The Mighty: Difference between revisions
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They retrieve the purse, but, are once again confronted by Blade and his gang the Doghouse Boys. They attempt to attack Kevin, but Max stops them. Max then becomes angry; he picks up a manhole cover and throws at the gang, who run away, fearing for their lives. Both Max and Kevin see the purse belongs to a woman named Loretta Lee. Kevin and Max return the purse to Loretta and find out that she is married to Iggy Lee, a former gang leader. |
They retrieve the purse, but, are once again confronted by Blade and his gang the Doghouse Boys. They attempt to attack Kevin, but Max stops them. Max then becomes angry; he picks up a manhole cover and throws at the gang, who run away, fearing for their lives. Both Max and Kevin see the purse belongs to a woman named Loretta Lee. Kevin and Max return the purse to Loretta and find out that she is married to Iggy Lee, a former gang leader. |
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Loretta recognizes Max from when he was a child and, after some questioning, she and Iggy learn that Max is the son of the infamous murderer Kenny "Killer" Kane, who brutally murdered Max's mother by starngling her to death when Max was around 4 years old (That is the reason why Max lives with Grim and Gram), and a old friend of Iggy's from prison. Afterward, the two boys help each other out with Kevin acting as Max's brain, and Max acting as Kevin's legs by carrying him around everywhere on his shoulders. |
Loretta recognizes Max from when he was a child and, after some questioning, she and Iggy learn that Max is the son of the infamous murderer Kenny "Killer" Kane, who brutally murdered Max's mother by starngling her to death when Max was around 4 years old (That is the reason why Max lives with Grim and Gram), and a old friend of Iggy's from prison. Afterward, the two boys help each other out with Kevin acting as Max's brain, and Max acting as Kevin's legs by carrying him around everywhere on his shoulders. |
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Kevin and Max are rising to fame, and they sit on a table with their friends. As Max is getting his food, Kevin is playing with his noodles and attempting to impress his classmates. Kevin eats his noodles but chokes and blocks his airway. He is rushed to the hospital, with the doctor telling his mom that he may only have one year to live considering his progressively failing health. |
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One day, Kevin showed Max where he'd be rehabilitated at a research center. It appears that he knew about his little time to live, as he said that he'd be the first one to be rehabilitated in about one year or so. |
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On Christmas Eve, Max is kidnapped by his father ([[James Gandolfini]]), who has recently been released from prison on [[parole]]. Max is taken to Loretta's home by Kane, who tries to strangle Loretta after she attempts to help Max escape. This leads to Max remembering when Kane murdered Max's mother, which was one of the reasons why Kane went to prison in the first place. |
On Christmas Eve, Max is kidnapped by his father ([[James Gandolfini]]), who has recently been released from prison on [[parole]]. Max is taken to Loretta's home by Kane, who tries to strangle Loretta after she attempts to help Max escape. This leads to Max remembering when Kane murdered Max's mother, which was one of the reasons why Kane went to prison in the first place. |
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Revision as of 02:33, 4 November 2014
| The Mighty | |
|---|---|
 Theatrical release poster | |
| Directed by | Peter Chelsom |
| Screenplay by | Charles Leavitt |
| Produced by | Simon Fields Jane Startz Don Carmody Executive: Bob Weinstein Harvey Weinstein Julie Goldstein Deborah Forte |
| Starring | Sharon Stone Gena Rowlands Harry Dean Stanton Gillian Anderson James Gandolfini Kieran Culkin Elden Henson |
| Cinematography | John de Borman |
| Edited by | Martin Walsh |
| Music by | Trevor Jones |
Production company | |
| Distributed by | Miramax Films |
Release date |
|
Running time | 100 minutes |
| Country | United States |
| Language | English |
| Box office | $2,652,246[1] |
The Mighty is a 1998 drama film directed by Peter Chelsom and based on the book Freak the Mighty by Rodman Philbrick.
Plot
Kevin is a 13-year-old boy who suffers Mucopolysaccharidosis IV, or Morquio syndrome. He is extremely intelligent and prone to flights of fancy, but is physically crippled and is forced to walk with crutches and a brace.
Max is an over-sized, yet, good-natured teenage boy suffering from dyslexia who lives with his grandparents. He has flunked the seventh grade twice and is tormented by Tony "Blade" Fowler, a teenage gang leader. When Kevin is assigned as Max's reading tutor, they form a bond of friendship over the similar circumstances they share, such as both being outcasts and their fathers abandoning them (Kevin's dad heard the word "Birth Defect", he disappeared).
