The Greatest Game Ever Played

Cinephile deep dive

The take

Bill Paxton directs. Shane Hurlbut behind the camera. Brian Tyler scores. Elliot Graham cuts. A commercial under-performer on release. Produced in Canada, United States of America. Dialogue in English.

Trivia

Things worth knowing

• 1Earned back only 59% of its budget on initial theatrical — a commercial disappointment on release.
• 2Released 21 years ago.
• 3International production across 2 countries: Canada, United States of America.
• 4Directed by Bill Paxton, shot by Shane Hurlbut. Note their partnership — DPs and directors often return to each other across a career.
• 5Original score by Brian Tyler. Worth a dedicated listen after — most great films lose half their impact without the score.
• 6Editor Elliot Graham shaped the rhythm. On an edit-heavy film, the editor does more to control your pulse than the director.
• 7Shia LaBeouf and Stephen Dillane and Josh Flitter carry the top of the cast.
• 8IMDB entry: tt0388980 — still the authoritative cross-reference for credits and trivia.
• 9Classified under 14 themes, including "friendship", "sports", "golf", "champion".

The technical file

Cinematography

Shane Hurlbut

Original score

Brian Tyler

Editing

Elliot Graham

Production design

François Séguin

Costume design

Renée April

Runtime

120 min · 2h 0m

Aspect ratio (typical)

1.37:1 (Academy)

Status

Released

Budget

$26,000,000

Box office

$15,431,177

Return

59% of budget

Original language

EN

Certification (US)

PG

IMDB

The Greatest Game Ever Played (2005) ↗

Also by

Bill Paxton

• 
  Frailty

  2002 · ★ 7.0
• 
  Saturday Night Live

  1975 · ★ 6.9
• 
  Tattoo

  2011 · ★ 5.3
• 
  Fish Heads

  1980
• 
  Zabagabee

  1987

Stills · wallpapers

Selected frames

Full-resolution frames — open one to save it as a wallpaper.

Wallpaper

Trailers & featurettes

Watch the pieces

• 

  ▶
  The Greatest Game Ever Played [Trailer]

  Trailer

Community reviews

What people are saying

• r96sk2020-11-03
  ★ 9/10

  Superb! One of Disney's best live-action offerings up until 2005. It's yet another sports drama from the studio, one of many still to come too, but it's a cut above their previous live-actions releases in this subgenre; even beating 2002's <em>'The Rookie'</em>, which I like tremendously. I love every detail of <em>'The Greatest Game Ever Played'</em>, which is about a true story. The score is splendid, the cinematography is excellent and the premise is riveting - even to someone like me who isn't a follower of golf. There are a few scenes that use effects, namely with Vardon, which look neat. Vardon is portrayed by Stephen Dillane, who is terrific in the role. Stephen Marcus plays Ted Ray, he's another top performer as is Josh Flitter (Eddie) - the latter brings some amusing humour to events. The film's star, however, is Shia LaBeouf. He does a grand job as Ouimet, he produces the goods in all of his scenes. I'm already a fan of LaBeouf's, so I'm glad I can add another one of his characters to my memory. This did not feel like a 120 minute production. Great pacing, great film. Highly recommended!

  Read full review ↓

Production companies

Who made it

• 

  Walt Disney Pictures

  US

Key crew

• ProducerMark Frost
• NovelMark Frost
• Assistant Location ManagerLiam Kiernan
• Unit Production ManagerDavid Blocker
• Visual Effects CoordinatorLisa Marra
• ProducerDavid Blocker
• Costume DesignRenée April
• Production DesignFrançois Séguin
• ProducerLarry Brezner
• EditorElliot Graham
• Executive ProducerDavid Steinberg

Themes & keywords

What it's about, really

• friendship
• sports
• golf
• champion
• biography
• based on true story
• 1910s
• 1900s
• inspirational
• idol
• golfers
• golf tournament
• golf course
• caddie

Release history · US

When it landed

• Theatrical2005-09-30PG

Also known as

International titles

• 果岭争雄CN
• 挥出新希望CN
• 赢尽我精彩CN
• 果岭奇迹CN
• 지상 최고의 게임KR
• Oynanmış Ən Böyük OyunAZ