Any Given Sunday

Infobox_Film
name = Any Given Sunday

---

caption= Theatrical Release Poster
director = Oliver Stone
producer = Richard Donner,
Oliver Stone
writer = Oliver Stone,
Daniel Pyne,
John Logan
starring = Al Pacino
Dennis Quaid
Cameron Diaz
James Woods
Jamie Foxx
LL Cool J
Elizabeth Berkley
Charlton Heston
distributor = Warner Bros.
released = December 22, 1999 (USA)
runtime = 162 min / 156 min (director's cut)
language = English
imdb_id = 0146838
budget = $55,000,000
tagline = Life is a contact sport mpaa_rating = R

"Any Given Sunday" is a 1999 film directed by Oliver Stone featuring an ensemble cast, consisting of Al Pacino, Cameron Diaz, Dennis Quaid, Jamie Foxx, James Woods, LL Cool J, Matthew Modine, John C. McGinley, Charlton Heston, Ann-Margret, Lauren Holly, Bill Bellamy, Lela Rochon, Aaron Eckhart, Jim Brown, Elizabeth Berkley and Marty Wright.

The film also featured archive footage of many football players including Jim Brown, Lawrence Taylor, Dick Butkus, Y.A. Tittle, Pat Toomay, Warren Moon, Johnny Unitas, Ricky Watters, Barry Switzer, Emmitt Smith and Terrell Owens.

Cast

Tony D'Amato (Al Pacino) - The head coach and general manager of the Miami Sharks. Having held his position for decades and given much autonomy by the elder Pagniacci, he is widely respected for leading his men to great successes; he gave most of his time to the team, and it led him to lose his wife and daughters. However, despite his legacy, D'Amato's traditional and old-fashioned methods have come under fire for poor results during the last seasons, including missing the playoffs several times. During the last few years, he also resents the hands-on-approach or "interference" of Christina Pagniacci, who succeeded her father as team owner. Tony D'Amato is based on longtime Dallas Cowboys head coach Tom Landry.

Christina Pagniacci (Cameron Diaz) - The new owner of the Miami Sharks who inherited that role from her father. Given the team's poor results in the last few years, which she attributes to Coach D'Amato's "old-school methods", she attempts to take a more hands-on approach to the team, including bringing in modern offensive coordinator Nick Crozier. She has hinted several times that D'Amato will not return after his contract expires, adding to his distractions. She also begins political maneuvers that cause confrontation with the AFFA Commissioner and the Mayor of Miami. Christina Pagniacci is also based on current Dallas Cowboys owner Jerry Jones.

Jack 'Cap' Rooney (Dennis Quaid) - The starting quarterback of the Miami Sharks. A favorite of Coach D'Amato, the two have been credited with the team's greatest on-field successes. However, Rooney is now an aging veteran who is losing motivation and faces conflicts with team personnel and his own family. Relations have soured between himself and his wife Cindy (Lauren Holly) who consistently goads him on without sympathy to his physical or mental situation (it is implied that Cindy married Jack only because he was a well-paid athlete and she is a Gold Digger). He eventually is injured in a game and is replaced but tries to make a comeback later on. The character appears to be a composite of contemporary late career QBs Dan Marino (whose house is seen as Rooney's in the film) and John Elway (Rooney's mid-air spin while scoring is nearly identical to Elway's famous dive for a first down during the third quarter of Super Bowl XXXII.)

Dr. Harvey Mandrake (James Woods) - The team physician for the Miami Sharks. He is a crooked doctor who risks the injury of players to enable the team to have a better shot at winning. He is later fired after his practices are discovered by the team internist. The character is largely based on Dr. Robert Rosenfeld, who was the longtime team physician for the Oakland/Los Angeles Raiders.

'Steamin' Willie Beamen (Jamie Foxx) - The third-string quarterback for the Miami Sharks who takes over as starter after an injury to Rooney, and then an injury to the backup quarterback. Though surprisingly successful, Beamen causes tension among staff and teammates, as he frequently changes the plays the coach calls, or just calls his own. He begins a singing career and even asks the attractive team owner for a date when she enters the locker room which is full of mostly naked players. He later begins to listen to his coaches and teammates, and is greatly inspired by Cap Rooney's gusty performance in the Sharks' first playoff game. Although the movie was released before Michael Vick's career, Beamen's playing style is very similar to the former Atlanta Falcons quarterback. Beamen is based on former NFL quarterback Jeff Blake.

