Respond to these rapid questions in our The Way Back Quiz and we will tell you which The Way Back character you are. Play it now.
Everyone has a favorite film genre, whether it’s zombies, teen romances, or bizarre ensembles. When I mentioned this to a fellow critic, he remarked, “Any narrative involving fathers and sons gets to me.” It’s the underdog sports genre for me. “The Bad News Bears” is what I’m looking for. “The Rookie” is what I’m looking for. “Slap Shot” is what I’m looking for. “Hoosiers” is what I’m looking for. So, even though something like “The Way Back” seemed “designed for me,” I tried to be objective in my evaluation. What’s effective and what’s not? When the music got louder, I couldn’t help but notice the goosebumps on my arms. At their best, movies have the ability to lure you out of yourself in spite of yourself. Gavin O’Connor’s film “The Way Back” is an example of this type of film.
As a filmmaker, O’Connor is in his element here. He took a well-known subject and made it urgent and intriguing in “Miracle.” The action is energized by his concentration on a captivating core character, Herb Brooks (played excellently by Kurt Russell). In “Warrior,” O’Connor tapped into this strength by emphasizing on the bond between the absent father (Nick Nolte) and his two grown sons. O’Connor is also a master of action, plunging us into the midst of battles in “Warrior” and throwing us onto the ice in “Miracle.” You can watch the activity even if you aren’t a sports fan. “The Way Back” is about a ragtag Catholic high school basketball team and a damaged alcoholic coach (Ben Affleck) who finds a way to force them to be winners, even better people.
Affleck’s character, Jack Cunningham, is a shambles. He works in construction and spends his nights as a regular at a dive bar. When he gets into his truck after his shifts, you can feel his thirst. His eyes close briefly when he takes a gulp of beer. This is what he requires. His sister’s disdain of him can be seen during family events, implying a lengthy history. But he’s stuck in the revolving door of alcoholism: drinks, collapses, hangovers, and repeat. Jack was a star basketball player in high school once upon a time. However, something went wrong for him. He soon gets inebriated when he is offered a coaching position at his previous school. He is unable to return. However, he does. And it completely transforms his life, as well as the lives of his students. Also, you must try to play this The Way Back Quiz.
The Way Back Quiz
The principal character in a film like this is crucial. O’Connor keeps a careful check on Jack, just as he did in “Miracle” and “Warrior.” The atmosphere is vital in a writing by O’Connor and Brad Ingelsby. The cinematographer, Eduard Grau, creates a mood of both nostalgia for happier days and the glaring pain of a perpetual hangover by exploding lens flares over the screen. Jack walks into his former high school and works out the students, immediately recognizing one of them, Brandon (Brandon Wilson), as gifted. He tries to light a fire in the kid’s belly, forcing him to accept his power. Jack eventually stops drinking. Also, you will find out which character are you in this The Way Back Quiz.
The basketball games are filmed with a stunning feeling of realism: the fans, the referees, and the opposing team’s kids all appear to be real. You see Jack coaching the kids at practice, and while he discusses the plays, a cut to later in the game shows the kids performing the identical actions. The games have a realistic sense to them. Rob Simonsen’s score, and how nicely it’s incorporated, must be mentioned. Some scenes go by without any music, but when it does, it’s a sign that something important is about to happen. It’s a significant achievement. There are no needle-drops of hit songs in the film. (Similarly, Mark Isham’s score in “Miracle” is such an important part of the film that it’s difficult to envision it without it.) O’Connor’s films are not afraid to be emotionally charged. He, on the other hand, embraces it.
“The Way Back” is essentially a story about redemption. Jack’s heart feels heavy with disappointment. Affleck is in a pretty private place right now. Something is still locked up in his beet-red face when he becomes upset. His wrath has no catharsis; it remains poison in his veins. He also has a pulsing feeling of self-pity, which is spot-on if you’ve ever known an addict. Affleck is unafraid to portray the character’s harshness. He’s there in the middle of it, surrounded by the man’s flaws and failings. The writing has a good flow to it. We don’t get any information until we’re far into the action.
About the movie
There are a few opportunities that were missed along the way. Because Jack is such a big drinker, stopping cold turkey should have a significant effect on him. It isn’t the case. You don’t realize how much he has been white-knuckling his abstinence until he falls off the wagon. His prior tragedy is perhaps a little over-determined, but one thing that does work – and doesn’t happen frequently in films like this – is that his ex-wife (Janina Gavankar) becomes difficult as well.
The girls’ basketball team was on a winning streak while I was a senior in high school. The surrounding community became aware that something amazing was taking place, and more and more people began to attend the games, including those who were not even in high school. Our town was whipped into a frenzy when the club made it to the playoffs. This sensation is captured by O’Connor. This feeling is shared by the extras he cast for basketball games. There’s a segment about a girls’ basketball team in Stephen King’s novel Under the Dome:
“…The game had some divine texture beyond the reach of ordinary players (although occasionally even ordinary players felt it, and were transformed for a brief moment into gods and goddesses, every bodily defect seeming to vanish during their transitory divinity), a texture that could be touched on special nights: some rich and marvelous drape such as adorn the hardwood halls of Valhalla.”
You don’t understand high school basketball if you think that’s theatrical or clichéd. O’Connor is one of them.
For more personality quizzes check this: MHA Heroes Rising Quiz.
