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Coach Carter
Mixed or average reviews
Based on 36 critic reviews
How did we calculate this?
Based on 49 votes
Read user comments
Rate this movie >
Movie Info
Genre(s): Drama
Written by:
Mark Schwahn
John Gatins
Directed by: Thomas Carter
Release Date:
Theatrical: January 14, 2005
DVD: June 21, 2005
Running Time: 136 minutes, Color
Origin: USA
Summary
RATING: PG-13 for violence, sexual content, language, teen partying and some drug material
Starring Samuel L. Jackson, Robert Ri'chard, Rob Brown, Debbi Morgan, Ashanti, Rick Gonzalez, Antwon Tanner, and Nana Gbewonyo
Inspired by a true-life story, Coach Carter is an inspirational account of a controversial high school basketball coach, who received both high praise and staunch criticism when he made national news in 1999 for benching his entire undefeated basketball team for poor academic performance. (Paramount)
Also On Metacritic
FILM: Save the Last Dance Swing Kids
Also On The Web: Internet Movie Database View The Trailer Official Studio Site
What The Critics Said
All critic scores are converted to a 100-point scale. If a critic does not indicate a score, we assign a score based on the general impression given by the text of the review. Learn more...
Washington Post Sean Daly
This entry in a rather stale genre deserves to be put at the head of the class.
Read Full Review >Miami Herald Connie Ogle
Descended from a long and healthy line of high school-sports and academic-achievement films, a hip-hop "Hoosiers" bolstered by a generous helping of "Stand and Deliver" and "Lean On Me."
Read Full Review >New York Daily News Elizabeth Weitzman
By turns funny, touching and genuinely inspiring.
Read Full Review >Chicago Sun-Times Roger Ebert
Jackson has the usual big speeches assigned to all coaches in all sports movies, and delivers on them, big time. His passion makes familiar scenes feel new.
Read Full Review >Chicago Tribune Sid Smith
A true story, feel-good parable and a respectable, uplifting descendent of "To Sir, With Love" and "Lean On Me."
Read Full Review >Philadelphia Inquirer Carrie Rickey
It's fair to say that Coach Carter is more an education film than it is a sports movie.
Read Full Review >Washington Post Desson Thomson
Covers every cliche in the Hollywood sports movie playbook, but it also makes the routine much more enjoyable than you'd expect.
Read Full Review >Film Threat James Wegg
Unfortunately, the accompanying story threads tend to bog down the action rather than provide contrast between the games.
Read Full Review >Variety Robert Koehler
Both an inspirational sports movie and an unexpected multi-level urban drama that plays by its own clock.
Read Full Review >Salon.com Stephanie Zacharek
Coach Carter, its flaws aside, is as interesting for what it doesn't do as for what it does.
Read Full Review >New York Magazine Ken Tucker
Jackson's wonderfully nuanced, witty performance, and a few unexpected plot turns, give Coach Carter a subtext that helps complicate such knee-jerk oversimplifications, redeeming the role with energetic humor and a loose-limbed grace.
Read Full Review >Seattle Post-Intelligencer William Arnold
While the movie may border on teen exploitation in many scenes, its heart and values are mostly in the right place, and it qualifies its thrill of victory with a very sober message: few high school athletes become NBA millionaires, many are cheated out of an education.
Read Full Review >Boston Globe Wesley Morris
Who's it for? How do you put this message across without it seeming medicinal? Sure, MTV is among the movie's producers, but what 11th grader wants to spend a Friday night being hit with such a blunt instrument?
Read Full Review >The Globe and Mail (Toronto) Rick Groen
When [Jackcson]'s not on camera, Coach Carter feels like the two-hour opus it is — too long, too banal, a bit ridiculous. But when he is, nothing else seems to matter, and how sublime is that.
Read Full Review >LA Weekly Ernest Hardy
The corniness and predictability feel, if not quite fresh, then not so groaningly stale.
Read Full Review >The New York Times Dana Stevens
This may be the coach's story, but to the extent that Coach Carter is interesting rather than merely inspirational, it's because of the team.
Read Full Review >The Hollywood Reporter Michael Rechtshaffen
Thanks mainly to his (Jackson) considerable presence, Coach Carter works more effectively than expected.
Read Full Review >Wall Street Journal Joe Morgenstern
A smart entertainment that trades on Mr. Jackson's forceful presence, a cast of extremely likable young actors and lots of basketball action.
TV Guide Maitland McDonagh
Delivers its commendable message with affecting eloquence.
Read Full Review >Entertainment Weekly Owen Gleiberman
Jackson, though, does lend this earnest formula flick a core of conviction.
Read Full Review >Dallas Observer Bill Gallo
Director Thomas Carter (no relation to Ken) relies on processed emotion and stock characters, and not even the inevitable Big Game excites us very much.
