Any Given Sunday | |
---|---|
Directed by | Oliver Stone |
Screenplay by |
|
Story by |
|
Based on | On Any Given Sunday 1984 novel by Pat Toomay |
Produced by | |
Starring | |
Cinematography | Salvatore Totino |
Edited by |
|
Music by |
|
Production companies |
|
Distributed by | Warner Bros. |
Release date |
|
Running time | 157 minutes [1] |
Country | United States |
Language | English |
Budget | $55 million [1] |
Box office | $100.2 million [1] |
Any Given Sunday is a 1999 American sports drama film directed by Oliver Stone depicting a fictional professional American football team. The film features an ensemble cast that includes Al Pacino, Cameron Diaz, Dennis Quaid, Jamie Foxx, James Woods, LL Cool J, Ann-Margret, Lauren Holly, Matthew Modine, John C. McGinley, Charlton Heston, Bill Bellamy, Lela Rochon, Aaron Eckhart, Elizabeth Berkley, and NFL players Jim Brown and Lawrence Taylor.
It is partly based on the 1984 novel On Any Given Sunday by NFL defensive end Pat Toomay; the title is derived from a line in the book (also used in the film), that a team can win or lose on "any given Sunday", said by the fictitious coach Tony D'Amato. [2] The quote was originally derived from a statement made in 1952 by then-NFL commissioner Bert Bell, about the league's devotion to financial and competitive parity. [3]
Cameo roles also feature many former American football players, including Dick Butkus, Y. A. Tittle, Pat Toomay, Warren Moon, Johnny Unitas, Ricky Watters, Emmitt Smith and Terrell Owens, as well as coach Barry Switzer.
The Miami Sharks, a once-great American football team, are struggling to make the 2001 Affiliated Football Franchises of America (AFFA) playoffs. The team is coached by thirty-year veteran Tony D'Amato, who has fallen out of favor with young team owner Christina Pagniacci, and his offensive coordinator Nick Crozier. Crozier is also D'Amato's expected successor.
In the thirteenth game of the season, both the starting quarterback Jack "Cap" Rooney and second-string quarterback Tyler Cherubini are injured and forced to leave the field. The desperate Sharks call on third-string quarterback Willie Beamen to enter the game. While a nervous Beamen makes a number of errors and fails to win the game for the Sharks, he plays well and gains confidence. Rooney vows to make it back by the playoffs, with D'Amato promising not to give up on him.
The following day, D'Amato and Pagniacci argue about the direction of the team. Pagniacci favors Crozier, and wants to eventually cut Rooney. D'Amato argues that Pagniacci's father, the previous owner, would never have meddled in his coaching plans.
During the next game, to D'Amato's chagrin, Beamen disregards the team's conservative offense and changes plays in the huddle. As the media hails Beamen as the next model of quarterback, the newfound success feeds his growing narcissism and leads to tension with teammates and coaches. During a confrontation with Beamen, D'Amato demotes him to the bench.
After Beamen gives an interview in which he takes sole credit for the Sharks' winning streak, the other players refuse to perform for Beamen and consequently lose a home game. After Beamen is involved in a brawl with Julian "J-Man" Washington, an irate D'Amato expresses his embarrassment at his team before leaving. Beamen thinks about his behavior and amends his ways.
As the playoffs arrive, Sharks middle linebacker Luther Lavay reminds Beamen about how lucky he is to be in the league, and to find a life outside of football; his words fall on deaf ears. D'Amato worsens his relationship with Pagniacci and berates Rooney for second-guessing his availability. Before the game, D'Amato gives an energizing speech urging team unity that Beamen takes to heart and energizes the rest of the team. Rooney returns as starting quarterback but is injured with a concussion after scoring a touchdown.
Rooney urges D'Amato to let Beamen finish the game; after an argument, D'Amato relents. Subsequently, Pagniacci enters the locker room to demand that D'Amato play Beamen. After she and D'Amato argue, Beamen informs her that he had already been told that he would start the second half. Beamen apologizes to his teammates for his actions and leads the team to win. In a post-game talk with D'Amato, Beamen dedicates the next game to Rooney, but admits that he is worried about his ongoing health.
