Themes: Fighting the System, Totalitarian States, Future Dystopias
Main Cast: Chris Klein, Jean Reno, LL Cool J, Rebecca Romijn, Naveen Andrews
Release Year: 2002
Country: US
Run Time: 98 minutes
MPAA Rating: PG13
Plot
This remake of the classic 1975 science fiction film follows the same basic story line but focuses far more on the sports action of the fictional game at its center. Chris Klein stars as all-American athlete Jonathan Cross, the most popular player of "Rollerball," a violent 21st century sport mixing elements of basketball, hockey, roller derby, and extreme sports, along with the development of live wagering that tracks each game's action. Along with his friends and teammates Marcus (L.L. Cool J) and Aurora (Rebecca Romijn-Stamos), Jonathan is living the life of a media celebrity and millionaire, enjoying the adoration of fans and all of the perks that his fame brings. When the creator of Rollerball, Alexi Petrovich (Jean Reno), realizes that the sport's ratings spike during the on-court accidents that are de rigueur for the game, he schemes to create the bloody incidents that are popular with viewers but put the athletes in mortal jeopardy. Soon, Jonathan and his friends find themselves pawns in a vast corporate conspiracy in which their lives are far less important than profits. Rollerball (2002) also stars pop singer Pink in her acting debut. ~ Karl Williams, All Movie Guide
Oleg Taktarov - Denekin; David Hemblen - Serokin; Paul Heyman - English Sports Announcer; Janet Wright - Coach Olga; Andrew Bryniarski - Halloran; Kata Dobo - Katya; Damir Andrei - Serbo-Croatian Sports Announcer; Peter Blake - German Sports Announcer; George Christy - Club VIP; Simon Elise Girard - Rabbit: Red Team #68; Mischa Hausserman - Gold Coach; Stephen Park - Gold Team Thug; Scott Taylor - Petrovich's Bodyguard; Richard Zeman - Petrovich's Heavy; Frank Ferrara - Assistant Gold Coach; Eugene Lipinski - Kotlev, Yuri; Michael Tadross - Starter; Peter Von Berg - Chowler; Pink - Narrator/Dominatrix; Susan Cannon - Club bartender; Claudine Robitaille - Production assistant; Jamshied Sharifi - Keyboards; Wang Luoyong - Chinese Sports Announcer; Shaun Austin-Olsen - Forein Guest; Alice Poon - Red Team #7; Melissa R. Stubbs - Red Team #12; Ivan Smith - Tahli; Vitaliy Makarov - Komo; Ismail Bashey - Indina Sports Announcer; Angelo Pedari - Italian Sports Announcer; Anatoly Zinoviev - Eitan Kramer; Kevin Rushton - Tom Farr; Lucia Rijker - Red Team #9; Hassan Hakmoun - Vocals; Slipknot - Themselves; Guy Ale - Russian Sports Announcer; Azam Ali - Vocals; Dalila Alini - Club Galore Twin; Ghiziane Alini - Club Galore Twin; Tristan Avakian - Guitar; Alice Benjamin - Russian Doctor; Léopold Boisvert - Technician; Jean Brassard - French Sports Announcer; Kim Cannon - Club VIP; Debbie-Ann Champagne - Cigarette Girl; Ruth Chiang - Victor Callender; Flint Tecumseh Eagle - Eskimo; Oleg Ferdman - Miner; Eugene Geylik - Chowler's Assistant; George Ghali - Arabic Sports Announcer; Lilly He - Journalist; Yolanda Hughes-Heying - Red Team #28; Toshihiro Ito - Japanese announcer; Tom Karle - VIP Booth Judge; John Kesler - Petrovich's Bodyguard; Peter Kosaka - German Guest; Zoran Krzisnik - Journalist; Kes Kwansa - African Sports Announcer; Richard Labelle - Petrovich's Bodyguard; Isabelle Landreville - Stewardess; Michelle Leblanc - Petrovich's Girlfriend; Jay Mahin - Toba: Red Team #39; Vsevolod Malamud - Journalist; Shane McMahon - American Media Mongul; Bruno Mourani - Arabic Man; Paulino Nunes - Borges; Richard Orlando - Patriarch; Tony Palermo - Toll; François Paquette - VIP; Miyuki Sakamoto - Keyboards; Ahmet Salihu - Hot dog vender; Eddy Salim; Pedro Salvin - Spanish Sports Annoucer; Slava Schoot - Russian Sports Announcer; Barry Shurchin - Director; Nick Sita - Italian VIP; Florence Situ - Journalist; Philippe Soucy - Ally; Shawn Stewart - Mike Dopud; Ola Sturik - Russian Translator; Jitka Svecová - Technician; Tsutomu Takeishi - Bass; Amy Whitmore - Photographer; Benjamin Wittman - Drums; Paul Wu - U-Chow: Red team #16; Tong Xinkang - Asian Director; Zhi Xu - English Announcer's Assistant; Norman Yap - Mandarin Translator; Gabor Zsigovics - Herzen; B.T.
