| Manny's Orphans | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Directed by | Sean S. Cunningham |
| Written by | Victor Miller Steve Miner |
| Produced by | Sean S. Cunningham Steve Miner |
| Starring | Jim Baker Malachy McCourt |
| Cinematography | Barry Abrams |
| Edited by | Steve Miner |
| Music by | Harry Manfredini |
| Production company | Sean S. Cunningham Films |
| Distributed by | Vestron Video (VHS) |
| Release date |
|
| Running time | 92 minutes |
| Country | United States |
| Language | English |
Manny's Orphans (also known as Kick!) is a 1978 American family comedy film directed by Sean S. Cunningham. The film was also distributed under the title Kick!.
Plot
Manny (Jim Baker) coaches soccer for the fashionable Creighton Hall school, but is relieved of duty because he is "not a good match" for the school. He finds a job at a Catholic home for orphans, where he forms a new soccer team, with the help of one very good player, Pepe, who turns out to be a girl. Pepe is the sister of one of the orphans, who comes to the all-boy orphanage posing as a boy, because her former foster home was an abusive environment.
Along the way, Manny has incurred a gambling debt, his creditors begin to lean on him, and the boys find out. They set up a soccer game and stake the outcome against Manny's debt. If they win, then the debt shall be forgiven.
Cast
- Jim Baker – Manny
- Malachy McCourt – Father Arch McCoy
- Chet Doherty – Dr. Berryman
- Sel Skolnick – Mr. Caputo
- Xavier Rodrigo – Raoul
- Melissa Valentin – Pepe
- Ari Lehman – Roger
Production
Of the film, writer Victor Miller said: "Steve Miner came up with the idea for it and I wrote the screenplay and we did it, another low-budget film , and shot it around Bridgeport, Connecticut."
Director Cunningham said: "We had this notion of a bunch of orphans in a halfway house, they put together a soccer team and the underdog wins. So we raised the money to do what became known as Manny's Orphans. It was a lot of fun to make, and again I loved working with the kids. I really thought it was going to be a breakthrough film for me." Cunningham also maintains that the reaction was "lukewarm", and although United Artists optioned it as a pilot for a TV series, they did not buy it.
References
- ^ Bracke, Peter (October 11, 2006). Crystal Lake Memories. United Kingdom: Titan Books. p. 17. ISBN 978-1-845-76343-5.
External links
| Films directed by Sean S. Cunningham | |
|---|---|
|
- 1978 films
- 1970s sports comedy films
- American sports comedy films
- American association football films
- Films about orphans
- Films scored by Harry Manfredini
- Films directed by Sean S. Cunningham
- Films shot in Connecticut
- Films with screenplays by Victor Miller (writer)
- 1978 comedy films
- 1970s English-language films
- 1970s American films
- Films produced by Sean S. Cunningham
- Films produced by Steve Miner
- Films with screenplays by Steve Miner
- English-language sports comedy films