A young boy and a talented stray dog with an amazing basketball playing ability become instant friends. Rebounding from his father's accidental death, 12-year-old Josh Framm moves with his ...
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Title: Air Bud (1997)
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3 wins & 3 nominations.
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Edit
Cast
| Cast overview, first billed only: | |||
| Michael Jeter | ... | ||
| Kevin Zegers | ... | ||
| Wendy Makkena | ... | ||
| Bill Cobbs | ... | ||
| Eric Christmas | ... | ||
| Jay Brazeau | ... | ||
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Nicola Cavendish | ... | |
| Brendan Fletcher | ... | ||
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Norman Browning | ... | |
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Stephen E. Miller | ... | |
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Shayn Solberg | ... | |
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Chris Turner | ... | |
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Christine Kennedy | ... | |
| Frank C. Turner | ... | ||
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Marion Dodd | ... |
Reporter
(as Marian Dodd)
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Edit
Plot Summary
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Add Synopsis
Storyline
A young boy and a talented stray dog with an amazing basketball playing ability become instant friends. Rebounding from his father's accidental death, 12-year-old Josh Framm moves with his family to the small town of Fernfield, Washington. The new kid in town, Josh has no friends and is too shy to try out for the school basketball team. Instead he prefers to practice alone on an abandoned court, he befriends a runaway golden retriever named Buddy. Josh is amazed when he realizes that Buddy loves basketball...that is playing basketball...and he is GOOD! Josh eventually makes the school team and Buddy is named the Team Mascot. Josh and Buddy become the stars of halftime. Buddy's half-time talent draws media attention. Unfortunately, when Buddy's mean former owner, Norm Snively, comes along with a scheme to cash in on the pup's celebrity, it looks like they are going to be separated. Written by <BReid@proedit.com>
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The dog is in the house. See more »Parents Guide:
View content advisory »
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Details
Language:
EnglishRelease Date:
1 August 1997 (USA) See more »Also Known As:
MVP (Most Valuable Pooch) See more »Filming Locations:
Fort Langley Community Hall, Fort Langley, Langley Township, British Columbia, Canada See more »Box Office
Budget:
$3,000,000 (estimated)Opening Weekend:
$4,878,632 (USA) (1 August 1997)Gross:
$24,629,916 (USA) (12 December 1997)Company Credits
Show detailed
company contact information
on
IMDbPro »
Technical Specs
Runtime:
Sound Mix:
Dolby DigitalColor:
Color (Technicolor)Aspect Ratio:
1.85 : 1
Edit
[Bang his Gavel]
Judge Cranfield: Case closed. Thank God.
Norm Snively: You can't do that! That dog is my dog! I got pictures!
Judge Cranfield: Will somebody suppress that clown?
[the bailiff and the two police officers dragged the clown Norm Snively away and placed him under arrest. And the clown Norm Snively shouting]
See more »
Music by Adolphe Adam (uncredited)
Lyricist: English lyrics by John Sullivan Dwight (uncredited)
Performed by St. John's Episcopal Choir
Donald Pearson, Conductor
Courtesy of Delos International
By Arrangement with Source/Q
See more »
Did You Know?
Trivia
Jackie Framm's automobile license tag is TFJ - 453, seen for a split second at 0:06:12. See more »Goofs
In the second game, the scoreboard is shown as being 15:00 left in the third of four quarters. It is obscene to think that a bunch of kids would be playing 50% longer games than college teams (two 20 minute halves) or 25% more than NBA teams (four 12 minute quarters). See more »Quotes
Judge Cranfield: By the powers vested in me, I award custody of the dog to Josh Framm.[Bang his Gavel]
Judge Cranfield: Case closed. Thank God.
Norm Snively: You can't do that! That dog is my dog! I got pictures!
Judge Cranfield: Will somebody suppress that clown?
[the bailiff and the two police officers dragged the clown Norm Snively away and placed him under arrest. And the clown Norm Snively shouting]
See more »
Soundtracks
O Holy NightMusic by Adolphe Adam (uncredited)
Lyricist: English lyrics by John Sullivan Dwight (uncredited)
Performed by St. John's Episcopal Choir
Donald Pearson, Conductor
Courtesy of Delos International
By Arrangement with Source/Q
See more »
I wasn't expecting Air Bud to be all that good, after the disappointment of the other kiddie film, Soccer Dog, but I found this film weirdly impressive, to be quite honest.
Josh (Kevin Zegers) is an introverted 12-year-old whose test pilot dad has been killed, necessitating a family move to the leafy Washington suburb of Fernfield. Here, he meets Buddy, a stray retriever, who can score baskets with his nose and is adopted into the family home. Buddy's ball skills soon cheer Josh up and ingratiate him with his peers, and they both make the Timberwolves school team. Conflict arrives in the form of Buddy's previous cruel owner Snively (Michael Jeter), a children's entertainer of the Fred West school.
The direction is sloppy, the actors overact and the result is cheese on a stick, but Air Bud still manages to entertain adults and children throughout the perfectly short running time. The story of a basketball-playing dog is magnificent, and Buddy is an irresistible golden retriever, he makes the film as watchable as it ever will be.
You'll cry, you'll laugh and you'll be weirdly uplifted, but don't expect to be absolutely spellbound with Air Bud. But I do still recommend it, that's for sure.
I rate Air Bud 7 out of 10.