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 1 of 4

Friday Night Lights Our rating: Your rating: 1 2 3 4 Your Comments: see all MPAA rating: PG-13 (for thematic issues, sexual content, language, some teen drinking and rough sports action) Theater release: October 08, 2004 by Universal Pictures Directed by: Peter Berg Runtime: 1 hour 57 minutes Cast: Billy Bob Thornton (Coach Gary Gaines), Tim McGraw (Charlie Billingsley), Derek Luke (Boobie Miles), Lucas Black (Mike Winchell), Lee Thompson Young (Chris Comer), Lee Jackson (Ivory Christian) Related: Talk About It/Family Corner

As a former sportswriter, I've walked the sidelines of about 200 high school football games. I've been in locker rooms and weight rooms and press boxes high above the field. I've been to booster club meetings and season-ending award banquets. I've gotten to know dozens of coaches and hundreds of players.

I've seen the game about closely as an "outsider" can see it. I've seen it in schools where football was just a way to pass the time till basketball season. And I've seen it in schools where football is practically a way of life, where 10,000 people regularly turn out for games, where being on the team is sort of a badge of honor and a ticket to big-time status—not just in the halls, but in the community. I've been in places where more people could tell you the name of the high school quarterback than the name of the mayor.

Billy Bob Thornton turns in a stellar performance as Coach Gary Gaines

So it was in Florida, where winning was … important. Notice I didn't say everything. Students and coaches felt pressure—much from within, some from the community—to win, but it wasn't everything.

That's apparently not the case at football-mad Permian High School in Odessa, Texas—at least according to Friday Night Lights, the latest film from Oscar-winning producer Brian Glazer. At Permian, winning is everything, and this movie portrays that loud and clear. The film, directed by Peter Berg, is based on the critically acclaimed book of the same title by Pulitzer Prize-winning author H. G. Bissinger. The book and film chronicle the 1988 season at Permian, one of the nation's top high school football programs.

Let me begin by saying that this is one of the best—if not the best—sports movies I've ever seen. It's extremely well done on all fronts—emotive acting, convincing (though sometimes overdone) plays on the field, terrific cinematography, snappy editing and sensitive direction. You'll feel like you're a part of the film—on the field, in the locker room, on the sidelines. You'll get attached to the characters, flaws and all. You'll get caught up in the excitement. But don't misread me: While there are certainly moments where you'll find yourself cheering for the home team, this is not really a "feel-good" sports movie. It's intense, it's in your face, and parts of it are gut-wrenchingly difficult to watch (more on that later). If you want a feel-good movie about high school football, check out Remember the Titans, also one of my favorites.

Lucas Black is the star quarterback…with the weight of the world on his shoulders

When it comes to football, Odessa might well be called "Obsessa." The town is obsessed—sometimes in quite unhealthy ways—with its beloved Permian Panthers and their battle cry of "Mojo!" They consistently fill up the school's 20,000-seat stadium. (Yes, you read that right: A high school football stadium for twenty thousand.) If you cruise the downtown streets on a Friday evening, you'll find all the businesses closed, with "Gone to Game" signs in the windows. Everybody—parents, faculty, businessmen, the booster club, and even the local cop who asks, "You boys gonna win this week?"—is caught up in the madness … and the obsessive desire to win at almost any cost.

And it all falls upon the shoulders of a few dozen teenagers who put on the pads every week.

The intense pressure is captured perfectly in one scene, where a couple of players are skeet-shooting out in a field the day after a loss: "We gotta lighten up," says one. "We're 17." His teammate, the quarterback shouldering the heaviest burden and highest expectations, replies, "Do you feel 17? I don't feel 17."

Indeed, the adults—including the football coaches—seem to want these boys to grow up too fast, too furious, to carry more responsibility than a 17-year-old should. Quarterback Mike Winchell (Lucas Black), for example, is concerned about his mother's failing mental health, but Coach Gary Gaines (Billy Bob Thornton) tells Mike he has to look out for himself, and that when he does, "You're going to seriously fly, son." My goodness, the kid's not only expected to lead his team to victories, but to neglect his mother too?

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