| Friday Night Lights | |
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Theatrical release poster |
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| Directed by | Peter Berg |
| Produced by | Brian Grazer |
| Written by | H.G. Bissinger (book) David Aaron Cohen Peter Berg |
| Starring | Billy Bob Thornton Derek Luke Jay Hernandez Lucas Black Garrett Hedlund Tim McGraw |
| Music by | Brian Reitzell Explosions in the Sky David Torn |
| Cinematography | Tobias Schliessler |
| Editing by | Colby Parker Jr. David Rosenbloom Gabrielle Fasulo |
| Studio | Imagine Entertainment |
| Distributed by | Universal Pictures |
| Release date(s) | October 8, 2004 |
| Running time | 118 min. |
| Country | United States |
| Language | English |
| Budget | $30 million |
| Box office | $61,950,770 |
Friday Night Lights is a 2004 drama film which documents the coach and players of a high school football team[1] and the Texas city of Odessa that supports and is obsessed with them. The book on which it was based, Friday Night Lights: A Town, a Team, and a Dream, was authored by H. G. Bissinger and follows the story of the 1988 Permian High School Panthers football team as they made a run towards the state championship. A television series of the same name premiered on October 3, 2006 on NBC. This movie ranked number 37 on Entertainment Weekly's list of the Best High School Movies.[2]
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Bissinger followed the team for the entire 1988 season, which culminated in a loss in the State finals against Carter High School from Dallas, who eventually went on to win the championship game but would have their title stripped for playing an ineligible player. However, the book also deals with — or alludes to — a number of secondary political and social issues existing in Odessa, all of which share ties to the Permian Panthers football team. These include socioeconomic disparity; racism; segregation (and desegregation); and poverty.
The coach, Gary Gaines (Billy Bob Thornton), is constantly in the hot seat. Tied to the successes and failure of the coach and the team in general are the conflicts the players struggle with on and off the gridiron. The coach overuses his star player and running back James "Boobie" Miles (Derek Luke) who gets seriously injured (Miles tore his ACL, missed the playoffs, and had a limp for the rest of his life). When this happens, sports radios are flooded with calls for his resignation. Miles' once-arrogant attitude vanishes as he sees his once promising chance of playing big-time college football disappear and starts to question his future after he notices his not-so promising academic standing. Quarterback Mike Winchell (Lucas Black) struggles with being able to play consistently. Fullback Don Billingsley (Garrett Hedlund) has a rocky relationship with his father (Tim McGraw), who won a state championship at Permian and carries on a feud with his son for not performing on the level he'd like to see, despite the fact that Don doesn't do anything to light his father's temper. Third-string running back Chris Comer (Lee Thompson Young), who takes the spot of Miles after his injury, attempts to get rid of his fear of being hit and getting injured, especially when the player who last occupied his spot suffered a season ending injury. His obsession with fame and recognition also comes at a high price that he is at first not ready to pay. Safety Brian Chavez (Jay Hernandez) is easily the smartest player on the team, and the most confident in his future after high school football. One of the themes of the movie depicts the coach as a father-type figure for the players.
Coach Gaines triumphs and struggles with winning football games and connecting with his players a number of times during their tremulous season. His job depends on the Panthers making the playoffs, and his team is in a three-way tie with two other teams at the end of the regular season. Under Texas rules for ties, the tiebreaker is a coin-toss. Permian gets a spot. They make it to the finals, where they narrowly lose against a powerhouse Dallas high school team. The movie ends with the coach removing the departing seniors from the depth chart on his wall. Notably, the depth chart has "Case" at quarterback. This refers to Permian's real-life backup quarterback in 1988, Stoney Case, who would go on to lead Permian, along with Chris Comer, to the 5A state title the following year, and still later made it to the NFL. The final scene consists of Winchell throwing a football to a bunch of pee-wees playing pick-up football before leaving with Billingsley and Chavez.
The soundtrack for the film predominantly features post-rock band Explosions in the Sky. Music by Daniel Lanois and rock band Bad Company are also included. Other songs in the film are "Just Got Paid" by ZZ Top, during the montage of the Panthers' road to the finals; the pump up song that is featured as the team runs through the tunnel in the game against Dallas Carter is "New Noise" by the seminal Swedish punk band Refused. Also, during the start of the third quarter during the Championship game, the song "I Wanna Be Your Dog" by The Stooges is used.
Reviews of the film were highly positive. The film received an 82% "Certified Fresh" rating on Rotten Tomatoes, based on 164 reviews, and a score of 70/100 on Metacritic, based on 35 reviews.
While the residents of Odessa held a negative reception of the book, the residents anticipated the release of the film.[6]
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