Like Mike
Short description
Calvin Cambridge is a fourteen-year-old living in a Los Angeles orphanage who dreams of playing professional basketball despite his small stature. After he and his friends find an old pair of sneakers marked with the faded initials "M.J." and he is struck by lightning while retrieving them, Calvin discovers the shoes give him extraordinary basketball ability. He soon gets a chance to play for the NBA's Los Angeles Knights, where he must win over skeptical teammates and opponents while dealing with the home's unscrupulous administrator, who wants the shoes for himself.
Like Mike was released in 2002 and directed by John Schultz, the third of the feature films he directed, following Drive Me Crazy. Michael Elliot and Jordan Moffet wrote the screenplay. Shad Moss, then known as Lil' Bow Wow, stars as Calvin, with Morris Chestnut as Tracey Reynolds, Jonathan Lipnicki as Murph, Anne Meara as Sister Theresa, Jesse Plemons as Ox and Brenda Song as Reg Stevens. The production involved NBA Entertainment.
Made for about 30 million dollars, the film earned roughly 62 million dollars worldwide, a solid return. On IMDb it holds a rating of 5.4 from more than 22,000 votes, while on TMDB it scores 6.1 from over 500 votes. The film critics' rating stands at 5.6 from 97 reviews, close to both audience scores.
What's left behind the scenes
- Kelvin's magical sneakers are Nike Blazers, the very first basketball shoes released by Nike back in 1973. Although the legendary Michael Jordan was never a fan of Nike products before signing a contract with them in 1984, he wore this model of shoes in the late 70s when he played basketball in school.
- During the filming of the scene where Kelvin retrieves the sneakers abandoned on the power line, there was no actual rain. The effect was simulated by spraying the set from above.
- Before the film's release, many were seriously concerned that children might attempt to recreate the scene where Kelvin retrieves his magic sneakers from power lines during a thunderstorm. The filmmakers considered including a short warning at the beginning of the film, urging children not to imitate this life-threatening stunt, but ultimately decided against it. However, one of the largest American energy companies, Pacific Power & Light, released a special statement based on the film "Like Mike," warning children about the dangers of playing near power lines, especially during storms.
- The colors of Kelvin's fictional basketball team, the Knights, match those of the real NBA team, the Los Angeles Clippers, which they replace in the film.
- Before starting work on the project, Bow Wow already had some good experience playing basketball.
- Exterior shots of the basketball arena, Staples Center, where the Knights play, were filmed at the stadium itself and around it, while interior shots were filmed entirely at the old Great Western Forum arena, which was home to the Los Angeles Lakers basketball team for 33 years, from 1967 to 1999.
- The pair of sneakers used in the film were selected from a Salvation Army thrift store.
- The mansion that belongs to the character of Maurice Chestnut in the film actually belonged to famous American basketball player Tracy McGrady in the past.
- At the very beginning of the film, Kelvin (Bow Wow), Murph (Jonathan Lipnicki), and Reg (Brenda Song) play basketball at the orphanage. Most of this scene was filmed during a lunch break when the actors were simply having fun and didn't know they were being observed and filmed.
Auditions in India
Casting calls in USA
Castingi w Polsce
Кастинги в Україні
