FRIDAY NIGHT LIGHTS

Rated PG-13 (for thematic issues, sexual content, language, some teen drinking, and rough sports action). 117 minutes. Directed by Peter Berg.

The year is 1988, and the residents of Odessa, Texas, are crazy about their high school football team. Not just crazy – they’ve practically elevated this sport to a religion. Stores shut down on Friday nights so owners can cheer on the team, and the economically troubled town is obsessed with going to the state championship.

It’s all up to Coach Gary Gaines (Billy Bob Thornton), who must endure a stream of comments and criticism from the town’s residents everywhere he goes. But it’s just a game, right? Not for these folks, who are staking their future on a bunch of young teenagers – the Permian High Panthers – who are expected to be perfect, despite their own problems. 

But Coach Gaines has a different view of perfection. “Being perfect is about being able to look your friends in the eye and know that you didn’t let them down,” he says. “I want you to put each other in your hearts forever, because forever is about to happen. Can you live in that moment as best you can, with clear eyes, with love and joy in your heart? If you can do that, then you’re perfect.”

Based on a true story (“Friday Night Lights: A Town, a Team, and a Dream” by H. G. Bissinger), this movie makes you realize what goes into those Friday night football games and the pressures everyone feels to do their best. But it goes beyond that into what’s truly important.

WHAT I LIKED: This movie is all about human emotion, and that’s especially true of Thornton’s portrayal of Coach Gaines. Watching him, you really believe he’s giving the team all he’s got, but also trying to teach them that football isn’t everything. Another stand-out is country music star Tim McGraw, an alcoholic father who can’t let go of the past and still wears his football ring from the Odessa championship 20 years ago. He slaps his son Don (Garrett Hedlund) around and spews verbal abuse on him, even walking onto the field to chew him out at one point.

Derek Luke (who starred in “Antwone Fisher”) and Lucas Black (who played the boy in “Sling Blade”) act their heads off in this movie. The camera shots are also superb; you feel every blow these kids take on the field, and at the end, you’ll be out of your seat cheering for them.

WHAT I DIDN’T LIKE: Why must every high school sports movie come down to the last play in the state finals? I guess because that’s what stirs audiences. Predictable, but it works.

THE WRAP-UP: Touchdown! You’ll love this movie, even if you’ve never played high school sports. Strong performances and three-dimensional characters make this movie a winner. 

SCORE: 4 out of 4 Reels.

Jane's Reel Rating System:

One Reel – Pathetic. Even The Force can’t save it.

Two Reels – Tolerable. Coulda been a contender.

Three Reels – Pleasant. Something to talk about.

Four Reels – Wow! The stuff dreams are made of.

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