Not your typical sports film

Rating: 8/10 (19 February 2013)

In deciding to watch this movie, I am not going to lie, I expected to be watching another predictable inspirational sports movie. I expected to see the typical predictable underdog movie where a bunch of misfits end up coming out on top and afterward feel like I just wasted over two hours of my life. I could not have been more wrong. Coach Carter was more than just an inspirational movie; it had many deeper meanings within it and definitely has the potential to leave the viewer with a renewed sense of gratitude towards their life and their opportunities.
The storyline was very marketable and fundamental. This movie was based on a true story where a California high school basketball coach named Ken Carter put a lock on his gym until all his students met the necessary academic requirements needed to have a chance to go for a secondary education. As simple as this storyline sounds, director Thomas Carter did a fair job at keeping the audience intrigued with multiple conflicts and preventing them from being able to predict what would happen. The script was satisfactory for the most part. Samuel L. Jackson did an excellent job in relaying his funny and strict retorts to his disrespectful players, and overall the script allowed him to stay in character the whole entire movie. The side plots throughout were very intriguing considering it was based off of a true story. The script did a decent job of portraying these stories without straying too far off of what actually happened in real life.
The acting in this movie was sub-par at best. Samuel L. Jackson did a fantastic job as the lead role of Ken Carter, however he definitely stole the show and beyond that the acting was a bit too theatrical for my taste. It was noticeable that the supporting actors seemed disinterested when it was not their turn to act, and many conversations did not seem realistic or fluent.
While the acting was not particularly impressive, the production value in this film was excellent. In most sports films today, it seems that the action scenes are unrealistic and the viewer can typically realize that it is not what true basketball actually feels like. Besides some exaggerated, animated calls from the referees, and childish reactions from the fans and bench players, they did an outstanding job of portraying what an actual high school basketball game atmosphere would be like. Most of the scenes in the entire movie had great production value and always had a very realistic feel to it. Director Thomas Carter did an excellent job with the story he was given. There was no scene in the entire movie that I felt was unnecessary and there were no noticeable blunders within the film. He kept it very professional and the mood of the film transitioned phenomenally as the players began to mature under their new coach.
Lastly, although there are hundreds of inspirational movies on the market, this movie excels in originality. This film is not the typical underdog movie, however it teaches morals and life lessons to all the viewers. Ken Carter's players never lacked talent, but lacked the discipline and academic strength in order to succeed in not only basketball, but also life itself. By way of harsh punishments and requirements, he gets his players on the right track to being successful. It is definitely a unique film and overall, it is an outstanding film to watch.