Pigskin over politics

The Express is the predictable yet enjoyable chronicle of would-be football legend Ernie Davis

SAPPY BUT STURDY: Dennis Quaid and Rob Brown

by CHRISTOPHER SYKES

I tend to allow myself a chuckle each time a sports figure deflects a tough question by responding, “It’s really only about the game.” Anyone can see through the rhetoric—there’s an inextricable link between sports and politics. One need look no further than the Olympics: from Hitler’s shout-out to the masses (and Jesse Owens’s ensuing domination) at the 1936 games in Berlin to the Black Power salute by Americans Tommie Smith and John Carlos in 1968, the passion of competition is often closely followed by a personal political agenda.

Clichés and chuckles aside, Ernie Davis did let his game speak for itself. A soft-spoken gentleman before that was marketable, Davis was expected to be the next great NFL running back. Having become the first black player to win the Heisman trophy for his outstanding play with the University of Syracuse Orangemen, Davis was drafted by the Cleveland Browns to play alongside his idol Jim Brown. (If you’re not a big football fan, think of having Lemieux and Gretzky on the same team).

Tragically, Davis never played a game with the Browns, as he was diagnosed in 1962 with leukemia and died only a year later, aged 23.

Concentrating on the Orangemen’s run to the Cotton Bowl in 1959, The Express stars Rob Brown (Stop-Loss) as the fleet-footed Davis, who’s coaxed out of small-town Pennsylvania by Coach Schwartzwalder (Dennis Quaid) in order to fill the hole left by the recently departed Brown. Davis must also toe the line on a team that’s none too keen on having him there in the first place.

Racial inequality takes centre stage, with plenty of placards held by racist fans to remind us just how dire times were—and not only in the Deep South. The University of Syracuse is 400 kilometres from Montreal, and banners crested with “Coon Love” and “God Demands Segregation” turn the stomach almost as quickly as do most sports dramas. But a sturdy script and great chemistry between Quaid and Brown make for a thoroughly enjoyable popcorn flick that’s a bit thick on the inspiration, but still fun to watch.

THE EXPRESS OPENS THIS
FRIDAY, OCT. 10