Rating: PG
Starring:
Dwayne Johnson as Joe Kingman
Madison Pettis as Peyton Kelly
Kyra Sedgwick as Stella Peck
Roselyn Sanchez as Monique Vasquez
Morris Chestnut as Travis Sanders
Hayes MacArthur as Kyle Cooper
Brian J. White as Jamal Webber
Jamal Duff as Clarence Monroe
Paige Turco as Karen Kelly
Tubbs as Spike
Gordon Clapp as Coach Mark Maddox
Kate Nauta as Tatianna
Robert Torti as Samuel Blake, Jr.
Jackie Flynn as Larry the Doorman
Lauren Storm as Nanny Cindy
Special Features:
Bloopers With Marv Albert
Deleted Scenes
ESPN’s SportsCenter DVD/Blu-ray Exclusive: The King In Search Of A Ring — Stuart Scott Of ESPN Hosts A Look At Joe Kingman’s Fictitious Biography
ESPN’s SportsCenter: The Rock Learns To Play QB — ESPN’s Sean Salisbury Interviews The Rock On How He Learned To Play Quarterback For The Movie
Drafting “The Game Plan” Behind-The-Scenes Featurette
The Universal “Mood” Remote Control Menus — Control The Mood Lighting In Joe Kingman’s Apartment
Peyton’s Makeover Madness Set-Top Activity
Other Info:
Widescreen (2.35:1)
French and Spanish Subtitles
French and Spanish Language
Running Time: 110 Minutes
Synopsis:
The following is from the DVD cover:
“In this hilarious and heartwarming family comedy, one of the sport’s toughest players ever takes on his biggest challenge yet — fatherhood! A superstar with an ego bigger than a football field, Joe Kingman (Dwayne ‘The Rock’ Johnson) is getting ready for a run at the big championship game when the 8-year-old daughter he never knew existed shows up at his not-so-family-friendly bachelor pad. As the big game gets closer, he begins to realize the most meaningful win he can achieve is the heart of the one little fan who counts the most.”
“The Game Plan” is rated PG for some mild thematic elements.
Mini-Review:
There’s not much original about “The Game Plan.” It’s your typical “little girl moves in with grumpy old character and turns their frown upside down” story. It has been done in “Heidi,” “Annie,” “The Little Colonel,” and many others. The only difference is that this one features a football player. While a twist on a familiar premise is definitely something that can succeed, “The Game Plan” brings nothing new to the table. Practically every joke in the film is about the macho football players being suckered into doing un-macho things by the cute little girl. From playing dress up to doing ballet, they work the same joke from every angle. Little kids will get a kick out of seeing The Rock look like a girlie man, but adults will soon get weary of the one joke plot.
That being said, the film has a good cast. Dwayne Johnson shows he is capable of doing comedy. Kyra Sedgwick makes a good sassy agent. Roselyn Sanchez is simply hot. And Hayes MacArthur makes pretty good comedy relief. But the real standout is newcomer Madison Pettis as Peyton Kelly. She is cute, articulate, and holds her own against experienced actors. Expect to see more of her in the future in hopefully better films.
There’s not much here for Rock fans or adults in general. “The Game Plan” is mainly for kids 10 and under. Unless you fall in that demographic, your game plan should be to pass.
There’s a decent selection of bonus features on the DVD. You have your standard extras like bloopers, a ‘making of’ featurette, and a few deleted scenes. Also included is the ESPN feature on “Joe Kingman” as seen in the film. But you can also find an actual ESPN Sportscenter feature on The Rock’s training for the movie and his real history in college football. For the kiddies you’ll find a customizable menu using the fancy remote seen in the movie and “Peyton’s Makeover Madness Set-Top Activity”.
