I first saw Hoosiers decades ago. I don't remember whether it was on TV or in the theater. I watched it again a few months ago on TV in a version edited to fit a time slot. I didn't realize how much had been removed from the original version until i saw it yesterday on TCM. They must have removed 15 minutes. Anyway, I like the movie but anyone who really knows basketball will shake their head in agony. I am referring mostly to the concept of an offense that demands "four passes before anyone shoots". It was a plot ploy to make the coach, played by Gene Hackman, the ironclad commander of the team that no one dare disobey. Such a strategy would result in forgoing scoring chances not to mention that with every pass there is an element of risk. How about a realistic plot ploy such as one player must remain ready to stop any opposition fast-break?
Okay, enough of that complaint. My only other complaint is that the Gene Hackman character was too old for the Barbara Hershey character. This is a complaint that comes out of me more than it would most movie-watchers. Bogey characters were too old for Bacall characters and also the Ingred Bergman character in Casablanca. Gary Cooper's marshal in High Noon was too old for Grace Kelly's character. You'd think I'd be used to it. Actually, it's a relatively new complain of mine.
Anyhow, I liked how Hoosiers brought in the drunken father into the plot and how he was rehabilitated mostly by the coach. I like the way the schoolteacher (Hershey) was finally able to see the worth of both sports, and the worth of the sport's coach (Hackman). And I like the early 1950s setting of the movie. It is a bygone era, perfect for the sentimentality at the film's conclusion.
Okay, enough of that complaint. My only other complaint is that the Gene Hackman character was too old for the Barbara Hershey character. This is a complaint that comes out of me more than it would most movie-watchers. Bogey characters were too old for Bacall characters and also the Ingred Bergman character in Casablanca. Gary Cooper's marshal in High Noon was too old for Grace Kelly's character. You'd think I'd be used to it. Actually, it's a relatively new complain of mine.
Anyhow, I liked how Hoosiers brought in the drunken father into the plot and how he was rehabilitated mostly by the coach. I like the way the schoolteacher (Hershey) was finally able to see the worth of both sports, and the worth of the sport's coach (Hackman). And I like the early 1950s setting of the movie. It is a bygone era, perfect for the sentimentality at the film's conclusion.