Respect

Back in 1964, Jim Ellis (Terrence Howard) tried to compete in Salisbury, N Carolina but he's not wanted as the only black competitor. Then it's 1973. All he can get is a job to close down a rec center from the Philadelphia Department of Recreation. He finds bitter maintenance guy Elston (Bernie Mac) and a rundown swimming pool. Sue Davis (Kimberly Elise) is the representative who is reluctantly closing down the unused center. When the city takes down the basketball rims, Jim teaches the kids to swim. It turns out that Sue Davis is the sister and guardian of one of the kids.

It's a simple formulaic sports movie. It adds in a splash of racism, a splash of poverty, and stirs it up in an unconventional black sport. Terrence Howard holds it all together. Bernie Mac could have done some damage with his clowning but it's in small doses. It's heart warming at the appropriate time. Tom Arnold may not have the weight to play the bad guy. However the movie follows the underdog formula and does a good job.

The fact that this movie has a 3.7 rating on IMDb is ridiculous. I don't see how somebody could not like this movie. Why is racism in early 70s Philadelphia unbelievable? How are Terrence Howard and Tom Arnold not good in this movie? Terrence Howard as Jim Ellis is one of the most inspirational coaches in any movie I've ever seen. The script is better than some people say and every character is believable-some more than others-but regardless. From the start of the movie all the way to the end I was glued to the TV. Who cares if the movie is "predictable": it's a TRUE story, OF COURSE IT'S PREDICTABLE. Some people are ridiculous. Anybody that gives this movie lower than 7 stars is obviously a complete moron. I'm giving this 10 stars because it damn well deserves it.

Anybody who reads this comments prior to seeing the movie, don't believe a word they say: they're all wrong.

I'm giving this movie a 5 out of 10. Sorry to those that think every movie that doesn't win an Oscar deserves less than a 3 on a scale of ten. But seriously, why can't people be honest or think rationally anymore? I don't care how much this movie lacked, whether in acting or script, the feeling that I felt leaving the theater may not have left me in complete satisfaction, but I felt happy and good inside. Is there something wrong with just feeling good now? I understand where the criticism comes from, which is why I don't rate this higher. The script was all over the place; sometimes you didn't know what was going on or why. Tom Arnold was more annoying to watch than anyone else, the fact that Mainline scheduled no-name recreation centers for their opponents sounds unbelievable, Franklin's so called gangster status was unconvincing (not to mention seeing what he did to pool was disgusting), and even Terrence Howard sounded way too corny at times. But COME ON! This isn't a 1.7 out of ten kind of movie. Bernie Mac was hilarious for the first time in a while, the setting and music was very accurate and good, and the swimming scenes were real and believable. People need to think about what they saw before giving movies such bad reviews. It doesn't matter how bad some of the recent movies have been, but there are about 10 movies from the last two years in the bottom 100 movies of all time! WHAT? Be honest. Give some of these movies a chance. And for some of those who are wondering, I'm white, so I'm not "defending by race" either. I think this movie is somewhat worth it, definitely watchable and, although I would not recommend this overly, I think that someone could get a lot out of this movie.

"... marathon swimming is the most difficult physical, intellectual and emotional battleground I have encountered, and each time I win, each time I touch the other shore, I feel worthy of any other challenge life has to offer." Diana Nyad

Pride is a cliché from the first frame to the end. But I can't change the truth on which these stereotypes were built. In 1974 Jim Ellis (Terrence Howard), a former swimmer now janitor, coaches a rag-tag, sand lot group of talented minorities from the Philadelphia Department of Recreation to state-wide championships in swimming by invoking PDR (pride, determination, resilience). Been there, done that in movies. Within the last year, several films were based on true stories told of coaches and players overcoming odds to become winners: Gridiron Gang, Glory Road, Coach Carter, and Invincible come to mind.

The difference from the usual fare is swimming, arguably not a strong sport for minorities. The real difference is Ellis, who slowly gains the trust of the lost young athletes at the local center. Ellis doesn't harangue like Bobby Knight or physically react like Woody Hayes; he just shows them how to swim precisely and focused while he also reinforces their need for education. Along the way, of course, is the hanging-about drug dealer/pimp with his alluring dollars and the nagging but attractive single mom, who reluctantly hooks up with Ellis.

All this usually formulaic film fiction-inspired-by-real events is made palatable by engaging actors and the spirit of this lovable coach, still working to this day, who never gave up on the students. Love and trust—sounds like an effective combo even for nations.

You've seen it all before, but you won't be bored because the truth about hard work and love is romantic and enduring.

I'm surprised by some of the comments here. I'm white, I went to see the movie this weekend, and I thought it was great.

Yes, there are some white characters that treat our heroes horribly. But that rang true for me. This was 1974 Philedelphia, after all. And racism is a horrid part of our past.

But all the characters, even our heroes, are flawed. And there are a couple African American characters who are more evil then any of the white characters are.

Furthermore, the entire point of the movie is that pride is something you have to earn. Before you can be proud of yourself, you have to earn it. This applies to everyone, no matter what your background.

Go see this movie for yourself and make up your own mind. Personally, I found it inspiring and well worth watching.