Woody Harrelson

Kaitlin Olson

Cheech Marin

Matt Cook

Ernie Hudson

Madison Tevlin

Joshua Felder

Kevin Iannucci

Ashton Gunning

Matthew Von Der Ahe

James Day Keith

Alex Hintz

Casey Metcalfe

Bradley Edens

Alicia Johnston

Tom Sinclair

Mike Smith

Barbara Pollard

Alexandra Castillo

Jean-Jacques Javier

Scott Van Pelt

Jalen Rose

Seán Cullen

Jacob Blair

Ryan DeLong

Cory Wojcik

Lauren Cochrane

Eddy Norman

Stephanie Sy

Clint Allen

Heath Vermette

Aaron Hughes

Champ Pederson

Joanne Zahaiko

Lois Brothers

Ryder Dueck

Vance Halldorson

Lam An

David Marqués

Javier Fesser

Kristen Sawatzky

Paul Brooks

Scott Niemeyer

Alexander Jooss

Brad Kessell

Álvaro Longoria

Bobby Farrelly

Jeremy Plager

Luis Manso

Mark Rizzo

C. Kim Miles

Jon Van Winkle

Anna Schwartz

Julie Garcés

Rick Montgomery

Jean-Andre Carriere

Jonathan Shore

Jim Heber

Drew Locke

Maria Livingstone

Gregorio Gómez

Jeff Jackman

Liam Karp

Craig George

Kristy Greig

Bill Mellow

Crystal Biloski

Sara McCudden

Vincent Tang

James Fonnyadt

Kelly Cole

Chris Baker

Michael Franti

Comedy

Drama

Champions

Gold Circle Films

Focus Features

United States of America

CinemaSerf

Have you seen "The Shiny Shrimps" (2019)? Well this reminded me very much of that comedy effort as Woody Harrelson portrays the disgraced basketball coach "Marcus". After one altercation too many on the court, he is ordered by a judge to do some community service coaching a group of young children with learning difficulties. Right from the start, he hates the idea. They have precious little team skills, hand-eye co-ordination, and the only one who is any way competent refuses to have anything to do with him. Luckily, "Johnny" (Kevin Iannucci) has a big sister "Alex" (Kaitlin Olson) who manages to get the coach to commit and focus more on the team - and, well you can easily guess the rest. This is one of those life-affirming films that is well written with loads of characters and dry - frequently pretty black - humour. The thing has an inevitability to it, but like the "Shrimps" it's about inclusion. It's about making sure everyone gets a chance to take part, to enjoy, to thrive - teamwork, family (meatloaf - yuk!) and a genuine sense of celebration feature increasingly and effectively. It isn't a film you will remember for long, it's entirely formulaic - but Harrelson and Iannucci are on good form and I did enjoy it.

Manuel São Bento

MORE SPOILER-FREE MINI REVIEWS @ https://www.msbreviews.com/movie-reviews/mini-reviews-2023-edition

"Champions is one of those feel-good sports flicks designed to leave viewers with a smile on their faces. A beautiful, heartwarming example of how formulaic stories can indeed be elevated by the filmmakers and actors involved. Bobby Farrelly focuses on an inclusive cast, allowing everyone a moment to shine, taking advantage of the endless charisma emanating from Woody Harrelson and Kaitlin Olson to help with the most complex dialogues. An essential, insightful, informative film about people with intellectual disabilities that everyone should allocate some of their time to watch."

Rating: B-

* This has to be one of the only movies I hate with a passion. I, myself, am not psychically disabled, so I don't feel directly offended by this films pre-snarky, and downright criminal sense of humor. Every second it feels like _Harrelson_ has sex. The first scene starts by implying that the two characters on screen "did it." The film tries to make its "steamy moments" feel romantic but it just feels awkward. _Harrelson_ and many others characters make fun of the disabled people. The message of _Champions_ is to try no matter what your disability is, but the whole entire time they make fun of anyone who is not "normal." (0/10 Do not watch.)

English

Woody Harrelson's New Basketball Assignment - Extended Preview

Marcus is Ordered Community Service - Extended Preview

Champions' Bobby Farrelly On Inspiring with Inclusivity | 60 Second Film School

Woody Harrelson On Being Asked To Try Out For His School's Play | My First Gig

Kaitlin Olson & Kevin Iannucci Enjoyed Joking Around with the Cast of Champions | Stories From Set

Kicking Ass

Skiing

Official Trailer