Coach Carter (2005)
Tomatometer
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Reviews Counted:141
Fresh:90
Rotten:51
Average Rating:6/10
Consensus: Like a good point guard, Samuel L. Jackson is the clear leader on the floor in a film that critics say transcends its formula trappings to be inspirational. However, some have said the film is too preachy and too long.
Theatrical Release:25-02-2005
Synopsis: In the tradition of LEAN ON ME and DANGEROUS MINDS comes COACH CARTER, an inspirational drama starring Samuel L. Jackson. Jackson portrays real-life figure Ken Carter, who graduated from... [More]
Starring: Samuel L. Jackson, Robert Ri'chard, Rob Brown, Debbi Morgan
Director: Thomas Carter
Reviews for Coach Carter
| Tomatometer | Critic | Review | Category |
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A worthy addition to familiar triumph-of-the-underdog stories. Full Review |
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 3/5 |
On paper a routine sports yarn. On screen, thanks to Jackson refusing to phone it in, far more satisfying than you might expect. Full Review |
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Although this is an inspirational genre pic that pushes all the requisite buttons throughout, you can’t help but feel that rather than benching the team, director Thomas Carter should have benched a few of those ham-fisted sporting clichés instead. Full Review |
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3/5 |
[Jackson] is, of course, born to shout things at teenagers on basketball courts and he delivers all the time-honoured usual speeches with his customary brilliance Full Review |
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3/5 |
Over long and deeply manipulative, Coach Carter should nonetheless be praised for its far-from-fashionable celebration of personal advancement through academic achievement. Full Review |
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2.5/5 |
Entertaining ... but you do wish they'd tell the tale without funnelling it through Hollywood's inspirational movie assembly line. Full Review |
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B- |
Samuel Jackson returns to form behind a long string of disappointing performances as an ethically minded basketball coach at a tough inner city high school in Richmond, California. Full Review |
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While the film is over the top at times, Coach Carter has a big heart that doesn't shy away from challenging the American education system. Full Review |
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How terribly ironic that the story of an educator who dared to challenge the mental capacity of his students can produce a film that so shamelessly spoon-feeds its audience. Full Review |
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74/100 |
By making the choices the filmmakers did here, we get a movie that may not be profound, but it's both highly entertaining for its sports and fascinating for its social issues. Full Review |
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7/10 |
...the movie is more concerned with the characters than with the sport. So it's a movie for anyone to enjoy. Full Review |
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Click to read the article Full Review |
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Click to read the article Full Review |
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3/5 |
Click to read the article Full Review |
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This is supposed to be about setting high standards, yet it's full of fudged ultimatums; in the end I couldn't be sure whether its morality was complex or just confused. Full Review |
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There's a kick butt performance from Samuel Jackson, the master of the take-no-prisoners motormouth school of acting, even if it is only a high school gym. Full Review |
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Far from groundbreaking--in fact, it doesn't have an original bone in its body--but as inspirational sports movies go, it's not half-bad. Full Review |
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Samuel L. Jackson shouts, yells, bellows, and screams his way through the fact-inspired film Full Review |
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3/4 |
Its main flaws are an overabundance of sports-movie clichés and hackneyed phrases, but at least the final game doesn't have a predictable ending; I'll give it that much. Full Review |
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3.5/5 |
Cinematographer Sharon Meir and film editor Peter Berger brilliantly capture the magic, thrills and extraordinary talent of the fear-inspired players, putting their hearts and souls into the game. Full Review |
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