Fist Fight

Last updated

Fist Fight
Fist Fight.png
Theatrical release poster
Directed byRichie Keen
Screenplay by
Story by
Produced by
Starring
CinematographyEric Alan Edwards
Edited byMatthew Freund
Music by Dominic Lewis
Production
companies
Distributed by Warner Bros. Pictures [1]
Release dates
Running time
90 minutes [2]
CountryUnited States
LanguageEnglish
Budget$22–25 million [3] [4]
Box office$41.1 million [5]

Fist Fight is a 2017 American comedy film directed by Richie Keen and written by Van Robichaux and Evan Susser. The film stars Ice Cube, Charlie Day, Tracy Morgan, and Jillian Bell with Dean Norris, Christina Hendricks, Kumail Nanjiani, and Dennis Haysbert in supporting roles. The film centers on a school teacher who is challenged to an after-school fistfight after causing another teacher's termination.

Contents

The film premiered in Los Angeles on February 13, 2017, and was theatrically released in the United States on February 17, 2017. It grossed $41 million worldwide and received negative reviews from critics. It was released on DVD and Blu-ray on May 30, 2017.

Plot

On the last day before summer vacation, students devise an elaborate senior prank day, and faculty members try to survive the chaos as best they can. Meanwhile, English teacher Andy Campbell hears rumors of the downsizing of all departments. As he has a pregnant wife and a child, he becomes extremely anxious.

When history teacher Ron Strickland later asks Campbell for help with operating a VCR in a class, the student Neil secretly uses his smartphone to prank Strickland. Enraged, he grabs a fire axe and destroys Neil's desk, sending the class panicking from the room.

Both Campbell and Strickland are brought to Principal Tyler's office to discuss it. Despite initially agreeing to keep what happened a secret, after Tyler threatens to fire them both if no one steps forward, Campbell tells the truth. Strickland loses his job, so in retaliation, he challenges Campbell to a fistfight after school. Convinced that he does not stand a chance against Strickland, Campbell tries to set matters straight. He bribes Neil into giving false testimony to Principal Tyler to clear Strickland's name. The plan works, and Strickland gets reinstated.

Campbell and Strickland receive an emergency call from school counselor Holly. They meet with her, not realizing she tricked them into coming there to talk through their issues. When Campbell tells Strickland that he got him his job back, he is further enraged. Stating that Campbell should have told him about this plan before acting, as the school system is mishandled, he insists the fight is still on.

Campbell calls 9-1-1 for help, but after learning the reason for his call, the operator laughs and hangs up on him. Then, after seeking Holly and Coach Crawford's advice, he resolves to have Strickland removed from the campus before the day's end. As a last resort, Campbell threatens Neil into giving him MDMA, which he plants in Strickland's satchel. He calls the police, hoping to have Strickland arrested, but the attempt is botched and both teachers are incarcerated.

They share a cell with other inmates, and Campbell secretly tricks an enormous one into giving Strickland a beating, but only when signaled. He then returns to Strickland, who decides to call the fight off after the hellish day they have had. The inmate nonetheless attacks Strickland, who easily knocks him out. Upon realizing Campbell was behind it, Strickland declares the fight back on. They are then released after the police discover the drug used to frame Strickland was only aspirin.

Campbell heads back to meet up with the school board, Tyler, and Superintendent Johnson but learns that his colleagues have all been fired. He is one of the few to remain in his position. However, Campbell stands his ground and voices his complaints about the public school system not receiving the support it truly needs. He heads over to his daughter Ally's talent show, where her rendition of Big Sean's "I Don't Fuck with You" inspires him to finally stand up to Strickland.

In the school parking lot, Campbell and Strickland engage in a frenzied fight that is dragged throughout the school. Strickland dominates the fight early on, however Campbell gains the upper hand and seemingly knocks him out with a fire extinguisher. As he celebrates his victory prematurely, Strickland reappears and knocks him out with a single punch, ending the fight. During this time, Strickland answers Campbell's phone and learns that his wife Maggie is in labor. Showing mercy on Campbell, Strickland drives him to the hospital, thus ending their feud.

That summer, Tyler arrives at the Campbells' to tell Campbell that the publicity and public outcry the fight generated has forced the Department of Education to put more effort and money into their schools, so he must rehire Campbell and Strickland. Campbell accepts on the condition that the rest of his colleagues be reinstated as well.

As the new school year begins, the faculty return to their respective positions. Campbell and Strickland, now best friends, are ready to enforce learning with Campbell being much more assertive towards the students.

In a post-credits scene, Crawford is seen flirting with the 911 operator in person. After rapping for her, he realizes he does not know her name.

Cast

Production

In December 2013, it was announced that New Line Cinema was developing Fist Fight, a comedy from writers Van Robichaux and Evan Susser. [6] On June 9, 2015, Ice Cube and Charlie Day were cast in the film, which 21 Laps Entertainment produced, along with its Shawn Levy, as well as Billy Rosenberg and Max Greenfield. [7] On July 10, Richie Keen was confirmed to direct the film, while Dan Cohen was set to also produce. [8] On September 15, 2015, Jillian Bell and Dean Norris were also cast in the film, [9] and on September 21, 2015, Tracy Morgan, JoAnna Garcia, and Dennis Haysbert joined the cast. [10] On September 25, 2015, Christina Hendricks was added to the cast, [11] and Kym Whitley was later confirmed to appear. [12]

Principal photography on the film began on September 28, 2015, in Atlanta, Georgia, [13] [14] and ended on November 23, 2015. [15]

Reception

Box office

Fist Fight grossed $32.2 million in the United States and Canada and $8.9 million in other territories, for a worldwide total of $41.1 million. [5]

