Fair presentation of an inspirational subject

Rating: 7/10 (29 December 2006)

"Glory Road" tells the true (though as with any such movie, apparently partially fictionalized) story of the Texas Western basketball team's 1966 season as it startled the nation with its march to the national championship. Though it takes place after passage of the Civil Rights Act and during the brotherhood speeches of Martin Luther King Jr., the blatant racism of earlier times lingered more than a little. The film does a good job of providing viewers with a taste of that fact. It is certainly an inspirational story and the cast does as well as can be expected in a movie that necessarily must attempt to explore a number of characters. On the negative side, the game scenes sometimes seemed poorly filmed and some of the dialog - especially the radio and television announcers - was stilted and felt awkward. Still, for those who appreciate a good sports movie, this is worth a look.