Courtesy of Disney
By Nicole Horton
McFarland, USA tells the real life story of Jim White, a cross country coach in a small California town who transforms a group of students into athletes and eventually championship contenders.
Kevin Costner portrays Coach White, who created an ongoing successful program in the agriculture driven town.
“It means an awful lot to the community of McFarland, myself included,” Jim White told The Fordham Ram and other college publications in a phone call. “The boys, we just got out of question and answer things and they’re elated that they’re part of it.”
He also details how the city logo changed from “Heartbeat of Agriculture” to a silhouette of a runner racing through the field and underneath it says, “Tradition, Unity and Excellence.”
Costner certainly has a connection to this story. He went to high school in Visalia, and he played McFarland in baseball. Years prior to reading the script, he read a story about Coach White and McFarland in Sports Illustrated.
“It’s funny how this story I read a long time ago, I suddenly was in the movie and then I realized, my God, I’ve actually played against this community,” said Costner. “So it’s a big full circle for me and for Jim. I think I met Jim a couple of days before we started filming but we would, Jim would often come to the set and we would have a time to either talk with him or his wife and just walk around.”
Audience members will respect the very realistic portrayal of White and his family as they adjust to life in McFarland, in regards to both the change in lifestyle and as racial minorities. As White spends long hours practicing with the team, he must learn to balance his responsibilities as a coach, teacher and father.
“So at its very core, this is not a movie about running,” said Costner. “It’s not about cross country. This movie is really about the American Dream and the American Dream in McFarland is alive and well. There’s nothing more American than a parent trying to make their life better for their children.”
In addition, viewers will see the team train for long hours — running around the town and over the hills in the fields to learn how to maintain speed on rough terrain. As they trained, Coach White, who had no experience coaching cross country, must learn the intricacies of the sport and how to get the best out of his team.
“But the fact that it was real gave the people who wanted to make this film, they wanted to go, well how could that happen?” asked Costner. “And what it is, it’s a combination of young men and a man with a level of wisdom, a level of desire to come together with one goal in mind and — and through work, they achieved it.”
Carlos Pratt, who played White’s top runner Thomas, brings great emotion and toughness to his role. He and Costner complement each other well in several powerful scenes.
This is not just a movie for sports fans — audiences will be happy to see as the students embrace running, they gain confidence and plan for the future. Whether it is the speedy Thomas, smooth-talking Johnny or the team’s anchor, Danny, you cannot help but root for them to succeed in both the race and their future endeavors.