The Sharks eventually lose the championship (the Pantheon Cup) to San Francisco. At D'Amato's final press conference as head coach, he is thanked by Pagniacci. D'Amato is expected to announce his retirement, but he instead drops two bombshells, announcing that he has been hired as head coach and general manager of an expansion team in New Mexico, the Albuquerque Aztecs, and that he has signed Willie Beamen to be his starting quarterback and franchise player.
Any Given Sunday was filmed in Miami, Florida, and Dallas, Texas. The Orange Bowl in Miami represents the home of the fictitious American football team, the Miami Sharks, and Texas Stadium is used for the home of the fictitious Dallas Knights. These and the other made-up teams and their league, Associated Football Franchises of America (AFFA), are based on the National Football League. The actual NFL teams and league names are trademarked.
At the end of the film, D'Amato laments to gathered media about his team's loss to San Francisco but does not reference their mascot. On the team schedule, the San Francisco Knights are mentioned, but this is likely a mistake because the Dallas team has that nickname. A team called the Pharaohs is mentioned during the Minnesota game without any city, so it is possible that they are the San Francisco Pharaohs.
Expansion Team:
This section needs additional citations for verification .(November 2024) |
Oliver Stone developed a script called Monday Night written by Jamie Williams, a former tight end for the Nebraska Cornhuskers and later the San Francisco 49ers, and Richard Weiner, a sports journalist. Stone separately acquired the spec script On Any Given Sunday by John Logan. Stone later amalgamated a third screenplay, Playing Hurt by Daniel Pyne, into the project.
As of May 1, 1999, the screenplay's cover page listed the following writers: original draft by Jamie Williams and Richard Weiner, John Logan, Daniel Pyne; subsequent revisions by Gary Ross; revisions by Raynold Gideon and Bruce A. Evans; revisions by John Logan; revisions by Lisa Amsterdam and Robert Huizenga; latest revisions by Oliver Stone.
The Writers Guild of America ultimately awarded screenplay credit to Logan and Stone, with "story" credit to Pyne and Logan. Williams and Weiner went uncredited for their original screenplay, but were credited for their work on the film as technical consultants.
The screenplay was also based in part on the 1994 book You're Okay, It's Just a Bruise: A Doctor's Sideline Secrets by Robert Huizenga. Huizenga was the intern doctor for the Los Angeles Raiders in their 1980s heyday, working under Dr. Robert T. Rosenfeld, who dismissed many players' injuries with the phrase, "You're okay, it's just a bruise".
James Woods's character is based on Rosenfeld. His first diagnosis of "Cap" Rooney's career-threatening injury at the beginning of the film is "you're okay, it's just a bruise". Huizenga left the Raiders in the early 1990s, disgusted at the way that the medical advice was kept from players and Rosenfeld being allowed to continue treating them after several mishaps, one of which is closely mirrored in the film—Shark's neck injury and risk of sudden death, based on the real-life Mike Harden case.
Director Oliver Stone's first two choices to play Tony D'Amato were Al Pacino and Robert De Niro. Henry Rollins was offered a role as a football player but turned it down because he felt that he did not have the size to make the portrayal believable. Sean "P. Diddy" Combs was cast as Willie Beamen, but dropped out amidst rumors that he could not throw a football convincingly. Publicly, Combs dropped out of the project because of scheduling conflicts with his recording career. Will Smith turned down the role, saying that he was not interested. [5] According to Cuba Gooding Jr., he met with Oliver Stone about playing the role of Willie Beamen, but Stone turned Gooding down because he had already played a football player in Jerry Maguire (1996). Chris Tucker turned down the role of Willie Beamen. [6] George Clooney was offered the role of Jack Rooney, but turned it down because he thought that Stone was going to rewrite the script for him. [5] Ving Rhames was originally cast in a role in the film, but he dropped out due to production delays and scheduling conflicts with Mission: Impossible 2 . [7]
Five Pro Football Hall of Fame players make cameo appearances as opposing head coaches: Bob St. Clair appears as the coach for Minnesota in the first game; Y. A. Tittle, for Chicago, appears in the second game; Dick Butkus, with California, appears during the road game; Warren Moon, with New York in the rain soaked game; Johnny Unitas appears as the coach in the fifth game.
