The Longshots
Encyclopedia
The Longshots is a 2008 biopic family comedy-drama film
sports movie based on the real life events of Jasmine Plummer, the first female to participate in the Pop Warner football tournament.
The film stars Ice Cube
and Keke Palmer
, their second movie together after Barbershop 2: Back in Business
. It is directed by Limp Bizkit
frontman Fred Durst
.
Everything is going great, until Coach Fisher has a heart attack, and the assistant coach asks Curtis to help coach the team through the last two games. He hesitates at first, but is eventually talked into it. They win the two games and are able to go to the Pop Warner Super Bowl in Miami Beach. Jasmine's father, Roy, suddenly shows up after he sees her on TV. Claire and Curtis are both unhappy about his returning, but Jasmine is ecstatic.
The Browns are able to go to the Super Bowl after raising the money for the trip, including Curtis' donation of his life savings. Jasmine plays poorly in the first half when her father does not show up. Curtis talks her through her feelings for her father and Minder rallies for the second half. However, they lose the game after a teammate drops the ball on the last play. They are glad that they did their best. After they get back, Jasmine gives Roy back his watch, cutting him out of her life. She then accepts her uncle Curtis as a father figure.
said 41% of critics gave it a positive review. the consensus is: "The Longshots means well, but it's a largely formulaic affair, rarely deviating from the inspirational sports movie playbook."
on December 2, 2008. It opened at #18 at the DVD sales chart, selling 143,000 units for revenue of $2,858,950. As per the latest figures,471,000 DVD units have been sold, translating to $9,179,131 in revenue.
with the majority in the small town of Minden
. It was filmed at Minden High School
and the Webster Parish Alternative School. The "Super Bowl" was filmed in Shreveport, Louisiana
at Calvary Baptist Academy.
Drama film
A drama film is a film genre that depends mostly on in-depth development of realistic characters dealing with emotional themes. Dramatic themes such as alcoholism, drug addiction, infidelity, moral dilemmas, racial prejudice, religious intolerance, poverty, class divisions, violence against women...
sports movie based on the real life events of Jasmine Plummer, the first female to participate in the Pop Warner football tournament.
The film stars Ice Cube
Ice Cube
O'Shea Jackson , better known by his stage name Ice Cube, is an American rapper and actor. He began his career as a member of the hip-hop group C.I.A. and later joined the rap group N.W.A. After leaving N.W.A in December 1989, he built a successful solo career in music, and also as a writer,...
and Keke Palmer
Keke Palmer
Lauren Keyana "Keke" Palmer is an American actress and singer who rose to fame for her performance in the 2006 film Akeelah and the Bee. She also starred as the title character in the Nickelodeon sitcom True Jackson, VP...
, their second movie together after Barbershop 2: Back in Business
Barbershop 2: Back in Business
Barbershop 2: Black in Business is a 2004 American comedy film directed by Kevin Rodney Sullivan, produced by State Street Pictures and released by Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer on February 6, 2004...
. It is directed by Limp Bizkit
Limp Bizkit
Limp Bizkit is an American rock band from Jacksonville, Florida. Formed in 1995, the group's lineup consists of Fred Durst , Wes Borland , Sam Rivers , John Otto and DJ Lethal . The band achieved mainstream success with their second studio album Significant Other, released in 1999...
frontman Fred Durst
Fred Durst
William Frederick "Fred" Durst is an American musician, director, producer and actor, well known as the frontman of the band Limp Bizkit.-Early life:...
.
Plot
The movie starts out in Minder, Illinois, a former factory town with no money and a pathetic football team. Curtis Plummer, a down-and-out former football player is going nowhere, until he meets his niece Jasmine, the daughter of his no-good brother. Jasmine has worn her father's watch ever since he left five years ago, in the hopes that he will return. Her mother Claire asks Curtis to take care of Jasmine after school, because Claire has to work at the town diner. Curtis realizes Jasmine has a talent for throwing a football, which he nurtures into a passion for the game. He then persuades her to try out for the town's Pop Warner football team, the Minder Browns, because he thinks it would be good for her and the team. The team, including the coach, are against it, but her abilities gain her a spot on the team. However, the coach keeps her on the bench. In the fourth game, after much prodding from Curtis, the coach puts Jasmine in the game, and although they lose, everyone said they could have won if she had played from the beginning. Jasmine becomes the starting quarterback and the Minder Browns become a winning team.Everything is going great, until Coach Fisher has a heart attack, and the assistant coach asks Curtis to help coach the team through the last two games. He hesitates at first, but is eventually talked into it. They win the two games and are able to go to the Pop Warner Super Bowl in Miami Beach. Jasmine's father, Roy, suddenly shows up after he sees her on TV. Claire and Curtis are both unhappy about his returning, but Jasmine is ecstatic.
The Browns are able to go to the Super Bowl after raising the money for the trip, including Curtis' donation of his life savings. Jasmine plays poorly in the first half when her father does not show up. Curtis talks her through her feelings for her father and Minder rallies for the second half. However, they lose the game after a teammate drops the ball on the last play. They are glad that they did their best. After they get back, Jasmine gives Roy back his watch, cutting him out of her life. She then accepts her uncle Curtis as a father figure.
