The Benchwarmers is a 2006
comedyComedy film is a genre of film in which the main emphasis is on humour. Also, films in this style typically have a happy ending . One of the oldest genres in film, some of the very first silent movies were comedies...
filmFilm encompasses individual motion pictures, the field of film as an art form, and the motion picture industry. Films are produced by recording images from the world with cameras, or by creating images using animation techniques or visual effects....
that was released on April 7, 2006. It stars
Rob SchneiderRobert Michael "Rob" Schneider is an American actor, comedian, screenwriter and director. A stand-up comic and veteran of the NBC sketch-comedy series Saturday Night Live, Schneider went on to a career in feature films, including starring roles in the comedies Deuce Bigalow: Male Gigolo and The...
,
David SpadeDavid Wayne Spade is an American actor, comedian and television personality who first became famous in the 1990s as a cast member on Saturday Night Live, and from 1997 until 2003 starred as Dennis Finch on Just Shoot Me!. He also starred as C.J. Barnes, along with Katey Sagal and James Garner on 8...
and
Jon HederJonathan Joseph "Jon" Heder is an American actor, filmmaker and screenwriter. He is best known for playing the title character of the 2004 comedy film Napoleon Dynamite...
and is directed by
Dennis DuganDennis Dugan is an American actor, film director and screenwriter.-Career:He started his acting career in 1972, and has appeared in such films as the 1976 films Harry and Walter Go to New York and Norman, Is That You?...
. It is produced by Happy Madison Productions and distributed by
Columbia PicturesColumbia Pictures Industries, Inc. is an American film production and distribution company. Columbia Pictures now forms part of the Columbia TriStar Motion Picture Group, owned by Sony Pictures Entertainment, a subsidiary of the Japanese conglomerate Sony. It is one of the leading film companies...
and
Revolution StudiosRevolution Studios was a film production company founded in 2000 by Joe Roth, a former chairman of Walt Disney Studios and Twentieth Century Fox. Revolution was a strategic partner of Sony Pictures Entertainment, which distributed and marketed Revolution's films. The company shut down in October...
. It is universally considered one of the worst films ever made.
Gus, Clark, and Richie are three grown men and neighborhood friends. Clark and Richie were the unpopular kids who were constantly bullied by
jocksThe term jock is a classic North American stereotype of a male athlete. The etymology of the term jock is derived from the word jockstrap, which is an athletic support garment worn by men who engage in physical sports. The jock stereotype is attributed mostly to high school and college athletics...
and always benched at the
little leagueLittle League Baseball and Softball is a non-profit organization in South Williamsport, Pennsylvania, United States which organizes local youth baseball and softball leagues throughout the U.S. and the rest of the world...
baseballBaseball is a bat-and-ball sport played between two teams of nine players each. The goal is to score runs by hitting a thrown ball with a bat and touching a series of four bases arranged at the corners of a ninety-foot square, or diamond...
games, because of their less-than-stellar athletic abilities.
I love beef stew!
I got a new text message... my mom says we're having macaroni tonight that means garlic bread.. Yes!!
Is bad ass one or two words?
For years I thought the sun was a monster. But I am here to tell you that it's not a monster! IT'S NOT A MONSTER! [cries]
Fine, you can eat the thin mints at my funeral, Richie.
Richie told me about that killer lose in the neighborhood, He is killing anyone named Howie! That’s my name, That’s My Name!
Howie, you're a freak.
Keep it under a billion, that's all I got... on me hahaha.
If you build it, nerds will come.
Richie: I... love... salad.
The Benchwarmers is a 2006
comedyComedy film is a genre of film in which the main emphasis is on humour. Also, films in this style typically have a happy ending . One of the oldest genres in film, some of the very first silent movies were comedies...
filmFilm encompasses individual motion pictures, the field of film as an art form, and the motion picture industry. Films are produced by recording images from the world with cameras, or by creating images using animation techniques or visual effects....
that was released on April 7, 2006. It stars
Rob SchneiderRobert Michael "Rob" Schneider is an American actor, comedian, screenwriter and director. A stand-up comic and veteran of the NBC sketch-comedy series Saturday Night Live, Schneider went on to a career in feature films, including starring roles in the comedies Deuce Bigalow: Male Gigolo and The...
