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(About Our Ads) "WE ARE MARSHALL" (2006) (Matthew McConaughey, Matthew Fox) (PG) Alcohol/ Drugs Blood/Gore Disrespectful/ Bad Attitude Frightening/ Tense Scenes Guns/ Weapons Mild Minor Moderate Moderate Minor Imitative Behavior Jump Scenes Music (Scary/Tense) Music (Inappropriate) Profanity Mild Minor Minor None Moderate Sex/ Nudity Smoking Tense Family Scenes Topics To Talk About Violence Mild None Extreme Heavy Moderate QUICK TAKE: Drama: Following a plane crash that killed most of a college's football coaching staff and players, a new coach tries to rebuild the program and thus boost the morale of the small town. PLOT: It's November 1970 and following a plane crash that has killed most of the football team and coaching staff at Marshall University, the small-town community of Huntington, WV is devastated. Unsure of how to proceed, university President Donald Dedmon (DAVID STRATHAIRN) believes they should shutter the program, a notion shared by board member Paul Griffin (IAN McSHANE) who lost his son in the crash, a young man who was engaged to cheerleader and diner waitress Annie Cantrell (KATE MARA). But injured varsity player Nate Ruffin (ANTHONY MACKIE), who didn't travel for the fateful away game, doesn't agree. Mustering support from students and community members, he organizes a rally that prompts Donald to reconsider, a decision that leads to hiring outsider Jack Lengyel (MATTHEW McCONAUGHEY) as the new coach. A family man, Jack realizes the lasting effect of such a tragedy. Yet, he knows he might be able to make a difference by rebuilding the team, and thus sets out to do just that. Although another varsity player, Tom Bogdan (BRIAN GERAGHTY) who missed the flight due to oversleeping, can't get himself to return to the field, Jack is able to convince former assistant coach Red Dawson (MATTHEW FOX) to rejoin the staff despite him also facing guilt stemming from switching out his seat with another man moments before the flight. With just a small number of surviving varsity players including Reggie Oliver (ARLEN ESCARPETA), as well as an NCAA exemption that will allow him to start underclassman, Jack tries to get the team ready for the new season, all as they and the residents still try to come to grips with what's happened to their university and community. WILL KIDS WANT TO SEE IT? If they're into movies about sports, they might be interested. WHY THE MPAA RATED IT: PG For emotional thematic material, a crash scene, and mild language. CAST AS ROLE MODELS: MATTHEW McCONAUGHEY plays the new coach brought in to reassemble the football program following the crash. Slightly eccentric in his behavior, he does what he can to recruit his staff and players, and motivate both. He uses profanity. MATTHEW FOX plays his assistant coach who reluctantly joins the staff despite his overwhelming guilt of not boarding the plane at the last minute. He uses some profanity. DAVID STRATHAIRN plays the university president who reluctantly agrees to resume the football program and must deal with the repercussions of doing so. ANTHONY MACKIE plays a varsity player who missed the away game and thus the fateful flight due to a previous injury. He's the catalyst behind keeping the football program alive. IAN McSHANE plays a steel mill worker and University board member who lost his son in the plane crash and wants the program shuttered. He must deal with both his grief and that of Annie who was going to be his future daughter-in-law. KATE MARA plays that young woman who lost her fiancé in the crash and thus all of her future dreams, leaving her in the town working at the local diner. BRIAN GERAGHTY plays Nate's football roommate who missed the flight due to oversleeping and thus can't get himself back on the field due to overwhelming grief. ARLEN ESCARPETA plays another varsity player who helps get the team back on track. CAST, CREW, & TECHNICAL INFO HOW OTHERS RATED THIS MOVIE Curious if this title is entertaining, any good, and/or has any artistic merit? Then read OUR TAKE of this film. (Note: The "Our Take" review of this title examines the film's artistic merits and does not take into account any of the possibly objectionable material listed below). OUR WORD TO PARENTS: The following is a brief summary of the content found in this PG-rated drama. Profanity consists of at least 7 "s" words, while other expletives and colorful phrases are also uttered. The only sexual content includes a brief view of a young woman's covered butt representing a guy's point of view. While the impact isn't seen beyond a brief flash image of a jolt, a plane crash kills 75 people and we see the burning wreckage at the crash site (no bodies are seen). That might be unsettling for those afraid of flying, while it also results in a great deal of tense family material regarding people grieving the dead (children, parents, a fiancé). That leads to thematic elements regarding all of that and the proper course of action for the university following that tragedy, some of which may seem to be in bad taste by some viewers (in terms of being disrespectful in terms of timeliness). Standard football contact is present in some games, while some brief scuffling also occurs. Some college players drink beer, while some other behavior might be enticing for some kids to imitate. Should you still be concerned about the film's appropriateness for yourself or anyone else in your home, you may want to look more closely at our detailed listings for more specific information regarding the film's content. For those prone to visually induced motion sickness, there's some bouncy handheld camerawork in the film. ALCOHOL OR DRUG USE One player calls Reggie and tells him to buy some beer, but a coach stops the call. However, we later see Reggie carrying a case of beer when he gets news of the plane crash. Red tells someone to grab him a beer back home. About his welcome to the community, Jack mentions finding (among other things) a 6-pack of beer in the fridge, and he's thankful for that. One new player bring a case of beer into