100 Weddings Review
by Steve Rhodes (Steve DOT Rhodes AT InternetReviews DOT com)March 8th, 2004
1
A film review by Steve Rhodes
Copyright 2004 Steve Rhodes
RATING (0 TO ****): ** 1/2
Tim O'Hara's documentary 1 is about the 2002 season of the number one high school football team in America, De La Salle, a Catholic high school team in Concord, California that hasn't lost a single game in a dozen years. The team's record is nothing short of incredible. I wish I could say the same of the movie, but I can't. It's certainly no GO TIGERS!, which remains the gold standard for documentaries about high school football, telling about another legendary winner -- the Tigers from Massillon, Ohio.
O'Hara's film is filled with heart. The laid-back community loves the team. The players, coaches, fathers and mothers give testimonial after testimonial as to the players' dedication to athletics, community, spirituality and education. The movie is utterly controversy free. If someone had stolen the school's mascot -- actually, I'm not sure if they had one -- it would have been the dramatic high point of the picture.
The team is so good that the coach complains about their performance when they win one game by just twenty-four to nothing. Their record isn't so strong just because of weak opponents. In several games in which they play equally ranked and much larger opponents in nationally televised championship games, they still annihilate the opposing team.
It isn't fiery speeches that inspire them to greatness. Head Coach Bob Ladouceur, who has been there for the entire winning streak, likes to "charge" his team in a low-key voice to "have fun tonight," before sending them onto the field. He possesses a quiet confidence that is impressive. In the interviews, all of the coaches and the administration play down the team's winning record as any indication of the quality of the team, although no one ever suggests a better metric.
The movie opens with a written quote from one of the assistant coaches. "There is no story," he claims. If there is one, the filmmakers had trouble finding it. After hints throughout the narrative that the winning secret was the power of prayer, the real secret sauce is finally revealed, rather nonchalantly, almost at the end. Although the team doesn't recruit players, the best players are free to apply there, and once the school's winning tradition became obvious, would-be excellent players did start applying. This begs the question of to what extent this is the answer to their success, but the film provides no statistics about the number of students who joined the school just for the chance to be on the team. The numbers may be significant, but they could trivial. The film leaves you with a lot to ponder in these unasked questions.
It also leaves you wondering if everything there could be as perfect as it seems. If it is, more power to them. They are very fortunate indeed.
1 runs 1:29. It is not rated but would be PG-13 for some language and would be acceptable for kids around 8 and up.
The film is being shown as part of San Jose's Cinequest Film Festival (www.Cinequest.org), which runs March 3-14, 2004.
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Originally posted in the rec.arts.movies.reviews newsgroup. Copyright belongs to original author unless otherwise stated. We take no responsibilities nor do we endorse the contents of this review.
