Cinelinx.com goes the whole nine yards with the Undefeated Blu-ray, the 2011 Oscar winner for Best Documentary!
The Set-up
A documentary team follows the football team of Manassas High School in West Memphis, as they try to end decades of futility and win the first playoff game in the school's history.
Directed by Dan Lindsay and T.J. Martin
The Delivery
The winner of the 2011 Academy Award for Best Documentary, Undefeated is not about football, but rather about a group of high school athletes who find a purpose, and a future, through the sport. Documentarians Dan Lindsay and T.J. Martin avoid the usual trappings of football movies, for the most part. There's plenty of football action to be sure, but besides the final game shown in the film, the focus is on a handful of players and their coach, Bill Courtney.
The school, Manassas High in West Memphis, had never had...
The Set-up
A documentary team follows the football team of Manassas High School in West Memphis, as they try to end decades of futility and win the first playoff game in the school's history.
Directed by Dan Lindsay and T.J. Martin
The Delivery
The winner of the 2011 Academy Award for Best Documentary, Undefeated is not about football, but rather about a group of high school athletes who find a purpose, and a future, through the sport. Documentarians Dan Lindsay and T.J. Martin avoid the usual trappings of football movies, for the most part. There's plenty of football action to be sure, but besides the final game shown in the film, the focus is on a handful of players and their coach, Bill Courtney.
The school, Manassas High in West Memphis, had never had...
- 3/17/2013
- by feeds@cinelinx.com (Victor Medina)
- Cinelinx
Documentary film making is all about timing. If the story is there, it’s a simple process of pressing record and editing it together. If the story isn’t there, there’s no hope for the film. Thankfully for filmmakers Daniel Lindsay and T.J. Martin, the timing couldn’t have been better when it came to making Undefeated.
What was supposed to simply be a piece on a O.C. Brown, a high school player with a Blindside-like story, developed into a story with a much wider scope, and thus a much greater impact.
In an age when it seems every sports story has been told and retold, it’s incredible that this film is able to provide such a meaningful emotional experience. The true reactions of the players at times are better than could be scripted, and Coach Courtney’s delivery of the news that a wealthy anonymous benefactor would...
What was supposed to simply be a piece on a O.C. Brown, a high school player with a Blindside-like story, developed into a story with a much wider scope, and thus a much greater impact.
In an age when it seems every sports story has been told and retold, it’s incredible that this film is able to provide such a meaningful emotional experience. The true reactions of the players at times are better than could be scripted, and Coach Courtney’s delivery of the news that a wealthy anonymous benefactor would...
- 2/23/2013
- by Alex Lowe
- We Got This Covered
What was the best documentary of the last year? That would be Senna, right? Well, not according to The Academy who failed to put Asif Kapadia’s film on even the shortlist for last year’s Best Documentary Feature award (a decision which was arguably a contributing factor behind a change of rules for the category). Senna eventually snagged a well-deserved BAFTA, but on the other side of the pond there was a surprise Oscar-winner in the category in the form of another sports documentary, Undefeated.
But when you consider that the American Football centric doc had the campaigning super-team of the Weinsteins and Sean “Diddy” Combs behind it, is that gong necessarily a mark of quality? Well, quite simply, yes. And an emphatic yes at that. It may be a completely different beast to Senna in regards to its form and the perspective from which it approaches its chosen sport,...
But when you consider that the American Football centric doc had the campaigning super-team of the Weinsteins and Sean “Diddy” Combs behind it, is that gong necessarily a mark of quality? Well, quite simply, yes. And an emphatic yes at that. It may be a completely different beast to Senna in regards to its form and the perspective from which it approaches its chosen sport,...
- 8/3/2012
- by Joe Cunningham
- HeyUGuys.co.uk
This past February, Undefeated took home the Best Documentary Feature Oscar. The film tells the story of a feisty, focused coach determined to end the losing streak of a football team from a school that’s seen better days. The prime example of this plot would go all the way back to 1940 with Knute Rockne, All American and continue through to the more recent Remember The Titans and We Are Marshall. So it might be more than a bit familiar. And the documentary techniques are not ground-breaking. We’re basically a fly on the wall observing the start of the new season. But what observations! There’s just as much drama and suspense here as in any big Hollywood ” based on true events” flick. You don’t have to be a pigskin fanatic to be enthralled with these people. Perhaps you may identify with one or two of the principals...
- 4/6/2012
- by Jim Batts
- WeAreMovieGeeks.com
At the end of each month, the Sound On Sight staff will band together to write an article about their favourite scenes in films released. Here are our favourite scenes from the month of February.
