The Express (2008)

Director:

Gary Fleder

Writers (WGA):

Charles Leavitt (written by)
Robert Gallagher (book)

Release Date:

10 October 2008 (USA)

Genre:

Biography | Drama | Sport

Plot:

A drama based on the life of college football hero Ernie Davis, the first African-American to win the Heisman Trophy.

Plot Keywords:

African American | Coach | Syracuse University | American Football | Student Athlete

Awards:

1 win & 1 nomination

Cast

Rob Brown	...	Ernie Davis
Dennis Quaid	...	Ben Schwartzwalder
Darrin Dewitt Henson	...	Jim Brown
Omar Benson Miller	...	Jack Buckley
Nelsan Ellis	...	Will Davis, Jr.
Charles S. Dutton	...	Willie 'Pops' Davis
Justin Martin	...	Young Ernie Davis
Justin Jones	...	Young Will
Nicole Beharie	...	Sarah Ward
Aunjanue Ellis	...	Marie Davis
Elizabeth Shivers	...	Elizabeth Davis
Clancy Brown	...	Roy Simmons Sr.
Danny McCarthy	...	Bill Bell
Regina Hoyles	...	Sister
Chelcie Ross	...	Lew Andreas

Also Known As:

The Express: The Ernie Davis Story (USA) (promotional title)

MPAA:

Rated PG for thematic content, violence and language involving racism, and for brief sensuality. (edited from PG-13 version)

Runtime:

130 min

Country:

USA | Germany

Language:

English

Color:

Color (Technicolor) | Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Sound Mix:

SDDS | DTS | Dolby Digital

Certification:

USA:PG (certificate #43975) | Singapore:PG | Argentina:Atp | New Zealand:PG | Australia:PG

Filming Locations:

Berwyn, Illinois, USA

Company:

Davis Entertainment

Trivia:

While taking his Cleveland Brown's physical, the doctor feels Ernie's neck and asks him if has not been feeling well. Swollen lymph glands on the neck are a symptom of Leukemia.

Goofs:

Anachronisms: When Davis first walks into the Syracuse stadium, the goal posts are at the back of the end zone. In reality, in the 1950s the goal posts would be on the goal line. They were moved to the back of the end zone in the 1970s.

Quotes:

Ben Schwartzwalder: I won't tell him he'll be the next Ernie Davis, because there'll never be another Ernie Davis.

Movie Connections:

References The Moon Is Blue (1953)

Soundtrack:

Hound Dog

Based on real events?

Ernie Davis was the running back for the Syracuse Orangemen in the late 1950's and was the first African-American to win the Heisman trophy. Tragically, he died of leukemia in 1963.

This is a good story. As far as I know, Ernie Davis was a class act, a man of good character. The acting in this film is fine. But...

First, the editing. During the game, the show Davis' feet, then the number on his jersey, then fans in the stand, then his whole body, then a shot of the coach, etc. What happened to the long take? Why must film makers resort to MTV style quick cuts? A good example of this technique is when Dennis Quaid is giving the rousing half time speech. There are two distinct cuts while he's speaking. Can't Mr. Quaid remember the whole speech? Is that why they cut it? Or is this some stylistic device, making the movie look "cool"? When I was growing up, some movies had the tag line "based on a true story". I understood that the screenwriters weren't actually in the rooms where the real characters spoke, so they had to make up lines for them.

But lately the tag lines have changed to "inspired by a true story". OK, so there's more dramatic latitude.

But this film says "inspired by real events". What does that mean? I'm guessing that in one game Mr. Davis scored a touchdown, and in another game the score was 24-10, and the writers "blended" these "real events" into one football game. Isn't Mr. Davis' story dramatic and interesting enough that they didn't have to do this? It's like taking two, isolated events and writing a story that connects them both. Let's see, man landed on the moon July 20, 1969 and Obama won the election in 2008. Let's see if we can somehow connect these two "real events" and making a film out of it.

Mr. Davis' story is inspiring and wonderful. The film makers should be ashamed for mishandling it.