Take Down is a 1979 sports movie about an unqualified teacher who finds himself saddled with coaching duties after a small group of high school seniors form a wrestling team in a last ditch effort to end a 9-year losing streak against a rival school.

Contents

Plot

Ed Branish (Edward Herrmann Edward Kirk Herrmann is an Emmy Award-winning and Tony Award-nominated American television and film actor. He is best known for his Emmy-nominated portrayals of Franklin D. Roosevelt on television, and to younger generations for his role as Richard Gilmore in Gilmore Girls), a snooty English teacher who finds his situation at Mingo Junction High School far beneath him and barely tolerable, flaunts his air of superiority over all, including his supportive wife (Kathleen Lloyd), by frequently spouting platitudes from literary masters to validate his often contemptuous viewpoint. His habit of having as little to do with his school as possible finally gets the better of him when his light schedule makes him the only staff member available to supervise the newly formed wrestling team. Cornered, he lashes out at the first student to cross his path - Nick Kilvitus (Lorenzo Lamas), a reserved 185 lbs. senior who's embarrassed by his near-poverty social status and who's also missed a lot of classes lately. No one realizes Nick's been filling in for his alcoholic father at a steel mill (hauling I-beams) when his dad's too drunk or hung over to show up (which is all too often, and which also keeps Nick busy at night fishing his embittered father out of bars - to be carried home (Fireman's Carry style) across town because they don't have a working car). Nick hopes he can make up the missed school work in Ed's class to graduate in Spring but instead gets a tongue-lashing on how he should be held back as an example of the consequences of laziness and irresponsibility. in turn Nick calls Ed a snob telling him that he is more interested in proving how smart he is instead of teaching. Fortunately, because of the wrestling team, both will cross paths again and discover they each have much more to them than what they were previously aware.

Cast

Location

Take Down was filmed primarily at the old American Fork High School prior to being torn down. Matches at other schools included a scene at Murray High School Murray High School is the only high school in the Murray City School District in Murray, Utah. Murray High School is one of the smallest high schools in the Salt Lake City metropolitan area with 1,585 students enrolled in the 2008-2009 school year, the school enrolls students in grades 10-12. The school's mascot is the Spartan, the school colors prior to the renovation of the building which was completed by August 2003.

References

External links

Categories: English-language films Categories: English-language culture | Films by language | English-language media | 1979 films | Films directed by Kieth Merrill

 

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