Click here to see January’s releases.
A Separation – Opening scene
A Separation opens with a simple but wonderful stationary shot that quickly sets everything up. The scene features a couple speaking to a divorce councilor about their troubled relationship. In practically breaking the fourth wall the sequence prepares us for the mess of selfish bad decisions wrapped around good indentations that follows; these choices eventually leading to the cause for everything spiraling out of control.
- Ricky D
Chronicle - Space Needle
Chronicle will never be mistaken for an artistic breakthrough, but it is unquestionably endowed with the best special effects this low-budget shaky-cam movie could afford. The effects here (handled by Simon Hansen,...
Click here to see January’s releases.
A Separation – Opening scene
A Separation opens with a simple but wonderful stationary shot that quickly sets everything up. The scene features a couple speaking to a divorce councilor about their troubled relationship. In practically breaking the fourth wall the sequence prepares us for the mess of selfish bad decisions wrapped around good indentations that follows; these choices eventually leading to the cause for everything spiraling out of control.
- Ricky D
Chronicle - Space Needle
Chronicle will never be mistaken for an artistic breakthrough, but it is unquestionably endowed with the best special effects this low-budget shaky-cam movie could afford. The effects here (handled by Simon Hansen,...
- 3/3/2012
- by Ricky
- SoundOnSight
The voice of Bill Courtney — powerful and punctuated, resolute and fearless — permeates every ounce of Undefeated, a marvelously spirited high school football documentary from Daniel Lindsay and T.J. Martin. A businessman by day, Courtney, whose love for football flows through his veins with more vigorous density than his own blood, is the volunteer football coach at North Memphis’s Manassas High School. He took over in 2004, when the team’s hopes equaled the decrepit emptiness of the town that surrounds the high school. As the film begins, Courtney’s program is filled with promise and the potential for the program’s best season to date.
Courtney’s the main presence in the film, but there are a handful of players the filmmakers focus on as well. First is O.C. Brown, an offensive lineman with blinding power and speed and the most naturally gifted athlete on the entire roster. Thanks to...
Courtney’s the main presence in the film, but there are a handful of players the filmmakers focus on as well. First is O.C. Brown, an offensive lineman with blinding power and speed and the most naturally gifted athlete on the entire roster. Thanks to...
- 2/21/2012
- by jpraup@gmail.com (thefilmstage.com)
- The Film Stage
There's nothing like a feel-good football movie with a great story and a great message. It's even better when that movie is a showcase of actual events.
The Oscar nominated documentary feature, Undefeated, follows the 2009 football season of the North Memphis Manassas High School Tigers. The underfunded football team was known for being so awful that other schools would pay to use them for their homecoming games. This is until the huge heart of volunteer Coach Bill Courtney, stepped in to change the fate of the team -- and the lives of the players.
Executive produced by Sean "P. Diddy" Combs along with the work of filmmakers Dan Lindsay and T.J. Martin; the production team does a remarkable job of showing the underprivileged reality of a city hit hard by unemployment and factory closures. The doc manages to capture the beauty of camaraderie.
This film explores the controversy of a white coach leading a predominately African-American school...
The Oscar nominated documentary feature, Undefeated, follows the 2009 football season of the North Memphis Manassas High School Tigers. The underfunded football team was known for being so awful that other schools would pay to use them for their homecoming games. This is until the huge heart of volunteer Coach Bill Courtney, stepped in to change the fate of the team -- and the lives of the players.
Executive produced by Sean "P. Diddy" Combs along with the work of filmmakers Dan Lindsay and T.J. Martin; the production team does a remarkable job of showing the underprivileged reality of a city hit hard by unemployment and factory closures. The doc manages to capture the beauty of camaraderie.
This film explores the controversy of a white coach leading a predominately African-American school...
- 2/17/2012
- Entertainment Tonight
Title: Undefeated Director: Daniel Lindsay, T.J. Martin Featuring: Bill Courtney, O.C. Brown, Montrail “Money” Brown, Chavis Daniels Undefeated shows a human being – Coach Bill Courtney – who encompasses and projects attributes all of us desire in some respect. It also shows that the stories we hear about inner-city life are in fact true. This is a 113 minute documentary about a coach who took on a high school football program that should have been cut years ago. Some may categorize this as a documentarian version of The Blind Side. Some may even draw comparisons to Hoop Dreams. Yours truly we’ll just say that this is a documentary version of...
