Airborne

Airborne
Theatrical release poster
Directed by	Rob Bowman
Produced by	Bruce Davey Stephen McEveety
Screenplay by	Bill Apablasa
Story by	Stephen McEveety
Starring	Shane McDermott Seth Green Brittney Powell Chris Conrad Jacob Vargas Jack Black
Music by	Stewart Copeland
Cinematography	Daryn Okada
Editing by	Harry B. Miller III
Studio	Icon Productions
Distributed by	Warner Bros. Pictures
Release date(s)	USA: September 17, 1993 Australia: March 31, 1994
Running time	91 minutes
Country	United States
Language	English
Budget	USD$2,600,000[1]
Box office	US$2,850,263[2]

Airborne is a 1993 American comedy-drama film starring Shane McDermott, Seth Green, Brittney Powell, Chris Conrad, Jacob Vargas and a then-unknown Jack Black.

Plot

Mitchell Goosen (McDermott) is a teenager from California who loves to surf and rollerblade. His zoologist parents are given the opportunity for grant work in Australia for 6 months. Eager to accompany his parents to the surf-friendly shores of the South Pacific, he is dismayed to find out that he will not be joining them and instead will be living with his aunt and uncle in Cincinnati, Ohio so as to finish the remainder of his high school semester. He arrives in the midst of a winter storm to a blue-collar Midwest city, quickly coming to the realization that this is far from the free spirited beach atmosphere that he has been accustomed to. To add to his disillusion he meets his cousin Wiley, (Green) who at first glance is an awkward teenager and whose parents' lifestyle and demeanor though warm and hospitable is a bit old-fashioned.

Mitchell's first day at school is met with the typical fish out of water obstacles as he immediately grows to the disfavor and jealousy of the gritty hockey players who chastise Mitchell for his easy going "Maharishi" philosophy and "California" appearance. These antagonists include Jack (Conrad), Augie (Black), Snake (Vargas), Rosenblatt, and the Banduccis. With an upcoming hockey game against the rival "preps", Wiley and subsequently Mitchell are asked to fill-in for two students, who are caught putting a laxative into one of their teacher's coffee (never shown in the film). Mitchell inadvertently scores a goal for the preps, cementing his disdain by the hockey players, and in particular Jack, who proceeds to tackle Mitchell while still on the ice, concussing him and leaving him unconscious for what appears to be hours. Over the course of the next few weeks, Mitchell and Wiley are harassed relentlessly, eventually culminating with a dream Mitchell wakes to which convinces him to peacefully confront the situation.

During the interim, Mitchell falls in love with Nikki (Powell) who, unbeknownst to Mitchell, is the former girlfriend of Blane, leader of the preps. Blane physically confronts Mitchell who is only saved when Jack arrives to stand up for Nikki who as it turns out is also Jack's sister. Mitchell's dream comes to fruition when he decides to proactively join Jack and his ice hockey brethren for a street hockey game against the preps. Mitchell single-handedly scores a goal and embarrasses Blane, endearing a change of heart from his teammates. Snake, Augie, the Banduccis, and the rest of the hockey team, with the notable exception of Jack, solicit Mitchell's help and rollerblading expertise in a race down a harrowing street route termed Devil's Backbone against the preps. It is agreed upon that the first team with three members crossing the finish line will be deemed the winner. An aggressive and athletic Snake reaches the finish first for Mitchell's team, but two preps swiftly follow suit. Needing only one more person to win and with Blane in sight of the end, he decides to barrel into Mitchell but poorly times his attack and instead lands in the waters below. This leaves Jack and Mitchell in clear sight of the finish line, as they approach in tandem victory to the cheers of their awaiting schoolmates, and respective love interests. Mitchell has finally earned the respect of Jack and his friends, and he is lifted on the shoulders of a cheering crowd as the movie ends.

Cast

• Mitchell - Shane McDermott
• Wiley - Seth Green
• Nikki - Brittney Powell
• Jack - Chris Conrad
• Aunt Irene - Edie McClurg
• Uncle Louie - Patrick O'Brien
• Augie - Jack Black
• Gloria - Alanna Ubach
• Snake - Jacob Vargas
• Blane - Owen Stadele
• Walt - Chris Edwards
• Tony Banducci - Daniel Betances
• Mark Banducci - David Betances
• Ice Skating / Roller Hockey Extra - Travis Hafer

Reception

Airborne was universally panned by critics, receiving rarely any positive comments^{[citation needed]} and earning a 17% approval rating on Rotten Tomatoes.

Scott Weinberg from "eFilmCritic.com" called it a "Fad flick that has lots of skateboards...and literally nothing else". One of very few positive reviews came from Clint Morris of "Moviehole", who said it was "A helluva lot of fun...babes, beats and bad-ass skate stunts."^{[citation needed]}

References

External links

• Airborne at the Internet Movie Database
• Airborne at AllRovi
• Airborne at Box Office Mojo
• Airborne at Rotten Tomatoes