Coach Carter

Based on a true story, Coach Carter follows Samuel L. Jackson’s Ken Carter as he agrees to take over as the coach of a ragtag high-school basketball team. It’s a familiar premise that’s employed to entertaining and periodically engrossing effect by Thomas Carter, as the filmmaker, armed with Mark Schwahn and John Gatins’ screenplay, generally does an effective job of elevating the proceedings above its almost hackneyed structure and storyline – with the inclusion of a stirring early sequence, in which Jackson’s protagonist lays out the rules for his various players, proving effective at capturing the viewer’s interest right from the get-go. There’s little doubt, however, that Coach Carter subsequently progresses into a fairly by-the-numbers midsection that hits the various beats and plot points one might’ve anticipated, although, by that same token, it’s clear that the picture is often elevated by sequences that pack an unexpectedly potent emotional, visceral punch (eg Octavia Spencer’s Mrs. Battle pleads for Carter to allow her son back on the team). And while the movie’s second half similarly does contain a handful of engaging interludes (eg Carter’s team surprises him in a school library), Coach Carter‘s ludicrously overlong running time (136 minutes!) paves the way for a lumbering final third that’s hardly as satisfying as one might’ve anticipated (and hoped) – with the end result a decent-enough inspirational sports drama that’s rarely as spellbinding as Jackson’s commanding performance.

**1/2 out of ****