Believe in Me

I really enjoyed seeing this movie about a man I am acquainted with. It is an uplifting kind of movie that makes one feel good and helps restore one's faith in people. Jim (Coach) Keith is such a fine man it really made my day to see a portion of his life, that I was unaware of, brought to the screen for others to appreciate. I cannot claim to know the Coach well, but I worked several years where he coached in the late 70's and he was and is quite a good natured gentleman and a pleasure to be around. I hope in time this movie will get a lot of play on TV so others can appreciate the character of this fine man. It is a great family movie and if you are needing a lift then watch this movie. You will be glad you did!

When I first heard about this movie what intrigued me most was that it was about a legendary basketball coach from Oklahoma...my home state. At first I thought it might be a Hoosier's formula movie, but after watching it for the first time, I realized that it stood on its own merits as a great story about dedication, trust, and how believing in yourself and having someone else believe in you can transform lives to inspirational levels. It is a moving story where a rag-tag group of small-town girls basketball players begin to believe in themselves because their coach believed in them. It is one of those "stand up and cheer" movies that will leave you feeling inspired...you will find yourself cheering for those girls.

There has been much written about this movie here so I don't need to say much except, in my opinion, this is a GREAT movie and should be seen by many. Especially families and young girls who aspire to play sports. I've watched it twice. The story line, the actors and directing are clearly professional and worthy of much credit for the job they did. The fact that many parts of this are true increases the value of the film. I've been in many high school gyms like those featured in this movie and it felt very real to me; both the crowd reaction, the plays on the court and the sense the you were REALLY watching a high school girls basketball game and not a movie.

I just saw this movie at the Jackson Hole Film Festival and I was impressed for the quality of the photography, the story and the acting. The storyline is very simple: in the 60's a young basketball coach moves to small town Oklahoma to coach the male team of the local high school but he's rerouted instead to the female team. He's totally against it but he has no choice, while he gains the respect and support of the girls, the town folks take a dislike for him because of his methods and because in their mind a girls team is not worth of interest. Through a series of victories, for the team and for the girls, he will make his basketball team a well respected one in town and among the competing high schools. I hope they will find a good distributor for this movie; this would be the feel-good movie of the year. Plus I met Robert (the Director) on several occasions during the festival and he's such a nice and heartwarming guy, I wish him much success (Hey Robert, I'm the one who drove you to the Casino Night from the Amangani ;-) ). One thing... I'm surprised that on IMDb men liked this movie more than women, very strange.

This is a great family movie and a great movie for teachers to see. It especially hits home for teachers, who are of course, coaches, but also those classroom teachers who have the same relational interactions as coaches like choir teachers (me), band directors, and the like.

The casting was excellent. I did not feel that I was watching actors, but actual people. Bruce Dern did his role so well, you really despised him. (I didn't realize he was THAT old already. I guess I'M that old already!) The girls were believable, the coach was well acted, the wife was a natural pairing for him--all very good acting. I, like you, can't stand cheesy "docudramas." You will want to watch the "making of" special features. You will have a pleasant surprise about the winning shot in the movie.

I highly, highly, recommend this movie. I have been encouraging my colleagues and all my students to rent it.