Review of Remember the Titans (2000) by Gautam_K — 19 Jul 2011

RTT is a movie that tries to fit 2 things in one movie: Racial Desegregation and Titans football, but fails to do justice to either. The movie is an inspiring one as all sports movie tend to be, but if you are a tough nut to crack, you may start yawning at some places. It is quite predictable if you look at the movie objectively. There's the first half with all the good-for-nothing individuals, inspiration, motivation and boot camp training. Then there's the second half with the initial hardships, near losses, the inspired masterstroke and the big final win. But thanks to the racial undertone, the proceedings are dramatic enough to watch.

The script is inconsistent that is it is too weak/lame at some points but very strong in other instances. Almost all energy has been put into making sure that everything looks right from the outside. Individual characterizations are poor and it shows in the actors' performance. Some scenes are written beautifully but some scenes fail to impress. The director Boaz Yakin too surprisingly sticks with the script and doesn't explore the many possible angles.

Denzel Washington does an amazing job at the centre playing the insanely tough and bullish coach, Herman Boone. Will Patton who plays his calm deputy Bill Yoast is passive in the first half (thanks to the poor writing) but comes to the foreground and gives an acceptable performance as the movie progresses. Wood Harris and Ryan Hurst share a great chemistry and give believable combined performances playing leaders of the black and white bandwagon respectively.

The football scenes are a treat to watch. Make sure you know the jargon and tactics of football because if you don't enjoy them, you are gonna miss half the fun. Everything from the warm ups, the handful play sequences, the individual player's sacrifice for the good of the tea and the exchange between the coaches. The choreographer (if its the right word) deserves a round of applause for his work. Watch it if you are a fan of Denzel Washington or if you want to discover the meaning of team spirit. Watch the movie expecting exactly whats present in it and you will be impressed and walk out completely satisfied. But if you randomly walk in hoping to see something a class apart from others, this one will be a bit of a disappointment. But all in all, the experience will be worth 'remembering'...well at least for sometime.