Jim Caviezel played Tony D'Amato's estranged son, but his scenes were cut. They can be seen in the "Extra Features" of the Oliver Stone Collection DVD. Tom Sizemore also had a role in the film, but it too was cut.
The film was shot in Miami, Florida, and Irving, Texas. [8] [9] When the team traveled to California, the stadium that was used is Pro Player Stadium, which is located in Miami Gardens. Texas Stadium (former home of the Dallas Cowboys) is used for the home of the fictitious Dallas Knights.
Director Oliver Stone failed to get the National Football League's permission to use real NFL team logos and stadiums for the film. As a result, the Sharks play at the Miami Orange Bowl (which the NFL Miami Dolphins abandoned after the 1986 season) in the fictional Affiliated Football Franchises of America (AFFA), which is not to be confused with the real AFA; the AFFA exists alongside the NFL in this universe, as the Dolphins are mentioned in one scene.
For the scenes during a football game, production asked local schools to participate as extras for the film, including Lake Stevens Middle School in Miami, for each shot for which the crowd was asked to move around so that each section looked filled. In empty seats, cardboard cutouts were placed in seats with balloons attached to them so that they would seem to be in motion.
Practice scenes were filmed in the ill-fated Homestead Sports Complex, which was built for spring-training baseball; however, the stadium was damaged by Hurricane Andrew in 1992 and eventually torn down without ever hosting a Major League team.
The film also uses Arena Football League players, such Pat O'Hara, who played for the Tampa Bay Storm and coached the Orlando Predators and became an assistant coach with the Tennessee Titans. Not to mention, Connell Maynor, who also played for the Predators and spent time as both a player and coach for the Philadelphia Soul. Meanwhile, Bjorn Nittmo, then with the AFL's Buffalo Destroyers, was the Sharks' placekicker.
A soundtrack containing hip hop, rock and R&B music was released on January 4, 2000, by Atlantic Records. It peaked at #28 on the "Billboard 200" and #11 on the "Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums".
Oliver Stone wanted to use the music of the Canadian band Godspeed You! Black Emperor, and actually filmed a scene using their music. However, when he asked for permission, the band said no, and Stone was forced to redo the scene without the music.
Film composer Richard Horowitz, who supplied the original score, published his complete music for the film on a promotional CD. [10]
Any Given Sunday was a financial success; made on a budget of $55 million, it went on to earn $100.2 million worldwide. [1]
The film received mixed reviews. Rotten Tomatoes gave an aggregated score of 52% positive from 127 reviews, with an average rating of 5.5/10. The site's consensus states: "Sometimes entertaining, but overall Any Given Sunday is a disappointment coming from Oliver Stone." [11] On Metacritic, Any Given Sunday has an aggregated score of 52%, based on reviews from 33 critics, indicating "mixed or average" reviews. [12] Audiences polled by CinemaScore gave the film an average grade of "B−" on a scale of A+ to F. [13]
Time Out 's Andrew Johnston wrote, "It's often been said of films about sports that smaller balls equal better movies. Any Given Sunday explodes that theory, and not just because of the incredible intensity of its gridiron action. Oliver Stone's best movie in many years—and one of his finest ever—looks at the world of professional football from almost every conceivable angle, but it never tries to be the definitive statement on the subject. A surprisingly balanced film that merges Stone's hyperkinetic style with a character-centric narrative approach reminiscent of John Sayles and Robert Altman at their best, Sunday proves that powerful human drama and MTV visual pyrotechnics actually can coexist after all." [14]
Roger Ebert of the Chicago Sun-Times also gave the film a mostly positive review, awarding it 3 stars out of 4, but criticized its length. "I guess I recommend the movie because the dramatic scenes are worth it. Pacino has some nice heart-to-hearts with Quaid and Foxx, and the psychology of the veteran coach is well-captured in the screenplay by Stone and John Logan. But if some studio executive came along and made Stone cut his movie down to two hours, I have the strangest feeling it wouldn't lose much of substance and might even play better." [15]
Conversely, Richard Schickel of Time criticized the story as being "standard", and stated "(a)lmost three hours of this jitter deteriorates from bravura filmmaking to annoying mannerism, and Any Given Sunday ends up less than the sum of its many, often interesting parts." [16]
Rick Groen of The Globe and Mail wrote that the story was "(c)hoc-a-bloc with manly blather about sacrifice and honour and rugged individuals pulling together for the greater glory of the team". [16]
Elaborating on many critics' shared observations [16] that the movie was "hyperkinetic", Jack Matthews of the New York Daily News stated that "the sensation we get from the blizzard of images and teeth-jarring sound effects is of having our head used as the football".
