Coach Carter (Full Screen Edition)
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DVD Cover Information
Actor: Nana Gbewonyo, Rick Gonzalez, Rob Brown (VI), Robert Ri'chard, Samuel L. JacksonBrand: Team Marketing
DVD: Region Code 1
Audio: English (Subtitled); Spanish (Subtitled); English (Original Language), Dolby Digital 2.0 Surround
Format: Color, Dolby, DVD, Full Screen, NTSC
Picture Format: 1.33:1
Running Time: 136 minutes
DVD Release Date: 2005-06-21
Audience Rating: PG-13 (Parental Guidance Suggested)
Studio: Paramount
Movie Reviews of Coach Carter (Full Screen Edition)
Movie Review: The Noble Coach - review written by Jack Sun
Summary: 5 Stars
Coach Carter is an inspiring movie that teaches young African Americans to respect themselves, rise above stereotypes and invest in their own education to secure a better future. Directed by Thomas Carter, Coach Carter is based on the true story of Ken Carter, played by Samuel Jackson, who takes the job as the basketball coach of the high school team in Richmond, CA. Carter is determined to change the lives of his players, to make them champions both in school and on court. He transforms a team that only won four games in an entire season to an undefeated team. As the team climbs on its winning streak, Coach Carter finds that some of his players are failing their classes and not following the terms of the academic contract that they signed promising decent grades. As a result, he locks up the gym and cancels practices and games, which stirs enormous opposition from the whole neighborhood.
While the story of Coach Carter is inspiring, the movie exaggerates the fate of young African American men: either go to college or end up in jail. This dramatization is effective however as it gives the viewer a better understanding of the dangers and temptations of life on the streets of the poverty-stricken and crime-latent neighborhoods of Richmond. This understanding makes the viewers more sympathetic and appreciative of Coach Carter's unconventional methods and supports his actions (signing academic contracts, locking up the gym, canceling games, etc.), although a bit outrageous. In a scene where the school board and the parents vote against Carter's lock-out, you can't help but standby Carter's side and hope he achieves his goal. This scene, however, is dramatized and embellished in the movie as the school board/parents vs. Coach Carter hearing to vote against the lock-out didn't actually occur. In reality, the principal supported the lock-out and even though Coach Carter received phone calls from parents complaining about his decision, they supported his lock-out after listening to his explanations. Since the true conflict resolution was amicable, the movie has to fabricate the vote-out scene to create tension and enhance the excitement of the movie. In addition, this embellishment adds to the credibility of poor the Richmond neighborhood with fairly uneducated parents who do not appreciate the value of education.
Another discrepancy between the movie and Ken Carter's story is the academic contract. The movie depicts players reluctantly signing Coach Carter's contract, promising a 2.3 GPA, decent class attendance and participation, and proper conduct. Some players are irked by this stringent set of rules and tension rises between the coach and the players. However, in truth, Coach Carter actually worked with his players to draft the contract together. They wanted to be pushed beyond the average 2.0 GPA required of athletes to compete in California schools and decided to set the bar higher. If this truth was told, the movie would be boring; hence, it was altered to create the rising tension and conflict and enhanced the movie's appeal.
On the first day of practice, Coach Carter says, "Sir is a term of respect, and you will have my respect until you abuse it," as he attempts to teach the group of players with poor attitudes mutual respect. This becomes the strong foundation that builds up the team and is pivotal to the transformation of the players' characters and their outlook on life. Samuel Jackson's versatility as an actor is visible as he shifts from demanding coach, compassionate teacher, angry parent, and disappointing member of community--all delivered and made real by his authoritative tone of voice, body language and expressions. Jackson's presence--like a drill sergeant commanding respect as he unites his team--carries the movie and gives it an edge, differentiating it from a typical feel-good Disney movie. The role of Coach Carter is one of Jackson's strongest performances. The casting of the players gives an eclectic mix of characters--funny, cool, troubled, serious, scholastic--each likable in his own way, making the movie experience more enjoyable for the viewer. To top it off, the soundtrack is upbeat and exciting to add to the overall basketball theme of the movie. This movie is definitely worth the DVD price, and more.
Summary of Coach Carter (Full Screen Edition)
COACH CARTER tells the inspiring true story of controversial high school basketball coach Ken Carter (Jackson). Making headlines for his emphasis on the importance of academics over athletics, Carter requests all the members of the team to sign contracts, promising to maintain a certain grade point average. When the players fail to live up to this agreement, Carter benches the entire team, locking the gym and forfeiting games to prove his point. This infuriates the community who sees this as a hindrance to the future professional athletic careers of the players. Through hard work and dedication, Carter eventually gets his point across to his team and the community, going above and beyond to ensure a solid academic future for his team.Based on a true story of the man who locked his boys out of the gym until they focused on their schoolwork, this by-the-numbers crowd-pleaser holds together because a steely Samuel L. Jackson refuses to notice the parade of clichés he's trumpeting (the dialogue sticks to platitudes like, "Success in here is the key to success out there"). Coach Ken Carter (Jackson) takes over an unruly team of Richmond, California basketball players and teaches them how to play--and behave--like champions. His plight, which pits him against an uncooperative school board and parents who've given up hope, holds some interest, but the film is too concerned with giving us a Big Game every twenty minutes or so. The teens all have the spark of life in them (including pop star Ashanti, who features in a surprisingly well-handled teen pregnancy subplot), though the film's plodding familiarity means it's never really rousing, adding up to simply a good-natured amalgam of Stand and Deliver, Hoosiers, Dangerous Minds, and even Dead Poet's Society (one of the tougher players actually recites some inspirational poetry).--Steve Wiecking
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