Julian 'J-Man' Washington (LL Cool J) - The starting running back for the Miami Sharks. He is a very good back but becomes increasingly angry at Beamen for his cockiness and tendencies to call plays away from him. He is motivated by incentive clauses in his contract, and Coach D'Amato refers to him as a 'merc' (mercenary) "who will be gone before next season."

Luther 'Shark' Lavay (Lawrence Taylor) - The captain of the Miami Sharks' defense. Harvey has concealed that Shark is suffering from a previous injury, an broken neck that didn't heal properly. If he suffers a serious hit again, he may be killed or permanently disabled. The team's intern doctor informs him and D'Amato of the situation, and Shark says he will lose over a million dollars if he doesn't make his incentive pay because he retires as the intern doctor suggests. He also has an earlier confrontation with Willie Beamen over the role of offense vs. defense in football, and later gives the younger player a quiet but impassioned speech about playing with 100% emotion.

Montezuma Monroe (Jim Brown) - The Defensive Coordinator of the Miami Sharks. He's vocal and brings high intensity to the defense and to the rest of the team in general. Tony D'Amato personally confides in Montezuma several times. Monroe states at one point he would like to return to high school coaching where the game is "pure".

Nick Crozier (Aaron Eckhart) - The Offensive Coordinator of the Miami Sharks. Nick is an offensive guru brought in from Minnesota by Christina Pagniacci. Highly tech-savvy (making use of a laptop computer while calling plays), he is highly critical of Tony's offensive play calling, Willie's changing the plays in the huddle, and Julian's playing for contract incentives. Despite the tension between himself and head coach D'Amato, the latter recognizes Crozier's abilities and he is named the new head coach, after D'Amato departs to lead an expansion franchise in New Mexico.

Dr. Ollie Powers (Matthew Modine) - The intern doctor for the team and Harvey's nephew. He discovers Harvey covering for players who are suffering from near-career-ending injuries but are overdosing on painkillers, steroids, and hormones to cover the pain. He faces his own dilemma in the need to relieve the players' pain vs. prescribing too much medication at the insistence of the addicted players. He is largely based on Dr. Robert Huizenga, who was an internist under Dr. Rosenfeld with the Raiders and later wrote a book detailing substandard and dangerous medical treatment of players.

Jack Rose (John C. McGinley) - An abrasive and prominent sports reporter with his own cable show; a thinly disguised impression of Jim Rome. He shows an incredible distaste for all things D'Amato.

Plot

The film deals with the fictitious Miami Sharks, a once-great team now in turmoil and struggling to make the playoffs. It takes a look at the different aspects of American football, including the players, staff, front office, politicians, and press, and the pressures that they face.

In the final game shown on screen, Miami manages a come-from-behind win in the dying seconds against the Dallas Knights, winning the first round of the playoffs. Off-screen, Miami beats Minnesota to go to either the conference final or the Panthean Cup itself, but loses to San Francisco, the eventual champions.

At D'Amato's final press conference as head coach, all feuds have been resolved or at least put on hold and he leaves on a high, being thanked by owner Christina and the media for his contributions to the team. D'Amato then drops a bombshell and announces that he been hired as head coach and general manager of the expansion Albuquerque Aztecs. Then he says he just signed Willie Beamen as his starting quarterback and franchise player. Despite the initial hysteria among the media and owners, the general consensus that this is the best solution because D'Amato and Crozier (backed by Christina) cannot co-exist. As the scene ends, Christina and the other executives are angrily asking Crozier how he could have let Beamen finish the season without re-signing him to a longer contract for the Sharks.

Fictitious teams

It was filmed in Miami, Florida and Dallas, Texas. Miami's Orange Bowl stadium represents the home of the fictitious American football team, the Miami Sharks, while Texas Stadium is used for the home of the fictitious Dallas Knights. These and the other made-up teams, as well as their league Associated Football Franchises of America (AFFA), are based on the NFL.

