Coach Carter

Ken Carter (Samuel L. Jackson) has returned to his old high school to coach the basketball team. When he arrives, he is appalled by the fact that no one seems to care much about the players when it comes to anything outside of playing basketball. Taking a stand, Carter decides to show these boys what it means to work hard and how important excelling off-the-court really is. Benching the entire team until they bring up their grades, Carter stands against the teachers and the parents of the players as he struggles to teach these kids that they are worth more than what everyone has been telling them.

This was a touching film, well written and well played. It makes a poignant statement on the obvious Catch-22 that kids in tough neighbourhoods are in, being told that they are only good enough to succeed in sports and are not good enough to reach the academic standards that will keep them off the street and out of jail while, at the same time, they are being told to shape-up or ship-out.

Coach Carter captures the essence of what it is to live and work with these kids and I pray that it will shed light on this too-common affliction.

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Miss Congeniality 2: Armed and Fabulous

Several months after Gracie Hart (Sandra Bullock) was sent to the Miss America pageant, she finds that her new celebrity status has become a hinderence more than an asset, as she returns to under-cover duty with the FBI. After a botched mission, she is reassigned to become the new "Face of the FBI", hitting the talk-show circuit, and the book-signing circuit.

Things go sour for Gracie, however, when Cheryl Frasier (Heather Burns) and Stan Fields (William Shatner) are kidnapped. Itching to go find her friend and trying to stay within her mandate, Gracie can't help but find the clues needed to close the case and rescue Cheryl and Stan. Can Gracie figure out the case and rescue Cheryl and Stan???

Of course she can.

Okay, so this didn't suck as badly as I was thinking. It was actually pretty good, as far as sequels go. Some good lines and a passable performance by the entire cast.

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