,
David SpadeDavid Wayne Spade is an American actor, comedian and television personality who first became famous in the 1990s as a cast member on Saturday Night Live, and from 1997 until 2003 starred as Dennis Finch on Just Shoot Me!. He also starred as C.J. Barnes, along with Katey Sagal and James Garner on 8...
and
Jon HederJonathan Joseph "Jon" Heder is an American actor, filmmaker and screenwriter. He is best known for playing the title character of the 2004 comedy film Napoleon Dynamite...
and is directed by
Dennis DuganDennis Dugan is an American actor, film director and screenwriter.-Career:He started his acting career in 1972, and has appeared in such films as the 1976 films Harry and Walter Go to New York and Norman, Is That You?...
. It is produced by Happy Madison Productions and distributed by
Columbia PicturesColumbia Pictures Industries, Inc. is an American film production and distribution company. Columbia Pictures now forms part of the Columbia TriStar Motion Picture Group, owned by Sony Pictures Entertainment, a subsidiary of the Japanese conglomerate Sony. It is one of the leading film companies...
and
Revolution StudiosRevolution Studios was a film production company founded in 2000 by Joe Roth, a former chairman of Walt Disney Studios and Twentieth Century Fox. Revolution was a strategic partner of Sony Pictures Entertainment, which distributed and marketed Revolution's films. The company shut down in October...
. It is universally considered one of the worst films ever made.
Plot
Gus, Clark, and Richie are three grown men and neighborhood friends. Clark and Richie were the unpopular kids who were constantly bullied by
jocksThe term jock is a classic North American stereotype of a male athlete. The etymology of the term jock is derived from the word jockstrap, which is an athletic support garment worn by men who engage in physical sports. The jock stereotype is attributed mostly to high school and college athletics...
and always benched at the
little leagueLittle League Baseball and Softball is a non-profit organization in South Williamsport, Pennsylvania, United States which organizes local youth baseball and softball leagues throughout the U.S. and the rest of the world...
baseballBaseball is a bat-and-ball sport played between two teams of nine players each. The goal is to score runs by hitting a thrown ball with a bat and touching a series of four bases arranged at the corners of a ninety-foot square, or diamond...
games, because of their less-than-stellar athletic abilities. When a nerdy boy named Nelson (Max Prado) and his friends are kicked off a nearby baseball diamond by a team of bullies, Gus and Clark chase the bullies away. When Gus and Clark return with Richie to play again and get back their feel for the game, the bullies return and demand that they leave. Gus challenges the bullies to play them for the field, and the three friends win. Later, Nelson's billionaire father Mel (
Jon LovitzJonathan M. "Jon" Lovitz is an American actor, comedian and singer. He is best known for serving as a cast member of Saturday Night Live between 1985 to 1990 and voicing Jay Sherman on The Critic.-Early life:...
) tells the trio that he's impressed with their win, and explains his plan to hold a
round-robinA round-robin tournament or all-play-all tournament is a type of tournament "in which each contestant meets every other contestant in turn". In a single round-robin schedule, each participant plays every other participant once. If each participant plays all others twice, this is frequently called a...
with all the little league teams in the state, plus their team. The winners will be given access to a new multi-million dollar
baseball parkA baseball park, also known as a baseball stadium, ball park, or ballpark is the venue where baseball is played. It consists of the playing field and the surrounding spectator seating....
that he's building. Wanting to capture the spirit and fun they never had when they were kids, the three decide to form the Benchwarmers and join the tournament. They prepare to compete with all the other teams, despite the fact that they're three adults squaring off against nine kids per team.
