It seems to me that people are overly critical of the authenticity of sports movies. Since most sports movies are about sports heroes, don’t you think producers are a bit handicapped in finding an actor who could perform with the athletic talent of people such as Babe Ruth, Gayle Sayers or even the minor league players in “Bull Durham?”

Back in the day, William Bendix starred as Babe Ruth. Definitely not a major league athlete. The point of the movie was not to duplicate the Babe’s feats on the diamond, but to see what it took as a human being for Babe to deal with his circumstances.

“White Men Can’t Jump” directed by the best at it, Ron Shelton, featured stars Wesley Snipes and Woody Harrelson who looked at home on the outdoor courts of Los Angeles. Their competition on the courts were almost all bonafide collegiate and pro players. Basketball is perhaps the most difficult to look good playing if you are not a player. The point of the movie—Entertainment. Nothing more, nothing less.

A current movie that seems to have attracted a variety of opinions is McFarland, USA. Kevin Costner does a good job of portraying coaches of the 70’s. Community response to minorities is on point. The role of the Mexican-American families in the fields is not over-played.

Most people don’t know what hard work is. I am a native of the San Joaquin Valley of California. I grew up on an orange grove 50 miles northeast of McFarland. I attempted, as summer work, what the families in McFarland, USA, do daily. And, I failed miserably.

Picking oranges, beans and tomatoes I earned less than the price of a hamburger for my day’s effort. Chopping and picking cotton—forget it. I wasn’t tough enough. Doing these tasks and being treated as second-class citizens was the lot of my Mexican classmates and their families. Add competing in the classroom and in sports and you have a demonstration of courage … one point of McFarland, USA.

Without the Mexican workers (legal and illegal) the great San Joaquin Valley would go bankrupt. The greatest agricultural area in the world. McFarland, USA makes another point, “Where’s the respect?”

Other bits of useful info can be found by looking up Coach Todd’s books on lulu.com