We Are Marshall (2006)
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49% of critics liked it
(124 reviews) -
81% of users liked it
(194,705 ratings)
A true story of tragedy, hope, and resilience comes to the screen in this sports drama. Huntington, WV, is home to Marshall University, a school where college football is a way of life. Huntington is also a town that learned to deal with tragedy in the fall of 1970 when Marshall's… More A true story of tragedy, hope, and resilience comes to the screen in this sports drama. Huntington, WV, is home to Marshall University, a school where college football is a way of life. Huntington is also a town that learned to deal with tragedy in the fall of 1970 when Marshall's "Thundering Herd" boarded an airliner to return home after a football game in North Carolina. The jet crashed into a hill due to bad weather, and 75 members of Marshall's football squad and athletic staff died that night. The accident dealt a crippling blow to the city of Huntington, as well as Marshall's faculty and student body, and university president Donald Dedmon (David Strathairn) considered abandoning the school's football program. But instead Coach Jack Lengyel (Matthew McConaughey) was recruited from Ohio's College of Wooster to rebuild Marshall's football program. Lengyel was not naïve about the task ahead of him, and working beside Red Dawson (Matthew Fox), an assistant coach who narrowly missed the doomed flight and was one of the program's only survivors, he came to understand his job was not just to put a team on the field, but help a college and a community heal their wounds from the tragic accident. Together Lengyel and Dawson turned a handful of rookies and second-string players into a competitive team who in 1971 showed the world what they could do in a legendary game against Marshall's rivals, Xavier University. Produced with the cooperation of Marshall University and filmed in part on their campus, We Are Marshall also stars Ian McShane, Anthony Mackie, and January Jones. ~ Mark Deming, Rovi
- Directed By
- Joseph McGinty Nichol, McG
- Written By
- Jamie Linden
- Genres
- Drama
- In Theaters
- Dec 22, 2006 Wide
- Studio
- Warner Bros. Pictures
Critic Reviews
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Richard Roeper, Ebert & Roeper
Unlike a lot of sports movies, it doesn't end with a championship or a great upset over a powerhouse. The real victory on the Marshall campus was in fielding a team that honored and respected the legacy of the 1970 team.
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Claudia Puig, USA Today
This was undeniably a horrific event for the victims' families friends, colleagues as well as for the entire community. But the movie seems to almost exploit this tragedy so it can make audiences weep, and ultimately, cheer.
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Peter Howell, Toronto Star
What's missing is any kind of insight into the lives of the dead players or the members of the Young Thundering Herd who rise up to replace them.
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Ted Fry, Seattle Times
A series of montage and anecdotal vignettes follows as they recruit a whole new team, learn lessons from the catastrophe, lose and then win, with plenty of sentimentality sprinkled over the whole thing.
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Peter Hartlaub, San Francisco Chronicle
We Are Marshall is a bit of a shame, because the subject matter could have been something special in the hands of stronger filmmakers.
See more critic ratings and reviews on Rotten Tomatoes
Fresh (60% or more critics rated the movie positively)
Rotten (59% or fewer critics rated the movie positively)
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Cast
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Matthew McConaughey
as Jack Lengyel
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Matthew Fox
as Red Dawson
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Anthony Mackie
as Nate Ruffin
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David Strathairn
as President Dedmon
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Ian McShane
as Paul Griffen
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Kate Mara
as Annie Cantrell
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January Jones
as Carole Dawson
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Kimberly Williams-Paisley
as Sandy Lengyel
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Arlen Escarpeta
as Reggie Oliver
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Brian Geraghty
as Tom Bogdan
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Tommy Cresswell
as Gene Morehouse
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Christian Kanupke
as Young Keith Morehouse
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Nina Jones
as Mrs. Morehouse
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Kevin Atkins
as George Olson
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Mark Patton
as Bill James
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Huntley Ritter
as Randy Linden
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Brett Rice
as Lloyd Boone
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Dalton Polston
as Peter Lengyel
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Andrew Wilson Williams
as David Lengyel
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Ellie Zellers
as Julie Lengyel
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Mark Oliver
as Ernie Salvatore
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Brian Beegle
as Lucas Booth
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L. Warren Young
as Mickey Jackson
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David Dwyer
as Hutch Davis
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Wes Brown
as Chris Griffen
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Mike Pniewski
as Bobby Bowden
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Cafabian Heard
as Danny
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Mandy Best
as Katie
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Nikky Williams
as Jane
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Laura-Shay Griffin
as Julie
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Katie Kneeland
as Ticket Taker
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Elizabeth Omilami
as President's Secretary
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Scott Hilley
as Man In The Rain
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Andrew DiPalma
as Diner Student #1
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Jeff Adelman
as Diner Student #2
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Dolan Wilson
as Steel Worker
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Billy Woods
as Airport Booster #1
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Sharalene Kile
as Doris Stillwell
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Bill Crabb
as Gas Station Attendant
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Phillip Ivey
as Man In The Car At The Theater
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Wilbur Fitzgerald
as Fireman #1
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Jody Thompson
as Barrier Policeman
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David Ramsey
as Father
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Rhoda Griffis
as Mrs. Shaw
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Billy Bennett
as Blake Smith
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Patrick L. Parker
as Mr. Booth
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Joey Nappo
as Beer Freshman
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Michael DiFiore
as W.V. Player
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Maurice Bryant
as Xavier #19
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Tim Crowley
as Referee
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Don Young
as Janitor
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Alex Van
as Trainer
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Ron Clinton Smith
as Jim McNally
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Taber Lathrop
as Steven Morehouse
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Jake Cooper
as Freshman #1
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William Gorman
as Freshman #2
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Anaiah Petty
as Freshman #3
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Jeff Portell
as Fireman #2
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Alyssa Caputo
as Gail Morehouse
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Keith Morehouse
as Keith Morehouse
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Mike Ribaudo
as Baseball Catcher
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Bobby Jordan
as Baseball Runner
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Dock Pollard
as Terry Gardner
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Bert Beatson
as Player #3
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Bobby Jon Drinkard
as Player #4
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Ryan Sloth
as Marshall #51
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Brent Garber
as Shalhoop
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Steven Barr
as Game Announcer
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Michael Pniewski
as Bobby Bowden