Credit
Helen Veronica Jarvis - Art Director, Norman Bernard - Boom Operator, Pat McCorkle - Casting, Sarah Spearing - Casting, Teresa Estinosa - Choreography, Marty Kudelka - Choreography, Kate Harrington - Costume Designer, Reese James Spensley - Costume Designer, Julian Wall - First Assistant Director, Charles Zalben - First Assistant Director, John McTiernan - Director, Mischa Hausserman - Second Unit Director, John Wright - Editor, Michael Tadross - Executive Producer, Kristen Leigh Branan - Executive Producer, Joe Gareri - Executive Producer, Claude Serra - Executive Producer, Linda Gordon - Hair Styles, Patrice Iva - Hair Styles, Matthieu Tessier - Hair Styles, Catherine Dawe - Location Manager, Eric Serra - Composer (Music Score), BT - Composer (Music Score), Julianne Jordan - Musical Direction/Supervision, Laura Z. Wasserman - Musical Direction/Supervision, Fran Cooper - Makeup, Lucie Lessard - Makeup, Karrieann Heisner - Makeup Special Effects, Orson Rheinfurth - Camera Operator, Dennis Bradford - Production Designer, Norman Garwood - Production Designer, Howard A. Anderson III - Cinematographer, Steve Mason - Cinematographer, John McTiernan - Producer, Charles Roven - Producer, Beau St. Clair - Producer, Louis Marion - Production Sound, Joel Moss - Recording, Raymond Larose - Set Designer, Hilton Rosemarin - Set Designer, David Gaucher - Set Designer, Louis Marion - Sound/Sound Designer, Michel Charron - Sound Recordist, Matt Birman - Stunts, Jason Cavalier - Stunts, Jean Frenette - Stunts, Duncan McLeod - Stunts, Minor Mustain - Stunts, Billy Oliver - Stunts, David Rigby - Stunts, Paul Rutledge - Stunts, Michael Scherer - Stunts, Dwayne McLean - Stunts, Dave McKeown - Stunts, Gilbert Larose, Jr. - Stunts, Stéphane Lefebvre - Stunts, John Stoneham Jr. - Stunts, Johnny Goar - Stunts, Mike Chute - Stunts, Yves Langlois - Stunts, Ben Gauthier - Stunts, Kelly Jones - Stunts, Eric Bryson - Stunts, Francois Gauthier - Stunts, Gaston Howard - Stunts, Rick Parker - Stunts, Patrick Mark - Stunts, Cotton Mather - Stunts, Jonathan Bergeron - Stunts, Isabelle Bouchard - Stunts, Andy Bradshaw - Stunts, Jocelyn Clarke - Stunts, Heidi Cooke - Stunts, Carolyn Field - Stunts, Jean Gagnon - Stunts, Eric Goulet - Stunts, Marie-Sol Harding - Stunts, Stéphane Julien - Stunts, Jay Lavalley - Stunts, Mathieu Ledoux - Stunts, Jim Lytle - Stunts, Serge Maheu - Stunts, Mary-Ann Message - Stunts, Layton Morison - Stunts, Sébastien Robert - Stunts, Stacey Sharpless - Stunts, Mary Ann Stevens - Stunts, Dave Van Zeyl - Stunts, John Walsh - Stunts, France Raymond - Stunts, Jamie Jones - Stunts Coordinator, Justin Moritt - Unit Production Manager, Larry Ferguson - Screenwriter, John Pogue - Screenwriter, John E. Sullivan - Second Unit Director Of Photography, Mischa Hausserman - Additional Cinematography, Michael Tadross - Production Assistant, Mélanie Desmarais - Production Assistant, Raymond McIntyre Jr. - Visual Effects Supervisor, David Sosalla - Visual Effects Supervisor, Mitchell S. Drain - Visual Effects Supervisor, Jonah Loop - Visual Effects Supervisor, John E. Sullivan - Visual Effects Supervisor, Bruce Tanis - Sound Effects Editor, Peter Zinda - Sound Effects Editor, Jason W. Jennings - Sound Effects Editor, Eric A. Norris - Sound Effects Editor, Kenneth Johnson - Sound Effects Editor, Laurent Ben-Mimoun - Matte Artist, Rachel Aberly - Unit Publicist, Cameron Watson - Dialogue Coach, Steve Beasse - First Assistant Camera, Guy Bissonnette - Key Grip, Serge Doré - Key Grip, Alex Gibson - Music Editor, Marie-Elaine Bailly - Production Coordinator, Amanda J. Scarano - Production Supervisor, Michael Minkler - Re-Recording Mixer, Myron Nettinga - Re-Recording Mixer, Patricia Robin - Script Supervisor, Hillary