12 Mighty Orphans Explained

12 mighty orphans
Director:Ty Roberts
Music:Mark Orton
Cinematography:David McFarland
Editing:James K. Crouch
Distributor:Sony Pictures Classics
Runtime:118 minutes
Country:United States
Language:English
Gross:$3.7 million[1]

12 Mighty Orphans is a 2021 American sports film which was directed by Ty Roberts from a screenplay by Roberts, Lane Garrison and Kevin Meyer. It is based upon the non-fiction book Twelve Mighty Orphans: The Inspiring True Story of the Mighty Mites Who Ruled Texas Football by Jim Dent. The book is based on the Masonic School for Orphans in Fort Worth, Texas.[2]

The film stars Luke Wilson, Vinessa Shaw, Wayne Knight, Jake Austin Walker, Jacob Lofland, Levi Dylan, Robert Duvall and Martin Sheen. The film was released in the United States on June 11, 2021 by Sony Pictures Classics. It received mixed reviews from critics.

Plot

The true story of the Mighty Mites, the football team of a Fort Worth orphanage who, during the Great Depression, went from playing without shoes, or even a football, to playing for the Texas state championships. Over the course of their winning season, these underdogs and their resilient spirit became an inspiration to their city, state, and an entire nation in need of a rebound, even catching the attention of President Franklin D. Roosevelt.

The architect of their success was Rusty Russell, a legendary high school coach who shocked his colleagues by giving up a privileged position so he could teach and coach at an orphanage. Few knew Rusty's secret: that he himself was an orphan. Recognizing that his scrawny players could not beat the other teams with brawn, Rusty developed innovative strategies that would come to define modern football.

Production

Principal photography initially took place for seven weeks from October 7 to November 25, 2019 in Weatherford,[3] Cleburne,[4] and Fort Worth, Texas.[5] [6] [7] [8] [9] [10] It is based on the non fiction book of the same name by Jim Dent.[11] [12] [13] Alice Eve was initially attached to the project early in the development, but dropped out for unknown reasons shortly afterwards.[14]

Release

Sony Pictures Classics acquired worldwide distribution rights to the film in January 2021, five months pending the official release.[15] It was released in a limited release on June 11, 2021 which was followed by a wide expansion one week later on June 18, 2021.[16] [17] The film was released theatrically in the United Kingdom three months later on September 17, 2021.[18]

Reception

Box office

In its opening weekend the film made $251,569 from 132 theatres. It expanded to 1,047 theatres the following weekend, making an estimated $870,000 and finishing in eighth place at the box office.[19]

Critical response

On the review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes, the film holds an approval rating of 63% based on 89 reviews with an average rating of 6/10. The site’s critics consensus reads: "12 Mighty Orphans will rouse faithful fans of old fashioned inspirational sports dramas, but the target audience has seen this sort of thing done more effectively before."[20] On Metacritic, the film has a weighted average score of 44 out of 100 based reviews from 14 critics, indicating "mixed or average reviews".[21] Audiences surveyed by PostTrak gave the film an 80% positive score, with 75% saying they would definitely recommend it.

Peter Debruge of Variety called it "Square but satisfying" and said "sometimes they do make ‘em like they used to."[22]