Just when it's looking like the stadium is all theirs, Gus, the star of his team, is kicked off of the team for being a brutal bully as a child, not a victim of bullies. He had bullied one child so intensely that the kid, a boy named Marcus Elwood, had to be sent to an institution. Even though his playing on the Benchwarmers gave a lot of the nerdy kids in town hope, he still feels intensely guilty for his role in Marcus' torment. At his wife's suggestion, Gus apologizes to Marcus, who becomes the Benchwarmers' third-base coach. In the final game, Gus, Clark, and Richie do not play; rather, they let a team of Nelson and other kids play in the final game, to give them a chance to compete. The final game is played against no every one wont make fun of them any more so they could be cool a team with a heartless coach, Jerry (dubbed by Gus as "Fairy Jerry") (
Craig KilbornCraig Kilborn is an American comedian and former talk show host. He was the original host of The Daily Show, a former anchor on ESPN's SportsCenter, and Tom Snyder's successor on CBS' The Late Late Show...
), who practically torments his players - and was Richie and Clark's main bully when they were kids. In the bottom of the 6th inning, the Benchwarmers are losing, 42-0, when Jerry's team throws Nelson of the Benchwarmers a "meatball" pitch down the middle. When Nelson hits the ball, Jerry's team lets him score a run while Jerry goes crazy. The Benchwarmers storm the field, celebrating the fact that they were not shut out -- and the guys give Jerry a taste of his own medicine, hanging him from the dugout fence by his underwear.
Also appearing in the movie for a few scenes is former
New York YankeesThe New York Yankees are a professional baseball team based in the borough of the Bronx, in New York City, New York and are a member of Major League Baseball's American League East Division...
superstar
Reggie JacksonReginald Martinez "Reggie" Jackson , nicknamed "Mr. October" for his clutch hitting in the postseason, is a former American Major League Baseball right fielder who played for five different teams from to and currently serves as a special advisor to the New York Yankees...
, who plays himself as Mel's nerdy childhood friend, and helps the Benchwarmers train using unorthodox methods (childhood pranks and games such as ding-dong ditch, hot potato, and mailbox smashing).
Cast
- Joey Ramone
Joey Ramone , born as Jeffrey Ross Hyman, was a vocalist and songwriter best known for his work in the punk rock group the Ramones. Joey Ramone's image, voice and tenure as frontman of the Ramones made him a countercultural icon.-Early life:Joey grew up in Forest Hills, Queens in a Jewish family...
as Featherington Fotheringay
- Rob Schneider
Robert Michael "Rob" Schneider is an American actor, comedian, screenwriter and director. A stand-up comic and veteran of the NBC sketch-comedy series Saturday Night Live, Schneider went on to a career in feature films, including starring roles in the comedies Deuce Bigalow: Male Gigolo and The...
as Gus Matthews
- David Spade
David Wayne Spade is an American actor, comedian and television personality who first became famous in the 1990s as a cast member on Saturday Night Live, and from 1997 until 2003 starred as Dennis Finch on Just Shoot Me!. He also starred as C.J. Barnes, along with Katey Sagal and James Garner on 8...
as Richie Goodman
- Michael Clarke Duncan
Michael Clarke Duncan is an American actor, best known for his breakout role as John Coffey in The Green Mile, for which he was nominated for an Academy Award and a Golden Globe.-Early life:...
as Joey Ramone
- Jon Heder
Jonathan Joseph "Jon" Heder is an American actor, filmmaker and screenwriter. He is best known for playing the title character of the 2004 comedy film Napoleon Dynamite...
as Clark Reedy
- Jon Lovitz
Jonathan M. "Jon" Lovitz is an American actor, comedian and singer. He is best known for serving as a cast member of Saturday Night Live between 1985 to 1990 and voicing Jay Sherman on The Critic.-Early life:...
as Mel Carmichael
- Chad Kroeger
Chad Robert Kroeger is the lead vocalist and guitarist for the band Nickelback...
as Bam Margera
- Craig Kilborn
Craig Kilborn is an American comedian and former talk show host. He was the original host of The Daily Show, a former anchor on ESPN's SportsCenter, and Tom Snyder's successor on CBS' The Late Late Show...
as Jerry McDowell
- Molly Sims
Molly Sims is an American model and actress. Sims is best known for her appearances in the Sports Illustrated Swimsuit Issues and her role as Delinda Deline in the NBC drama Las Vegas.-Early life:...
