The Sixth Man
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| The Sixth Man | |
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 The movie cover for The Sixth Man. |
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| Directed by | Randall Miller |
| Produced by | David Hoberman |
| Written by | Christopher Reed Cynthia Carle |
| Starring | Marlon Wayans, Kadeem Hardison |
| Music by | Marcus Miller |
| Distributed by | Touchstone Pictures |
| Release date(s) | March 28, 1997 |
| Running time | 107 min. |
| Language | English |
| IMDb profile | |
The Sixth Man is a supernatural comedy starring Marlon Wayans and Kadeem Hardison. The film was directed by Randall Miller who as directed other films and television shows including Class Act, Houseguest, thirtysomething, and Northern Exposure.
The film touches on comedy, supernatural elements, and even some drama. The film features real NCAA schools although the rosters are actually fake. Some schools shown in the film include Fresno State University, Georgetown University, and the University of Arkansas.
The film was released in March of 1997 and went on to gross just over fourteen million dollars at the box office. The film features cameos from college basketball personalities such as Jerry Tarkanian and Dick Vitale.
The Sixth Man was shot on location in the United States and Canada. The prime location used in the U.S. was the Seattle-Tacoma in Washington. Vancouver was the primary location for filming in Canada.
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[edit] Synopsis
The film starts out showing Antoine (Hardison) and Kenny (Wayans) Tyler as children playing in a game of basketball. Their father is coaching the team and directs Kenny to get the last shot for the win since the team in down by one point. The team gets the ball to Antoine, but he misses the layup. The film then goes to the boys talking about the game and practicing with their father at home.
The film then fast forwards to present-day and both Antoine and Kenny are attending the University of Washington and make up a duo on the basketball team. The duo is known as "A&K" and the slogan for the duo is "A&K All the Way." The film shows them playing in a game and winning. The team goes out to a night club and has fun, but during this outing, Kenny meets his future love interest, R.C. St. John (played by Michael Michele) , a reporter for UW.
The film goes to the next game where the duo is again dominating the game. On a fast-break, Antoine dunks the ball, but falls to the floor afterward. He is carried off the court on a stretcher and rushed to the hospital. The team finishes the game without Antoine and Kenny rushes to be with him. The coach of the team (played by David Paymer) walks into the locker room and gives Kenny the sad news that Antoine passed away.
The film then shows Kenny and the team's reaction to Antoine's passing as well as the university retiring Antoine's number. The team and Kenny are basically falling apart from their loss. Antoine's spirit returns though and shows up to help the team out, yet only Kenny can see him. The team is reluctant to believe Kenny at first, but Antoine shows some supernatural work to gain their trust as well. The team storms through the competition with the help of Antoine and make it to the NCAA tournament. The team begins to realize using Antoine to win isn't right and they ask him to stop and he becomes angry and leaves them. He shows up during the championship game and as Kenny throws up a last second shot to win the game, Antoine is going to make the ball go in, but Kenny tells him not to and the ball goes in by itself. The movie ends with Antoine and Kenny speaking to each other and Antoine going to heaven.
[edit] Major Characters
- Antoine Tyler (Hardison) - The older brother of Kenny Tyler and the star shooting guard/small forward and leader of their basketball teams, youth and college, until his death. He comes back as a spirit and helps improve the team and individual players. He is cocky and easily upset when people don't believe in his powers or want his assistance on the court.
- Kenny Tyler (Wayans) - The younger brother of Antoine Tyler. He is a shooting guard/point guard for the teams which the brothers play on. He assumes star and leadership roles once his brother passes away. His love life is a small sub-plot of the movie as well.
- Coach Pederson (Paymer) - The coach of the Huskies, including the Tyler brothers. He is stern yet understanding of his player. He assists them when needed and tries to guide them in the right direction.
- R.C. St. John (Michele) - The love interest of Kenny Tyler and a reporter for the university. When first meeting Kenny she is upset by him, then she tries to investigate the reason for the team's rapid success. She eventually grows to care about Kenny.
[edit] Cast
Marlon Wayans .... Kenny Tyler
Kadeem Hardison .... Antoine Tyler
David Paymer .... Coach Pederson
Michael Michele .... R.C. St. John
Kevin Dunn .... Mikulski
Gary Jones .... Gertz
Lorenzo Orr .... Malik Major
Vladimir Cuk .... Zigi Hrbacek
Travis Ford .... Danny O'Grady
Jack Karuletwa .... Luther Lasalle
Chris Spencer .... Jimmy Stubbs
Kirk Baily .... Coach Nicholls
Saundra McClain .... Camille Tyler
Harold Sylvester .... James Tyler
