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My All American: Getting to Know Freddie

myallamerican3The weekends are a wonderful time to get caught up on housework, take a trip to the beach or mountains, or grab a few extra hours of sleep.? There?s also the opportunity to sit down with some friends, grab some snacks, and enjoy a game of football (whether it?s high school on Friday, college on Saturday, or professional on Sunday). For a few hours, players do battle on the field to determine if their team is better than another in a game that?s a little over a century old. It?s often a test of courage and bravado for those playing?one that if passed, can bring honor and glory to a team (and perhaps an individual player who does well).? But we don?t often get to learn the backstory of these players.

Freddie Steinmark may not be a familiar name in college football history, but the University of Texas student has a story that exudes determination, commitment, courage, and hope.? In the new film My All American, director Angelo Pizzo brings his story to light. The viewer ends up discovering what it means to never give up on one?s dreams?even if there are some pitfalls along the way.

The story begins with a student reporter in the office of legendary football coach Darrell Royal. She asks him who his favorite All-American was at the University of Texas.? When Coach Royal says it was Freddie Steinmark (played by Finn Wittrock), she reminds him that he was never selected for that honor. He comments that Steinmark was his All-American before the scene shifts to the state of Colorado.? Steinmark?s high school hadn?t won their division in a quarter century, but there was hope.? In addition to Freddie, the team had a new player from California named Bobby Mitchell (Rett Terrell) who was a great running back.? The team begins to do well, defeating their arch-rival and putting up a fantastic season.

myallamerican2Freddie is good at football, is smart, and is a devout Catholic. He has the trophy girlfriend in Linda (Sara Bolger) and he plans to play at Notre Dame, but isn?t built for the rigors of college football.? Schools tell his father (Michael Reilly Burke) that Freddie needs to go to a junior college first and bulk up before they?ll consider him. This frustrates his father, who, along with his wife Gloria (Robin Tunney), has pushed Freddie to be his best in all areas of life, although they?re quite poor. When the University of Texas asks to look at Bobbie, they take a look at Freddie–and offer both a scholarship.

Coach Royal (Aaron Eckhart) knows tons of guys want to play on UT?s football team, so he makes the practices rough and tough in order to weed out players.? At one point he looks at his charges and says, ?Gentlemen . . . impress me? before putting them through a grueling practice. Freddie?s skill and sheer determination to try a new position (he was a running back in high school and is asked to play safety and kick returner) impresses Royal enough to put him on the field as a freshman.

The UT team is absolutely horrible but starts picking up wins once Coach Royal installs a new offensive scheme called the triple option. It is effective enough that UT begins to be considered for the national championship the following year. The wins keep piling up and eventually lead to a winner-take-all game between the Longhorns and the University of Arkansas in 1969. Freddie is still playing at a top level, but has noticed an infrequent pain in his leg.? Linda (who goes to UT as well) encourages him to see a doctor, but he doesn?t until after he has to be taken out of the national title game due to ineffectiveness.? The doctor?s findings suddenly render football a non-priority, forcing him to fight for his life.? This fight encapsulates who Freddie Steinmark is and cements his legacy in the eyes of Coach Royal.

myallamerican1My All-American, like all football players in high school, has the ability to become something bigger than the sum of its parts.? Does the film succeed in doing that?? For me, I?m not sure that it does.? Pizzo?s track record with sports-themed films has been nothing short of stellar (he directed the acclaimed titles Hoosiers and Rudy), but something doesn?t quite feel right about My All American. It?s not the cinematography, which is top-notch and provides an archival feel to the story.? It?s not the sports sequences, which showcase some bone-crunching tackles and fantastic build-up in the championship game.

The problem lies in the characters themselves. Freddie is fully fleshed out as a determined, courageous football player who fights to get where he is, but the others are very one-note. Steinmark?s girlfriend Linda is given very little to work with other than being a non-married companion. His parents aren?t given much more in the way of characterization.? Even some of the main football players (such as quarterback James Street (Juston Street)) are very static, giving the film a determined focus on Freddie and his life. This can work in some instances, but when the lead character is looked at by other characters as a role model, it diminishes the effectiveness of the overall product. It?s unfortunate, as My All American has the potential to line up with Pizzo?s other masterworks.? Instead, it comes off as uplifting but bland.

There is a scene in the film that merits discussion?one between Bobby and Freddie. After Bobby?s brother is killed while serving in Vietnam, he goes out and loses his mind, ripping a placard promoting the war.? Freddie calms Bobby down, gets him back to the room, and asks if he can pray for him. Bobby isn?t religious and reminds Freddie, ?Just because you aren?t a religious person doesn?t mean you can?t pray at a time like this.? The scene ends with Freddie praying and Bobby fretting, only to start praying as well. Bobby has seen enough of Freddie?s life to know that he means what he says and that maybe prayer does work.