Stephen Holden of The New York Times criticized Dennis Quaid as too old for his part, Cameron Diaz as "not up to the dramatic demands of her unsympathetic character", and the "ludicrously upbeat" ending, but complimented the portrayal of in-game action, in which the "kinetic furor of the game sequences helps camouflage the weaknesses of a screenplay that is a mechanically contrived series of power struggles". [17]
When released to home-video on VHS and DVD, a new director's cut by Oliver Stone was used. Due to the package listing, "6 minutes of previously unseen footage" and a running time of 156 minutes, many[ who? ] assumed that the theatrical cut was 150 minutes, and that Stone had added six minutes of footage. In actuality, the theatrical cut ran 162 minutes; 12 minutes were deleted for the director's cut, and six minutes of new footage were added. Stone said that these changes were made to help the film's pacing.[ citation needed ]
The Miami Dolphins are a professional American football team based in the Miami metropolitan area. The Dolphins compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the American Football Conference (AFC) East division. The team plays its home games at Hard Rock Stadium in Miami Gardens, Florida, a northern suburb of Miami. The team is owned by Stephen M. Ross. The Dolphins are the oldest professional sports team in Florida. Of the four AFC East teams, the Dolphins are the only team in the division that was not a charter member of the American Football League (AFL). The Dolphins were also one of the first professional football teams in the southeast, along with the Atlanta Falcons.
Super Bowl XIII was an American football game between the American Football Conference (AFC) champion Pittsburgh Steelers and the National Football Conference (NFC) champion Dallas Cowboys to decide the National Football League (NFL) champion for the 1978 season. The Steelers defeated the Cowboys by the score of 35–31. The game was played on January 21, 1979, at the Miami Orange Bowl in Miami, Florida, the fifth and last time that the Super Bowl was played in that stadium.
Terry Paxton Bradshaw is an American former professional football quarterback who played in the National Football League (NFL) for 14 seasons with the Pittsburgh Steelers. Since 1994, he has been a television sports analyst and co-host of Fox NFL Sunday. Bradshaw is also an actor and recording artist, having participated in several television shows and films, most notably co-starring in the movie Failure to Launch, and releasing several country music albums. He won four Super Bowl titles in a six-year period, becoming the first quarterback to win three and four Super Bowls, and led the Steelers to eight AFC Central championships. He was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 1989, his first year of eligibility. Bradshaw was inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame in 1996.
Thomas Wade Landry was an American professional football coach, player, and World War II veteran. Regarded as one of the greatest head coaches of all time, he was the first head coach of the Dallas Cowboys in the National Football League (NFL), a position he held for 29 seasons. During his coaching career, he created many new formations and methods, such as the now default 4–3 defense that is used by a majority of teams in the NFL, and the "flex defense" system made famous by the "Doomsday Defense" squads he built during his tenure with the Cowboys. His 29 consecutive years from 1960 to 1988 as the coach of one team is an NFL record, along with his 20 consecutive winning seasons, which is considered to be his most impressive professional accomplishment.
Henry Louis Stram was an American football coach. He is best known for his 15-year tenure with the Dallas Texans / Kansas City Chiefs of the American Football League (AFL) and National Football League (NFL).
Donald Francis Shula was an American professional football player, coach and executive who served as a head coach in the National Football League (NFL) from 1963 to 1995. He played seven seasons as a defensive back in the NFL. For most of his career, Shula was the head coach of the Miami Dolphins.
The NFL draft, officially known as the Annual Player Selection Meeting, is an annual event which serves as the most common source of player recruitment in the National Football League. Each team is given a position in the drafting order in reverse order relative to its record in the previous year, which means that the last place team is positioned first and the Super Bowl champion is last. From this position, the team can either select a player or trade its position to another team for other draft positions, a player or players, or any combination thereof. The round is complete when each team has either selected a player or traded its position in the draft. The first draft was held in 1936 and has been held every year since.