Schwartz - Second Assistant Director, Conrad V. Brink - Special Effects Coordinator, Yvan Bourdage - Steadicam Operator, Attila Dory - Still Photographer, Scott A. Hecker - Supervising Sound Editor, Pierre Couture - Visual Effects Producer, Rodney Montague - Visual Effects Producer, Derek Khan - Costume/Wardrobe, Denise Horta - ADR Editor, Thomas J. O'Connell - ADR Mixer, Bob Deschaine - ADR Mixer, Bob Baron - ADR Mixer, Tami Treadwell - ADR Recordist, Rick Canelli - ADR Recordist, Dave C. McDonald - ADR Recordist, Paul D. Kelly - Assistant Art Director, Thomas Lee Keller - Assistant Costumer Designer, Christian Chabot - Assistant Chief Lighting Technician, Marie-France Taillon - Assistant Chief Lighting Technician, Reece Jamal Hay - Assistant Location Manager, Maryse Lesage - Assistant Production Coordinator, Roy Seeger - Assistant Sound Editor, David Stanke - Assistant Sound Editor, Rickley W. Dumm - Assistant Sound Editor, Carmen Flores de Tanis - Assistant Sound Editor, René Guillard - Chief Lighting Technician, Luc Marineau - Chief Lighting Technician, André Fiset - Construction Coordinator, Benjamin Beardwood - Dialogue Editor, Gary Lewis - Dialogue Editor, Sam Bokobza - First Assistant Accountant, Barbara Dunning - First Assistant Editor, Gary A. Hecker - Foley Artist, Matthew Dettmann - Foley Artist, Christopher Flick - Foley Editor, Allen Hartz - Foley Editor, Peggy Nicholson - Key Hairstylist, Alexandre Bernard - Second Second Assistant Director, Claudine Robitaille - Set Dresser, Kenneth Gagné - Set Dresser, Etienne Ricard - Set Dresser, Pixel Magic - Visual Effects, Digital.Art.Media - Visual Effects, Pacific Title & Art Studio - Visual Effects, Panopoly - Visual Effects, RIOT Pictures - Visual Effects, Panoploy - Visual Effects, William Harrison - From Screenplay by, William Harrison - Short Story Author
Rollerball is a 2002remake of the 1975science fiction filmof the same name. This updated 'remake' of the film was directed by John McTiernan and has a much greater concentration on action and more muted social and political overtones. Unlike the first film, it takes place in the present rather than a seemingly dystopian future.
It's the year 2005; the new sport of Rollerball is hugely popular in the ex-Soviet republics of Central Asia, Russia, China, Mongolia, and Turkey. Marcus Ridley (LL Cool J) invites NHL-hopeful Jonathan Cross (Chris Klein) to join him playing for the Zhambel Horsemen, in Kazakhstan. The highly paid Marcus and Jonathan are teamed with low-paid locals, who are routinely severely injured in the game, which is an extraordinarily violent extension of roller derby involving motorcycles, a metal ball, and many trappings of the World Wrestling Federation. Soon the team's star and the darling of promoter Alexi Petrovich (Jean Reno), Jonathan, is thrilled by the high-octane sport, the hype, the sports cars, and female team mate Aurora (Rebecca Romijn-Stamos). But gradually Jonathan discovers that the cynical Alexi and his opportunistic rat Sanjay (Naveen Andrews) will go to any lengths to manipulate the game in order to provide an ever more gory spectacle and improve the game's television ratings.
The film was almost universally panned, with review collation website Rotten Tomatoes scoring it at 3%. Time Out's Trevor Johnson described it as "a checklist shaped by a 15-year-old mallrat: thrashing metal track, skateboards, motorbikes, cracked heads and Rebecca Romijn-Stamos with her top off", while Chicago Sun-Times reviewer Roger Ebert called it "an incoherent mess, a jumble of footage in search of plot, meaning, rhythm and sense".
The film was a box-office flop, earning a worldwide total of $26 million compared to a production budget of $70 million [1].
