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Church Ball is a 2006 sports comedy film written and directed by Kurt Hale. It follows an underdog Latter-day Saint church basketball team and their attempts to make it to the championship in the league's last season. The film stars Andrew Wilson, Fred Willard, Clint Howard, and Gary Coleman.[2]
| Church Ball | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Directed by | Kurt Hale |
| Written by | Paul Eagleston Kurt Hale Stephen Rose |
| Produced by | George Dayton Kurt Hale Dave Hunter |
| Starring | Fred Willard Andrew Wilson Clint Howard Gary Coleman Ross Brockley Curt Dousett Larry Bagby Steve Anderson |
| Cinematography | Billy Webb |
| Edited by | Wynn Hougaard John Lyde |
| Distributed by | Halestorm Entertainment |
Release date |
|
Running time | 91 minutes |
| Country | United States |
| Language | English |
| Budget | $1,000,000 |
| Box office | $464,991[1] |
Plot
editA local Utah LDS Church holds the record as having the worst basketball team in the church ball league. The team has failed to make it into the church tournament in the past 20 years. Due to rumors of this being the last year of the league, former team coach, and now Bishop Linderman (Fred Willard) has called Dennis Buckstead (Andrew Wilson) to coach a team made of clumsy misfits to the championship.
Church expectations of brotherly love, sportsmanship, and fellowship fall prey to competitive fierceness in the effort to win, while Dennis works to bring unity and cooperation.
Cast
edit- Andrew Wilson as Dennis Buckstead
- Fred Willard as Bishop Linderman
- Clint Howard as Gene Jensen
- Gary Coleman as Charles Higgins
- Amy Stewart as Susan Buckstead
Production
editDevelopment and casting
editThe original script for the film was written years beforehand by Kurt Hale, Paul Eagleston, and Stephen Rose.[3] Halestorm Entertainment began production of the film in 2005. Gary Coleman was cast as Charles Higgins. Andrew Wilson, Clint Howard, and Fred Willard were later cast as Dennis Buckstead, Gene Jensen, and Bishop Linderman, respectively.[2]
Filming
editFilming took place primarily in Orem and Provo, Utah in 2005. The former Douglas Ward meetinghouse at 721 S 1200 E in Salt Lake City and the former Wallsburg meetinghouse in Wallsburg were both used for filming.[4]
During filming, Gary Coleman met his now wife, Shannon Price, on set. Price was an extra in the film.[5]
Reception
editThe review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes surveyed twelve critics and reported a 17 percent approval rating. Among the reviews, it determined an average rating of 4.3 out of 10. It received a 39% approval rating from audiences.[6] On IMDb, it holds an average of 4.2 out of 10 star audience rating.
Actor's responses
editGary Coleman described his dissatisfaction with the film's quality. Although he stated he enjoyed the process of making the film, he remarked that watching the production process was like "giving monkeys cameras and lights." Despite this, the project introduced Coleman to Utah, and he moved to Santaquin soon after filming. He later commented that he was thankful to Kurt hale for introducing him to the state.[3]
Clint Howard praised Halestorm Entertainment for producing family-friendly entertainment.[3]
References
edit- ^ Church Ball at Box Office Mojo
- ^ a b Hale, Kurt (2006-03-17), Church Ball (Comedy, Sport), Andrew Wilson, Amy Stewart, Clint Howard, Halestorm Entertainment, retrieved 2024-12-11
- ^ a b c "'Church Ball' may be HaleStorm's last LDS comedy". Deseret News. 2006-03-17. Retrieved 2024-12-11.
- ^ Barlow, Jacob (2020-02-08). "Church Ball (2006)". JacobBarlow.com. Retrieved 2024-12-11.
- ^ "Gary Coleman Wife: An Untold Story & Disputed Legacy". www.blinkist.com. Retrieved 2024-12-11.
- ^ "Church Ball | Rotten Tomatoes". www.rottentomatoes.com. Retrieved 2024-12-11.
External links
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