LeatherheadsFrom Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Leatherheads is a 2008 American sports comedy film from Universal Pictures directed by and starring George Clooney. The film also stars Renée Zellweger and John Krasinski. The DVD was released on September 23, 2008.
Plot
Clooney plays Dodge Connolly, captain of a struggling professional American Football team during the 1920s, the Duluth Bulldogs. Dodge is determined to save both his team and pro football in general when the players lose their sponsor and the league is on the brink of collapse. He convinces a college football star, Carter "the Bullet" Rutherford, to join the Bulldogs, hoping to capitalize on Carter's fame as a decorated hero of the First World War (like Alvin York, he singlehandedly captured a large group of German soldiers).
In addition to his legendary tales of combat heroism, Carter has dashing good looks and unparalleled speed and skill on the field. As a result of his presence, both the Bulldogs and pro football in general begin to prosper.
Zellweger provides a romantic interest as Chicago newspaper reporter Lexie Littleton, who becomes the object of the affections of both Dodge and Carter. One knows but the other doesn't that Lexie has been assigned to find proof that Carter's war heroics are bogus. Indeed, Carter confesses that the surrender of the Germans was a lucky accident and in no way heroic.
Meanwhile, Dodge's attempts to legitimize pro football start to backfire, as rules are formalized, taking away much of the improvisational antics that made the game fun for many of its players.
With his own playing career near an end, Dodge gets to play in one last big game. This time it will be against Carter, who has changed sides to the Chicago team. Their rivalry for Lexie's affection spills over onto the football field for one last day.
Cast
* George Clooney as Jimmy "Dodge" Connolly
* Renée Zellweger as Lexie Littleton
* John Krasinski as Carter Rutherford
* Jonathan Pryce as CC
* Stephen Root as Suds
* Wayne Duvall as Coach Frank Ferguson
* Keith Loneker as Big Gus
* Malcolm Goodwin as Bakes
* Matt Bushell as Curly
* Tim Griffin as Ralph
* Robert Baker as Stump
* Nick Paones as Zoom
* Nick Bourdages as Bug
* Jeremy Ratchford as Eddie
* Alex Via as Scoreboard Guy
* Max Casella as Mack Steiner
* Jack Thompson as Harvey
Production
Leatherheads began filming on February 12, 2007. Filming locations mainly included locations in and around upstate South Carolina and western North Carolina around Statesville, in Winston-Salem, specifically at [[Hanes Magnet School and the mellinium center.]. Filming wrapped in mid-May 2007. After initially being set for release in December 2007, the studio moved the release date to April 4, 2008. On March 24, George Clooney and Renée Zellweger premiered the movie in Maysville, Kentucky, birthplace of Clooney's father and aunt, Nick Clooney and Rosemary Clooney.
The setting of most of the film is Duluth, Minnesota, but was filmed in the Carolinas. In late March 2008, Clooney and Zellweger visited Duluth to promote the film.
The piano player bent over the tack piano with eyes glued to music really didn't need to concentrate so. He is the composer of the original music in this movie, Oscar-winning songwriter Randy Newman. He is the cousin of famous film composer David Newman and nephew of David's father, the prolific movie composer Alfred Newman.
Critical reception
The film received mixed reviews from critics. As of April 5, 2008, the review aggregator Rotten Tomatoes reported that 54% of critics gave the film positive reviews, based on 108 reviews. Metacritic reported the film had an average score of 57 out of 100, based on 32 reviews.
Box office performance
In its opening weekend, the film grossed $12.6 million in 2,769 theaters in the United States and Canada, ranking #3 at the box office behind Nim's Island, below the expectations of Universal Studios. Viewers in their 50s to 80s were the main audience for the film. As of May 1, 2008, the movie has made about $29.7 million from the domestic box office and $6 million from the foreign box office making a total of $35.8 million.
