message in the movies By Rev. Bruce Batchelor Glader

                    
          
Friday Night Lights    Rated PG-13
Directed by Peter Berg. Starring Billy Bob Thornton, Derek Luke. 

Photo © Universal Pictures
High school football has always been more than just a game.  It serves as a rite of passage for boys on their way of becoming men; it is a source of pride for local communities; it is a welcome Friday night ritual in the cool evenings of autumn; and, for some, it is the trial ground for later involvement in collegial and professional sports.  Like everything in America, high school football is often overhyped and exploited, often to the detriment of those it might otherwise help.  The wonderful 2001 documentary Go Tigers! was able to present a balanced portrayal of a football-obsessed community, but Friday Night Lights (based on a best-selling book about the 1988 Odessa, Texas Permian Panthers’ bit for the state championship) presents a story that is dark and disturbing.  Coach Gary Gaines (wonderfully played by Thornton) is a decent man who gets paid big bucks to build a winning team.  The town of Odessa seems to be in the middle of nowhere, but they have a high school stadium that seats 2,000 and attract the top college scouts to scope out their players.  Ironically, while football puts Odessa on the map, the players dream of a sports future that will allow them to leave Odessa forever.  This tension creates an atmosphere of desperation that moves Friday Night Lights decisively away from being family-friendly.  In fact, I boldly question the PG13 rating.  An early party scene first depicts substance abuse (including binge drinking) and then moves into two consecutive sex scenes that are both contextually uncomfortable.  If that weren’t enough reason to keep middle-school children away from this film, there are also scenes in which one player is physically abused and berated by his alcoholic (and athletic has-been) father, and a promising player is reduced to tears when he destroys his body (and plans for a future in sports) by ignoring a doctor’s warning.  This is a well-made and thoughtful film, but it is not for everyone.  Parents should see the film before allowing children under 16 to go (and then they should be prepared to discuss the content). One message of this film is that competitive sports can sometimes force our youth to grow up too fast.  And, alas, so can viewing Friday Night Lights.

Pitchfork Rating:  Two halos  . (An honest but upsetting true story of the tension surrounding high stakes high school football.)   Three pitchforks.   (Teen drinking and sexual activity, occasional profanity, abusive behavior – an R-rated film that got tweaked and moved into the inappropriate PG-13 category; parents, be warned.) P.S. Go Tigers! (a documentary about the Massillon, Ohio Tigers) is rated R (primarily for language and a party scene), but should have been rated PG-13.  I encourage parents to rent this film and discover for themselves why it is superior to Friday Night Lights for family viewing and discussion.

past movie reviews