Charles Henry Noll was an American professional football player and head coach. Regarded as one of the greatest head coaches of all time, his sole head coaching position was for the Pittsburgh Steelers of the National Football League (NFL) from 1969 to 1991. When Noll retired after 23 years, only three other head coaches in NFL history had longer tenures with one team.
Zachary Michael Thomas, nicknamed "Baby Elephant", is an American former professional football player who was a linebacker in the National Football League (NFL) for 13 seasons. He played college football for the Texas Tech Red Raiders, and was recognized as a unanimous All-American. He was selected in the fifth round, 22nd pick, in the 1996 NFL draft by the Miami Dolphins, and played for the Dolphins in his first 12 seasons in the NFL, before playing his 13th and final season with the Dallas Cowboys.
The 1989 NFL season was the 70th regular season of the National Football League. Before the season, NFL commissioner Pete Rozelle announced his retirement. Paul Tagliabue was eventually chosen to succeed him, taking over on November 5.
The 1987 NFL season was the 68th regular season of the National Football League (NFL). This season featured games predominantly played by replacement players, as the National Football League Players Association (NFLPA) players were on strike from weeks four to six with week three being cancelled in its entirety. This remains the last NFL season in which regular-season games were impacted by a labor conflict.
The Miracle at the Meadowlands was a fumble recovery by cornerback Herman Edwards of the Philadelphia Eagles that he returned for a touchdown at the end of a November 19, 1978, National Football League (NFL) game against the New York Giants in Giants Stadium. After quarterback Joe Pisarcik botched an attempt to hand off the football to fullback Larry Csonka, Edwards picked up the dropped ball and ran 26 yards for the winning touchdown. It is considered miraculous because the Giants were ahead 17–12 and could easily have run out the final seconds, since they had the ball and the Eagles had no timeouts left.
Patrick O'Hara is an American football coach and former quarterback who most recently served as the pass game analyst for the Tennessee Titans of the National Football League (NFL). He previously served as the head coach of the New Orleans VooDoo, Orlando Predators and Tri-Cities Fever. O'Hara also served as an assistant coach for the Houston Texans and Tampa Bay Storm.
Jason Calvin Garrett is an American former professional football player and coach in the National Football League (NFL). He was most notably the head coach of the Dallas Cowboys for 9+1⁄2 seasons from 2010 to 2019.
Patrick Jay Toomay is an American former professional football player, a defensive end for ten seasons in the National Football League (NFL) for the Dallas Cowboys, Buffalo Bills, Tampa Bay Buccaneers, and Oakland Raiders. He played college football at Vanderbilt University and was selected in the sixth round of the 1970 NFL draft by the Dallas Cowboys. He is the author of books about professional football, including The Crunch and the 1984 novel On Any Given Sunday.
The 2008 NFL season was the 89th regular season of the National Football League (NFL), themed with the slogan "Believe in Now."
The 2009 NFL season was the 90th season in the history of the National Football League (NFL). The 50th anniversary of the original eight charter members of the American Football League was celebrated during this season.
Willie Ervin Blade II is a former American football defensive tackle in the National Football League (NFL) for the Dallas Cowboys, Houston Texans, and Jacksonville Jaguars. He played college football at Mississippi State University.
The Cowboys–Steelers rivalry is a rivalry in the NFL. The Cowboys currently lead the all-time series 18–16. The two teams met in the Super Bowl three times, the most of any two teams. CBS Sports ranked this rivalry No. 2 of the best NFL rivalries of the 1970s. As the Cowboys are in the NFC and the Steelers are in the AFC, they usually only meet at least once every four years and at least once every eight seasons at each team's home stadium, sometimes more often if the two teams finish in the same place in their respective divisions in the year they do not play one another but met two years prior, play in the preseason, or meet in the Super Bowl.
Willie Román Simmons is an American college football coach and former quarterback. He is the head football coach at Florida International University (FIU). Simmons was the head football coach at Prairie View A&M from 2014 to 2017 and Florida A&M from 2018 to 2023. He has also served as offensive coordinator of the Alcorn State Braves as well as the Middle Tennessee State Blue Raiders football teams. Simmons played college football at Clemson and The Citadel as a quarterback.