Product Description

Witness the inspirational true story of a real American hero. Rising from the humblest of beginnings, Ernie Davis (Rob Brown) overcame impossible odds to become the first African-American to win college football’s greatest honor – the Heisman Trophy. Starring Dennis Quaid as the hard-nosed coach that helped drive him to greatness, The Express is a powerful story of triumph on and off the field that will have you cheering again and again!

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #9385 in DVD
• Brand: BROWN,ROB
• Released on: 2009-01-20
• Rating: PG (Parental Guidance Suggested)
• Aspect ratio: 2.40:1
• Formats: AC-3, Color, Dolby, DTS Surround Sound, Dubbed, Subtitled, Widescreen
• Original language: English
• Subtitled in: English, French, Spanish
• Dubbed in: Spanish
• Number of discs: 1
• Dimensions: .20 pounds
• Running time: 130 minutes

Amazon.com
Based on the real-life story of college football hero Ernie Davis, The Express will remind some moviegoers of the heart-tugging Brian's Song. Ernie Davis was a star athlete at Syracuse University and the first African American to win the Heisman Trophy. Unlike other winners of that era, he wasn't allowed to attend his banquet dinner because the venue didn't serve blacks. He died of leukemia at the age of 23 in 1963. That element of his story is well known to football fans. What the filmmakers concentrate on in The Express isn't just Davis' athletic prowess, but the relationship he had with his coach Ben Schwartzwalder (Dennis Quaid). Rob Brown (Stop-Loss, Coach Carter) lends both gravity and charm to the role of Davis. He plays Davis as a strong willed and moral young man who refuses to let racism and discrimination dominate his life. He joins a Jewish fraternity, gets along with his predominantly white teammates and shows respect for his family and coach. The film is wise not to present Schwartzwalder as wholly color blind. Though not overtly racist, he makes a few references that would not be acceptable in modern-day society. Overall though, the coach doesn't care what color his players are, as long as they share the common goal of winning. Quaid is well cast in the role, adding just the right amount of gruff mannerisms without becoming a caricature. Brown has the difficult task of adding suspense to a character where most of the audience already knows his fate. Still, he manages to keep moviegoers on their toes--hoping for a miracle that we know will never come. --Jae-Ha Kim

Customer Reviews

Great film
There has been well-documented commentary about the producers of The Express having taken liberties with some of the facts. While this is true, none of those liberties really obscure or confuse the Ernie Davis story. If you want to see a more factual presentation of the Ernie Davis story, check out the 30-minute documentary about Davis in ESPN's SportCentury series. It is very well done, too. You'll find that in this feature film, there is not much significant straying from fact.

This was an excellent film. In the theater where I saw the film, the audience was so into the movie, particularly the football action, that some folks actually cheered when Davis would make a good run or score a touchdown. The director and actors did a great job of hooking the viewer into the intensity of the games. Great story without getting too hung up on the national politics of the time. Highly recommended.

A great movie about the best football player you've never heard of!
The Express is the story of Syracuse running back Ernie Davis. Davis followed the great Jim Brown and played for Syracuse in the late 1950s. Davis might have been even better that Jim Brown. Davis led his team to a national championship and became the first African American to win the Heisman Trophy.

This is a another feel-good racism sports movie along the lines of Meet the Titans or Glory Road. I say "feel-good" because the harsh realities of American racism in the late 1950s are explored and covered, but racism's true graphic and intense nature is never displayed.

Ernie Davis was always an optimistic man. He was one of a few minorities on campus and on the team, yet he was always kind to everyone. This movie made even better because most people haven't heard of Davis. He died tragically at the age of 23 from lukemia. He is truly a man that deserves to be honored in a movie like this.

The football scenes are top notch. Dennis Quaid is great as the Orangemen coach. The period settings really capture the feel of the time this movie was based in. On a downside, after watching the film, I still don't feel I know who Ernie Davis was, other than a man who battled racism. I wish the movie could have explored his personal life more.

I'm only 36 and thankful I've grown up in a time and location where racism has not been a part of my life. This movie pays homage to a man who broke the color barrier when it wasn't easy and made it possible for a man who is also African American to become president of the United States.

AN INSPIRING, BUT SAD BIOGRAPHY! WELL DONE!
Being a football fan I am ashamed to say I didn't know this story before seeing the film. I did have some knowledge of this tragedy, but I didn't know the full story. This is a gripping biography about a young man who never got the chance to reap the rewards for his hard work and perseverance through a time when this county didn't see blacks as people. It's hard to believe this was only 60 years ago! It's really appalling how we treated certain people in those days and it's only been in the last 20 years when we have even begun to put this practice in the garbage where it belongs.

The film follows the life of football running back Ernie Davis who has such an inspiring, but ultimately sad story of how he overcame many hard ships to become an incredible running back and model sportsman. The film has a great balance of football heroics and compelling drama and should keep any movie fan interested during its two hour running time.

Excellent performances and realistic action make this a winner from start to finish! I would love to see a film about Barry Sanders that was handled this well. Although Sander's story isn't nearly this sad, it's really one that should be told, you don't have to win the Superbowl to be a winner!.....Hollywood are you listening?