(2015)
Genre: Sports Drama (based on true story)
Starring: Kevin Costner, Ramiro Rodriquez, Carlos Pratts, Maria Bello
Director: Niki Caro (Whale Rider, 2002)
Screenwriter: Christopher Cleveland (Glory Road, 2006)
Distributor: Walt Disney
Though there are some liberties taken in this movie “based on a true story” most of it is legit, according to the internet site: historyvshollywood.com. For example, it starts out with a middle-aged man (Jim White, Kevin Costner) coming to McFarland High School in central California to work as a coach and teacher because he was fired from a more prestigious position for supposedly having an anger problem. This was, if you remember, the same problem that Gene Hackman had in the classic basketball movie Hossiers. This bit of drama is apparently invented—the real Jim White went to McFarland High right out of college and was not dealing with this issue. The success of the cross country team also is a bit exaggerated. It took eight years to win the state championship, not just one. But these are just Hollywood shortcuts to build tension and tighten the drama to fit the two-hour time frame. No problem.
What makes this movie unique is the focus on migrant worker families in California. The children are expected to work in the fields starting at young ages (10 is mentioned in the movie) early in the morning with their parents and then later after school. White, an outsider or a “Blanco” as he is called by his Hispanic students, however, sees an opportunity when he witnesses how fast some of the boys can run in gym class. But he must win the hearts of the boys’ parents if he is to have a team at all. He proves his willingness to identify with their culture when he accepts one family’s invitation to supper and eats multiple helpings of Mexican food and then even works a day in the fields to identify with their lifestyle.
Costner’s role is perfect for this actor. His character is down-to-earth, honest, and authentic when relating to his students. The cross country boys are well-chosen and fall into the typical gamut of personalities from the emotionally-burdened boy to the overweight slowest runner. Yet, it does not come across as just a cookie-cutter sports film concocted by Disney to please the masses. When Thomas, the team’s lead runner says to White, “There is no American dream in McFarland,” you believe him and feel the pain of the offspring of migrant workers everywhere caught in a vicious cycle of poverty. When Costner asks one boy: “Please tell your father I really appreciated his hospitality tonight” expecting him to translate it into Spanish and the boy instead repeats what he just said to his father in English and the father responds in English, it is very amusing and yet at the same time, indicative of the assumptions we form without realizing it.
This movie is more than just another sports movie. It addresses relevant racist immigrant stereotypes, the nobility of working hard, the necessity of building a sense of community and team spirit, and the challenge we all face: how to keep alive our impossible dreams while combating the realities of life.
“Humble yourselves, therefore, under God’s mighty hand, that he may lift you up in due time” (1Peter 5:6).
Movies and Memoirs 