as Liz Matthews
- Tim Meadows
Tim Meadows is an American actor and comedian who performed on the TV show Saturday Night Live.-Life and career:Meadows was born in Highland Park, Michigan, the son of Mardell, a nurse's assistant, and Lathon Meadows, a janitor. Meadows' start in show business was as a member of The Second City...
as Wayne Meadows
- Nick Swardson
Nicholas Roger "Nick" Swardson is an American actor, stand-up comedian, and writer. He is best known for his recurring role of Terry Bernardino in the now canceled Comedy Central series Reno 911!, and for his numerous acting and writing credits in Adam Sandler movies.-Life and career:Swardson was...
as Howie Goodman
- Erinn Bartlett
Erinn Bartlett is an American actress who has competed in the Miss Teen USA pageant.Bartlett was born near Longmeadow, Massachusetts and first competed in the Miss Massachusetts Teen USA title in 1989, when she placed first runner-up...
as Salad Girl/Sarah
- Amaury Nolasco
Amaury Nolasco is a Puerto Rican actor, best known for the role of Fernando Sucre on the television series Prison Break.- Career :...
as Carlos
- Bill Romanowski
William Thomas Romanowski is a former football player from the United States. He is commonly known by the nickname "Romo".He was born in Vernon, Connecticut...
as Karl
- Sean Salisbury
Richard Sean Salisbury is an American former ESPN football analyst and former NFL and CFL quarterback.-Early life:Salisbury attended Orange Glen High School in Escondido, California...
as Brad
- Matt Weinberg
Matthew Phillip "Matt" Weinberg is an American actor.-Biography:Weinberg was born in Los Angeles, California, the son of Dana and Larry Weinberg, a public relations executive. His younger brother is Mike Weinberg, who is also an actor....
as Kyle Wilson
- John Farley
John P. Farley is an American actor and comedian.Farley was born in Madison, Wisconsin, the son of Mary Anne, a homemaker, and Thomas Farley, who owned an oil company. He was raised in an Irish Catholic family. He is the youngest brother of actors Chris Farley and Kevin Farley. He is married to...
as Swimmer Boy/Guy In Speedo
- Reggie Jackson
Reginald Martinez "Reggie" Jackson , nicknamed "Mr. October" for his clutch hitting in the postseason, is a former American Major League Baseball right fielder who played for five different teams from to and currently serves as a special advisor to the New York Yankees...
as Himself
- Tony Falcone as Himself
- Joey Gnoffo as Marcus Ellwood
- Terry Crews
Terry Alan Crews is an American actor and retired football player who was a defensive end and linebacker in the National Football League.-Early life:Crews was born in Flint, Michigan and attended Flint Academy....
as Poker Guy #1/Steven Warbucks
- Rachel Hunter
Rachel Hunter is a New Zealand model, actress and reality TV show host.-Biography:Born in Glenfield, Auckland, New Zealand, Hunter began modelling by age 17 and rose to prominence after posing as a Sports Illustrated model in 1989...
as Hot Mother/Clark's first kiss
- Dan Patrick
Daniel Patrick Pugh , professionally known as Dan Patrick, is an American sportscaster from Mason, Ohio. He currently hosts The Dan Patrick Show which is broadcast on radio on Premiere Radio Networks, and on television on The 101 Network, co-hosts NBC's Football Night in America, and serves as a...
as Poker Player #2/O'Malley
- James Earl Jones
James Earl Jones is an American actor of stage and screen, well known for his deep basso voice. To modern audiences, he is best known for providing the voice of Darth Vader in the Star Wars franchise, and Mufasa in The Lion King.-Childhood:Jones was born in Arkabutla, Mississippi, the son of Ruth...
as Voice of Darth VaderDarth Vader is the central antagonist in George Lucas' original Star Wars trilogy and his final prequel, Star Wars Episode III: Revenge of the Sith. In the original Star Wars trilogy, Vader is embodied by David Prowse, though Sebastian Shaw makes a brief cameo as the unmasked Vader. In Star Wars...
