Together Magazine - DVD reviews by Josh Banks
American football - not the most popular sport in the UK but one which is on the rise. That’s why I believe this movie has been released at just the right time. In 1973, newly integrated Woodlawn High School in Birmingham, Alabama, had its fi rst black football player, Tony Nathan, a gifted running back. Hank Erwin, a sports chaplain connected with the Fellowship of Christian Athletes, shows up and asks Coach Gerelds for time to speak to the team. Gerelds agrees, and when he returns to the gym an hour later, Hank is still there and has miraculously converted nearly the entire team to evangelical Christianity. A gripping storyline the whole way through with themes of race, the affect God can have and the sense of family that comes when a group of Christians come together. Overall it is an inspiring and well-constructed telling of a young man’s life journey, and those connected to him. Chaplain Hank’s line, “This is what happens when God shows up,” is really the overall theme of the fi lm. It makes the movie even better to know it is based on a true story. I believe this will be a great seller, and even though I would say it is more aimed towards younger viewers, everyone will enjoy it. It is one of the best Christian movies I have watched in a while.