Read Full Review >Christian Science Monitor David Sterritt
The movie's moral messages are all on target. Too bad the movie is much, much too long and Jackson gives one of his dullest performances ever.
Read Full Review >The Onion (A.V. Club) Nathan Rabin
Coach Carter eventually curdles into a grim love letter to discipline and accountability, which makes it the perfect sports film for W.'s second term, but not a whole lot of fun.
Read Full Review >Los Angeles Times Carina Chocano
So, while the movie at times warmed my own middle-class, private school-educated cockles to a toasty complacency, there's an undercurrent of friendly fascism running through it like a nasty draft.
Read Full Review >ReelViews James Berardinelli
The main problem with Coach Carter can be summed up simply: too much sermonizing.
Read Full Review >USA Today Mike Clark
2-1/4 hours of MTV-produced tough love, with a dance break and pool party to relieve -- momentarily -- a series of motivational rants from lead Samuel L. Jackson.
Read Full Review >Portland Oregonian Shawn Levy
As it goes on and on and on, Coach Carter becomes more patience-testing than soul-stirring, proving that you can overdose on good intentions as easily as you can on evil substances.
Read Full Review >Village Voice David Blaylock
Proudly wearing its self-righteousness like a letterman jacket, Coach Carter's just an exasperatingly long "The More You Know" commercial starring one first-stringer and the junior varsity.
Read Full Review >Chicago Reader J.R. Jones
In the end I couldn't be sure whether its morality was complex or just confused. Like its young athletes, it earns a gentleman's C.
Read Full Review >San Francisco Chronicle Carla Meyer
Features bursts of humor and electrifying energy offset by speechifying and a dud of a subplot.
Read Full Review >Rolling Stone Peter Travers
This afternoon-TV special trying to pass as a real movie earns an extra half star solely for Samuel L. Jackson, who brings his usual fire to the role.
Read Full Review >What Our Users Said
The average user rating for this movie is 8.3 (out of 10) based on 49 User Votes
Note: User votes are NOT included in the Metascore calculation.
Jay G. gave it an8:
It's worth watching. Really good performance by actors, good music and incredible story makes this movie an excellent material.
Suleiman M. gave it a7:
Not a bad movie, not bad at all. Story was good, and the games looked nice, however, the only thing that made me watch was samuel L. Jackson. Overall, it's worth a rent, that's about it.
Disappointed Parent gave it a0:
The movie was excellent. I found it so motivating that I went to his website and ordered a book. It's been almost 4 months and I have yet to see a book. I'm very dissappointed with this whole experience. It's hard to have faith in people when situations like this occure. I truly felt coach carter was genuine and had a great love for helping our children have a better understanding of the importance to do well in school. I hope this isn't business as usual.
Curtis C gave it a10:
Its a awesome film..Great story line..It gives you a very good understanding of the life of poor urban people have and what the can if the try.Truly inspirational.It is the best movie i have seen.
Dan C. gave it a7:
An entertaining film that has something significant to say. I agree with Brian's review that it paints a picture of life among poor urban people of color that is sometimes too benign and easy. However, evaluating the film as a film, as opposed to its political merits, it is a solid effort with a passionate performance by Samuel L. Jackson at its heart. It challenges the view that basketball is "the only thing these kids have," as the well-meaning but ineffectual principal tells Jackson at one point. In response to Brian's points about the historical origins of inequality, they're both correct and irrelevant. A dose of discipline and self-respect, combined with education, can help lift young people out of a cycle of poverty and limited prospects. The military proves this every day (I am not a militarist, but do respect the armed forces abilitly to build character). Given our political tradition of individualism, the government (reflecting the will of the majority of the country) is not going to step in anytime soon (or ever) to rectify the injustices of the past with massive infusions of financial help to lift the downtrodden. Their only real option is to do it themselves. This film shows an inspiring example of how it can be done. One thing that disappointed me: the film shows Carter's refusal to accept the casual use of the "n-word" among his African-American players. But the music in the closing credits includes a song with lyrics that go something like "watch my n****er run." I understand that this kind of language is an integral heart of much of hip-hop culture, but should it be? Should the Af-American community accept this, or should its elders try to explain to the young people why it's wrong? As Carter says, the use of that word among African-Americans makes non-blacks think it's okay to use that word too. I understand that the film is marketed to an audience that embraces hip-hop, but it sends a mixed message in this case and represents a triumph of commercialism over principle, which is disappointing in a film that is so focused on principle.
[Anonymous] gave it an8:
An MTV film that matters. Carter did great things for his players, and I'm glad those kids succeeded. Wish they won the last game (historical accuracy's a pain, isn't it). First half is getting organized, winning, and enjoying the spoils of victory. Second half, the boys are forced to see the big picture, and eventually go with carter.
Brian G. gave it a9:
Great movie. Keep in mind that it is based on real events. Touching to see that someone in the sporting world gives a damn about a good education and welfare of a poorly raised and dysfunctional generation of young adults.