Notes and References

  1. Web site: 12 Mighty Orphans. Box Office Mojo. October 25, 2021. October 19, 2021. https://web.archive.org/web/20211019211751/https://www.boxofficemojo.com/release/rl4050879233/weekend/. live.
  2. Web site: Beyond the Chain Link Lay the Kingdom of the Mighty Mites | Hometown by Handlebar. hometownbyhandlebar.com. 15 June 2021. 25 October 2021. 28 October 2021. https://web.archive.org/web/20211028154713/https://hometownbyhandlebar.com/%3Fp%3D1283/. live.
  3. Web site: '12 Mighty Orphans' completes filming in Weatherford. 5 November 2019. Weatherford Democrat. 21 February 2020. 19 December 2019. https://web.archive.org/web/20191219170647/https://www.weatherforddemocrat.com/news/mighty-orphans-completes-filming-in-weatherford/article_05688258-001c-11ea-b00d-67347c06d229.html. live.
  4. Web site: 2019 Honorable mentions. 4 January 2020. Cleburne Times-Review. 21 February 2020. 21 February 2020. https://web.archive.org/web/20200221132854/https://www.cleburnetimesreview.com/news/honorable-mentions/article_244b89ba-2e7d-11ea-970c-0fe3f3ce4719.html. live.
  5. Web site: Granberry. Michael. Robert Duvall and Martin Sheen to join Luke Wilson in upcoming Fort Worth film '12 Mighty Orphans'. 24 October 2019. The Dallas Morning News. 21 February 2020. 21 February 2020. https://web.archive.org/web/20200221133954/https://www.dallasnews.com/arts-entertainment/movies/2019/10/24/robert-duvall-and-martin-sheen-to-join-luke-wilson-in-upcoming-fort-worth-film-12-mighty-orphans/. live.
  6. Web site: Martin Sheen Visits Fort Worth's Joe T. Garcia's. 12 November 2019. KXAS-TV. 21 February 2020. 21 February 2020. https://web.archive.org/web/20200221134235/https://www.nbcdfw.com/news/local/martin-sheen-visits-fort-worths-joe-t-garcias/2130299/. live.
  7. Web site: 12 MIGHTY ORPHANS Adds Robert Duvall, Martin Sheen. 22 October 2019. BroadwayWorld. 21 February 2020. 21 February 2020. https://web.archive.org/web/20200221140556/https://www.broadwayworld.com/bwwtv/article/12-MIGHTY-ORPHANS-Adds-Robert-Duvall-Martin-Sheen-20191022. live.
  8. Web site: Fleming. Mike Jr.. Robert Duvall, Martin Sheen Join Texas Football Tale '12 Mighty Orphans'. 22 October 2019. Deadline Hollywood. 21 February 2020. 29 December 2019. https://web.archive.org/web/20191229040151/https://deadline.com/2019/10/robert-duvall-martin-sheen-join-texas-football-tale-12-mighty-orphans-apocalypse-now-1202766215/. live.
  9. Web site: Stevenson. Stefan. '12 Mighty Orphans' producers hope to premiere Fort Worth-set film in city next fall. 22 November 2019. Fort Worth Star-Telegram. 21 February 2020. 4 April 2020. https://web.archive.org/web/20200404200307/https://www.star-telegram.com/entertainment/movies/article237673269.html. live.
  10. Web site: NTFR. Retelling Stories in Texas – North Texas Farm and Ranch. 17 December 2019 . 2021-04-17. en-US. 2021-04-17. https://web.archive.org/web/20210417022340/http://ntfronline.com/2019/12/retelling-stories-in-texas/. live.
  11. Web site: Granberry. Michael. How the heartwarming Texas football story '12 Mighty Orphans' has been horse-collared by COVID-19. 14 August 2020. The Dallas Morning News. 4 September 2020. 17 August 2020. https://web.archive.org/web/20200817070843/https://www.dallasnews.com/arts-entertainment/movies/2020/08/14/how-the-heartwarming-texas-football-story-12-mighty-orphans-has-been-horse-collared-by-covid-19/. live.
  12. Web site: CLEBURNE'S ROCK DOUBLES AS MOVIE SET. 19 November 2019. KTFW-FM. 21 February 2020. 21 February 2020. https://web.archive.org/web/20200221135452/https://www.921hankfm.com/2019/11/19/cleburnes-rock-doubles-as-movie-set/. live.
  13. Web site: Kroll. Justin. Luke Wilson's Sports Drama '12 Mighty Orphans' Adds Jake Austin Walker (EXCLUSIVE). 23 October 2019. Variety. 21 February 2020. 30 December 2019. https://web.archive.org/web/20191230001949/https://variety.com/2019/film/news/luke-wilson-12-mighty-orphans-jake-austin-walker-1203381412/. live.
  14. Web site: N'Duka. Amanda. Alice Eve Joins Luke Wilson In '12 Mighty Orphans'. 1 October 2019. Yahoo! Finance. 21 February 2020. 21 February 2020. https://web.archive.org/web/20200221133229/https://finance.yahoo.com/news/alice-eve-joins-luke-wilson-155659082.html. live.
  15. Web site: Donnelly. Matt. Sony Pictures Classics Acquires '12 Mighty Orphans,' With Luke Wilson, Martin Sheen, Robert Duvall (EXCLUSIVE). 19 January 2021. Variety. 20 January 2021. 20 January 2021. https://web.archive.org/web/20210120062202/https://variety.com/2021/film/news/sony-pictures-classics-luke-wilson-martin-sheen-12-mighty-orphans-1234887908/amp/. live.
  16. Web site: Sony Pictures Classics Sets Summer Release For Luke Wilson & Martin Sheen Football Drama '12 Mighty Orphans'. Deadline Hollywood. Anthony. D'Alessandro. April 16, 2021. April 16, 2021. April 16, 2021. https://web.archive.org/web/20210416151909/https://deadline.com/2021/04/sony-pictures-classics-luke-wilson-martin-sheen-12-mighty-orphans-1234735879/. live.
  17. Web site: WHERE TO WATCH 12 MIGHTY ORPHANS: IS THE 2021 MOVIE STREAMING?. www.hitc.com. 9 June 2021. 19 September 2021. 20 September 2021. https://web.archive.org/web/20210920212436/https://www.hitc.com/en-gb/2021/06/09/12-mighty-orphans-movie-where-to-watch/. live.
  18. Web site: 12 Mighty Orphans: Sony Pictures. sonypictures.co.uk. 1 September 2021. 2 June 2022.
  19. News: D'Alessandro. Anthony. 'Hitman's Wife's Bodyguard' Hits $17M 5-day Debut In Dull Father's Day Weekend (Which Is Starving For A Pixar Movie) – Update. June 20, 2021. Deadline Hollywood. June 20, 2021. June 18, 2021. https://web.archive.org/web/20210618065628/https://deadline.com/2021/06/ryan-reynolds-hitmans-wifes-bodyguard-weekend-box-office-1234777056/. live.
  20. 12 Might Orphans (2021) . 12_mighty_orphans . movie . February 25, 2023 .
  21. 12-mighty-orphans . movie . 12 Might Orphans Reviews . May 4, 2022 .
  22. Web site: June 17, 2021 . Debruge . Peter . '12 Mighty Orphans' Review: Luke Wilson and Martin Sheen Topline This Solid Underdog Texas Football Drama . .

This article is licensed under the GNU Free Documentation License. It uses material from the Wikipedia article "12 Mighty Orphans".

Except where otherwise indicated, Everything.Explained.Today is © Copyright 2009-2024, A B Cryer, All Rights Reserved. Cookie policy.