12 Mighty Orphans

12 Mighty Orphans

Haunted by his mysterious past, a devoted high school football coach leads a scrawny team of orphans to the state championship during the Great Depression and inspires a broken nation along the way.

  • Released: 2021-06-18
  • Runtime: 118 minutes
  • Genre: Action, Drama, History
  • Stars: Luke Wilson, Vinessa Shaw, Wayne Knight, Martin Sheen, Robert Duvall, Jake Austin Walker, Gavin Warren, Braden Balazik, Jack Doke, Nicholas Reed, George Young Jr., Keegan Bouton, Alex Bilbrey, Kolbe Garza, Jerry Beck, Steven Foradori, Jacob Clapp, Michael Garza, Casey Grisham, Cooper Justin Grisham, Victoria Paige Watkins, PaulaSu Grisham, Treat Williams, Rooster McConaughey, King Orba, Jacob Lofland, Levi Dylan, Scott Haze, Larry Pine, Slade Monroe, Preston Porter, Ron White, Woodrow Luttrell, Jacob Audirsch, Michael Gohlke, Bailey Roberts, Tyler Silva, Manuel Tapia, Austin Shook, Sampley Barinaga, Natasha Bassett, Carlson Young, Lane Garrison, Austin Robert Russell
  • Director: Ty Roberts
 Comments
  • briancachohernandez - 22 January 2024
    GO MIGHTY MITES!!!
    I think that overall this movie was amazing and very emotional throughout its entire run time. The emotional scenes are on of the biggest highlights for me since it really gets to show off many of the different characters and some of the hardships they have had to overcome throughout their lives and I don't think that anything comes close to the relationship between the coach Rusty and Hardy Brown. I can definitely tell how much of a male role model Rusty played for Hardy the entire movie; from simply trying to act tough and push him even further than what he thought he was capable of at the beginning, all the way to the moment the final act occurred and Rust saw what his teachings really did to Hardy. Another thing I enjoyed about the movie was the fact that it didn't mainly focus on one character in particular; of course we focused on Rusty and Hardy since they were the main protagonists but they also showed the other orphans stories too. They showed one of the orphans refusing to return to their family and to instead stay at the orphanage, they showed Doc over time begin to let go of the alcohol he always held so close to himself, and finally they made sure to show Rusty's past life as an orphan and soldier in the war. The casting was also another highlight since I think that the actors all did a great job portraying their characters in the movie, especially Doc since at the end of the film I was really shocked at just how spot on the actor and the real Doc looked alike.
  • chasespradley - 19 January 2024
    This movie was pretty sad but it was a good movie.
    I really enjoyed this movie. It was amazing to see how a football coach turned 12 orphans into great football players. One of the things I really liked about this movie was that the actors they got to play the characters look very similar to the real people. It's insane to me that all these orphans went on to be successful people. The acting and the writing was really good, nothing I really disliked. The only thing I really didn't like was the kids were basically in a sweatshop. It's pretty sad to think they were already orphaned but then they are forced to do work and one little mistake is a beating. I recommend this movie to those who don't just like football but to those who like a great history movie.
  • toadwriter - 30 December 2022
    Luke Wilson's best performance ever
    There are many layers to 12 Mighty Orphans. It is the story of orphan boys playing football, but it gets into abuse, stereotypes, corruption, coming of age, and also the evolution of football.

    Rusty Russell is the football coach for the Masonic High Orphans football team in Texas and Rusty is in the Texas High School Sports Hall of Fame. He is known for developing the spread offense and I love how this is depicted in the film. They run trick plays and use deception to fool defenses.... the early days of play action.

    The one aspect I truly love about this film is Luke Wilson. I guess I need to watch more of his films, because I've never known him to be such a good actor. He plays his role excellent. I love his demeanor.

    I think Luke makes this film what it is. In my opinion, it wouldn't be as good without him. He really seems in his element in this role.

    I like the football players. Even though a few didn't look like football players, they worked in their roles. I loved some of the hard hitting in the games. Back in the day they didn't have all the rules to protect players, so clothes-lining players wasn't frowned upon. Texas football has always been tough, and that's one aspect they don't shy away from in this movie.

    I think there are many reasons to watch this film and I didn't see any reasons to dock any points, so I give it 10/10. I'll watch it again.
  • trimblair - 9 March 2022
    Wow .. Best sports movie in years!
    How did this fly under the radar? Stumbled on it on STARZ, great movie. Lots of stars in it. True story! Inspirational and family appropriate. Great stuff!
  • deloudelouvain - 28 October 2021
    Entertaining even for non football fans.
    12 Mighty Orphans is inspired by true events. I don't know if it was accurate or not but the movie is certainly entertaining and enjoyable to watch. You don't necessarily have to be a football (American Football that is) fan to appreciate this movie, although it helps. The cast was well chosen, they all did a good job playing their characters. It's an inspiring story that will touch a fair part of the audience. Not a bad movie on this subject.