It may be the love-child of “Hoosiers” and “Dangerous Minds,” but the recent box office hit “Coach Carter” moves beyond the sentimentality that has plagued so many inspirational sports movies. Based on a compelling true story, the film confronts the problems facing students in impoverished districts and the high expectations placed on student athletes.
Samuel L. Jackson plays Ken Carter, a sporting goods store owner and former star basketball player in the small, poor town of Richmond, Calif. He gets roped into returning to his old high school, where he still holds most of the game records, and coaching the odd assortment of players that could only charitably be called a “team.”
Coach Carter demands a lot from his players both on and off the court. In a school where the graduation rate is abysmal, he insists that players sign a contract pledging to maintain at least a 2.3 GPA, the minimum GPA for college scholarships. He puts the team through a grueling training schedule and before long, they begin to win games.
Of course, not all is right in Richmond. Just when the school and school board start to get interested and become proud of their winning team, Coach Carter discovers that his athletes have failed in meeting their academic end of the bargain. He decides to padlock the gym and force his athletes to study. Not surprisingly, teachers, administrators and parents are up in arms.
Director Tom Carter, who is best known for directing Julia Stiles through the preachy angst of “Save the Last Dance,” provides a delicate treatment of the story. Unlike his previous movies, Carter very subtly tells the story of a coach and his team. The type of tacked-on exposition that would normally be seen in a sports film (Rudy! Rudy!) is replaced in “Coach Carter” with viewers slowly being let into the lives of the characters. The students are an interesting bunch, a cross-section of poor and inner-city school districts. The audience never really gets to know all of them, but the few that the film touches on are complicated and round characters that are easily identified with.
Jackson is superb as Ken Carter. While there are definitely loud and forceful moments, the type of shouting that spawned the infamous Dave Chappelle spoof is much less common. Jackson is much more relaxed and at ease in this role than in previous ones. His trademark swagger is subdued, and the delicacy with which he plays Coach Carter shows a talented actor who has become comfortable in almost any role.
As with most sports movies, the scenes depicting games and practice are visually appealing, sometimes awe-inspiring. The typical last-second shots and ball-suspended-on-the-rim scenes become a little more plausible, a little more enjoyable in the director’s hands. It’s almost as if he played basketball himself at some point.
But for all its strengths, “Coach Carter” walks a difficult and dangerous line. The writing is decent but not particularly good, relying too heavily on Jackson’s skill as an actor. The lack of any other significant dramatic force in the movie starts to become problematic as it progresses, leaving Jackson increasingly less and less to work against. The film also suffers from depicting Carter as a sort of messianic figure, almost alienating him from the audience that he should be connecting with.
Overall, “Coach Carter” is a good film. It brings together several different threads and feelings to create a compelling narrative. It finds Jackson at a strong point in his career, full of ease and grace. The movie also features strong efforts from quite a few soon-to-be noticed actors, including recording artist Ashanti, who puts in a respectable performance as the pregnant Kyra. It is certainly deserving of its box office status