Invincible (2006)
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The story
In 1976, Philadelphia is in chaos as portions of the city protest the shutdown of several job sites while their NFL team, the Philadelphia Eagles, endure a string of losing seasons. Vince Papale, a 30-year-old substitute teacher, is unexpectedly laid off from his day job. While moonlighting as a bartender, he sees a report about the Eagles staging open public tryouts. Encouraged by bar regulars, Papale attends the tryouts at Veterans Stadium. After the tryout, coach Dick Vermeil invites him to training camp to compete for a roster spot, where Papale must endure hard training and disrespect from other players.
Full plot (contains spoilers)
In 1976, Philadelphia is in chaos as portions of the city protest the shutdown of several job sites while their NFL team, the Philadelphia Eagles, endure a string of losing seasons. Vince Papale, a 30-year-old substitute teacher, is unexpectedly laid off from his day job. While moonlighting as a bartender, he sees a report about the Eagles staging open public tryouts. Encouraged by bar regulars, Papale attends the tryouts at Veterans Stadium. Coach Dick Vermeil invites him to training camp to compete for a roster spot. Papale endures hard training and disrespect from other players, while also navigating a complicated relationship with a coworker, Janet Cantrell. Despite the advice of assistant coaches, Vermeil assigns the final spot on the team to Papale. The Eagles begin the season with six preseason losses, and Papale struggles in the regular season opener against the Dallas Cowboys. However, after a brief return to a sandlot where he played as a youth, Papale finds his rhythm. During the home opener against the New York Giants, Papale overcomes personal doubts and performs heroically. He solo-tackles the kickoff returner and later recovers a fumble for a touchdown to seal the team's first win. The film concludes with highlights of Papale's three-season career, his marriage to Janet, and the Eagles reaching Super Bowl XV.
- First release year
- 2006
- Runtime (minutes)
- 105
- Production countries
- United States
- Original languages
- English
- Directors
- Ericson Core
- Writers
- Brad Gann · writer
- Cast and characters
- Mark Wahlberg · Vince Papale; Greg Kinnear · Dick Vermeil; Elizabeth Banks; Michael Rispoli
- Genres
- biographical; sports drama
- Themes
- overcoming adversity; perseverance; redemption
- Tone and mood
- dramatic; inspirational
- Setting
- Philadelphia, 1976
- Premise and plot tags
- based on true events; sports; underdog story
- Source material / true-story basis
- The story of Vince Papale
- Reception
- The film received generally positive reviews and was well-received by audiences.
- Production trivia
- The film inspired an episode of 'It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia'.; The opening scene features the Eagles' 31-0 loss to the Cincinnati Bengals on December 7, 1975.
Film metadata comes from the open sources listed in Credits & Contact. Catalogue details may be incomplete.
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