Varsity Blues (film)

Varsity Blues
File:Varsity blues.jpg Theatrical release poster
Directed by	Brian Robbins
Written by	W. Peter Iliff
Produced by	Brian Robbins, Tova Laiter
Starring	James Van Der Beek, Amy Smart, Paul Walker, Ali Larter, Jon Voight
Distributed by	Paramount Pictures
Release dates	January 15, 1999 (USA)
Running time	106 min
Language	English
Budget	~ US$16,000,000

Varsity Blues is a 1999 film that follows a small-town high school football team and their focused coach, Jon Voight, through a tumultuous season. The players must deal with the pressures of adolescence and their football obsessed community. In the small town of West Canaan, Texas, football is a way of life, and losing is not an option.

Varsity Blues drew a domestic box office gross of $53 million. Its budget was estimated at $16 million.

Cast

Actor	Role
James Van Der Beek	Jonathon Moxon
Jon Voight	Coach Bud Kilmer
Paul Walker	Lance Harbor
Amy Smart	Jules Harbor
Scott Caan	Charlie Tweeder
Ron Lester	Billy Bob
Ali Larter	Darcy Sears

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 a smart and sassy girlfriend, 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 girlfriend, who is interested in marrying a football player in order to escape small town life.

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. Kilmer, who becomes aware that Mox has won a full scholarship to Brown, warns Mox that if he doesn't fall in line, he will 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 the shot. 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 will 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. In a voice-over epilogue, Mox never played football again. Lance went on to a successful coaching career, Wendell received a scholarship to Grambling, and Kilmer retired, never to coach football again.

Filming and reaction

The movie was filmed on location in Georgetown, 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 is 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 would not 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.

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)

External links

• Varsity Blues at IMDb
• "Students dismiss U of T’s lawsuit against Paramount", Varsity News
• "Lights, Campus, Action!", The Varsity