his dormitory room. One player opens a beer in the dorm room, everyone stares at him, and he then throws one to Reggie who opens and drinks his, followed by the rest doing the same (we later see additional drinking, more beer is brought in, and then a view of most of them asleep or passed out). BLOOD/GORE Using an analogy about there being a first time for everything, Jack says that his young son "crapped" his pants yesterday and that he (Jack) cleaned him up. Nate remembers "puking my guts out" back in freshman year football practice (not seen, just referenced). DISRESPECTFUL/BAD ATTITUDE Some viewers may see the decision to rebuild the football program so soon after the crash to be disrespectful (some characters in the film feel that way). Some players on Marshall briefly scuffle in the locker room. Two players on Marshall scuffle on the field during practice. One of them is Nate who knocks down a player after a play is done, prompting Red to be mad and knock him down. Some viewers might find Jack's motivational speech at the cemetery where former players are buried as being in bad taste (it isn't disrespectful, just opportunistic to a degree). FRIGHTENING SCENES During the flight back home from an away game, the team, coaching staff and others seem fine, despite a thunderstorm outside. Suddenly, there's a flash of light, a sudden violent jolt, and the screen then goes black (representing the fateful point of impact for the plane). We then see various people in the town getting word of the crash and then racing to the crash site in the woods at night. Firefighters are there at the burning wreckage, and we see several views of that, but none of any bodies. We later hear that 75 people perished in the crash. We see a body bag being carried away from the crash site, and then a funeral scene where three closed caskets are at the service. We hear (in the whatever happened to bit at the end of the film) that a player died in 2001 and was then buried with his former teammates from the crash. During the end credits, we see footage and a still photograph from the real crash site aftermath. GUNS/WEAPONS We see Clint Eastwood's title character holding a machine gun in the movie "Kelly's Heroes" (seen in a movie theater). IMITATIVE BEHAVIOR Phrases: "He shouldn't be doing that sh*t anymore," "Head slap the sh*t out of him," "Bullsh*t," "Whatever the hell you do," "A hell of a game," "Puking my guts out" "I know damn well," "A hell of a hit," "Hell no," "What the hell's the matter with you?" "Pissed off," "What the hell are we doing out there?" "A hell of a running back," "You can bet your ass" and "Get your ass to the line." Jack's kids pile on him for fun. Jack playfully opens his mouth with cereal in it to amuse his kids. In football pads and wearing a helmet, one of Jack's young sons runs into a tree and knocks himself to the ground, but is okay. A miscellaneous man spits. JUMP SCENES There's a sudden flash of light and a violent jolt on a plane in flight. MUSIC (SCARY/TENSE) Some dramatic music plays during a football game. MUSIC (INAPPROPRIATE) None. PROFANITY At least 7 "s" words, 10 hells, 5 damns, 3 asses, 2 versions of crap, 2 uses of "Oh my God" and 1 use each of "G-damn" (with another incomplete one), "Jesus" and "My God." SEX/NUDITY The camera focuses on Annie's butt in her waitress skirt, representing a guy's point of view as he's interested in her. SMOKING None. TENSE FAMILY SCENES Various townspeople grieve over family members killed in the crash, while Red's wife is happy when she sees he's alive, thinking he had also perished in the crash. A football announcer's young son grieves over his father's death in the crash. At his son's funeral, we also see that Paul's wife died three years earlier (we see her gravestone). For all of the film (shown in various scenes) he grieves over his son. Annie grieves over her dead fiancé, and thinks she should return the engagement ring to Paul, but he tells her to keep it to remind her of him. Her grief continues throughout the film. TOPICS TO TALK ABOUT The film's historical accuracy and/or artistic license taken with the true story. Whether and when the football program should have been resumed. Dealing with grief and/or guilt of having barely avoided tragedy. The odds of being in a plane crash (for those worried about such matters). Close-knit, small town universities. The NCAA rules at the time that underclassmen couldn't play in the football games. The former head coach's comment that the only thing people remember about teams is whether they win, not how they play the game. The comment that there's a first thing for everything. Red also feels guilt because he recruited the kids for the football team, and told their mothers he'd watch over them (but they perished in the plane crash). Jack's comment that what matters is that they play the game and keep the football program alive (rather than the focus being on winning). VIOLENCE During the flight back home from an away game, the team, coaching staff and others seem fine, despite a thunderstorm outside. Suddenly, there's a flash of light, a sudden violent jolt, and the screen then goes black (representing the fateful point of impact for the plane). We then see various people in the town getting word of the crash and then racing to the crash site in the woods at night. Firefighters are there at the burning wreckage, and we see several views of that, but none of any bodies. We later hear that 75 people perished in the crash. There's standard football contact during a game, with Nate being hurt during a play. Another player lands hard after being hit hard. Some players on Marshall briefly scuffle in the locker room. Two players on Marshall scuffle on the field during practice. One of them is Nate who knocks down a player after a play is done, prompting Red to be mad and knock him down. Jack twice slaps Nate's shoulder to prove it's not okay for him to play and take hits there. There's standard hard football contact in another game, with Nate injuring his shoulder again. Reviewed December 18, 2006 / Posted December 22, 2006