Kevin and Max go to a local festival to watch fireworks for Fourth of July and get attacked by Blade and his gang. The two escape into a nearby lake with Kevin riding on Max's shoulders. Kevin then witnesses that same gang of teens putting someone's purse in a sewer later. Kevin goes and bangs on Max's window to get the purse.
They retrieve the purse, but, are once again confronted by Blade and his gang the Doghouse Boys. They attempt to attack Kevin, but Max stops them. Max then becomes angry; he picks up a manhole cover and throws at the gang, who run away, fearing for their lives. Both Max and Kevin see the purse belongs to a woman named Loretta Lee. Kevin and Max return the purse to Loretta and find out that she is married to Iggy Lee, a former gang leader.
Loretta recognizes Max from when he was a child and, after some questioning, she and Iggy learn that Max is the son of the infamous murderer Kenny "Killer" Kane, who brutally murdered Max's mother by starngling her to death when Max was around 4 years old (That is the reason why Max lives with Grim and Gram), and a old friend of Iggy's from prison. Afterward, the two boys help each other out with Kevin acting as Max's brain, and Max acting as Kevin's legs by carrying him around everywhere on his shoulders.
Kevin and Max are rising to fame, and they sit on a table with their friends. As Max is getting his food, Kevin is playing with his noodles and attempting to impress his classmates. Kevin eats his noodles but chokes and blocks his airway. He is rushed to the hospital, with the doctor telling his mom that he may only have one year to live considering his progressively failing health.
One day, Kevin showed Max where he'd be rehabilitated at a research center. It appears that he knew about his little time to live, as he said that he'd be the first one to be rehabilitated in about one year or so.
On Christmas Eve, Max is kidnapped by his father (James Gandolfini), who has recently been released from prison on parole. Max is taken to Loretta's home by Kane, who tries to strangle Loretta after she attempts to help Max escape. This leads to Max remembering when Kane murdered Max's mother, which was one of the reasons why Kane went to prison in the first place.
Kevin, having tracked Max and Killer Kane to Iggy and Loretta's, breaks in with a squirt gun The Fair Gwen (Kevin's mom) got him for Christmas and tells Killer Kane that he has sulfuric acid in it. Kevin shoots Killer Kane with the squirt gun and Kane thinks his eyes are burning despite the actually harmless compounds that are in the vial (soap, vinegar, and chili powder).
An angered Killer Kane attempts to attack Kevin. Max reacts and attacks his own father in order to prevent him from harming Kevin. Police come and arrest Kane, who was never given a parole again and was sentenced to prison for life. Max and Kevin go home and celebrate Christmas. After exchanging gifts, Kevin gives Max an empty book and tells Max to write in it.
The next morning, Kevin dies in his sleep, due to cardiac troubles. Max, not bearing to leave his friend, chases after the ambulance. Recalling an earlier conversation with Kevin on how he would get a new body from a research center, Max heads there immediately, only to discover that Kevin had lied and the research center is in fact a commercial laundromat. Max breaks down among the workers. For the next few weeks, he continues going to school, but spends his spare time locked in his basement, even missing Kevin's funeral and Kevin's mother moving away. However, after running into Loretta (now wearing a neck brace, due to Killer Kane hurting her neck pretty bad while strangling her) at a bus stop, she reminds him that "[doing] nothing's a drag", he decides he has to go on, and even works up the courage to answer a question his teacher presents to the class.
Inspired by their bond, Max remembers Kevin and all the adventures they had and he decides to write it all in the empty book Kevin had given him. Max eventually gets writers block on the last page so he puts an illustration of King Arthur's grave, which reads, "Here Lies King Arthur, Once and Future King", to symbolize his belief that he will see Kevin again. Max takes the old ornithopter (his mechanical air plane) that belonged to Kevin and he winds it up, making it fly. Max narrates the final sentence, "And by the time we get here, which I guess should be the end, you're gonna know the story of Freak the Mighty, who slayed dragons, saved maidens, and walked high above the world."
Cast
- Elden Henson as Maxwell "Max" Kane, The Mighty
- Kieran Culkin as Kevin Dillon, Freak
- Sharon Stone as Gwen Dillon
- Gena Rowlands as Susan "Gram" Pinneman
- Harry Dean Stanton as Elton "Grim" Pinneman
- James Gandolfini as Kenny "Killer" Kane
- Gillian Anderson as Loretta Lee
- Meat Loaf as Iggy Lee
- Jenifer Lewis as Mrs. Addison
- Joseph Perrino as Tony Fowler (Blade)
Reception
The film received positive reviews, currently holding a 75% rating on Rotten Tomatoes; the consensus simply states: "Heavy-handed and overwrought."[2]
The Mighty was nominated for two Golden Globe Awards for Best Supporting Actress (Sharon Stone) and Best Original Song ("The Mighty").