''8 Seconds'' is a 1994 American
contemporary Western
Contemporary Western is a sub-genre of the Western genre that includes contemporary settings and use Old West themes, archetypes, and motifs, such as a rebellious antihero, open plains and desert landscapes, or gunfights. This sub-genre also inclu ...
biographical
A biography, or simply bio, is a detailed description of a person's life. It involves more than just the basic facts like education, work, relationships, and death; it portrays a person's experience of these life events. Unlike a profile or ...
drama film
In film and television, drama is a category or genre of narrative fiction (or semi-fiction) intended to be more serious than humorous in tone. Drama of this kind is usually qualified with additional terms that specify its particular super-g ...
directed by
John G. Avildsen
John Guilbert Avildsen (December 21, 1935 – June 16, 2017) was an American film director. He is perhaps best known for directing ''Rocky'' (1976), which earned him the Academy Award for Best Director, and the first three ''The Karate Kid'' fil ...
.
Its title refers to the length of time a bull rider is required to stay on for a ride to be scored. It stars
Luke Perry
Coy Luther "Luke" Perry III (October 11, 1966 – March 4, 2019) was an American actor. He became a teen idol for playing Dylan McKay on the Fox television series ''Beverly Hills, 90210'' from 1990 to 1995, and again from 1998 to 2000. He ...
as American
rodeo
Rodeo () is a competitive equestrian sport that arose out of the working practices of cattle herding in Spain and Mexico, expanding throughout the Americas and to other nations. It was originally based on the skills required of the working va ...
legend
Lane Frost
Lane Clyde Frost (October 12, 1963 – July 30, 1989) was an American professional rodeo cowboy who specialized in bull riding, and competed in the Professional Rodeo Cowboys Association (PRCA). He was the 1987 PRCA World Champion bull ride ...
and focuses on his life and career as a
bull riding
Bull riding is a rodeo sport that involves a rider getting on a bucking bull and attempting to stay mounted while the animal tries to buck off the rider.
American bull riding has been called "the most dangerous eight seconds in sports." To recei ...
champion. It also features
Stephen Baldwin
Stephen Andrew Baldwin (born May 12, 1966) is an American actor, producer and director. He has appeared in the films ''Born on the Fourth of July'' (1989), ''Posse'' (1993), ''8 Seconds'' (1994), ''Threesome'' (1994), ''The Usual Suspects'' (19 ...
as
Tuff Hedeman
Richard Neale "Tuff" Hedeman (born March 2, 1963) is an American former professional rodeo cowboy who specializes in bull riding. He won the Professional Rodeo Cowboys Association (PRCA) bull riding world championship three times (1986, 1989 and ...
, and Red Mitchell as
Cody Lambert
Cody Lambert (born December 2, 1961) in Artesia, New Mexico is an American former professional rodeo cowboy. He specialized in saddle bronc riding and bull riding. He was also a co-founder and vice president of the Professional Bull Riders (PBR). ...
.
The film was completed and premiered shortly after what would have been Frost's 30th birthday, in late 1993.
Plot
While growing up in
Oklahoma
Oklahoma (; Choctaw language, Choctaw: ; chr, ᎣᎧᎳᎰᎹ, ''Okalahoma'' ) is a U.S. state, state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States, bordered by Texas on the south and west, Kansas on the nor ...
, young
Lane Frost
Lane Clyde Frost (October 12, 1963 – July 30, 1989) was an American professional rodeo cowboy who specialized in bull riding, and competed in the Professional Rodeo Cowboys Association (PRCA). He was the 1987 PRCA World Champion bull ride ...
learns the tricks of the
bull riding
Bull riding is a rodeo sport that involves a rider getting on a bucking bull and attempting to stay mounted while the animal tries to buck off the rider.
American bull riding has been called "the most dangerous eight seconds in sports." To recei ...
trade at the hand of his father Clyde, an accomplished rodeo bronco rider himself. As he enters his teenage and early adult years, Lane travels the western rodeo circuit with his best friends
Tuff Hedeman
Richard Neale "Tuff" Hedeman (born March 2, 1963) is an American former professional rodeo cowboy who specializes in bull riding. He won the Professional Rodeo Cowboys Association (PRCA) bull riding world championship three times (1986, 1989 and ...
and
Cody Lambert
Cody Lambert (born December 2, 1961) in Artesia, New Mexico is an American former professional rodeo cowboy. He specialized in saddle bronc riding and bull riding. He was also a co-founder and vice president of the Professional Bull Riders (PBR). ...