Leatherheads (Widescreen)From Universal Studios
Average customer review:
Product Description
Academy Award® winners George Clooney and Ren e Zellweger team up in this fun-filled comedy set against the beginnings of pro football. Dodge Connelly (Clooney) captain of a struggling squad of barroom brawlers has only one hope to save his team: recruit college superstar Carter Rutherford (John Krasinski The Office). But when a feisty reporter (Zellweger) starts snooping around she turns the two teammates into instant rivals and kicks off a wild competition filled with hilarious screwball antics! Critics are cheering Leatherheads as a real winner (Claudia Puig USA Today).System Requirements:Running Time: 114 minutesFormat: DVD MOVIE Genre: COMEDY/BUDDY FILMS Rating: PG-13 UPC: 025195012935 Manufacturer No: 61101581
Product Details
* Amazon Sales Rank: #251 in DVD
* Brand: LEATHERHEADS - WIDESCREEN (DVD MOVIE)
* Released on: 2008-09-23
* Rating: PG-13 (Parental Guidance Suggested)
* Aspect ratio: 1.85:1
* Formats: AC-3, Color, Dolby, Dubbed, DVD-Video, Subtitled, Widescreen, NTSC
* Original language: English
* Subtitled in: English, French, Spanish
* Dubbed in: French, Spanish
* Number of discs: 1
* Dimensions: .20 pounds
* Running time: 114 minutes
Customer Reviews
Middle of the pack look at the early days of pro football
It's hard to determine what was really needed to make this a better film, but something... that one magic ingredient... surely is missing and without it this movie finds itself solidly in the middle of the pack. It's not bad, but far from great, leaving a 3 star recommendation for those that want to know if this film is worth nearly 2 hours of their time.
Leatherheads was promoted (in trailers) as a screwball comedy and I suppose it tries to achieve that on some levels, but it never quite delivers on that promise as it tries to include a love story and a story of a hero that perhaps shouldn't be a hero at all, and oh, yeah, it also tries to tell a story about football back in the days of leather helmets being played in front of few fans in places that wouldn't be thought of as being historically significant to the game. In some ways this seems to be a football version of the Will Ferrell film: Semi-pro. It's got the screwed up players, the faltering league, the guy with the plan, and other formulaic elements that were simply transferred from the basketball story over to a story about professional football.
Clooney does well, and John Krasinski isn't bad either. Rene Zellweger is ok in the obligatory role as the femme fatale reporter that is looking for the real story behind Krasinski's would be hero. Outside of those characters, and Jonathan Pryce's role, the rest of the performances and players are ok though none really stand-out.
George Clooney directed this film and seems to have achieved an apparent goal of delivering a nostalgic experience, though the images are often what some would call bland, dusty or muddy. There's plenty of detail, but the color palette is meant to present a nostalgic appearance and oh, yeah, also is often focused on a football field where players are getting muddy and dirty.
Worth a rental, but the buy-it recommendation would seem to be outside the value that seems to be delivered here.
Worth a look
I'm giving this 5 stars to make up for the 1 star reviews given this movie. It certainly is not the best movie of the year......but it's worth the hour & a half. It's an entertaining story with a satisfying ending. There's a few "laugh out loud" moments and a lot of heart in most scenes. I agree that it's quickly forgotten, but you will enjoy the time spent.
"Play by the Rules"
George Clooney must like making vintage movies because when left to his own devices, that's what he does. Besides the noir must be back. `Married Life,' `The Black Dahlia (Full Screen Edition),' and `The Good German' all point in that direction.
Put all the components of `Leatherheads' together: a screwball comedy, old fashioned brawls, and a sassy female reporter looking for the best scoop, and you're in for a good, old-fashioned time.
For this outing George Clooney plays Dodge Connelly, an aging football player, barely financing The Bulldogs, his Duluth, MN team. When his business goes belly up, he and his fellow players go back to manual labor. Until one day while listening to the radio, he hears a broadcast of a Princeton game that draws a crowd of 40,000. Persuasively, he talks "The Warrior Hero," Carter "Bullet" Rutherford (John Krazinski) and his agent C.C. Frazier (Jonathan Pryce) into a lucrative offer to join his team and take a college leave of absence. At the same time, savvy newspaper reporter, Lexie Littleton (Renée Zellweger is assigned to investigate Carter on a rumor that his legendary story in "The Great War" is a hoax.
Clooney directed this film, and his skills to transport us to another era are spot on. Speakeasy bars, vintage press scenes, and old-fashioned meeting rooms are done well without lingering over every detail. Some of the movie's best lines are given in the Spencer Tracy-Katherine Hepburn exchanges between Clooney and Zellwiger (or make that Cary Grant and Mae West). Maybe the final football game scenes won't be the most exciting in cinema history, but some of the wittiest dialogue of the year have come from this film, giving the comedy genre a much needed boost. If that's not reason enough to see this movie, then nothing else is.
A J.P.'s Pick 3*'s = Good
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