The film, “Hoosiers,” is predictable. It shares a storyline with so many other sports themed movies. The film’s story basically revolves around a small town high school basketball team who moves up from being losers to being state champions. There have been numerous films that portray the underdog. So many have told stories of how losing teams, with the help of a new coach, first encounter struggles and obstacles, before reaching their ultimate goal. Most of these movies show the team or the person triumph at the end. Despite its predictability, “Hoosiers” still tells an interesting tale.
Its common storyline does not make it any less of a film for it should be viewed as a story of life and people. It should not be seen merely as a sports film. The lessons that are to be learned from the film are lessons that apply to everyone, not just athletes. One important lesson that emerges from the film is that everyone has a second chance. Mistakes should not hinder people from changing their ways for the better. Every character in the story put their second chances to good use. For instance, Shooter, the town’s drunkard who used to be the town’s hero, took advantage of the chance that Coach Dale gave him.
Yes, he failed to live up to his end of the deal, which was to come to every game on time and sober, but he used the opportunity to realize his mistakes. It was the chance that Coach Dale gave him that drove him to seek treatment. Coach Dale’s job with the Hoosiers is also his second chance. Having been banned from coaching college basketball, Coach Dale took on the Hoosiers’ coaching job to prove everyone wrong. It was his second chance. Another important lesson that the film teaches is that people need to set aside individual differences for the sake of a greater cause.
Personal sacrifices have to be made in order to reach a higher goal. In the film, the town’s star basketball player, Jimmy Chitwood initially refused to play for the team with Coach Dale at the helm. Chitwood was the previous coach’s star player. However, one conversation between Chitwood and Dale made Chitwood realize that what Coach Dale was trying to do was for the town’s benefit and no one else. In this conversation, Dale said, “I can tell you this. I don’t care if you play on the team or not… You got a special talent, a gift.
Not the school’s, not the townspeople, not the team’s, not Myra Fleenor’s, not mine. It’s yours. ” In this conversation, Dale is actually implying that Chitwood should use his talent for the sake of the town. It was his way of reaching out to Chitwood and extending a hand of truce so that they could work together towards a united goal, bringing basketball glory to the town. Probably, the most vital lesson in the film is that history should not dictate how one’s life goes. Even if history says that something is impossible, this should not stop anyone from working towards a goal.
The Hoosiers basketball team was doomed a failure from the very beginning. Since they came from a small town and a small school, no one gave them any chance of winning the state championship. No one even noticed them. However, through hard work and with the support of the whole town, the team proved all their critics wrong. More importantly, they showed that the past should not always be the basis for how things will happen. They won against all odds. This lesson can probably be best stated by quoting a line from a famous sporting brand’s commercial, “Impossible is Nothing. ”