Cast
- Ice CubeIce CubeO'Shea Jackson , better known by his stage name Ice Cube, is an American rapper and actor. He began his career as a member of the hip-hop group C.I.A. and later joined the rap group N.W.A. After leaving N.W.A in December 1989, he built a successful solo career in music, and also as a writer,...
as Curtis Plummer - Keke PalmerKeke PalmerLauren Keyana "Keke" Palmer is an American actress and singer who rose to fame for her performance in the 2006 film Akeelah and the Bee. She also starred as the title character in the Nickelodeon sitcom True Jackson, VP...
as Jasmine Plummer - Matt CravenMatt Craven-Life and career:Craven was born Matthew John Crnkovich in Port Colborne, Ontario, the son of Joanne Leslie, a hairdresser, and Nick Crnkovich. He has an older sister, Deborah...
as Coach Fisher - Dash MihokDash MihokDashiell "Dash" Mihok is an American actor.-Life and career:Mihok was born in New York City, New York, the son of actors Andrea and Raymond Thorne . He attended the Bronx High School of Science and was raised in Greenwich Village. While at the Bronx High School of Science, Dash played baseball as...
as Cyrus - Tasha SmithTasha SmithTasha Smith is an American actress. She has appeared in numerous movies and plays.-Career:Smith is known for her role in Daddy's Little Girls, a Tyler Perry-directed movie, where she played the villain Jennifer...
as Claire Plummer - Jill Marie JonesJill Marie JonesJill Marie Jones is an African-American actress. She is best known for her role as realtor Toni Childs on the UPN/CW sitcom Girlfriends.-Biography:...
as Ronnie Macer - Kofi SiriboeKofi SiriboeKofi Siriboe is an American actor whose works have spanned theatre, film, and television. He is most notable for his role as Javy Hall in the Fred Durst directed movie The Longshots. Most recently he appeared as JJ in the ABC Family show Lincoln Heights during the fourth season in the episode...
as Javy Hall - Shane Kaufman as Rodriguez
- Garret Morris as Reverend Pratt
- Alan Aisenberg as "Feather"
- Michael ColyarMichael ColyarMichael Colyar is an American comedian and motivational speaker. He is mostly known as the heavy-hitting concert promoter "Showboat" in the 1994 movie, House Party 3.Colyar also spent his formative years as a comic, busking on Venice Beach....
as Ennis - EarthquakeEarthquake (comedian)Nathaniel Martin Stroman , best known as "Earthquake", is an African-American actor, voice artist, and comedian.Earthquake performed a half-hour HBO special as part of the series One Night Stand, which first aired on August 26, 2005. He also had a small role in Kevin Smith's film Clerks II, and a...
as Karl - Chloe Bridges as Tammy Anderson
- Debby RyanDebby RyanDeborah "Debby" Ryan is an American actress and singer. Ryan is best known for starring as Bailey Pickett in the Disney Channel Original Series The Suite Life on Deck. The Suite Life on Deck became the most watched children's show on television...
as Edith
Critical response
The Longshots received generally mixed reviews. Review aggregator Rotten TomatoesRotten Tomatoes
Rotten Tomatoes is a website devoted to reviews, information, and news of films—widely known as a film review aggregator. Its name derives from the cliché of audiences throwing tomatoes and other vegetables at a poor stage performance...
said 41% of critics gave it a positive review. the consensus is: "The Longshots means well, but it's a largely formulaic affair, rarely deviating from the inspirational sports movie playbook."
Box office
The Longshots opened on August 22, 2008 and grossed $4,080,687 in its opening week. It has grossed $11,767,866 worldwide.DVD release
The Longshots was released on DVDDVD
A DVD is an optical disc storage media format, invented and developed by Philips, Sony, Toshiba, and Panasonic in 1995. DVDs offer higher storage capacity than Compact Discs while having the same dimensions....
on December 2, 2008. It opened at #18 at the DVD sales chart, selling 143,000 units for revenue of $2,858,950. As per the latest figures,471,000 DVD units have been sold, translating to $9,179,131 in revenue.
Filming locations
The movie was filmed mostly in northwestern LouisianaLouisiana
Louisiana is a state located in the southern region of the United States of America. Its capital is Baton Rouge and largest city is New Orleans. Louisiana is the only state in the U.S. with political subdivisions termed parishes, which are local governments equivalent to counties...
with the majority in the small town of Minden
Minden, Louisiana
Minden is a city in the American state of Louisiana. It serves as the parish seat of Webster Parish and is located twenty-eight miles east of Shreveport, the seat of Caddo Parish. The population, which has been stable since 1960, was 13,027 at the 2000 census...
. It was filmed at Minden High School
Minden High School (Minden, Louisiana)
Minden High School is the public secondary educational institution in Minden, a small city of 13,000 and the seat of Webster Parish located twenty-eight miles east of Shreveport in northwestern Louisiana...
and the Webster Parish Alternative School. The "Super Bowl" was filmed in Shreveport, Louisiana
Shreveport, Louisiana
Shreveport is the third largest city in Louisiana. It is the principal city of the fourth largest metropolitan area in the state of Louisiana and is the 109th-largest city in the United States....
at Calvary Baptist Academy.