- Forever Strong
Infobox Film
name = Forever Strong
caption = Theatrical release poster
director = Ryan Little
producer = Adam Abel
Ryan Little
Steven A. Lee
Brian Peck
Brad Pelo
writer = David Pliler
starring =Gary Cole Sean Faris Penn Badgley Arielle Kebbel Sean Astin Neal McDonough
music = J Bateman, Bart Hendrickson, Pieter Schlosser, Clay Duncan
cinematography = T.C. Christensen
editing =
distributor =
released =September 26 2008
runtime =
country =United States
awards =
language = English
budget =
website = http://www.foreverstrongmovie.com/
amg_id =
imdb_id = 0840322"Forever Strong" is a
sport -drama film directed byRyan Little and written by David Pliler and released in September 26, 2008. The film starsGary Cole ,Sean Faris ,Neal McDonough ,Sean Astin ,Penn Badgley andArielle Kebbel . The film is about a troubledrugby union player who must play against the team his father coaches at the national championships. "Forever Strong" is based on a true story.Plot
Talented but troubled high school rugby player Rick Penning (
Sean Faris ) loses his position as the star of anArizona rugby union team when he is sentenced to a boys' Juvenile Detention Center inSalt Lake City . [cite web | url=http://that-imta-blog.blogspot.com/2006/08/sean-faris-in-forever-strong.html | title= Sean Faris in Forever Strong! |date=2006-08-07 | publisher=IMTA | accessdate=2007-04-25] Rick ends up playing for Salt Lake's famous Highland High School rugby team, coached byLarry Gelwix (Gary Cole ), in the national championships - against his old team, which is coached by his father, Richard Penning (Neal McDonough ). Emily (Arielle Kebbel ) is Rick's love interest, and Marcus (Sean Astin ) is his guidence counselor.Production
Filming took place in
Salt Lake City ,Utah . Sean Faris was apparently running six miles twice a day to get in shape for the rugby.cite web | url=http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0840322/trivia | title=Forever Strong (2007) - Trivia | publisher=IMDb | accessdate=2007-04-25] One day of filming, Faris sprained his ankle. The ankle was wrapped, and he continued on as any Rugby player would do. Several All-American rugby players added their talents to this film. They were predominantly from the University of Utah and Brigham Young University rugby teams and most were Highland Rugby alumni. Also current (2006 & 2007 players) and many other Highland alumni were featured in the movie. Filming began in August 2006. Locations for filming took place at around three high schools.cite web | url=http://www.tooeletranscript.com/index.php?option=content&task=view&id=15423&Itemid=2 | title=GHS turned into movie set for rugby film | author=Missy Thompson | date=2006-08-10 | publisher=Tooele Transcript-Bulletin | accessdate=2007-04-25]"Forever Strong" is based on true stories about a high school rugby team, Highland Rugby, which is the inspiration for the film. Rick Penning is based on a real member of the rugby team who played in Flagstaff, Arizona who was sent to a group home in Salt Lake City.
The production company Go Films decided to make a film about the legacy of the team and coach. "Forever Strong" is one of the team mottos of the high school team the film is based on. [cite web | url=http://www.rugbymag.com/archive/2001/may/gelwix.htm | title=Highland High's Larry Gelwix | publisher=Rugbymag.com | accessdate=2007-04-25]
In private screenings with film critics, the movie has received very high marks and reviews. "Forever Strong" will be released in theaters across the country Fall 2008 and to be followed by an international release. Distribution by Crane Movie Co.
Cast
*
Gary Cole as Coach Larry Gelwix
*Sean Faris as Rick Penning
*Neal McDonough as Coach Richard Penning
*Sean Astin as Marcus
*Penn Badgley as Lars
*Larry Bagby as Coach Cal
*Big Budah as Bingham
*Jimmy Chunga as Max Hardcastle
*K. Danor Gerald as Coach JT
*Max Kasch as Griggs
*Arielle Kebbel as Emily
*Michael J. Pagan as Kurt
*Emily Tyndall as Jamie
*Julie Tyndall as Natalie Penning
*Nathan West as Quetin
*Rebecca Clark as live crowd filler
*Eliot Benjamin as Marty
*Jeremy Earl as Sanchez
*Craig Clark as Rugby Player
*Jonathan Chen as the referee
*S. Joesph Vave as Rugby Player
*Pete Black as Rugby Player
*Andrew Swindle as Swindle
*William Rubio as Ernesto
*Matt Griff - stuntsCritical reception
As of
October 10 , 2008, the review aggregatorRotten Tomatoes reported that 29% of critics rated the film positively based on 14 reviews. [cite web|url=http://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/10010155-forever_strong/ |title=Forever Strong Movie Reviews, Pictures - Rotten Tomatoes |accessdate=2008-10-10 |publisher=Rotten Tomatoes ]Metacritic reported the film had an average score of 37 out of 100 based on 9 reviews — indicating generally negative reviews. [cite web|url=http://www.metacritic.com/film/titles/foreverstrong?q=forever%20strong |title=Forever Strong (2008): Reviews |accessdate=2008-10-10 |publisher=Metacritic ]ee also
*
Sports film References
External links
*imdb title|id=0840322|title=Forever Strong
* [http://www.7trailers.com/forever-strong Forever Strong Trailer]
* [http://www.lonesomehighwayproductions.com/12.html Lonesome Highway Productions]
* [http://www.foreverstrongmovie.com/ Forever Strong's Official Site]
* [http://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/10010155-forever_strong/ Forever Strong] atRotten Tomatoes
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