At the end of the film, D'Amato laments to gathered media about his team's loss to San Francisco but does not reference their mascot. On the team schedule, the San Francisco Knights are mentioned, but this is likely a mistake, since the Dallas team has that nickname. A team called the Pharaohs is mentioned during the Minnesota game without any city, so it is possible they are the San Francisco Pharaohs, or like there was in the CFL and currently in the AHL, it's possible the AFFA has two teams with the same nickname.
*Miami Sharks
*Minnesota Americans
*Chicago Rhinos
*California Crusaders
*New York Emperors
*Dallas Knights
*Seattle Prospects
*Oregon Pioneers
*Colorado Blizzard
*Washington Lumbermen
*Los Angeles Breakers
*Kansas Twisters
*Orlando Crushers
*Texas Rattlers
*Houston Cattlemen
*Wisconsin Icemen

Expansion team:
*Albuquerque Aztecs

Production

Oliver Stone developed a script called "Monday Night" written by Jamie Williams, a former tight end for the San Francisco 49ers, and Richard Weiner, a sports journalist. Stone separately acquired the spec script "On Any Given Sunday", by John Logan. Stone later amalgamated a third screenplay, "Playing Hurt" by Daniel Pyne, into the project.

As of May 1, 1999, the screenplay's cover page listed the following writers: original draft by Jamie Williams & Richard Weiner, John Logan, Daniel Pyne; subsequent revisions by Gary Ross; revisions by Raynold Gideon & Bruce A. Evans; revisions by John Logan; revisions by Lisa Amsterdam & Robert Huizenga; latest revisions by Oliver Stone.

The Writers Guild of America ultimately awarded screenplay credit to Logan and Stone, with "story" credit to Pyne and Logan. Williams and Weiner went uncredited for their original screenplay, but were credited for their work on the film as technical consultants.

The screenplay was also based in part on the book "You're Okay, It's Just a Bruise: A Doctor's Sideline Secrets" by Robert Huizenga. Huizenga was the intern doctor for the L.A. Raiders in their 1980s heyday, working under Dr. Rosenfield, who dismissed many players' injuries with the phrase, "You're okay, it's just a bruise." James Woods' character was based on Rosenfield, and his first diagnosis of "Cap" Rooney's career-threatening injury at the beginning of the film is "you're okay, it's just a bruise." Huizenga left the Raiders in the early 1990s, disgusted at the way the medical advice was kept from players and Rosenfield being allowed to continue treating them after several mishaps, one of which is closely mirrored in the film - Shark's neck injury and risk of sudden death, based on the real-life Mike Harden case.

Director's Cut

When released to home video on VHS and DVD, a new director's cut by Oliver Stone was used. Due to the packaging listing "6 minutes of previously unseen footage" and a running time of 156 minutes, many assumed that the theatrical cut was 150 minutes, and that Stone had added six minutes of footage. In actuality, the theatrical cut ran 162 minutes; 12 minutes was deleted for the Director's Cut, and six minutes of new footage was added. Stone said these changes were made to help with the film's pacing. The differences between the two versions are discussed on IMDb's entry for the film. [http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0146838/alternateversions]

Music

Two soundtracks were released for "Any Given Sunday" by Atlantic Records. The first soundtrack is filled with contemporary hip hop and hard rock songs. The track listing of the first is:

# "Who Ya Going to Call" - Missy Elliott
# "Reunion - Capone-N-Noreaga
# "Never Goin' Back" - Mobb Deep
# "Sole Sunday" - Goodie Mob featuring Outkast
# "Shut 'Em Down" - LL Cool J
# "Shut Up" - Trick Daddy featuring Trina, Deuce Poppi & Co
# "Any Given Sunday" - Jamie Foxx featuring Guru & Common
# "Whatever It Takes" - P.O.D.
# "Fuck That" - Kid Rock
# "Be a Man" - Hole
# "My Niggas" - DMX
# "Jump" - Mystikal
# "Move Right Now" - Swizz Beats featuring Eve & Drag-On
# "Why" - Godsmack
# "Stompbox" - Overseer
# "Any Given Sunday Outro" - Jamie Foxx

The second soundtrack contains clips from the movie as well as R&B, jazz and techno music. Its track listing is:

# "Amazing Grace" - Robbie Robertson
# "Out of the Blue" - Robbie Robertson
# "Peace with 'Inches' Speech" - Al Pacino/Paul Kelly
# "Graciosa" - Moby
# "Cruisin'" - Smokey Robinson
# "Carry Me" - Robbie Robertson
# "Ghost Dance (Saber Remix)" - Robbie Robertson
# "Don't Explain" - Nina Simone
# "Como Ves" - Ozomatli
# "Cheek to Cheek" - Ella Fitzgerald
# "My Name Is Willie" - Jamie Foxx
# "So Ruff, So Tuff" - Roger
# "Without a Daddy (Black Girl/White Girl)" - 2She
# "Fierce #2" - Richard Horowitz
# "Drive" - Paul Kelly
# "Any Given Sunday Outro" - Jamie Foxx

Metallica's "Motorbreath" can be heard in the film as well as the Bill Withers song, "Use Me."