. He meets and falls in love with a young
barrel racer
Barrel racing is a rodeo event in which a horse and rider attempt to run a cloverleaf pattern around preset barrels in the fastest time. In collegiate and professional ranks, it is usually a women's event, though both sexes compete at amateur and ...
, Kellie Kyle, and they eventually marry in 1984.
As Lane's legend and fame increase, so does the amount of pressure he puts on himself, to be what everyone wants him to be, and he wants to show that he is as good as they say he is. His ascent to the world championship is marred by a cheating incident, questions about Kellie's devotion, and a near broken neck. The film also follows him through the true life series between himself and Red Rock, a bull that no cowboy had ever been able to stay on for 8 seconds. It cuts the series down to three rides. In 1989, he is the second-to-last rider at the Cheyenne Frontier Days Rodeo. While riding on the bull known as "Takin' Care Of Business", he dismounts after his 8-second ride but the bull turns back and hits him in the side with his horn, breaking some ribs and severing a main artery. As a result of excessive internal bleeding, he dies on the arena floor before he can be transported to the hospital.
The final scene shows Hedeman later that same year at the
National Finals Rodeo
The National Finals Rodeo (NFR) is the premier rodeo event by the Professional Rodeo Cowboys Association (PRCA). The NFR showcases the talents of the PRCA's top 15 money-winners in the season for each event.
The NFR is held each year in the fi ...
riding for the world championship. After the 8 second bell sounds, he continues to ride and stays on an additional 8 seconds as a tribute to his fallen best friend.
Cast
*
Luke Perry
Coy Luther "Luke" Perry III (October 11, 1966 – March 4, 2019) was an American actor. He became a teen idol for playing Dylan McKay on the Fox television series ''Beverly Hills, 90210'' from 1990 to 1995, and again from 1998 to 2000. He ...
as
Lane Frost
Lane Clyde Frost (October 12, 1963 – July 30, 1989) was an American professional rodeo cowboy who specialized in bull riding, and competed in the Professional Rodeo Cowboys Association (PRCA). He was the 1987 PRCA World Champion bull ride ...
**
Cameron Finley
Joseph Cameron Finley (born August 30, 1987) is an American former child actor and molecular biologist. While receiving accolades for his work in ''Hope Floats'', ''Baywatch'', '' One True Love'', and ''Perfect Game'', he is most known for his r ...
as young Lane Frost
*
Stephen Baldwin
Stephen Andrew Baldwin (born May 12, 1966) is an American actor, producer and director. He has appeared in the films ''Born on the Fourth of July'' (1989), ''Posse'' (1993), ''8 Seconds'' (1994), ''Threesome'' (1994), ''The Usual Suspects'' (19 ...
as
Tuff Hedeman
Richard Neale "Tuff" Hedeman (born March 2, 1963) is an American former professional rodeo cowboy who specializes in bull riding. He won the Professional Rodeo Cowboys Association (PRCA) bull riding world championship three times (1986, 1989 and ...
* Red Mitchell as
Cody Lambert
Cody Lambert (born December 2, 1961) in Artesia, New Mexico is an American former professional rodeo cowboy. He specialized in saddle bronc riding and bull riding. He was also a co-founder and vice president of the Professional Bull Riders (PBR). ...
*
Cynthia Geary
Cynthia Geary (born March 21, 1965) is an American actress. She is best known for her role as Shelly Tambo on the television series ''Northern Exposure'' (1990–1995), which earned her two Primetime Emmy Award nominations.
Early life
Encoura ...
as Kellie Kyle Frost
*
James Rebhorn
James Robert Rebhorn (September 1, 1948 – March 21, 2014) was an American character actor who appeared in over 100 films, television series, and plays. At the time of his death, he had recurring roles in the series '' White Collar'' and ''Hom ...
as Clyde Frost
*
Carrie Snodgress
Caroline Louise Snodgress (October 27, 1945 – April 1, 2004) was an American actress. She is best remembered for her role in the film ''Diary of a Mad Housewife'' (1970), for which she was nominated for an Academy Award and a BAFTA Award as w ...
as Elsie Frost
*
Linden Ashby
Clarence Linden Garnett Ashby III (born May 23, 1960) is an American actor and director. On television, he portrayed Brett Cooper on the final two seasons of the Fox Broadcasting Company, Fox soap opera ''Melrose Place'' (1997–1999) and Sheri ...
as Martin Hudson
*
Ronnie Claire Edwards
Ronnie Claire Edwards (February 9, 1933 – June 14, 2016) was an American actress, best known for playing Corabeth Walton Godsey on the TV series ''The Waltons''.
