Lee Stanley
The true story of the football team that proved sometimes second chances can make a difference comes to the screen in director Phil Joanou's tale of self-respect and social responsibility on the gridiron. Sean Porter (The Rock) is a detention camp probation officer who oversees the inmates at Camp Kilpatrick in Los Angeles and isn't willing to simply write off the violent offenders who have been placed in his care. Though their prospects for the future are decidedly bleak, Porter is convinced that if he can just get through to his adolescent inmates they may finally be able to turn their lives around and make amends for the mistakes of their past. When Porter's proposal of forming a high-school-level football team at Camp Kilpatrick meets with skepticism and resistance in the highest ranks, the determined coach puts his career on the line to prove that even convicted criminals can acquire the tools needed to build a brighter future when given the proper motivation and the means of doing so. Inspired by filmmaker Jac Flanders' 1993 documentary of the same name, Gridiron Gang features a screenplay penned by In the Line of Fire scribe Jeff Maguire, and features a supporting cast that includes Leon Rippy, Kevin Dunn, and Detroit-born rapper-turned-actor Xzibit. ~ Jason Buchanan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- The Rock, Jade Yorker, (more)
A feature debut for Emmy-winning TV director Lee Stanley, this film centers around the wheeling and dealing lifestyle of the world of boxing. Christian pop singer Carman stars as Orlando Leone, a former cruiserweight champ who now works as a security guard for a hotel and runs a youth center. One night on the job at the hotel, he assists in a complaint regarding noise and disruption, which happens to be occupied by the current cruiserweight champion. A local boxing promoter hears of the conflict and decides it is the perfect opportunity to get Orlando back into the ring. Through blackmail, Orlando is faced with returning to his old milieu, where he must face the current champion no matter what. Carman: The Champion, released by independent Christian company 8X Entertainment, also features Michael Nouri and Patricia Manterola. ~ Jason Clark, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Carman, Michael Nouri, (more)
- 1993
In the inspirational two-hour documentary Gridiron Gang, director/co-producer Lee Stanley (Desperate Passage) undertakes an ambitious, and enormously successful, social experiment. Stanley and Coach Sean Porter pull 35 underage convicts (primarily gang members) from Camp Vernon Kilpatrick, a maximum-security juvenile prison in the Malibu area, and shape them into a football team, teaching them -- in the process -- about coordination, cooperation, sharing, working together as a team, and the ethics of good gamesmanship. Stanley's film documents the transformation process, which yields full rehabilitation for the convicts (all of the individuals end up being released, with only five shuttled back to detention) and 35 talented players. ~ Nathan Southern, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Louis Gossett, Jr.