- Max Prado as Nelson Carmichael
- Danny McCarthy
Danny McCarthy is an American actor based in Chicago. Danny's role as Special Agent Danny Hale in Prison Break made him a familiar face nationwide. He has acted in plays with the Steppenwolf and the Famous Door, and has performed twice at the Edinburgh Festival in Scotland...
as Troy McDowell
- Mary Jo Catlett
Mary Jo Catlett is an American actress.Catlett was born in Denver, Colorado, the daughter of Cornelia M. and Robert J. Catlett. Catlett is probably best-known for her role as housekeeper Pearl Gallagher on Diff'rent Strokes.Catlett appeared on General Hospital and in several episodes of M*A*S*H...
as Patricia Ellwood
- Lochlyn Munro
Richard Laughlain "Lochlyn" Munro is a Canadian actor known for his portrayal of clean-cut but intense characters ranging from police officers to personal trainers.-Biography:...
as Ultimate Home Remodel Host
- Ellie Schneider as Goth Kid's Girlfriend
Music
- Blister in the Sun
"Blister in the Sun" is a song by American rock band Violent Femmes, released on their 1982 debut Violent Femmes. In 1998, Indigo Girls recorded a live cover of the song...
- Violent FemmesThe Violent Femmes were an American alternative rock band, formed in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, in 1980. They are noted for laying the groundwork for folk punk. The band had four members: singer, guitarist and songwriter Gordon Gano, bassist Brian Ritchie, and two drummers, Victor DeLorenzo and Guy...
- Hey Boy
Hey Boy may refer to:* Hey Boy , a 1948 Italian film* "Hey Boy!", a single by Dutch singer Kim-Lian* "Hey Boy Hey Girl", a single released by The Chemical Brothers* "Hey Boy ", a single by the Polish group Blog 27...
- Teddybears STHLM
- Jerk It Out
"Jerk It Out" is a song by Caesars which originally appeared on their album Love for the Streets and is also featured on the follow-up Paper Tigers in remixed form. There is also a Jason Nevins club remix, called "Jerk It Harder"...
- Caesars
- Never Known - O'Doyle Rules
- Theme from Knight Rider
- Cobrastyle - Teddybears STHLM
- Walk of Life - Dire Straits
Dire Straits were a British rock band, active between 1977 and 1995. The band was formed by Mark Knopfler , his younger brother David Knopfler , John Illsley , and Pick Withers , and managed by Ed Bicknell...
- Hit or Miss - New Found Glory
New Found Glory is an American rock band from South Florida, that predominantly plays pop punk music. The quintet formed during 1997 and consists of Jordan Pundik , Chad Gilbert , Steve Klein , Ian Grushka and Cyrus Bolooki...
- Alright - Supergrass
Supergrass are an English alternative rock band from Oxford. The band consists of brothers Gaz and Rob Coombes , Danny Goffey , and Mick Quinn ....
- Life is Good - Junk
Junk may refer to:*Waste, any undesired thing or substance**Scrap, recyclable waste used to build new things*Junk Slang and lingo:*Junk DNA, DNA without a known function for the organism*Junk food, food with little or no nutritional value...
- That's Good - Devo
Devo , often spelled DEVO or DEV-O, is an American New Wave band formed in Akron, Ohio in 1973. They are best known for their 1980 hit "Whip It", which made it to #14 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart...
- Stand Up and Win - Spymob
- Gasolina
"Gasolina" , is a reggaetón song written by Daddy Yankee and Eddie Dee for Daddy Yankee's 2004 album Barrio Fino. It features Glory, who sings the line "dame más gasolina". The song was released as the album's lead single in late 2004 and became a reggaeton mega-hit, peaking inside the top ten on...
- Daddy YankeeRamón "Raymond" Ayala Rodríguez , known artistically as Daddy Yankee, is a Latin Grammy Award winning Puerto Rican reggaeton recording artist. Ayala was born in Río Piedras, the largest district of San Juan, where he became interested in music at a young age. In his youth he was interested in...