Trivia

*Three NFL stadiums were used for filming. The Sharks home stadium is the Miami Orange Bowl. When they traveled to California, the stadium used was actually Pro Player Stadium, which is located in Miami. The final game was played in Dallas at Texas Stadium.
*Dennis Quaid's character's house is really Miami Dolphins quarterback Dan Marino's house.
*Five NFL Hall of Fame Players made cameo appearances as opposing head coaches. Bob St. Clair, with Minnesota, the first game. Y.A. Tittle, for Chicago, the second game. Dick Butkus, with California, the road game. Warren Moon, with New York in the rain soaked game. And finally, Johnny Unitas with Dallas, in the finale.
*When Barry Switzer is the broadcaster for the playoff game in Dallas, a player bumps an official and Barry yells out, "He hit an official." When Barry Switzer was coaching the Dallas Cowboys against the San Francisco 49ers in the 1994 NFC Championship game, he was penalized 15 yards for bumping an official.
*Director Oliver Stone, who makes a cameo as an announcer, tried and failed to get the National Football League's permission to use real NFL team logos and stadiums for the film. The Miami Dolphins are referenced in the film's fictional universe, indicating the Sharks play in a more successful version of the real-life United States Football League, which launched an ambitious, ultimately failed effort to compete with the NFL in the 1980s.
*When Tony D'Amato is in the bar, the pictures on the wall are all of people in the movie. On the bottom row are "Cap" Rooney (Dennis Quaid) and Jim Brown. Featured in the top row are Oliver Stone, Al Pacino, and Cameron Diaz.
*Sean 'P. Diddy' Combs was cast as Willie Beaman, but dropped out because of scheduling conflicts with his recording career. Other notable actors that turned were rumored for roles: Clint Eastwood, Robert DeNiro, Ving Rhames, David Duchovny, Cuba Gooding, Jr., Chris Tucker, and Tom Arnold.
*Director Oliver Stone's first two choices to play Tony D'Amato were Al Pacino and Robert De Niro. Although De Niro declined the role, Pacino had already accepted.
*According to Cuba Gooding Jr., he met with Oliver Stone about playing the role of Willie Beamen but Stone turned Gooding down because he had already played a football player in Jerry Maguire (1996).
*Many real life football players appear in the film as additional players. Including Terrell Owens, who wears number 82 rather than his playing number, 81.
*James Caviezel played Tony D'Amato's estranged son, but his scenes were cut. They can be seen in the extras of the Oliver Stone Collection DVD. Tom Sizemore also had a role in the film, but it too was cut.
*For the scenes during a football game, production asked local schools to participate as extras for the movie, including Lake Stevens Middle School in Miami, Florida. For each shot the crowd was asked to move around so that each section looked filled, in empty seats cardboard cutouts we placed in seats with balloons attached to them so that they would seem in motion.
*Oliver Stone wanted to use the music of the Canadian band Godspeed You! Black Emperor and actually filmed a scene using their music, when he later asked for permission, the band said no, so Stone was forced to redo the scene without the music.
*Cameo: Barry Switzer former head coach of the Dallas Cowboys as a television commentator for the game between the Miami Sharks and the Dallas Knights (filmed in Texas Stadium, where Switzer once coached).
*NFL running back Darnell Autry auditioned for the film, but was told that he did not look enough like a football player. Several well-known actors who auditioned for roles were turned down by Stone because their football ability was insufficient.
*The WFL's Action Point rule (later done in another fashion by the XFL) makes somewhat of an appearance in the movie, as there are some scenes where a TD is made. It is automatically scored 7 points instead of 6, as in most football leagues. For example, the TD scored in the opening kickoff in the playoff game between the Miami Sharks and Dallas Knights. However, it is mentioned in an earlier scene when Jamie Foxx character Willy Beamen makes his first professional TD, that in fact the AFFA does in fact have extra point attempts after TDs via kick when a team mate, LL Cool J's character, reminds him to get off the field for such a follow up play.
*A scene in the movie was filmed at Villa Vizcaya.

References

External links

* [http://www.notstarring.com/movies/any-given-sunday Complete list of actors who were considered for roles]
* [http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LBAZCUioicw Willie Beamen music video]

Box Office Leaders USA
before = "Stuart Little"
date = December 22
date2 = January 9
year = 1999
year2 = 2000
after = "Next Friday"