Everything about Varsity Blues Film totally explained
Varsity Blues is a
1999 film that follows a small-town
high school football team and their focused coach through a tumultuous season. The players must deal with the pressures of
adolescence and their football obsessed community while having their hard coach on their back constantly. In the small town of West Canaan,
Texas, football is a way of life, and losing isn't an option.
Varsity Blues drew a domestic
box office gross of $53 million. Its budget was estimated at $16 million.
Some claim that the team in the film is based on the
Permian Panthers, the football team at
Permian High School in
Odessa, Texas; the Panthers were the focus of the book and movie
Friday Night Lights.
Cast
Plot
The story revolves around Jonathan "Mox" Moxon (
James Van Der Beek), the academically gifted back-up quarterback for the West Canaan High School football team. Despite his relative popularity at school, easy friendships with several other players, and smart and sassy girlfriend Jules Harbor (
Amy Smart), Mox is dissatisfied with his life. He wants to leave Texas to go to school at
Brown University. He also dislikes his football-obsessed father and dreads playing football under legendary coach Bud Kilmer (
Jon Voight). Bud Kilmer is a verbally
abusive control freak whose philosophy can be summed up as "win at all costs." Kilmer's philosophy finally takes its toll on Coyotes' quarterback Lance Harbor (
Paul Walker); It is revealed that Lance, who is Mox's best friend, had been manipulated into taking
cortisone shots into an injured knee that finally gave out after being sacked. Lance is rushed to the hospital, where doctors are appalled at the massive amount of scar tissue found under his knee.
In need of a new quarterback, Kilmer reluctantly names Mox to replace Lance as captain and starting quarterback. The move brings unexpected dividends for Mox, one of them being Darcy Sears (
Ali Larter), Lance's beautiful blonde cheerleader girlfriend, who is interested in marrying a football player in order to escape small town life. Darcy even goes so far as to strip herself naked for Mox and then covering her private parts with whipped cream in an attempt to seduce him, but he rebuffs her as gently as he can.
Becoming fed up with Kilmer and not feeling a strong need to win, Mox starts calling his own plays on the field without Kilmer's approval. He also finally tells his football obsessed father off at one point screaming at him "I don't want your life!!" Kilmer, who becomes aware that Mox has won a full
scholarship to Brown, warns Mox that if he doesn't fall in line, he'll alter his transcripts in order to reverse the decision on his scholarship.
Another friend of Mox's, Wendell Brown, is injured on the field shortly thereafter. Kilmer manipulates Wendell into taking a shot of adrenaline to deaden the pain from his injury, allowing him to continue even in the face of a permanent injury. Wendell, who is desperate to be recruited by a good college, grants his consent. At this moment, Mox tells Kilmer he'll quit the team if the needle enters Wendell's knee. Undaunted, Kilmer orders Charlie Tweeder, a friend of both Mox and Wendell, to take the snaps. Tweeder refuses. Realizing that he'll be forced to
forfeit the game, Kilmer loses control and attacks Mox. The other players break up the fight and then refuse to take to the field. Mox tells Kilmer that the only way they'll return to the field is without him . Knowing his loss of control has cost him his credibility, Kilmer tries in vain to rally support and spark the team's spirit into trusting him, but not one player follows him out of the locker room. Kilmer continues down the
locker room hall, and seeing no one following him, turns the other direction and into his office. The team goes on to win the game without his guidance.
In a
voice-over epilogue, Mox never played football again. Lance went on to a successful coaching career, Wendell received a scholarship to
Grambling, Tweeder drank beer because, well, Tweeder drinks beer and Kilmer retired, never to coach football again.
Filming and reaction
The movie was filmed on location in
Georgetown, Texas and
Elgin, Texas and even used the local high school's football stadium. However, the
University of Toronto sued
Paramount Pictures for damaging the reputation of its sports teams, which bear the same name. The "Varsity Blues" name had been trademarked in mid-1980s. University officials complained that the movie presented collegiate sports in a negative light, arguing that the fictional coach was racist, misogynist, and homophobic. The lawsuit ended with Paramount reaching a settlement with the University of Toronto by paying an undisclosed amount to endow eight scholarships for academically-accomplished student athletes at the university. In addition, a disclaimer was put on the video and book, indicating that the team depicted is fictional and not based on the University of Toronto Varsity Blues athletic program.
Trivia
- This movie was parodied in the film Not Another Teen Movie. Ron Lester reprised his Billy Bob role as Reggie Ray in that version. He said in an interview that if he was going to be parodied, he wanted to be the one to do it.
- In the 2004 movie Mean Girls (also from Paramount Pictures) this movie is referenced when one character says that it's the favorite movie of Regina George.
- In the The Office episode The Coup, a viewing of the movie was held.
- While preparing for the infamous whipped cream bikini scene, the film crew discovered that actual whipped cream became watery very quickly and wouldn't stay in place properly on Ali Larter's body. The crew then tried shaving cream, which was ultimately used in the final cut of the movie.
- In the movie John Moxon wears #4 because James Van Der Beek's favorite NFL player, Brett Favre, wore that number.
- The fight song in the beginning of the movie is actually the same fight song Texas A&M uses.
Awards
1999 Teen Choice Awards
- Best Breakout Performance: James Van Der Beek (won)
- Best Dramatic Film (nominated)
1999 MTV Movie Awards
- Best Breakout Performance: James Van Der Beek (won)
- Best Movie Song (nominated)
2000 Blockbuster Entertainment Awards
- Best Male Newcomer: James Van Der Beek (nominated)
Further Information
Get more info on 'Varsity Blues Film'.
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