There seems to be no end to beating-the-odds football movies these days, and if they all peak with a breathless moment of anticipation during a clutch play, then We Are Marshall, based on a true story, has plenty of (mostly good) company. Matthew McConaughey plays Jack Lengyel, who becomes head coach–more or less by default–of Marshall University’s rebuilding varsity football team in Huntington, W. Va., after the school’s 37-member team and coaches (and a number of others) die in a plane crash in the Appalachian Mountains on Nov. 14, 1970. Facing an indifferent college president (David Strathairn) ready to shut the football program down, a morose assistant coach (Matthew Fox), and a charged-up player (Anthony Mackie) who missed the doomed flight due to an injury, Lengyel is faced with fielding a new team and putting the players through their paces. There are the usual, perhaps too-familiar, training montages and field action, but screenwriter Jamie Linden and director McG (Charlie’s Angels) also draw some very good performances from the likes of Kate Mara and Ian McShane, contributing to an emotional tapestry conveying a powerful sense of how such a sizable loss affects a small community. –Tom Keogh

On the DVD
Introduced by director McG, “Legendary Coaches” (37 minutes) has real-life coach Jack Lengyel (portrayed in the film by Matthew McConaughey) recalling his time at Marshall and reading a letter he received from President Nixon. Then five championship coaches discuss their coaching philosophies and overcoming adversity: Bobby Bowden (Florida State football, and also portrayed in the film as the 1971 coach at West Virginia), Pat Summit (Tennessee women’s basketball), Lute Olsen (Arizona men’s basketball), George Horton (Cal State Fullerton baseball), and John Wooden (UCLA men’s basketball). Also included are a current promotional spot for Marshall University and the theatrical trailer. –David Horiuchi

More We Are Marshall

Blu-ray

Combo HD DVD

Return of the Thundering Herd: The Story that Inspired “We Are Marshall”

Based on true events, tells the story of the 1970 plane crash that killed almost the entire Marshall University football team and how the university rebuilt the football program while dealing with the tragic loss.
Genre: Feature Film-Drama
Rating: PG
Release Date: 18-SEP-2007
Media Type: DVD

This was a nice movie, interesting all the way, a combination sports film and melodrama and based on a tragic real-life event: a 1970 plane crash that killed 75 people including all but a couple of players and coaches on the Marshall University football team.

It’s a film that when it is over, you’re glad you watched it. That’s a good endorsement right there.

Matthew McConaughey’s role as head coach “Jack Lengyel” was a little goofy. I question whether the real coach was this “quirky,” but I’m not complaining because it made “Lengyel” — in the film – a lot of fun to watch. The screenwriters probably did that for just for that purpose, and it worked. The one football game featured is a little hokey, too, but I didn’t say the movie is great, just entertaining and inspiring, which is good enough for me.

By the way, check out the bonus feature about “Living Legends.” It has a half-dozen famous coaches in America give their philosophies on coaching and some of the segments are very interesting with some profound statements in them

Where to buy cheap prices? -We Are Marshall (Widescreen Edition) $4.15



*** Product Information and Prices Stored: Dec 17, 2009 10:12:19

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