INVINCIBLE (2006 FILM)

'''Invincible''' is a 2006 film directed by Ericson Core set in 1976. It is based on the true story of Vince Papale, who played for the Philadelphia Eagles. Mark Wahlberg portrays Papale and Greg Kinnear plays Dick Vermeil, Papale's coach. The movie was released in the US on August 25, 2006.

Contents

Plot

Filming

Trivia

Inaccuracies

Cast

Box Office

External links

Plot

To spice things up for his organization, Philadelphia Eagles coach Dick Vermeil decided to hold open tryouts for a spot on the pro football team's roster. Vince Papale is a 30-year-old bartender who has just lost his part-time teaching job.
Disgusted with his professional failure, his wife abruptly leaves him, taking all of their furniture with her and leaving a note saying that he never will be anything in the world. With the support of all his friends from the neighborhood, Papale (Mark Wahlberg), goes out for an open tryout practice; catching the attention of Coach Vermeil, he is invited to come along to training camp. Papale eventually makes the team.

Filming

The preseason/tryout scenes were filmed at Franklin Field at the University of Pennsylvania, and the Central High Lancers field during the July/August months of 2005. The crew used their locker room and field. The Lancers, who had a preseason, had to use Fairmount Park in West Philadelphia. The carnival scenes were filmed at Our Lady of Mount Carmel School in South Philadelphia at 2329 South Third Street. Some of the street scenes were filmed on location in Philadelphia. The remainder of the film was filmed in a former aircraft carrier parts warehouse on Langley Avenue in the Philadelphia Naval Business Center. They shared this facility with the floats for the Philadelphia Thanksgiving Day Parade.

Trivia

★ In a very short cameo appearance, the referee of the scene where Vince is playing football in the lot is actually the physical education coach of the school at the time when Vince was a track coach.

★ This film shares many similarities with ''The Rookie'', in which a former schoolteacher and high school baseball coach tries to make it to the major leagues. The main characters in both films are older than the normal rookie age. ''The Rookie'' was also based on a true story.

★ Though uncredited, writer Mike Rich did some polishing up of the script.

★ This was the second film Mark Wahlberg starred in that took place during the 1970s. The first film was ''Boogie Nights''.

★ Papale's son had a cameo in the movie as the kid wearing the T-shirt with the number 83 on the back.

★ Papale himself also had an appearance in the movie. His cameo shows him clapping his hands in the background of an Eagles practice session. This is also shown on the bonus features in the DVD release.

Inaccuracies

★ During his three years in the NFL, Vince Papale never scored a touchdown, although he did recover a fumble during the game against the NY Giants.

★ The real Papale was from Delaware County, Pennsylvania, a Philadelphia suburb, and not from South Philadelphia as portrayed in the film.

★ Papale had no college football experience, but did play professional football for the Philadelphia Bell of the now-defunct WFL in 1974 and 1975. His performance for the Bell spurred general manager Jim Murray to arrange a tryout.

★ In the film, the owner of the team is portrayed as a tough, garishly dressed man. Leonard Tose, the real owner of the Eagles when Papale played for the team, was a slim, debonair bon vivant renowned for his charm and fashionable attire.

★ In the film, Veterans Stadium is portrayed as having external elevator towers, bench seating and a FieldTurf playing surface. The real stadium had individual seats and, notably, until its final years, a hard AstroTurf playing surface. The external elevator towers shown were not added until more than a decade after the events portrayed in the film.

★ The interior of the stadium didn't have the tight corners beyond the end zone. The interior was almost round. The benches and other details offer further evidence that scenes were filmed at Franklin Field (such as the track around the field seen in brief glimpses).

★ In the opening football sequence the Veterans Stadium scoreboard shows a clock counting down in tenths of seconds, which wasn't a normal practice in 1975.

★ During the scene where Janet and Papale are discussing past players for the New York Giants and Philadelphia Eagles, respectively, Janet lists former Giant star linebacker Sam Huff as playing the same position at West Virginia University. The NFL Hall of Famer, in fact, played defensive line for the Mountaineers before moving to linebacker as a professional.

★ During the same bar scene, Papale asks Janet how many championships did the Giants win during their run of appearing in six title games in eight years. Papale says "goose egg" but the Giants won the 1956 championship against the Chicago Bears.

★ The scene outside Veterans Stadium where Papale talks with Coach Vermeil shows the stadium incorrectly in relation to the Walt Whitman Bridge (the green bridge in the background). In reality, Veterans Stadium was located about one mile west of the filming location, and south of I-76 (the road across the bridge), not north.

★ During the Eagles game against the Dallas Cowboys in Texas Stadium, the end zone graphics had the newer helmet bar design, instead of the traditional two-bar helmet of the 1970s.

★ (Continuity error) After Papale scores his touchdown, you see #57, running towards him on the right close to him. Then the scene changes and you see #57 running towards Papale on the left in the distance. The scene changes again and #57 is finished running to Papale again on his right as the rest of the team gathers around him and runs back towards the sideline.

★ (Continuity error) When Wade Chambers comes to Max's bar to interview Papale he says that he is at Max's bar on Franklin Street. But if you look earlier in the movie, the street sign on the telephone pole where the bar is located is Rosewood Street.

Cast

★ Mark Wahlberg ... Vince Papale

★ Greg Kinnear ... Dick Vermeil

★ Elizabeth Banks ... Janet Cantrell

★ Kevin Conway ... Frank Papale

★ Michael Rispoli ... Max Cantrell

★ Kirk Acevedo ... Tommy

★ Dov Davidoff ... Johnny

★ Michael Kelly ... Pete

★ Sal Darigo ... Mick

★ Nicoye Banks ... TJ Banks

★ Turron Kofi Alleyne ... Ronnie Sampson

★ Cosmo DeMatteo ... Dean German

★ Stink Fisher ... Denny Franks

★ Michael Mulheren ... AC Craney

★ Michael Nouri ... Leonard Tose

★ Jack Kehler ... Wade Chambers

★ Lola Glaudini ... Sharon Papale

★ Paige Turco ... Carol Vermeil

★ Tristan Phillips ... Richie Vermeil

★ Morgan Turner ... Susan Vermeil

★ Lynn Cohen ... Mrs. Spegnetti

★ James Murtaugh ... Principal

Box Office

★ In opening weekend the movie made approximately $17,031,122 domestically.

★ As of November 16, 2006, the movie has generated an estimated $57,806,952 domestically.

External links

★ Official website

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★ ''Invincible'' Reel Story vs. Real Story at ChasingtheFrog

★ Invincible at Box Office Mojo

★ Trailer

★ Invincible at the Sports Movie Database

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