One hope. One truth. One way.
In 1973, when racial segregation was still ringing through the deep South, Woodlawn High School recruits Tony Nathan (newcomer Caleb Castille) to play for their football team. Here's the thing. Nathan is absolutely fantastic. But, no one really likes it. One day, a traveling evangelist named Hank (Sean Astin) comes in and inspires the whole team to convert to Christianity. With revival brewing, the High School may just spark a real movement in a state that is deep in crisis. Oh, and win football games too.
The overall production values are great, and perhaps the most advanced I've seen to date for a major Christian movie (the budget here was $25 million, 8 times what War Room cost to make). Cinematography, costume design, music score and editing, all slickly done. No shaky camera angles, elevator music, or out-of-place moments here.
The actors all do good here too. While he is advertised first in the acting credits, Astin is actually a supporting character here. While his joyful and infectious personality doesn't quite hit the heights of Karen Abercrombie's performance in War Room, he still injects vitality and emotion into the pic. As for the lead, Castille does a more-than-competent job at playing the different sides of Tony. He's fairly believable. Nic Bishop also is believable and consistent as Coach Gerelds. Sherri Shepherd and Jon Voight each are given some very solid moments, with Voight in particular delivering some humor here and there.
The screenplay is both unpredictable and nice. Both Tony and the coach are given decent amounts of development, and the film doesn't shy away from the issues of that time. The ethnic and racial issues are realistically-portrayed without going in a too dark or mature direction. There are strong messages on faith, sportsmanship, redemption and revival.
On the downside, there isn't much. If I can think of one problem, its that the film does start out a little slow-paced. It's still interesting to watch it set up, but, an exciting football scene early on probably wouldn't have hurt things. As a result, the film does take its time through its 2 hour runtime, as it takes time to really focus on character rather than just being a "football movie".
We've seen sports movies. Especially football ones. But for Christian movies, we've seen quite a few of them. Facing the Giants was the second Kendrick Brothers movie (and one of their best ones, in my opinion). A football player went blind in 23 Blast (another really good one), and a winning streak broke in When the Game Stands Tall (good, but not as good as the other two).
So, Pure Flix has a tough challenge to try and stand out as different in comparison to those three and other football movies that have come across the bend, such as Hoosiers, Friday Night Lights, The Blind Side and Remember the Titans as other notable examples. (Though, I should point out that the studio is not trying to compete with other Christian films)
I got to see an advance screening of Woodlawn two weeks before its wide theatrical release, and it was exciting (I had never been to one of these before). And, even though it was a little slow at the beginning, it really picked up its stride in a huge way for the remaining 3/4. And it was at the end when I believed that I watched something truly special unfold onscreen.
I was inspired all over again, just when I thought that football movies and Christian movies were beginning to run out of messages and ideas. Even more amazing is that this movie is a true story and based on a real person's life. And, to top it all off, the movie has ideas (I won't spoil them), twists, and moments that I personally believe I have never seen before in a sports movie.
But Woodlawn isn't just a football movie (like a character said in the movie). Its a movie about the importance and strong inspiration that positive spiritual change can have. And like the producer said at the screening, "It's about revival". And that's a timely message that works in society today.
Overall, by the time the lights came up, Woodlawn was not only the most enjoyable football movie I've seen, but also one of the most inspiring, well-made and moving Christian movies I've seen. And one of the year's best films, right up there with War Room.
Score: 9.2/10
Content Problems Families Should Be Aware Of:
Language: None that I remember.
Adult Content: One brief joke about a woman's hips. One kiss.
Violence: Some racial tension. It occurs off-screen, but someone was likely stabbed outside the school. Someone throws a brick in Tony's house with a threat saying "quit football". Someone also burns a shirt on a cross outside his family's house. Some pushing, shoving, and the like on the football field. Its suggested that Tony's girlfriend has an abusive father.
Drugs/Alcohol: Nothing visible, but a couple of bottles seen at random moments. Someone claims he's going out for a "smoke".
Other: Racial and ethic-based situations may require some pre-film discussion for younger children.