In North America, the film opened on February 17, 2017, alongside A Cure for Wellness and The Great Wall , and was initially projected to gross $15–20 million from 3,184 theaters in its opening weekend. [16] After grossing $600,000 from Thursday night previews and $3.8 million on its first day, projections were lowered to $10–12 million. The film went on to open to $12.2 million, finishing 5th at the box office. [3]

Critical response

On Rotten Tomatoes, the film has an approval rating of 25% based on 134 reviews and an average rating of 4.10/10. The site's critical consensus reads, "Fist Fight boasts a surplus of comedic muscle but flails lazily, and far too few of its jokes land with enough force to register." [17] On Metacritic, the film has a score of 37 out of 100 based on 28 critics, indicating "generally unfavorable reviews". [18] Audiences polled by CinemaScore gave the film an average grade of "B" on an A+ to F scale. [19] [20]

Writing for RogerEbert.com, Glenn Kenny gave the film 3 out of 4 stars, saying: "Fist Fight stands up, at least a little bit, for storytelling". [21] In contrast, Richard Roeper gave the film zero out of four stars and wrote that he disliked the film enough to wish for a technical malfunction to disrupt the showing. [22] British film critic Mark Kermode called it "Shoddily written, screechingly performed, crude, crass, endurance-testing... It's utter, utter, utter rubbish." [23]

See also

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References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 6 "Film releases". Variety Insight . Archived from the original on February 18, 2017. Retrieved February 17, 2017.
  2. ↑ "Fist Fight (15)". British Board of Film Classification . January 13, 2017. Retrieved January 13, 2017.
  3. 1 2 "Another Holiday Weekend Where Holdovers Reign & New Studio Releases Tank: Presidents' Day B.O." Deadline Hollywood . February 20, 2017.
  4. ↑ "2017 Feature Film Study" (PDF). FilmL.A. Feature Film Study: 23. August 8, 2018. Retrieved August 9, 2018.
  5. 1 2 "Fist Fight (2017)". Box Office Mojo. Retrieved August 12, 2017.
  6. ↑ Fleming, Mike Jr. (December 12, 2013). "New Line Engages In 'Fist Fight' Pitch With 'New Girl's Max Greenfield". deadline.com. Retrieved October 4, 2015.
  7. ↑ Fleming, Mike Jr. (June 9, 2015). "Charlie Day & Ice Cube Put on the Gloves For 'Fist Fight' At New Line". deadline.com. Retrieved October 4, 2015.
  8. ↑ McNary, Dave (July 10, 2015). "Ice Cube, Charlie Day's Comedy 'Fist Fight' Finds Director". variety.com. Retrieved October 4, 2015.
  9. ↑ Kit, Borys (September 15, 2015). "Jillian Bell and Dean Norris Join Ice Cube and Charlie Day in 'Fist Fight' (Exclusive)". hollywoodreporter.com. Retrieved October 4, 2015.
  10. ↑ Pedersen, Erik (September 21, 2015). "Tracy Morgan, JoAnna Garcia Swisher & Dennis Haysbert Put Up Dukes For 'Fist Fight'". deadline.com. Retrieved October 4, 2015.
  11. ↑ Kit, Borys (September 25, 2015). "Christina Hendricks in Talks to Join Ice Cube, Charlie Day in 'Fist Fight' (Exclusive)". hollywoodreporter.com. Retrieved October 4, 2015.
  12. ↑ Pedersen, Erik (September 25, 2015). "Kym Whitley Joins 'Fist Fight', by WB and TCF 'LBJ' Adds 2 New Cast Members, Louis Gossett, Jr. Enlists In 'Operation Insanity'". deadline.com. Retrieved October 4, 2015.
  13. ↑ "On the Set for 10/2/15: Renee Zellweger Starts on 'Bridget Jones' Baby', Clint Eastwood Rolls Cameras on Tom Hanks Starrer 'Sully'". ssninsider.com. October 2, 2015. Archived from the original on March 3, 2016. Retrieved October 4, 2015.
  14. ↑ "'Fist Fight' Starring Ice Cube Casting Call for High School Students". projectcasting.com. September 22, 2015. Retrieved October 4, 2015.
  15. ↑ "On the Set for 12/4/15: Gal Gadot Grabs Her Lasso for 'Wonder Woman', Brad Pitt Wraps 'War Machine', 'Resident Evil' Team Finish Final Chapter". SSN Insider. December 4, 2015. Archived from the original on February 18, 2016. Retrieved January 1, 2016.
  16. ↑ "Matt Damon's 'Great Wall' poised for soft U.S. opening against 'Lego Batman' and 'Fifty Shades'". Los Angeles Times . February 14, 2017.
  17. ↑ "Fist Fight (2017)". Rotten Tomatoes. Retrieved October 23, 2022.
  18. ↑ "Fist Fight reviews". Metacritic . Retrieved March 10, 2017.
  19. ↑ McNary, Dave (February 19, 2017). "Box Office: 'Lego Batman' Flies High Over 'Great Wall,' 'Fist Fight'". Variety .
  20. ↑ D'Alessandro, Anthony (February 20, 2017). "Holdovers Reign Over Presidents Day Weekend, But Why Did The New Releases Tank?". Deadline Hollywood. CinemaScore crowds gave the movie a B, which is under the B+s earned by Day's Horrible Bosses movies and Cube's Ride Along (A) and Ride Along 2 (B+).
  21. ↑ Kenny, Glenn (February 17, 2017). "Fist Fight Review". RogerEbert.com. Retrieved February 18, 2017.
  22. ↑ "Don't subject yourself to mean, humor-free 'Fist Fight'". Chicago Sun Times . February 16, 2017. Retrieved February 26, 2017.
  23. ↑ Mark Kermode (March 3, 2017). Fist Fight reviewed by Mark Kermode. YouTube. Retrieved April 4, 2022.
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