edwagreen The unspeakable biographical film traces a plane crash that wiped out an entire college football team, coaches, cheerleaders, parents and others,is well realized in the picture.Losing a coach that preached that winning is the most important objective, the college looks to suspend the program until they see the people in the town demonstrate for it to continue.Obviously, this is a daunting task in total rebuilding and Matthew McConaughey delivers a knockout performance, which should have been recognized by the Motion Picture Academy, as the bubbly new coach, recognizing the huge task that was before him, while stressing that coming to terms with what occurred and going on is more important than just winning. The only thing that I can say is that these films tend to become quite preachy and that is true in McConaughey's delivery.Still a very good film dealing with extremely difficult subject matter is to be treasured.

WorthlessKnowledge Many great reviews here, film is good, maybe not great, but good. But we feel MATTHEW FOX (as Coach Red Dawson) gave the best performance of all of them. Yes, through most of the characters here we feel the pain of the people, school, the town, the state. But Fox NAILS this role completely! He totally owns the 'emotional portrayal' of the loss that they all feel in each and every scene he's in - and each time he brings us to tears!As an example of one of our favorite scenes: Coach Dawson (Fox) is in the locker room after their first win, crying his eyes out, all alone. And then the elderly team janitor walks in and congratulates the coach on his win. But in an awe-inspiring moment, the coach then, in turn, congratulates {the janitor} on the TEAM's win ('congratulations to you too, Jimmy'). That simple statement is beautiful and priceless just in itself: Everyone plays a part, everyone is important to the team - even the 'lowly' janitor. This wonderful message permeates the film, and it will move you beyond belief when you recognize it for what it truly is . . ."You can easily judge the character of a man by how he treats those who can do nothing for him." — Malcolm S. Forbes

takabear85 This is the movie that motivated my nephew to choose Marshall as his school out of seven other choices including the University of Pennsylvania and Princeton. He made so many friends and the school spirit is so strong. It motivates people. My nephew is in his senior year and has so many great memories.I just saw the movie this year and I can understand now why my nephew chose Marshall University. It was so moving. From beginning to end, I was back in 1970. The acting was so outstanding I felt like I was part of the community.If anything, you must see it at least once. I highly recommend it.

SnakesOnAnAfricanPlain Based on a true story, but still very formulaic. The film could have benefited from being grittier and more realistic. It manages to capture the strong and tragic emotions, but when it tries to be inspirational, it pulls out a series of tacky speeches and slow motion back slaps. The story has a great beginning, setting up a town shattering tragedy. The build up is ominous, but still leaves room for surprise. The cast is littered with fantastic actors, from an uncredited Robert Patrick, Ian McShane, and David Strathairn. Each of them plays their roles very well, and I liked the view of different townsfolk. It would have been nice to see more of the town, as McShane and Strathairn are two of the highlights. It also emphasized the painful loss and the needed hope. It does manage to raise some goosebumps, and its raw power is enough to propel it into the end zone. Moving, inspirational, but less than subtle.