Kingpin (1996)

User Rating:

6.7/10   

Directors:

Bobby Farrelly
Peter Farrelly

Writers (WGA):

Barry Fanaro (written by) &
Mort Nathan (written by)

Release Date:

26 July 1996 (USA)

Genre:

Comedy | Sport

Tagline:

A comedy right up your alley.

Plot:

A star bowler whose career was prematurely "cut off" hopes to ride a new prodigy to success and riches.

Plot Keywords:

Bowling | Amish | Road | Tournament | Hit In Groin

Cast

Woody Harrelson	...	Roy Munson
Randy Quaid	...	Ishmael
Vanessa Angel	...	Claudia
Bill Murray	...	Ernie McCracken
Chris Elliott	...	The Gambler
William Jordan	...	Mr. Boorg
Richard Tyson	...	Owner Of Stiffy's
Lin Shaye	...	Landlady
Zen Gesner	...	Thomas
Prudence Wright Holmes	...	Mrs. Boorg
Rob Moran	...	Stanley Osmanski
Daniel Greene	...	Calvert Munson (as Danny Green)
Will Rothhaar	...	Young Roy
Mark Charpentier	...	1979 Bowling Buddy
Brad Faxon	...	1979 Bowling Buddy

MPAA:

Rated PG-13 for crude sex-related humor and a drug scene.; Rated R for some crude sex-related humor. (edited version)

Runtime:

113 min | USA:117 min (R-rated version)

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Colour:

Colour

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Sound Mix:

DTS

Certification:

Finland:K-10 | Iceland:L | USA:PG-13 (No. 34604) | South Korea:15 | Philippines:PG-13 | Australia:M | Belgium:KT | Canada:14A (Canadian Home Video rating) | Netherlands:12 | Portugal:M/12 (video premiere) | Spain:13 | Sweden:11 | UK:12 | USA:R (director's cut)

Filming Locations:

Interstate 80, Reno, Nevada, USA

Company:

Rysher Entertainment

Trivia:

The person shouting "Ernie, you 'da man!" at the final showdown between McCracken and Munson, is Will Ferrell.

Goofs:

Continuity: Right before Roy meets Ishmael in the bowling alley for the first time, he rips his rearview mirror off his car with his hook. After he leaves the bowling alley to catch up with Ishmael, the mirror is re-attached.

Quotes:

[On smoking]
Ishmael: You should try to quit. They say its bad for your heart, your lungs. It quickens the aging process.
Roy: Who's done more research than the good people at the American Tobacco Industry? They say its harmless. Why would they lie? If you're dead, you can't smoke.

Movie Connections:

Referenced in Shriek If You Know What I Did Last Friday the Thirteenth (2000) (V)

Soundtrack:

Mud

Now I Know Why I Quit Bowling

I say this in a good way: this film captures bowling's underbelly, where even the pro stars sometimes have to supplement their income the old-fashioned way: by taking it directly from obviously weaker bowlers who somehow manage to be convinced to risk their money. Just as poker games are often won with guns, bowling for money has hazards all its own, something I learned even as a junior bowler hustling games after the league on Saturday.

Roy E. Munson (Woody Harrelson) is such a loser that acting like a total loser is actually called "being Munsoned." The term is named after an incident where some victims of a bowling hustle relieve Roy of his right hand in a gruesome manner which involves bowling equipment. Somehow, even THAT manages to be funny, which speaks to the quality of this film, a film smart enough to have its three main stars on screen for most of the time. The 1979 accident was the result of Roy taking the fall for the hustle engineered by legendary bowler Ernie McCracken (Bill Murray).

Fast forward to 1996, and Roy stumbles across an Amish bowler named Ishmael Boorg (Randy Quaid), the most talented bowler he's ever come across. He offers to coach Ishmael for a $1 million tournament in Reno, Nevada that can save his family farm, but Ishmael is conflicted (the deepest emotion of the film) because he has strayed from the Amish country. Ishmael's brother is the requisite family member sent to bring the stray relative back home, and Vanessa Angel is extra-hot as the love interest for almost every guy in the film.

If you think this is a parody of bowling, the joke may be on you. Hang around enough lanes, in certain places, and you just might see these guys or something very close to them. Just be careful if they look drunk and want to play for money.