Wildcats (1986)

Molly is a high school track coach who knows just as much about football as anyone else on the planet. When the football coach's position becomes vacant, she applies for the job, despite ... See full summary »

Director:

Michael Ritchie

Writer:

Ezra Sacks

Stars:

Goldie Hawn, Swoosie Kurtz, Robyn Lively

1 nomination.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Goldie Hawn	...	Molly McGrath
Swoosie Kurtz	...	Verna McGrath
Robyn Lively	...	Alice Needham
Brandy Gold	...	Marian Needham
James Keach	...	Frank Needham
Jan Hooks	...	Stephanie Needham
Bruce McGill	...	Dan Darwell
Nipsey Russell	...	Ben Edwards
Mykelti Williamson	...	Levander 'Bird' Williams (as Mykel T. Williamson)
Tab Thacker	...	Phillip Finch
Wesley Snipes	...	Trumaine
Jsu Garcia	...	Cerulo (as Nick Corri)
Woody Harrelson	...	Krushinski
Willie J. Walton	...	Marvel
Rodney Hill	...	Peanut

Storyline

Molly is a high school track coach who knows just as much about football as anyone else on the planet. When the football coach's position becomes vacant, she applies for the job, despite expecting sniggers from fellow staff members and her former husband.

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Plot Keywords:

Coach | Football | Training Montage | Court | School Vandalism | 

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Taglines:

Her dream was to coach high school football. Her nightmare was Central High.

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Genres:

Comedy | Sport

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Certificate:

R

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

14 February 1986 (USA)

Also Known As:

First and Goal

Filming Locations:

Chicago, Illinois, USA

Box Office

Gross:

$26,285,544 (USA)

Company Credits

Production Co:

Hawn / Sylbert Movie Company, Warner Bros

Technical Specs

Runtime:

106 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Final film of Ann Doran.

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Goofs

When Finch threw Coach Darwell in the mud at the end of the championship game, the coach lands on his back and then rolls around, but his face and the front of his jacket are already covered in mud before he rolls over.

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Quotes

Marvel: Fuck you!
Molly McGrath: Fuck you what?
Marvel: Fuck you... Coach McGrath.
Molly McGrath: Better.

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Connections

Featured in Sports on the Silver Screen (1997)

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Soundtracks

"Show Me How It Works"
Performed by Mavis Staples
Written by Hawk Wolinski, James Newton Howard and David Pack
Courtesy of Private I/CBS Records

User Reviews

Above Average Sports Comedy

While this is close to THE BLINDSIDE (2009), Goldie Hawn is given a decent script that allows her to portray a gritty female football coach in a rough high school using her comic talents as well as allowing for some nice dramatic scenes, extending her performance from the usual stereotypical, two-dimensional character. WILDCATS includes the predictable storyline, but also adds an extra dimension which happens when the star happens to be female. There is the additional screen time that includes the personal family conflict as a mother and there is additional screen time for actual football plays as well as a more developed focus on the number of games presented in this movie. While some of the usual football players are not given the screen time nor development sometimes seen in most sport movies of this genre, they may have been sacrificed for the director's personal decision to balance the movie with Goldie Hawn's character's own personal turmoils often given little attention in most movies like this. The ending of this movie is perhaps too typical, predictable, and over-simplified, but it does resonate in a more humanistic and rounded ending that usual.