To me, this is why he gave in and called on God in his time of need. Peter says that followers of Jesus should seek to live such good lives among the rest of the world that people take notice and glorify God themselves (1 Peter 2:12).? When followers of Jesus make mockeries of the faith they claim through their actions, ideas, or even reactions to other believers (see the whole Starbucks red cup non-issue), it doesn?t help the cause of Christ. Freddie?s example was notable enough to challenge the lives of those who came into contact with him and make them better in the long run.? May we all do the same so the world can see Jesus in the right light.

On Starbucks, Hollywood, & “Defending The Faith”

starbucks

What do Starbucks, Seth Rogen, & Jesus have in common?

I’m all for apologetics, the “reasoned arguments or writings in justification of something, typically a theory or religious doctrine.” In their place and in their time. But why do people of faith find themselves hung up on apologetics when it comes to films made by those who don’t believe the same thing, or, as recently as this weekend, when it comes to the design of Starbucks’ holiday cups?

While there is a time to wrestle with issues of theology, I think that sometimes we get so carried away in society’s “us versus them” banter, that we lose sight of what we’re really doing here. We arrive at the point of faith with an understanding of how much we?need?Jesus’ grace and forgiveness through his death on the cross, and before long, too many of us think that Jesus?needs?us to argue for him, pontificate about him, and angrily protest in defense of his honor.

Puh-lease. Jesus died on the cross, crucified between two thieves when he could’ve hopped down, flown away, or blasted all of the Romans off of the planet. Do you really think he is offended by some people who doubt his existence?

Jesus loved – and we should, too. Jesus forgave, and we should, too. Jesus lived sinlessly, and we should (try), too. Jesus cared about?and?not?or, but?or?instead of. Jesus brought grace into fragmented situations, to draw people to himself and?together.

So, instead of apologetics, I would like to apologize.

-To Starbucks, who makes mighty fine coffee and decent chocolate croissants, but who has no ‘platform’ by which they’re expected to determine what is morally appropriate or theologically correct about the celebration of Jesus’ birth. I’m sorry we Christians turned all bull-like at the sight of those red cups. Sorry we tried to tell you how to run your megazillion dollar business… although I’m sure Howard Schultz will laugh this bonanza the whole way to the bank. You all stick to grinding the beans, and let preachers and pastors everywhere meditate and teach on the word of God.

-To filmmakers who make films that are “irreligious” or conflict with what the majority of people believe about Jesus and Christians (like?The Night Before), thanks for sharing your story. [In the trailer and interviews I’ve seen about Seth Rogen’s new Christmas Eve film, a group of friends get together for their last Christmas Eve night together – expressing their loss of community but Rogen’s character throws up in church after he’s drunk. I can hear some folks sharpening their knives — instead of recognizing the opportunity to share what real community looks like.] I’m sorry that we Christians forget that film is storytelling, that not everyone thinks or sees things the same way. I’m sorry we fail to recognize the inconsistencies in the Gospels – even the synoptic ones – and the thoughts that don’t jive between the Old and New Testaments. You all stick to making films of quality that stretch our hearts and minds, and let …preachers and pastors everywhere meditate and teach on the word of God.

Hey, while I’m at it –

-To the poor, the homeless, the hungry, the marginalized, the forgotten about, the abandoned, the abused, the sold-into-slavery, the hopeless, the ignored, I’m sorry. I’m sorry that we, The Church, get so bogged down in defining who is?not?with us, that we forget we were once not with Christ, and that no matter what, there’s a spot at the table, at the barista line, at the cinema for each of you. Because there’s space here for us doesn’t mean that there isn’t space for someone else. You all keep fighting – and know that God loves you, even when The Church fails to. Know that God is bigger than prayer in school or “season’s greetings” or whatever nonsense the church makes it about because?God cannot be kept out.

One day there’s a kingdom coming, where all of this will be wiped away, and there’ll only be ONE.

One God, one Lord, one Savior of us all.

Oh, wait,?that’s?what Christmas is really about.

Instead of being a Christian who boycotts Starbucks or throws a fit over the color of a cup, why not be the Christian who doesn’t flip out when your drink isn’t exactly like you hoped it would be? Or better yet, if you were the kind of Christian who overtips your barista? Christianity’s revolution isn’t in what it’s against but what it’s for.?