Introduction:
As I’ve mentioned before,
I’m not huge into sports films. But there are a few that other people refer to
as “must see” movies, so I usually try to give those a watch. Hoosiers usually appears on that list.
I don’t mind watching basketball, so I figured I’d give it a shot. Get it?
Shot? OK, I’ll just get on to the review.
Summary:
Norman Dale (Gene Hackman)
arrives in the small town of Hickory, Indiana to coach the local high school
basketball team. This is a second chance of sorts. His previous career as a
college level coach ended after an violent incident. Unfortunately the people
of Hickory don’t take to the “big city” man coming into their small town to
show them how to play the game. Even fellow teachers like Myra Fleener (Barbara
Hershey) dislike him from the start. Will Dale be able to turn the team around,
win the hearts of the townsfolk, and get the life of local drunk Shooter
(Dennis Hopper) back on track? If you don’t know the answer to this, then you
haven’t watched any sports movies.
Good Points:
- Excellent acting by the main cast
- The basketball scenes are well filmed and exciting
- Jerry Goldsmith’s musical score fits like an 80s glove
Bad Points:
- The story is very, very familiar
- Goldsmith’s score is heavy on the synthesizers
- The epilogue was painfully cheesy
Overall:
Yes, it’s an underdog sports
film and all that entails is covered here. There are no plot surprises, no
character surprises, but the heart is in the right place. What really works is
the atmosphere (aided by an entire shoot performed in Indiana) and the excellent
acting by the leads. I’ve never seen Hopper as good as he is here. And yes, the
musical score is a blast. Must of the percussive sounds are actually samples of
basketballs hitting a wooden floor. Worth checking out, especially if you enjoy
basketball and the cast.
Scores
(out of 5)
Visuals: 4
Sound: 3
Acting: 4
Script: 3
Music: 4
Direction: 4
Entertainment: 3
Total: 3
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