Movie Review: The Express

By now most folks should know that football is a religion in some parts of the United States. College sports are hugely successful down south and The Express fleshes out the story of a young man who could. Director Gary Fleder (Runaway Jury) succeeds in returning us to the turbulent sixties when we chart the rise of black athletic student Ernie Davis.
Fresh from the sticks early on we see the difficulty Davis faced when growing up as a black youth. Raised by a loving family Davis gets relocated to a town in New York where he continues to run and play football. All that high school work paid off when he got drafted by Syracuse University.
Once in the big leagues we get to see how Davis adapts to the learning curve of famed coach Ben Schwartzwalder. Racial tensions play a huge role in shaping this young man’s life and we are put front and center into the bigotry and intolerance that ran roughshod over minorities during those turbulent years.
Excellent on the field footage meshes well with the constant chaos in the background to showcase a wondrous athletic career. Rob Brown (Coach Carter) turns in a brilliant portrayal of a one of a kind running back with Dennis Quaid (Vantage Point) every bit his equal as the no-nonsense coach. Solid performances by Darrin Dewitt Henson (Stomp the Yard) as Jim Brown and Charles S. Dutton (Seven) as Davis’s dad further highlight this terrific 130 minute trip down memory lane.
Whether you like football or not you won’t help from getting caught up in this meteoric athlete’s rise to the top with unbelievable hurtles thrown in his path.
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