Ian McShane is outstanding.

Rating: 8/10 (27 July 2007)

I was in Huntington in 2000, the 30th anniversary of the tragedy. I wasn't aware of the history of the school nor of the crash, I was there to visit a friend who was in her first year residency at Marshall School of Medicine. We were walking through the town when church bells began to toll and people stopped walking and stood, some with their head bowed. Only then did I begin to comprehend the profound loss and sadness that the town had endured and continued to feel, despite the 3 decades that had passed.
I say that because We Are Marshall captures the loss and sorrow in a way that isn't maudlin but sincere and heartfelt. The despair and confusion of what to do and why should it be done is done quite well. But somehow it gets done. Ian McShane does an amazing job, portraying a father of player killed in the crash but unwilling to succumb to the tragedy, trying to come to terms with his loss by having others yield to his demand that no more football be played. His journey to his acceptance of the need to go on is wonderfully done.
Some clichés are evident, but despite that, the performances are still outstanding and overcome the falloffs in the writing. Very good movie.