Sam Rockwell (“Iron Man 2”, “G-Force”) stars in this comedy about basketball which was originally shown at Sundance in 2009, was released in a few theaters this summer, and also on Pay Per View and Video on Demand.
Rockwell plays Bill, a former successful basketball player who is now divorced and working as a busboy in a restaurant. The principal of the local high school (Rob Corddry) asks Bill to coach the girls basketball team.
Bill agrees, but immediately finds coaching girls is not easy. He hires the teams’ bus driver, a woman, to be his assistant coach, and slowly the team starts winning some games. However, Bill also has to deal with issues in his personal life, including trying to get along with his daughter and a drinking problem. Can the team come together, have a winning season and maybe win a championship?
The first hour or so of “The Winning Season” is very good. Rockwell’s performance as an unfriendly coach is excellent and there are several laugh- out-loud hilarious scenes. We also get to know the girls on the team. Emma Roberts and “The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo” Rooney Mara play two of the players.
But in the second half of the film things get a little too serious as the story deals too much with the coach’s personal problems. Plus there’s a storyline involving one of the girls and the assistant coach that also adds to the drama, turning this comedy into a “dramedy”.
The performances are solid, and the basketball scenes are believable, though I wish there were more practice scenes, which are a lot more fun, than the game action.
“The Winning Season” is rated PG-13 for the adult themes and situations, and some language. It’s appropriate for the teen and above crowd.
On “The Official Kid Critic Report Card”, “The Winning Season” gets a C+. I was a little disappointed, especially after the great start, but it’s still worth checking-out.