 May
2006
This month's reviews/features:
Hoosiers
Time for an Oldie
Except for a few movies already reviewed, there isn’t much out
there right now that’s appropriate for a Christian audience, so
let’s look at a worthy DVD. Hoosiers is called by some
“the best sports movie ever made.” We’ve just gone through March
Madness, so it might be a good time to consider why this picture is
so popular and moving.
Here’s the gist of Hoosiers, if you haven’t seen it
or don’t remember it too well. Norman Dale, age 50 or so, arrives in
the small Indiana town of Hickory in the fall of 1951, having just
accepted the job as the local high school’s new basketball coach.
The previous coach has just died, and the school’s principal is
Norman’s old friend Cletis. Here’s the wrinkle, though: Norman
hasn’t been in basketball for over ten years because he was
dismissed from the college where he coached for hitting one of his
players. This is Norman’s final chance to resurrect his career and
redeem himself. Is he welcomed with open arms? Absolutely not.
There’s considerable opposition to his authoritarian methods at
first, especially from the fathers of some of the players, who want
things done their way. It isn’t long before the townspeople are
moved to take a vote on whether or not to dismiss him. The fact that
Norman has enlisted the help of the town drunk as an assistant coach
adds insult to injury. At a key moment, however, Jimmy Chitwood, the
star player who has so far refused to participate, dramatically
announces at the town meeting that he will play after all—if Norman
continues as coach. Done deal. The team comes together and, through
a great deal of hard work, transforms from terrible to great. I
won’t reveal the ending, but suffice it to say that the Hickory boys
do make it to the state championship.
Strengths of the picture:
Acting: Gene Hackman does a terrifically edgy job as Norman Dale,
and Barbara Hershey shines in the role of the school’s
vice-principal. Dennis Hopper is a standout as the town drunk, whose
son plays on the team and is ashamed of him. The local
Hoosiers who play the townspeople and the team members come
off as natural and believable.
Theme: The value of perseverance and hard work in the face of
adversity comes through strongly. The picture reminds us that things
don’t have to start off well to end well and suggests that we should
be wary of success that comes too easily.
Values: Hoosiers is a strong endorsement of
traditional values: hard work, honesty, respect for leadership,
obedience, and faith. One of the nicest touches in the movie is the
practice of one of the team members before each game: He won’t go on
the court until he’s finished praying. At one point, Norman Dale
becomes impatient and says, “God wants you on the court now!” This
of course brings up the question as to whether praying before an
athletic contest is appropriate or frivolous. The jury is out on
that one.
Weakness:
There’s only one, really, and that’s the formulaic nature of the
plot. As one reviewer has said, the film is very “calculated,” so
it’s easy to predict what is going to happen. Hoosiers
is said to be “loosely based on a true story.” The real model for
the town of Hickory is Milan, whose team went to the Indiana state
championship games in 1954. In the real situation, interestingly,
there was no town drunk used as an assistant coach, and there was no
town meeting to dismiss the coach.
Bottom line:
Despite the formula, Hoosiers remains a galvanizing
and moving film which, if anything, seems better now than when it
was first released in 1986. Let’s just put it this way: it’s very
hard not to sympathize with the underdog. It’s rated PG, probably
for mild use of language. Family members over eight will probably
enjoy and relate to it.
Rating: 3 ¼
stars
Rabbit-Proof Fence
If you’re looking for something more recent, go and rent
Rabbit-Proof Fence, a 2002 Australian movie that recounts a
true story. It’s set in 1931 Australia, at a time when the
government has implemented a policy of capturing “half-caste”
children (those with one Anglo and one Aborigine parent) and sending
them to re-education camps, run mostly by church people, where they
will learn to behave like white people. Molly, Daisy, and Gracie,
three young Aborigine girls, are captured and taken to an orphanage
1200 miles from their home in northwestern Australia. These girls
are not like the others in the camp, however, for they escape at the
first opportunity. The bulk of the film recounts their 1200-mile
walk back to their home area, which they accomplish by staying near
the rabbit-proof fence that separates the Australian farmland from
the bush. Molly, Daisy, and Gracie show their cleverness and
resourcefulness in consistently eluding their pursuers.
The underlying goal of this government plan is sinister: to
“breed out” the half-caste Aborigines by making them like the Anglo
majority so that they can assimilate. This, of course, is contrary
to God’s plan, for the Lord loves all people of all races and ethnic
groups. Christ, in fact, charges his disciples with the need to “go
and teach all nations.” He does not say that they are to go and
amalgamate all nations into one. The governmental and church people
are not shown as evil, though; they simply believe that they are
helping the Aborigines—in the words of the main government
character, Mr. Neville, the government’s efforts are “helpful” and
in the natives’ best interest.
Bottom line:
As one reviewer has said, this is a political movie, not a
personal one, a fact which puts its message into the questionable
category. At the beginning of the picture, it is made clear with
whom we are to sympathize. Nonetheless, Rabbit-Proof Fence
is powerful and thought-provoking. As is the case with
End of the
Spear, the end of the film shows real-life footage of the
grown-up ladies who made the 1200-mile walk. The movie is rated PG,
probably for mild language, and is likely to appeal to anyone over
ten or so.
Rating: 3
stars
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Index of movie
reviews...
(2003 reviews through present)
Jay Maurer, a member of West Side Presbyterian Church, is
a long-term movie buff and former college teacher of The Film as
Literature. He has written movie reviews for The Good News
(West Side newsletter) since 2002.
If you have comments or questions
about the movie (or play) reviews, please contact Jay at
dramachap@msn.com.
Ratings are expressed in
increments of ¼ star.
A rating of 2 ½ stars or higher is meant to be a recommendation.
1 star: poor
2 stars: minimally satisfactory
3 stars: quite good
4 stars: superb
Criteria for determining the ratings:
- Reflection, either explicit or implicit, of Christian values,
including suitability of language and lack of gratuitous violence
- Quality of the acting
- Originality
- Unity of the entire picture
- Substance, or in the words of C.S. Lewis, weight
Other Christian movie review Web sites:
Plugged In Online
ChristianityTodayMovies.com
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