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Coach Carter a didactic film! (685 hits)

Sup Connect!

Film History Never Taught Us the Didactic Quality of Art!

I was watching Coach Carter for the third time. This movie is fastly becoming one of my all-time favorites. This distinction is not afforded the Directorial Debut of Thomas Carter's because I am a game-head-quite contrar!

Why do I hail this as one of my all time favorites. Well, its for didactic reasons. Its what the movie teaches us by not telling us its teaching us that thing, but that which we pull out from watching the movie. It was a far cry from a sports flick like Hosier (the Story with Gene Hackman about Indiana H.S. basketball).

When Coach Carter came into the gym and was introduce by the outgoing Coach who lost his vim and vigor to strategically develop boys into men-he said of Samuel L's character "He was an All American in two sports and holds records in scoring, assists, and steals; and he received a scholarship to George Mason."

I remember when I first watched this movie I commented to myself. Oh, Geo. Mason, they are in the CAAs-a Div. I school-sure, but a mid major (this is a disparaging remark)... I continued in the same line of detrius thought within myself: Coach Carter's character must not have been good enough to go to UNC-CH, affectionately called Carolina by b-ball afficionados.

This movie was prescient! It was prophetic because it didactically taught us what our priorities needed to be. Maybe, the Academy felt that it was presumptuous for Life to Immitate Art. I believe this is when Art is at its highest when it is didactic.

Guess who Geo. Mason beat this year to go the Elite 8-Carolina...Guess who is in the Final Four this year-Geo. Mason.

This movie was so powerful and so moving that as an educator I felt this movie could have made a statement for the Academy of Motion Pictures Arts & Sciences. This movie spoke to the colossal failure of the urban education system as a proving ground for young scholars and leaders of tomorro, to the bedrock of commercialism and insolence-as identified in the character The Ty Crane in the movie Coach Carter when it first comes on.

Ty is the arrogant disrespectful show-boat that curses and snatches the mic from the journalist doing a live interview after the game.

Coach Carter does not permit his 'Sirs' to act-out but he admonishes them to be upstanding, industrious and above all-scholars!

Samuel L did a superb job instituting an unhearlded policy of academics taking precedent over an unbeaten record and all the glory that comes with running-the-tables!

This movie unfortunately was ahead of its time. I wonder what 'the people' were overlooking when they said Denzel's character Lonzo in Training was an ungly depiction of the Black male. However, I defended his art by saying it was fiction and it was his job to play the coniving duplicitious Lonzo to the 'T'.

I was naive! The characterization of the Black man by the Academy is in keeping with Americana. Americana is the characterisitc of American culture. How ironic to mention anything about character in this definition of America, which bespeaks of the Academy's role to identify outstanding thespians who act the part of characters.

"What Is Your Deepest Fear, Connect?"

Posted By: B. Dwight Foster, B.A., MS-MANAGEMENT
Tuesday, March 28th 2006 at 3:57PM
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What Samuel L's character did in that film was turn the boys into young men. This movie must go on my all time favorite's list. The movie really hit home about the realities of the inner-coty and the struggle of high school students in the inner-city. We need more people like his character in our school systems. Thanks for sharing.
Tuesday, March 28th 2006 at 4:11PM
VICSKEYAS MOORE

YES IN WHOLE WE NEED MORE STRONG MEN LIKE THAT IN WHICH I MENTIONED THAT RECENTLY, THAT THIS IS WHAT YOUNG MEN/MALES ARE SEARCHING FOR. I USED TO GET IN TROUBLE AS A KID AND FELT LOVE IF I WERE CHASTISED BYT CERTAIN UNCLES I WANTED TO CARE FOR ME WHEN I WAS AROUND THEM.
ONE WOULD BE SURPRISED HOW YOUTH SEEK POSITIVE DISCIPLINE.
I REMEMBER THE SITCOM GOOD TIMES WHEN JAMES EVANS HAD TO GIVE A FRINED OF MICHAEL WHO HAD BEEN BULLYING HIM AND WAS STAYING WITH THE FAMILY SHOR TERM, A WHIPPING. NOW THERE ARE MANY FORMS OF DISCIPLINE, BUT IN THAT CASE IT WAS POSITIVE.
WROKING WITH SO MANY YOUTH IN A JAIL TYPE HOUSED SETTING THE KIDS RAN ALL OVER A LOT OF STAFF BUT I GOT THEIR RESPECT BY I SAY GOD AND THE WAY I CARRIED MYSELF AND NOT LIKE A STIFF ROBOT EITHER. THERE IS A TIME FOR ALL THINGS AND I LOOKED OUT FOR THOSE I WORKED WITH, BUT CAME DOWN ON THEM HARD AND AT TIMES NOT AS HARD, JUST ACCORDING TO THE CIRCUMSTANCES. BUT OF COURSE THE NOT SO HARD WAS NOT A REGULAR FOR ME EITHER.
COACHING KIDS AND I HAVE DONE THAT TRAINS KIDS FOR THE WORLD. I MENTIONED IN A BLOG REPLY OF COACHING A FLAG FOOTBALL TEAM THAT HAD 6 GILR ATHLETES ON IT AND WE LOST ONE GAME ALL YEAR AND THE GAME WE LOST THEY CAME BACK TO BEAT THEM 36-6 THE NEXT GAME. THEY LOST THEIR FOCUS AND HAD THE BIGHEAD IN OUR 6 0R 7TH GAME.
I ALSO COACHED A ALL WHITE BASKETBALL TEAM THAT WON THE BASKETBALL CHAMPIONSHIP WITH A 13-3 RECORD AND THIS AFTER SITTING MY STAR PLAYER DOWN FOR 3 GAMES DUE TO BAD GAMES AND PARENTS WOULD WATCH AND DID NOT MIND ME HOLLARING AT THEM. I AM EX-MLITARY AND WAS 24,25 AT THE TIME.
ANYWAY...
GOOD BLOG AGAIN BRO.

BY THE WAY, I AM NOT AT HOME AND DO NOT HAVE MY DICTIONARY WITH ME, WHAT DOES "DIDACTIC MEAN AGAIN? LOL
Tuesday, March 28th 2006 at 5:24PM
WILLIAM W. HEMMANS III

What is most spectacular about this film is that it is a true story. Coach Carter is a real person and this actually happened. I remember the evening news footage highlighting his tactics of closing the gym and forfeiting games! It was refreshing to see that someone from the Hood cared more about the kids as people instead of what they could do on the court. I have actually talked to parents who actually believe that athletics are the only way to end the cycle of poverty and despair in lower socioeconomic neighborhoods. This was further evidenced by the the doc film "Through the Fire" highlighting the rise of New York high school bball phenom Sebastian Telfair. Although the story was touching and I was happy he "MADE" it, it was sad that his older brother played four years at a Div I school was the leading scorer in the Big East and had nothing to show for it when he didn't get drafted. His only option was to play overseas while his family struggled back in the neighborhood. Did anyone even think about getting a degree? If we are going to get used for athletic scholarships, at least get something out of the experience.
As for Hoosiers, I recommend watching the Doc film that tells the real story of that State Championship game. I can not remember the name off hand but it interviews the black players and what they had to go through. Things like having to drive long distances without appropriate places to play and even that title game when they lost to the white school was a joke. They had to play more than one game the same day to ear a chance to play the well rested white school! Already setting us up for failure as usual. Coach Carter was truly a story that needed to be told and a lesson to be learned by our kids of color. I could never watch it enough.
Wednesday, March 29th 2006 at 1:01AM
Brian Stafford