Is Remember the Titans (2000) the best football related film? I'll give a spoiler here and say yes. The following paragraphs will explain why, and you can see if you agree with me. Read here then you can tell me if I'm wrong!
The movie is based on a real-life event. Schools were beginning to integrate including sports teams, and many people were resistant to change. Not only was the football team to integrate, but a black coach known as Coach Boone (Denzel Washington) would be replacing the current white head coach Bill Yoast (Will Patton).
First off, I want to say that Denzel Washington is one of America's greatest actors of all time, and this film role is no exception. He's a complex character that portrays himself as one dimensional to try and put together a quality football team. He knows his job isn't going to be easy to try and calm tensions. Leading a team and dealing with violent racist people is something we don't have to deal with anymore thankfully.
However, Coach Boone still did, and there's one scene in particular that is great. While Coach Bill's daughter is at Boone's house, somebody throws a brick through the window, and it's a very heightened scene. What Coach Boone isn't sure of is how the staff will react to hiring.
Thankfully, Will Patton's (most recently in DC's Swamp Thing) character quickly comes around for the benefit of the team. He adjusts, but his young daughter (Hayden Panettiere) is angry about the loss of the head coaching job. As you just read, she comes around too being the hardcore football fan and growing up innocent. For her as a child, it was never even about race.
Another part I need to mention is where the training camp scenes were filmed. That's right in my hometown of Rome, GA. Okay, I may be slightly biased, but it's still the best football movie to me anyways. It was filmed at Berry College, so it is neat to recognize the different buildings on screen. I was only 2 when it was filmed, so I had no idea who Denzel Washington was yet.
These scenes are monumental because this is where most of the players come together as a brotherhood. It's supposed to be near Gettysburg in the film, so a great scene is when they run during the night to the battleground. It is a powerful moment. A funny moment is how shocked some parents are, black and white when all the players are laughing and hugging each other upon returning.
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