We Are Marshall is a movie about overcoming adversity

Rating: 8/10 (29 April 2012)

Reader be warned that this could contain a spoiler. As it is based on a true story and all of the information is out there anyway, it is probably not; however, if you do not know the story then stop now. The film We Are Marshall is based on a true story. It is about the 1970 Marshall Football team that died in a plane crash, but it is also about so much more; this is a film is also about overcoming adversity. The film begins with the team and their coach as they lose a game against East Carolina University. After the loss, the team boards the plane to fly back to Huntington WV. Two of the coaches have a discussion about who will stay to do a recruiting visit and who will fly back with the team. Coach Red Dawson (Matthew Fox) ends up staying to do the visit. The plane crash happens very early in the movie because the movie is not really about the plane crash itself, but about what happens after that. Two of the recurring issues throughout the film are grief and survivors guilt. There is grief from the parents of players and families of the coaches and boosters who died in crash. Much of the story is about Annie (Kate Mara) who was the fiancée of the quarterback who died. Coach Dawson and one of the surviving players deal with survivor's guilt because they were both supposed to be on the plane. The university faces the decision of whether to try to field a team for the next season or to indefinitely suspend the program. There is a moving scene where the students of the university make it known to the board of trustees that they want the program to continue. Coach Jack Lengyel (Matthew McConaughey) contacts the university to let them know he is interested in the coaching position. A touching visit between the university president Donald Dedmon (David Strathairn) and the coach ensues. Coach Lengyel ends up leading the team to 2 victories that season. Marshall's football program does survive and thrives in the 1980s. This film is sad early on but develops into a feel-good football movie in the vein of The Blindside or Remember the Titans. One difference between We Are Marshall and those two movies is that they are both about overcoming issues off the field to accomplish great things on the field. This movie is about overcoming issues on the field to help resolve issues off the field. The movie does great at recreating the period and location of 1970's Huntington, WV. There is a scene where Coach Red is working on building a shed. He and coach Lengyel are standing atop the structure and you can get a glimpse of the scenery around them. I have been to the area and it did give the same feeling. Overall, a great movie that tells a story about a university and city that overcame great loss and found their way through the sport of football.