Cuando fuimos campeones

I won't carry on forever but I should say that this film is something of a well-kept secret it seems. One thing about "little gems" like this one is that if you hype them too much they become something else. If you see this movie with expectations too high then you might be disappointed, if on the other hand you watch it expecting to see one of the best low key character dramas you've probably seen in a while then you'll feel rewarded. Ultimately this is a film driven by SIX great performances (that's one for every member of the ensemble and another by the director/writer Jason Miller). What is there to say, they were all flawless and not once did the writing sink into cliché or formula. For once it was just great to watch a movie where, personally, every time I thought I knew what would happen, my expectations were defied. I'm not talking about any, now all too popular; so-called clever twists but just subtle turns in unexpected directions. In other words this is truthful cinema at its best, unexpected in the way life often really is.

To say that 'That Championship Season' is simply an allegory for faith in God is far too reductionist when discussing a film that has this much to say. Of course the film could be read this way but I feel religious or political undertones are the in-essentials of this story. What is essential is the recognition of a little of ourselves in these characters that have been drawn so well, bitterness, regret, self-pity, greed, lust, bigotry but also love, sacrifice, forgiveness are all here in all characters and in more or less equal measure and depending on your point of view they have nothing to do with religion. In short no one in this movie seems constructed, they simply live and breath the way we all try to, the lesson if any is simply to admit to some or all of those qualities in ourselves and to try and live a little better.

Where would we be without mythology? Up the creek. Cultural anthropologists have a respectable amount of information available on about four thousand independent societies, and every one of them has an organized system of myths that explains, among other things, where we came from, how we got here, and what hold us together.

This movie is a kind of case illustration of how it all works. "That championship season" -- a time in the long past when a group of now overgrown high school kids under the tutelage of a coach of limited mental means but considerable moral stature guided them to the top. Well, it wasn't simply a season, according to this film, but their Garden of Eden, their Golden Age.

The entire underpinning of the film is an allegory regarding religious mythology. It mirrors current society in that the myth has become hoary and is beginning to show many cracks. Lord knows people are staying away from mainstream churches (and other ideologies, such as Marxism) in droves. "The boys" have turned into philanderers, drunks, and shady businessmen, and their solidarity is falling apart. None of them is noble in any way. At critical moments, it is the "coach" and their faith in him that holds them together. And when, after all the arguments and recriminations and name-calling, they stare at their meaningless trophy and hold hands in an empty gymnasium, the scene must touch the stoniest heart.

The trophy, and the coach who gave it to them, don't amount to very much -- a cheap piece of metal symbolizing little, and a man now grown older who dispenses clumsy advice like -- "Boys, don't lose your poise." It isn't much but they hang onto it for the simple reason that they have nothing else. It is their little myth, and there is no replacement for it. John Ford made a similar point in "Steamboat Round the Bend," but his story was more optimistic. Will Rogers comes to manage a steamboat with an exhibit of old wax statues of mythological figures and historical persons like Napoleon. There is a distinct absence of customers because no one cares about seeing a likeness of Hercules anymore. What does Will Rogers do? He throws out the old costumes and dresses them in new, more modern, more "reform" garments. Romulus and Remus become Frank and Jesse James, and so forth. In other words, when the old myths are worn out, you create new ones that attract people. Joseph Campbell would have approved.

But these boys are shackled to the past and lack such resources. The film is well played and has many dramatic moments -- and humorous ones too. The coach expounding on a professional athlete's achievements and referring to him as "a splendid (N word)." A failed attempt to bury an elephant (!). I thought this movie was excellently done. Miller did a fine job of directing his own play and opening it up. Mitchum effortlessly plays the naive and well-intentioned Mentor. He should have received more recognition for his talents than he did, though, to be sure, he walked through some parts and chose others badly. "That Championship Season" isn't shown on TV very often. Too bad. It ought to be seen.

If ever a play made a wonderful movie, than this is it. The characters were portrayed beautifully by the fine actors in the cast (excluding Robert Mitchum who I think seemed ill-prepared or something....I'm not quite sure why he wasn't right). I loved this movie for it's intense angles on life and it's often colorful, but at times very dark, humor. I thought Jason Miller did a fine job directing. The interaction between the "boys" (as the coach calls them) was at times pathetic and at other times very tender and dear. I come from a family of seven brothers and it kind of reminded me of how love can ebb and flow with so many undercurrents of anguish and hostility. I thought it was also interesting that it was filmed in Scranton (the director's home town). It had that real small town tone to it which was perfect for this movie. Too bad it never really received much attention. I think I read somewhere that when it opened, it was in competition with several other highly successful films. Great entertainment and quite thought provoking.

I went back to this after 25 years. I read an article about Robert Mitchum and it reminded me of his performance in That Championship Season, which wasn't even mentioned in the article. I bought it and re discovered 5 excellent acting performances. The best performance? Stacy Keach (James Daley). He is as pathetic as any self-disappointed middle aged man could get in his grandiosity and self pity. My favorite Character is Phil Romano, played by Paul Sorvino. Rich, degenerate, and one election away from financial ruin. In one of the first scenes, when the group shows up at the emergency City Council meeting to discuss a political disappointment, his swagger walking in and walking out of the room was elegant arrogance. The writing is superb, and the backdrop in economically depressed Scranton captured the atmosphere of Rustbelt economic desperation (which nicely parallels the personal and professional desperation of each of the characters) perfectly. Worth seeing.

Based on Jason Miller's Pulitzer Prize winning play, "Championship Season" succeeds in a department many stage adaptations often find insurmountable: the transition from boards to big screen. "Season's" die-hard critics cried foul when Miller presented his work with changes in original flow and format, forgetting how such blind loyalty to purity often trapped many good works into the category of 'too boring to watch.' Some of "Championship Season's" best moments, ironically, arrive in the first half hour when Miller went out and captured his hometown of Scranton, Pennsylvania at one of its most desperate times; the blue collar fabric of the community had eroded so dramatically during the 'oil glut' recession that the very face of the city was changing. As Miller's characters seem desperate to cling to their old ways, the deteriorating streets of Scranton reflect their struggle. Further criticism was levelled at the play's strong language; there's something to offend just about every race, sex and religion. Miller toned it down, slightly, again - an accurate depiction of the city's character. One need only to recite their address in Scranton for any resident to know their life's story. Italians live over there, Jews there, blacks there, the Irish over there, on and on. Scranton is an old city with an old fashioned, quiet system of segregation that may not be as unusual as we'd like to think. When the Coach talks about "as a race, can't trust 'em," remember - it isn't the playwright speaking, but rather an entire city being indicted. That said, "That Championship Season" can be an enjoyable and moving film experience - that is, for those who don't carry the baggage and prejudices of the past.