I love dramatic reenactment — skits, plays and, of course, movies. My love most likely stems from the creative side of me. You see, when I watch a movie, I always want to see, hear, feel and smell what the writer and director are trying to convey. And, I want to be “in” the story. There is nothing more impressive than a well constructed and sonorously conveyed tale.

However, I have an affinity for sports. And, when someone writes a book or makes a movie about sports, I really want to have a “true-to-life” experience. Have you seen “Hoosiers”? If you haven’t, it’s awesome. It is a very closely accurate depiction of the basketball craze here in Indiana. “Hoosiers” is a great example of “making a movie, that depicts the reality of the subject.”

What am I saying? Well, I hate watching movies that completely abandon the "true" story at hand. For example, I just finished watching “Glory Road” (a movie about the all-black Texas Western college basketball championship team in 1966). It is absolutely a monumental story, but “Disney” (like in other movies), almost makes me believe that the story they tell, is well, fiction. “Glory Road” is a good movie, based on an excellent story. The story absolutely carries the movie, and the ridiculous amount of B.S. — like the fake “can’t we all just get along” crap they feed you in the movie — only detracts from the real subject, which is tolerance and acceptance. Why can’t they just tell it like it was? This “reshaping” of history only clouds the true theme, which was racial integration within college basketball.

This movie reminded me of “Miracle” (the Disney movie based on the 1980 USA hockey team victory over the USSR). Almost exactly, the theme was, “the great underdog.” I love the underdog. But, how many movies can be made with the same “cookie-cutter” script? The worst part was that, in both movies, the “game-play announcement” sounded SOOO fake, that it made it hard for me to attach myself to the story. It sounded like a home video, with a bad actor, doing a book-read overdub…well, it sucked. And, the commentary (in both instances) seemed more like modern day vernacular than what would be expected for the times of the movies. One last thing…how in the world does hip-hop music fit into a movie based in 1965-66?

I absotively, posilutely LOVE a good movie, but give me a break. There is nothing worse than taking an incredible story and “transforming” it into a mediocre movie. Disney, you suck!!