[.ca] Hoosiers (Widescreen) (ISBN 6304675798)

From Amazon.com:
One of the most rousingly enjoyable sports movies ever made, this small-town drama tells the story of the Hickory Huskers, an underdog basketball team from a tiny Indiana high school that makes it all the way to the state championship tournament. It's a familiar story, but sensitive direction and a splendid screenplay helped make this one of the best films of 1986, highlighted by the superb performances of Gene Hackman as the Huskers' coach, and Oscar nominee Dennis Hopper as the alcoholic father of one of the team's key players. As the drama unfolds we come to realize that many of the characters (including Barbara Hershey as a schoolteacher with whom Hackman falls in love) are recovering from disappointing setbacks, and this depth of character is what makes the otherwise conventional basketball story so richly rewarding. Like Rocky, Rudy, and Breaking Away, this is a quintessentially American movie about beating the odds and rising above one's own limitations. Just try to watch it without cheering! --Jeff Shannon

This movie was BETTER than 5-stars.........:
One of my all time favorite films, and the one that got me into LOVING Gene Hackman. And excellent adventure of an ex College basketball coach filling in the shoes of a small town high school basketball coach. With simply amazing acting from Hackman, who made this role into his own. Based on a true story, this movie attemps to make us believe in a group of young men just trying to make something of themselves, and a coach with a last chance to succeed. Hackman carries the movie, with help from an excellent Supporting Cast. Barbara Hershey plays the lonely teacher who finds a place in the heart of the coach. Beautifully played by both actors. I would recommend this movie to any Hackman fans, or basketball fans. A touching film that doesn't dissapoint.

Hoosiers a real life story:
I lived in Milan,Indiana when this happened and if all that enjoyed the movie want the real story as told by Bobby Plump the hero just get the book "Bobby Plump Last of the small town heros" A wonderful film but a wonderful happening in real life..sort of the small guys winning over the big guys and who doesn't love that..

Great Sports Entertainment!:
Based on a true high school basketball Cinderella story that occurred in 1954 in Indiana, Hoosiers is a must- see film about a team of young men who are forced to adjust to a brand- new coach (played by Gene Hackman) who has been hired to lead the team following his own banishment from college basketball for physically hitting one of his players. The movie, set in rural Indiana in the early 1950's, starts out simply enough, with scenes of open fields and of Hackman driving into the small town and heading to the high school to meet with the principle and find out more about his new job. The plot of this film takes a few twists, but remains focused mostly on basketball. Hackman angers the basketball- crazy citizens of the town when he pulls some unusual coaching moves and loses the first two games of the season. He also raises some eyebrows when he hires the town drunk (played impeccably by Dennis Hopper, who received an Oscar nomination for his effort) as his assistant coach. Hackman makes this move to help Hopper gain confidence and get a new lease on life, but the locals think Hackman is too unorthodox for their tastes and they hold a town meeting to decide on whether or not to fire him from the job. Hackman survives and ultimately takes his team to the state finals and the championship game. Hoosiers features some great music and a heartwarming story line that will keep viewers rooting for the underdog team, Hackman's Hickory Hucksters, all the way to the end of the film. The movie works on just about every level, with great drama and chemistry between the characters. And the scenes on the basketball court keep the action moving at a fast pace, with an excellent score (Hoosiers was nominated for the Oscar for best music) that keeps you in suspense, even though you already know the outcome of the movie. The only thing I didn't care for in this movie was the love interest that develops between Hackman and one of the other co- stars, Barbara Hershey. It really doesn't have anything to do with the plot of the movie. I think the director included this to show some character development on the part of Hershey- a woman who is very skeptical and even a little insulting toward Hackman when he arrives at the school at the start of the movie. But the main theme of the film is basketball, and I think it would have been best if this "love" scene had been eliminated. As far as sports movies go, Hoosiers ranks among my favorites of all- time. I have viewed this movie dozens of times and it still never fails to satisfy. It's an excellent representation of the American dream: Hackman getting a new start in life and success following his ban from college coaching; Hopper getting a second chance in life to beat his problem with alcoholism; and the underdog Hickory Hucksters basketball team getting the chance of a lifetime to beat a much larger school. Hoosiers is one of those rare treats in modern cinema that works at most every level and holds your interest throughout, even when you know very well what is going to happen. It's great sports entertainment, and a must- see motion picture for fans of the game of basketball.

