Air Bud: Golden Receiver | |
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Theatrical release poster
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Directed by | Richard Martin |
Produced by | Robert Vince |
Screenplay by | Paul Tamasy Aaron Mendelsohn |
Based on | Characters by Paul Tamasy Aaron Mendelsohn Kevin DiCicco |
Starring | |
Music by | Brahm Wenger |
Cinematography | Mike Southon |
Edited by | Bruce Lange Melinda Seabrook |
Production
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Distributed by | Buena Vista Pictures Distribution, Inc. |
Release date
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Running time
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90 minutes |
Country |
United States Canada |
Language | English |
Budget | $11 million |
Box office | $10,224,116 |
Air Bud: Golden Receiver (also known as Air Bud 2) is the 1998 sequel to Air Bud. The film was shot in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada. It is also the last of the Air Bud films to be released theatrically. Outside the United States the film was often titled Air Bud 2. This film is dedicated in memory of the original Air Bud (Air Buddy), who died of Synovial sarcoma, a rare form of cancer that affects soft tissue near the joints of the arm, leg, or neck in 1998, just several months before the movie's release.
Several years after Buddy's former owner Norm Snivley got sent to prison and becoming Buddy's legal owner, Josh Framm (Kevin Zegers), now a teenager, becomes angry when his mother, Jackie, begins dating Patrick Sullivan, the town's new veterinarian after a couple of failed dates. It all starts when Sullivan innocently tosses Josh's basketball-savvy dog, Buddy, a football one day, and he discovers that Buddy also has an uncanny ability to play the sport of football. Soon enough, Buddy begins playing on Josh's Junior High football team. At first, the team is failing miserably since they have been losing a lot of games. But thanks to Buddy's superior football skills, the team keeps on winning and makes the playoffs. In addition, they advance to the championship. Meanwhile, two Russian siblings by the names of Natalya and Popov kidnap Buddy in hopes of having him perform as the special attraction in the Russian circus while Josh runs away when Patrick proposes to his mother. His coach finds him and convinces him that just because Patrick is in his life now, he doesn't have to stop loving his father and he returns home, but Patrick is gone and Buddy is missing. The Timberwolves are forced to play the championship game without Buddy and are losing terribly. Buddy and the other animals manage to escape and Natalya and Popov are arrested and placed into the custody of the Russian embassy after their van falls into a lake following a chase sequence. Meanwhile, Patrick finds Buddy and takes him to the game. With the help of Buddy, the team catches up, but Buddy is tackled and taken out of the game. The Timberwolves are forced to finish the game without him and thanks to Josh and Tommy, they win the championship. Later, Josh stops Patrick from leaving and convinces him to stay. The family later goes to a Seattle Seahawks football game and Buddy sneaks onto the field.