D3: THE MIGHTY DUCKS

US, 1996, 100 minutes, Colour.
Emilio Estevez, Jeffrey Nordlinger, Joshua Jackson, Heidi Kling, Joss Ackland, David Selby.
Directed by Robert Lieberman.

For those who enjoyed the previous two Mighty Ducks films, this may prove an enjoyable conclusion. For those who felt that the sequels were simply opportunities to increase the franchise, there may be some satisfaction, but this may seem a fairly weak ending.

Emilio Estevez is missing from most of the film, having a new job which takes away from the team but still being their lawyer. He is missed. The the ducks have been successful for four years and are now teenagers. They get a scholarship as a group to the preparatory school, Eden Hall, where their team-mate, Adam Banks, is studying.

They clumsily arrive at an assembly, making a commotion on stage as speeches are given. This is symbolic of their presence in the school. The preppy students in the Varsity basketball team are hostile to the arrival of the Ducks. There is a lot of expected slinging off and confrontation, especially with Charlie as the leader, now almost grown up and taking strong stances.He is once again played by Joshua Jackson who was about to go to the television series, Dawson’s Creek. Some of the other members of the team have grown up, including Fulton, the expert hitter, played by Eldon Henson.

The Ducks settle in, keeping to themselves, clashing with Varsity, whose leader has his father as a member of the staff (David Selby). For the Ducks, Hans is still available (Joss Ackland) but he dies during the film and there is a sad funeral.

A lot of the film is taken up with pranks and revenge. The Varsity team go to dinner at an expensive restaurant but hand over the bill to the Ducks, which is over $800. Countering this, the ducks play sabotage with the rooms of the Varsity students, using ropes which jerk them all around. These pranks take up a good part of the film.

The rest of the film is about succeeding at basketball, and of aiming at eating the defeating the Varsity team. Initially, they are hostile to their new coach, Jeffrey Nordlinger, but, with the advice of Gordon Bombay, and the encouragement of Hans, they come to work well with the new coach.

Need less to say, the finale is the match, with difficulties, with heroism, and victory – and the end of the film series.