngster Charlie Conway (Joshua Jackson).

This is a pretty straightforward kids flick. It has the requisite goofy humor, sometimes cringe- worthy dialogue, and a heavy amount of rah-rah drama. Even if your kids aren't necessarily into hockey, they will like this type of movie.

The reason why this movie transcends kiddie fare, though, is because it captures the essence of hockey. It treats the sport with a great deal of respect and reverence, which taps into the nostalgia of adults watching. Just like how "Little Big League" just "gets" baseball humor, "Mighty Ducks" does the exact same thing as hockey.

Basically, you can't go wrong with this on family movie night. It has enough of everything to not bore any member of the family tears. In fact, it may (depending on your interest in sports/hockey) become a sort of cult classic in your own family.