Carter High

Carter High is the true story of the powerhouse 1988 David W. Carter High School Football Team from Dallas, Texas. Growing up in Dallas a few years before this took place, this tragic story has always fascinated me. I have read countless articles from the Dallas Morning News, the segment within the Friday Night Lights book, as well as the book Carter Boyz by Gary Edwards, the player at the center of the grade controversy. I've always hoped ESPN would so a 30 for 30 segment on this tragic story, so I was thrilled when I heard it had been made into a feature film.

The film covers the grade controversy that began during the 1988 football season that eventually stripped them of their 5A State Championship title, as well as the armed robberies committed by several players just weeks after winning the State Title.

From the extensive articles I've ready on the subject, the movie did seemed pretty accurate. I was afraid it portray the team as nothing but ruthless thugs, but it showed them as just typical high school students. I was also afraid the film would try to make excuses or try to justify their actions in the armed robberies, but it did not.

It is a very powerful film that is a must-see for children and teens. It stresses the importance of making good decisions, distinguishing right from wrong and the ultimate consequences faced from bad decisions.

My only criticism of the movie was they didn't address the kids by name enough for the viewer to keep them all straight. With all I've read on the subject, even I couldn't keep up with who was who. However, I definitely recommend the movie.

May have been an interesting story in real life, but you wouldn't be able to tell from watching the movie. How did this ever become a movie? The story was impossible to follow. There was absolutely no backstory to any of the characters and no development of the plot. I've never seen a movie this bad.

Gee IDK. Hard to follow the story as there is no main character. We jump in and out of people's lives for no reason. At the halfway point, the movie seems over, but we still have to get to the reason for the sentencing from the opening scene. Uhhhh... quite a mess of a film. This should be remade, the original story it's based on is a good one.

This is a movie that everyone should see. Especially if you have preteen and teenage children. It is a true example of how one wrong decision can ultimately have a very lasting effect on your future.

Bravo to Arthur for telling the story of one of the greatest football teams in high school football and the eventual downfall of potentially great athletes who could have had Hall of Fame careers.

This picture is true and accurate. No sugar coating the true message Charles Dutton does a great job as Coach Freddie James. His words are hauntingly inspiring David Banner as Royce West is both convincing and powerful. Carter High is a hard lesson to learn, yet does a good job of adding in some elements of humor.

I totally understand the want to rate the film highly because the message the film is send. The filming was fine and it seems the actors do a good job. The problem is that the story is not told well. It feels really disconnected and jumpy. Others have compared it to Remember the Titans and Friday Night Lights I disagree. In those movies I felt a connection to each character and watched them grow or connect with the viewer throughout the film. I really missed that here. I know I'm supposed to want Carter High to make it through the challenges it faces throughout the film, but I didn't feel an emotional connection to want the see Carter overcome.