Take the family on a trip down Glory Road
Glory Road
Screenplay written by: Jerry Bruckheimer
Actors: Josh Lucas, Derek Luke, Austin Nichols, Evan Jones,
Emily Deschanel, Jon Voight
Directed by: James Gartner
Rated: PG (For racial issues including violence and epithets,
and mild language)
Take the family on a trip down Glory Road
Glory Road
Screenplay written by: Jerry Bruckheimer
Actors: Josh Lucas, Derek Luke, Austin Nichols, Evan Jones, Emily Deschanel, Jon Voight
Directed by: James Gartner
Rated: PG (For racial issues including violence and epithets, and mild language)
“Glory Road” is an inspirational true story set in the racially charged ’60s about Texas Western College’s unique challenges in assembling, training, and enduring the team’s obstacles along the road to competing for the NCAA basketball tournament title. Playing against the best in the nation, the unlikely and ground-breaking racially mixed team, pulled from high schools and inner-city basketball courts by Coach Don Haskins (Josh Lucas), melds nationally ranked white college players with talented black athletes to become the contenders that broke through barriers that few thought they could. The character of the team and how they handled their experiences changed the sport of basketball and contributed to social progress inside and outside of sports in many important ways that have endured to this day.
He Said:
Bring the kids and enjoy this reminder of how far we have come in overcoming racial stigmas while enjoying rousingly good court play. Definitely Disneyeque, I enjoyed this film for what it was despite the social issues that the team had to overcome of racial prejudices on and off the court. Although, you’ve seen this film’s root-for-the-underdog sports plot played out time and time again, it moves right along. Of course, it is so uplifting in the end that you will forgive the play on your sense of fairness since you are so aware from the beginning that what is depicted has true outcomes. The acting and action is pretty good. The tempo is also good to the predictable end, whether you are a basketball fan or not.
On the R&R Scale (1-10):
7 for: Script (Depicted the coach’s and player’s hurdles)
6 for: Direction (Captured the message and game’s dynamics)
7 for: Acting (Josh Lucas and Derek Luke 8, others 6)
7 for Plot (Timeless themes, but so familiar) 7 for: Entertainment value
6.6 Overall
She Said:
Thanks to Jerry Bruckheimer bringing this story to the screen there is a new awareness of what an important role Texas Western’s “Miners” played in making an important change in the social and sports fabric of America. While the script was necessarily unsurprising and unapologetically formulaic, it still doesn’t take away from the fact that there were several themes in “Glory Road” that we probably need to revisit. Besides obviously testing our current color-blindness versus the America from decades ago, everyone likes to see the underdog win when they are so hard-working and deserving. It also was as much about the rewards for personal determination fueling a passion for success as overcoming obstacles when a team focuses on the super-ordinate goal. “Glory Road” entertained while delivering reinforcing morals for people of all ages, applicable in all pursuits in life. Take the family and enjoy an above average sports drama experience that communicates a modern history story that still impacts us today.
On the R&R Scale (1-10)
6 for: Script (Moved right along in a relatable way)
7 for: Direction (Captured the social strife as well as the struggles on the court)
7 for: Acting (Pretty good by all)
7 for: Plot (History reenacted with personal dimensions added well)
7 for: Entertainment value
6.8 Overall
