The new coach, Bill (Sam Rockwell), is a drunk who is currently busy busing tables at the local restaurant. He’s divorced and barely gets to see his teenage girl once a week. He takes the coaching job mostly because he doesn’t have anything else going on in his life.
The new team only has five healthy players and one with a broken foot. However, over the next few montages, Bill shapes them into some sort of a team that can compete with the other local high schools. But The Winning Season really isn’t about winning or basketball.
I recently saw Big Fan up here at Sundance and explained how Paul was the most sad and pathetic character ever created. Well, Bill is right up there with Paul in the pathetic department, but the difference is Bill has some redeemable value. His character undergoes change, not only with helping the basketball team, but helping to better his life in the process.He becomes a better human being. He treats his family and people around him better, and maybe even more importantly he treats himself better.
The acting by the young girls is another bright spot in the film. Emma Roberts is brilliant as Abby, the leader of the team. She holds her own with her one-on-one scenes with Rockwell. Their banter with each other is humorous and real.
I liked that Winning Season found a new way to tell a very old story. It works. It’s delightful to watch.
Peter and Vandy
I don’t know how it happened, but Sundance picked up the same movie twice, just under a different name. Just like 500 Days of Summer, Peter and Vandy tells the story of a relationship. The movie jumps back
and forth in time showing us the good, the bad, and the awful. The characters look back on their relationship with each other and try to decide if they were ever in love.
I couldn’t believe how extremely similar these two movies were, but just in case you thought I was going to give Peter and Vandy a bad review think again.
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