Early life
Edwards was born and raised in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma.
Acting caree ...
as Carolyn Kyle
*
Renée Zellweger
Renée Kathleen Zellweger (; born April 25, 1969) is an American actress. The recipient of various accolades, including two Academy Awards, two British Academy Film Awards, and four Golden Globe Awards, she was one of the world's highest-paid ...
as Buckle Bunny
*
George Michael
George Michael (born Georgios Kyriacos Panayiotou; 25 June 1963 – 25 December 2016) was an English singer and songwriter. He is considered one of the most significant cultural icons of the MTV generation and is one of the best-selling musici ...
as Himself
*
Brooks & Dunn
Brooks & Dunn are an American country music duo consisting of Kix Brooks and Ronnie Dunn, both of whom are vocalists and songwriters. The duo was founded in 1990 through the suggestion of Tim DuBois. Before their formation, both members were solo ...
as Themselves
*
McBride & the Ride
McBride & the Ride is an American country music band consisting of Terry McBride (musician), Terry McBride (lead vocals, bass guitar), Ray Herndon (background vocals, guitars), and Billy Thomas (background vocals, drums). The group was founded in ...
as Themselves
*
Vince Gill
Vincent Grant Gill (born April 12, 1957) is an American country music singer, songwriter and musician. He has achieved commercial success and fame both as frontman of the country rock band Pure Prairie League in the 1970s and as a solo artist b ...
as Himself
*
Karla Bonoff Karla may refer to:
People
* Karla (name), a feminine given name
* Petras Karla (1937–1969), Soviet Olympic rower
Places
* Karla, Kose Parish, a village in Harju County, Estonia
* Karla, Rae Parish, a village in Harju County, Estonia
* Kärl ...
as Herself
Production
Filming took place in mainly in
Boerne, Texas
Boerne ( ) is a city in and the county seat of Kendall County, Texas, in the Texas Hill Country. Boerne is known for its German-Texan history, named in honor of German author and satirist Ludwig Börne by the German Founders of the town. The popu ...
,
Del Rio, Texas
Del Rio is a city and the county seat of Val Verde County in southwestern Texas, United States. The city is 152 miles west of San Antonio. As of 2020, Del Rio had a population of 34,673.
History
The Spanish established a small settlement south o ...
, Tucson Rodeo Grounds,
San Antonio
("Cradle of Freedom")
, image_map =
, mapsize = 220px
, map_caption = Interactive map of San Antonio
, subdivision_type = Country
, subdivision_name = United States
, subdivision_type1= U.S. state, State
, subdivision_name1 = Texas
, s ...
and
Pendleton, Oregon
Pendleton is a city and the county seat of Umatilla County, Oregon. The population was 17,107 at the time of the 2020 census, which includes approximately 1,600 people who are incarcerated at Eastern Oregon Correctional Institution.
Pendleton ...
and a handful of other minor locations.
Release
''8 Seconds'' was released in the United States on February 25, 1994. In the Philippines, the film was released on September 8, 1994, with free "Luke Perry handkerchiefs" handed out to moviegoers who present the film's newspaper ad at the lobby of any theater; the film was promoted as being the first American film to be given by the
Movie and Television Review and Classification Board
(English: "For Intelligent and Responsible Viewing")
, employees = More than 33
, chief1_name = Diorella Maria Sotto-Antonio
, chief1_position = Chairperson
, agency_type = Film and television classification
, parent_agency ...
's (MTRCB) an "Excellent" rating.
Critical response
The film gained a mixed reception.
The ''
Milwaukee Journal Sentinel
The ''Milwaukee Journal Sentinel'' is a daily morning broadsheet printed in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, where it is the primary newspaper. It is also the largest newspaper in the state of Wisconsin, where it is widely distributed. It is currently o ...
'' praised Perry's acting but criticized the performance of Cynthia Geary, who played Kellie Frost. It holds a 31% rating from
Rotten Tomatoes
Rotten Tomatoes is an American review-aggregation website for film and television. The company was launched in August 1998 by three undergraduate students at the University of California, Berkeley: Senh Duong, Patrick Y. Lee, and Stephen Wang ...
based on 13 reviews.
Soundtrack
References
External links
*
*
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:8 Seconds
1994 films
1990s biographical drama films
American biographical drama films
Biographical films about sportspeople
Country music films
1990s English-language films
Films directed by John G. Avildsen
Films produced by Danny DeVito
Films scored by Bill Conti
Films shot in Oregon
Films shot in San Antonio
New Line Cinema films
Rodeo in film
1994 drama films
1990s American films