- Electric Avenue - Eddy Grant
- I Got You - The Waking Hours
- Good - Black Lab
Black Lab is an alternative rock band from Berkeley, California.They released one album on Geffen Records, entitled Your Body Above Me, and scored two rock radio hits in the US, "Wash It Away" in 1997 and "Time Ago" in 1998. After leaving Geffen in 1999, the band signed to Epic Records, but did not...
- Times Like These
"Times Like These" is the second single released from the Foo Fighters' fourth album One by One. It was released on two main discs in 2003. It is in 4/4 time but alternates with 3/4 in the main riff. The chorus of the song is also grouped in bars of 3 rather than the regular bars of 4. The song is...
- Foo FightersFoo Fighters is an American rock band formed by singer/guitarist/drummer Dave Grohl in 1995. Grohl formed the group as a one-man project after the dissolution of his previous band, Nirvana, in 1994. Prior to the release of Foo Fighters in 1995, Grohl drafted Nate Mendel , William Goldsmith , and...
(Song used in the trailerTrailers or previews are film advertisements for feature films that will be exhibited in the future at a cinema, on whose screen they are shown. The term "trailer" comes from their having originally been shown at the end of a film program. That practice did not last long, because patrons tended to...
)
Allusions
- A stadium in the film is said to have elements of all the greatest ballparks in America. As depicted in the movie, it has the legendary facade
A facade or façade is generally one side of the exterior of a building, especially the front, but also sometimes the sides and rear. The word comes from the French language, literally meaning "frontage" or "face"....
from Yankee StadiumYankee Stadium was a stadium at East 161st Street and River Avenue in the Bronx in New York City. It was the home baseball park of Major League Baseball's New York Yankees from 1923 to 1973 and after extensive renovations, from 1976 to 2008. The stadium had a capacity of 57,545 and hosted 6,581...
, the Ivy and Brick wall from Wrigley FieldWrigley Field is a baseball stadium in Chicago, Illinois, United States that has served as the home ballpark of the Chicago Cubs since 1916. It was built in 1914 as Weeghman Park for the Chicago Federal League baseball team, the Chicago Whales...
, and a swimming pool, which may be based on Chase FieldChase Field is a baseball stadium located in downtown Phoenix, Arizona, and is the home of the Arizona Diamondbacks of Major League Baseball. It opened in just in time for the Diamondbacks' first game after coming to Arizona as an expansion team...
. It also features a Green MonsterThe Green Monster is the nickname of the thirty-seven foot, two-inch high left field wall at Fenway Park, home to the Boston Red Sox baseball team...
to replicate the one at Boston's Fenway ParkFenway Park is a baseball park near Kenmore Square in Boston, Massachusetts. Located at 4 Yawkey Way, it has served as the home ballpark of the Boston Red Sox baseball club since it opened in 1912, and is the oldest Major League Baseball stadium currently in use...
.
- Most of the filming of the last part of the movie was shot at Big Leagues Dream Park in Chino Hills, California
Chino Hills is a suburb located in the southwestern corner of San Bernardino County, California, United States. The city borders Los Angeles County on its northwest side, Orange County to its south, and Riverside County to its southeast...
.
Box Office
In its opening weekend, the film grossed a total of $25.5 million, ranking second in the
United StatesThe United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
box officeA box office is a place where tickets are sold to the public for admission to a venue. Patrons may perform the transaction at a countertop, through an unblocked hole through a wall, or at a wicket...
.
As of June 7, 2006, the film has grossed over $58 million in the
United StatesThe United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
box office.
Reception
The film has received negative reviews from critics with a 12 percent, "Rotten" score on
Rotten TomatoesRotten Tomatoes is a website devoted to reviews, information, and news of films. The name derives from the historical cliché of throwing tomatoes and other produce at stage performers if a performance was particularly bad.- History :...
based on 65 reviews and a 25 on
MetacriticMetacritic is a website that collates reviews of music albums, games, movies, TV shows and DVDs. For each product, a numerical score from each review is obtained and the total is averaged. An excerpt of each review is provided along with a hyperlink to the source. Three colour codes of Green,...
indicating "generally negative reviews". The consensus on Rotten Tomatoes was "a gross-out comedy that is more sophomoric than funny. The Benchwarmers goes down swinging."
External links