- 2/11/2012
- by joe
- ShockYa
The documentary Undefeated (not to be confused with the documentary about Sarah Palin) recently picked up one of 16 Oscar nominations for Harvey Weinstein’s company this year. The inspirational doc follows the inner city high school football team the Manassas High School Tiger’s 2009 season, as they attempt to win their first playoff game in the 110-year history of the school. The team is so terrible that apparently they are used as warm up matches against much better teams. Much like Steve James’ great doc Hoop Dreams, the final product is said to be cut down from over 500 hours of footage, only it follows three players (instead of two): left tackle O.C. Brown, lineman Montrail “Money” Brown and linebacker Chavis Daniels. Here is the trailer.
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- 1/31/2012
- by Kyle Reese
- SoundOnSight
Clip from Daniel Lindsay and T.J. Martin's Undefeated documentary from Weinstein Co Catch a new video from BeliefNet.com on the film produced by Seth Gordon, Glen Zipper and Rich Middlemas. Pic opens on February 10th in limited areas and includes Montrail 'Money' Brown, O.C. Brown, Bill Courtney and Chavis Daniels. Set in the inner-city of Memphis, Undefeated chronicles the Manassas Tigers’ 2009 football season, on and off-the-field, as they strive to win the first playoff game in the high school’s 110-year history. A perennial whipping boy, in recent decades Manassas had gone so far as to sell their home games to the highest bidder, but that all changed in the spring of 2004 when Bill Courtney, a former high school football coach turned lumber salesman, volunteered to lend a hand...
- 1/25/2012
- Upcoming-Movies.com
Clip from Daniel Lindsay and T.J. Martin's Undefeated documentary from Weinstein Co Catch a new video from BeliefNet.com on the film produced by Seth Gordon, Glen Zipper and Rich Middlemas. Pic opens on February 10th in limited areas and includes Montrail 'Money' Brown, O.C. Brown, Bill Courtney and Chavis Daniels. Set in the inner-city of Memphis, Undefeated chronicles the Manassas Tigers’ 2009 football season, on and off-the-field, as they strive to win the first playoff game in the high school’s 110-year history. A perennial whipping boy, in recent decades Manassas had gone so far as to sell their home games to the highest bidder, but that all changed in the spring of 2004 when Bill Courtney, a former high school football coach turned lumber salesman, volunteered to lend a hand...
- 1/25/2012
- Upcoming-Movies.com
Clip from Daniel Lindsay and T.J. Martin's Undefeated documentary from Weinstein Co Catch a new video from BeliefNet.com on the film produced by Seth Gordon, Glen Zipper and Rich Middlemas. Pic opens on February 10th in limited areas and includes Montrail 'Money' Brown, O.C. Brown, Bill Courtney and Chavis Daniels. Set in the inner-city of Memphis, Undefeated chronicles the Manassas Tigers’ 2009 football season, on and off-the-field, as they strive to win the first playoff game in the high school’s 110-year history. A perennial whipping boy, in recent decades Manassas had gone so far as to sell their home games to the highest bidder, but that all changed in the spring of 2004 when Bill Courtney, a former high school football coach turned lumber salesman, volunteered to lend a hand...
- 1/25/2012
- Upcoming-Movies.com
One Oscar prediction I'm happy I got wrong was predicting the fantastic documentary Undefeated would not get a nomination. It did and I hoped it would ever since the first saw it back in early December. Suffice to say, I was floored. Writing about it on December 6, I described it as "hands-down, without a doubt fantastic" and I stick by those words as I later declared it the Best Documentary of 2011. With the film now set to hit theaters on February 17, the Weinstein Co. is moving forward with the marketing plan and what better time than just after the film was nominated for a Best Documentary (Feature) Oscar? And I am happy to be the one to debut a brand new, exclusive clip from the film, which I gladly jumped at the opportunity to premiere when offered. Directed by Daniel Lindsay and T.J. Martin, Undefeated centers on the inner-city Memphis high school football team,...
- 1/24/2012
- by Brad Brevet
- Rope of Silicon
I wrote about Project Nim last time (read that here) and since then I have watched six more documentaries, trying to close the gap on the number of documentaries I missed out on seeing over the course of 2011. As a result, I have now seen five of the 15 documentaries shortlisted by the Academy for Oscar consideration and unfortunately I don't have access to the other ten, though I still have the much talked about Senna and Werner Herzog's Into the Abyss yet to watch. Beyond all that, however, I have six documentaries to briefly discuss today so let's no waste anymore time... Undefeated Undefeated is hands-down, without a doubt fantastic. Yet, at the moment, two things piss me off about it. The Weinstein Co. hasn't done anything to promote it. There isn't a clip; there isn't a trailer; and the poster I used to the left is some rush...
- 12/6/2011
- by Brad Brevet
- Rope of Silicon
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