Come on Hickory Huskers Team!:
This film is a winner. David Anspaugh made the best film of basket in all the story of the american cinema. A script extremely simple but fullfilled with conviction, well written with unforgettable shots in the battle field. Gene Haxkman gives one of his most famous performances as the chief of the team. Dennis Hopper shows us why he was nominated in 1986 for this role as supporting actor. His performance is extraordinary. Hershey as always makes the perfect balance for Hackman showing his inner interpretative force. This film has been choosen as one of the classical film for management approachs ; togeteher with Tunes of glory, Moby Dick , The bridge over Kwai river and Lawrence of Arabia. So watch this; the film is much more than a famous fact in Indiana in 1952. It's a life lesson; the metaphor of David and Goliat is underlined. If you think carefully , this film is very close in what its epic actitude concerns with Seabiscuit, that pearl of David Ross , nominated recently as best movie by the Academy. Watch this movie and let this item be part of your DVD collection.

50 Years Later...and Still a Great Story:
How true-to-life is this immensely popular film? In an article written for ESPN Page 2, Jeff Merron notes a number of differences between the "real" story about a small Indiana high school which wins the state championship and the "reel" story which appears in the film directed by David Anspaugh, with Gene Hackman starring in a script written by Alvin Sargent. (The entire article can be accessed by visiting http://espn.go.com/page2/s/closer/020327.html.) The significant differences noted by Merron include these: "In real life, Milan High School didn't come out of nowhere. The Indians had made the state semifinals the previous season. In reel life: The team that wins the championship is Hickory High. In real life: The team that won the championship is Milan High. There is no town of Hickory in Indiana. In reel life: Hickory wins the title in 1952. In real life: Milan won the title in 1954. In reel life: The previous coach dies, which is a crucial part of the plot -- the team's star player, Jimmy, doesn't play part of the season because he's so upset. In real life: The previous coach, Herman "Snort" Grinstead, who Bobby Plump (the real-life hero) said in an ESPN chat was "the most popular coach in Milan's history," was fired for ordering new uniforms against the superintendent's orders. "In reel life: Coach Dale alienates just about everyone with his independence, and there is a town referendum on whether the school should keep Dale on as coach. In real life: Marvin Wood did face an uphill struggle, because he replaced Snort and changed both his offense and defense. But by the time the Milan Indians were playing their championship season, he had won the town over. In reel life: The assistant coach, "Shooter," (played by Dennis Hopper in an Oscar-nomination performance), is the town drunk and the father of one of the players. In real life: There was no assistant coach." These may be among the most significant differences between "real" and "reel" but invariably, certain liberties must be taken with historical material to increase and enhance the dramatic impact of a film based on (but not limited to) that material. In this instance, Anspaugh, screenwriters Pizzo and Sargent, Hackman, and their associates have a story to tell and they tell it very, very well. As always, Hackman is first-rate, as are Barbara Hershey in her role as the obligatory love interest (Myra Fleener) and Hopper as Shooter, a name so appropriate to the character that nothing more need be said. Yes, this is a "feel good" film among several (e.g. Rudy on which Anspaugh and Pizzo also collaborated later) which have been immensely popular. However, the film has crisp direction, an excellent cast, and a story line close enough to what really did happen in 1954. FYI, here are a few brief passages from the official Web site of Milan, Indiana: "Milan, Indiana, a quiet rural town in the southeastern part of the state, was the scene of one of the greatest basketball stories in history. The rise of the 1954 Milan basketball team actually started the preceding year. In 1953, the team went all the way to the final four only to be beaten in the semi-finals. Then the 1954 season arrived. "In a high school of 162 total students, 73 were boys. A young Marvin Wood was returning for his second year as coach, along with Marc Combs and Clarence Kelly. The core of the 1953 team also returned. From this came the David vs. Goliath championship story. "Although their accomplishments seem to have grown to almost mythical proportions as the story of the greatest underdog in sports' history throughout the years, there was a real team who lived a dream that came to life. Under the leadership of twenty-six year old coach Marvin Wood, the Indians began their rise to the top of the 751 teams entered in that year's tournament, with a record of 19-2. The mighty men of Milan then cruised through the state tournament relatively untested, until the final game against Muncie Central. The Indians were paced in scoring throughout the game by senior Ray Craft. However, Coach Wood's delay tactic game plan would place the ball in the trusty hands of another senior, Bobby Plump. "Bobby Gene Plump, who at-the-buzzer hit the shot that gave tiny Milan High School the 1954 state basketball championship over the Muncie Central Bearcats. Called 'the most famous shot in Indiana hoops history,' the real-life event became the basis for the fictionalized movie, Hoosiers. Milan beat Giant Muncie Central 32-30 in the final seconds of the game." Although Hoosiers may differ somewhat from what really happened in 1954, so what? Both the film's story and the Milan team's season affirm the same values which now seem so rare 50 years after Bobby Gene Plump's winning shot. Question: Why are no SPECIAL (rather than cheesy) Features provided with the DVD version? That is disgraceful!