''The Red Sneakers'' is a 2002 American

fantasy Fantasy is a genre of speculative fiction involving Magic (supernatural), magical elements, typically set in a fictional universe and sometimes inspired by mythology and folklore. Its roots are in oral traditions, which then became fantasy ...

comedy-drama Comedy drama, also known by the portmanteau ''dramedy'', is a genre of dramatic works that combines elements of comedy and drama. The modern, scripted-television examples tend to have more humorous bits than simple comic relief seen in a typical ...

television film A television film, alternatively known as a television movie, made-for-TV film/movie or TV film/movie, is a feature-length film that is produced and originally distributed by or to a television network, in contrast to theatrical films made for ...

produced and directed by

Gregory Hines Gregory Oliver Hines (February 14, 1946 – August 9, 2003) was an American dancer, actor, choreographer, and singer. He is one of the most celebrated tap dancers of all time. As an actor, he is best known for '' Wolfen'' (1981), '' The Cotton C ...

. The film stars

Vanessa Bell Calloway Vanessa Bell Calloway ( Bell; born March 20, 1957) is an American actress. Beginning her career as a dancer, Bell Calloway became known for her film roles as Princess Imani Izzi in the 1988 comedy ''Coming to America'', as well as for her roles ...

, Dempsey Pappion, and

Ruben Santiago-Hudson Ruben Santiago-Hudson (born Ruben Santiago Jr., November 24, 1956) is an American actor, playwright, and director who has won national awards for his work in all three categories. He is best known for his role of Captain Roy Montgomery from 2009 ...

. It premiered on

Showtime Showtime or Show Time may refer to: Film * ''Showtime'' (film), a 2002 American action/comedy film * ''Showtime'' (video), a 1995 live concert video by Blur Television Networks and channels * Showtime Networks, a division of Paramount Global w ...

on February 10, 2002.

Plot

This

coming-of-age story In genre studies, a coming-of-age story is a genre of literature, theatre, film, and video game that focuses on the growth of a protagonist from childhood to adulthood, or "coming of age". Coming-of-age stories tend to emphasize dialogue or internal ...

features a mediocre high school basketball player ( Dempsey Pappion) who is given a pair of magical basketball shoes by a stranger (

). He quickly becomes a superstar shooter on his team. He is recruited by college basketball scouts and plans his future in college basketball, as he neglects potential academic scholarship possibilities.

Cast

as Berniece * Dempsey Pappion as Reggie *

as Uncle Joe * Scott Thompson as Aldo *

Philip Akin Philip Akin (born April 18, 1950) is a Canadian actor. Akin has had roles in major American films such as '' The Sum of All Fears'', ''S.W.A.T.'', and '' Get Rich or Die Tryin. He has also done much voice work, including voicing the character ...

as Mr. Seabrooke * K. C. Collins as Roscoe * Kendra FitzRandolph as Courtney * Cabral Richards as Khalil *

Vincent D'Onofrio Vincent Philip D'Onofrio (; born June 30, 1959) is an American actor and filmmaker. He is known for his supporting and leading roles in both film and television. He has been nominated for a Primetime Emmy Award. His roles include Private Leonar ...

as Mercado *

as Zeke * Sarah Barrable-Tishauer as Larosa * Jordan Walker as Noah Greggory * Drew Nelson as Jacob *

Neil Crone Neil Crone (born May 29, 1960) is a Canadian actor, comedian, writer and motivational speaker. He is known for portraying Fred Tupper in ''Little Mosque on the Prairie'', Jerry Whitehall in '' Cube 2: Hypercube'' and the voices of Gordon, Diesel ...

as Coach Blake * Reuben Thompson as Alvin Duke * Jake Goldsbie as Boy

Exhibition

The film premiered on

Showtime Networks Showtime Networks Inc. is an American entertainment company that oversees the company's pay television, premium cable television television channel, channels, including its flagship service Showtime (TV network), Showtime. It is a subsidiary of me ...

on February 10, 2002.

Reception

Critical response

Sara Long, with the faith based and family oriented

Dove Foundation The Dove Foundation is an American non-profit organization based in Portland, Oregon, that issues film reviews, ratings and endorsements of movies that it considers suitable for family audiences, and that bases said reviews on Christian values. De ...

gave the film a positive review, writing, "''The Red Sneakers'' is an enjoyable movie based around inner desires, and what one knows is right as far as actions go ... Then the movie turns around to focus on the inner battle over how to behave against what one wants, and what one should do. Though this movie does have several instances of profanity, it is nothing too severe. Because the overall content is well displayed, the film is approved for ages 12 and up.Long, Sara

, February 10, 2002. Accessed: May 14, 2013.

Awards

Nominations *

Emmy Award The Emmy Awards, or Emmys, are an extensive range of awards for artistic and technical merit for the American and international television industry. A number of annual Emmy Award ceremonies are held throughout the calendar year, each with the ...

– Outstanding Directing in a Children's Special –

–

2003 File:2003 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: The crew of STS-107 perished when the Space Shuttle Columbia disintegrated during reentry into Earth's atmosphere; SARS became an epidemic in China, and was a precursor to SARS-CoV-2; A des ...

– Outstanding Performer in a Children's Special –

–

Writers Guild of America The Writers Guild of America is the joint efforts of two different US labor unions representing TV and film writers: * The Writers Guild of America, East (WGAE), headquartered in New York City and affiliated with the AFL–CIO * The Writers Guil ...

– WGA Award (Television) – Children's Script – Mark Saltzman (teleplay) and Jeffrey Rubin (story) *

Young Artist Awards The Young Artist Award (originally known as the Youth in Film Award) is an accolade presented by the Young Artist Foundation, a nonprofit organization founded in 1978 to honor excellence of youth performers, and to provide scholarships for young ...

– Best Family Television Movie – Leading Young Actor – Jake Goldsbie – 2003

Film festivals

Chicago International Children's Film Festival In 1983, Facets Multi-Media founded the Chicago International Children's Film Festival (CICFF), the first competitive festival of films for children in the U.S. The impetus for the Festival came from a need to introduce new, culturally diverse fil ...

– 2002

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Red Sneakers 2002 films 2002 television films 2000s coming-of-age comedy-drama films 2000s fantasy comedy-drama films 2000s high school films 2000s sports comedy-drama films 2000s teen comedy-drama films American basketball films American coming-of-age comedy-drama films American fantasy comedy-drama films American sports comedy-drama films American teen comedy-drama films Comedy-drama television films Fantasy television films Films scored by Stanley Clarke Showtime (TV network) films Sports television films Teen sports films 2000s English-language films 2000s American films