Underrated true story based sports drama

Rating: 7/10 (16 February 2017)

Coach Carter (2005) appears to be one of Samuel L. Jackson's more overlooked leading roles. This is a film with a firm message which is to take responsibility for yourself and your actions. It's a good message and it's delivered by a solid cast. The main subject is about basketball, but at a run time of over 2 hours, this film dwells into deeper subjects regarding the students of the team.
Here we see Sam Jackson star in the titular role as a sporting goods store owner who accepts a job as high school basketball coach at the school where he still holds several basketball records. This film is based on a true story where we are understood that Jackson is portraying a real life figure. The team at the school is filled with raw talent, but no discipline. Carter begins his reign as coach by requiring all of the boys on the team to sign a contract stating that they will maintain a 2.3 GPA, that they will sit in the front row of every class, and that they must wear a coat and tie to school on game days. In return, he promises to guide them to a winning season. After much grumbling, the boys fall in line and begin to accept the Coach, especially after his training methods soon put them on an undefeated winning streak.
One thing which is quite hard to grasp at is how quickly Coach Carter was able to turn the team around. It is mentioned early in the film that they were a terrible team the previous year (winning 4 games, with 22 losses), and once Carter comes along, he is instantly able to turn them into a great team (mentioned as winning 16 straight at one point in the film). The challenge seemed quite easier than it should have, where we did not see much struggle. Though in the end, is where the film takes a turn and since it is based on a true story, not everything is a happy ending. The team unfortunately lose their championship game by a very close game. Had this been a fiction film, that most likely would not have happened. Overall, this film is quite interesting though outdated with many of the references and the overall outlook of the film. A great entertaining watch for fans of sports dramas.