Coach Carter the Movie

I just watched this movie couple days ago, we rent it in the Blockbuster. This been out since 2005, I'm still in the Philippines that time. I was just curious cause this in my cousin's favorite movie till now. Well she used to be a basketball varsity on her collage days and the movie is about basketball. I just watched it as i said based on a true to life story and it's a very nice movie.

Summary of the movie based on Wikipedia:
The movie begins with a basketball team playing against St. Francis, only to end up with the teams fighting with each other. After the game, Kenneth Carter (Samuel L. Jackson) is officially offered a part-time, low-paying ($1,500 for the whole basketball season) job coaching the basketball team at his old high school, an inner-city public school in Richmond, California for which he had previously played and set as of yet unbroken records. Although he discovers the players to be unruly and disrespectful, he accepts and starts to gain their respect, though they must gain his in return.
Coach Carter sets strict new rules for the team in the form of contracts — they must maintain a 2.3 grade point average (not just the 2.0 GPA set by the CHSAA), they must attend classes and sit in the front row, and they must wear jackets and ties on game days. One of the players, Timo Cruz (Rick Gonzalez), walks out of practice on the first day after an altercation with Carter. Cruz is later seen hanging with his older, drug-dealing cousin, Renny. Two other team members walk out on the team, who were coincidently last season's scoring leaders. However, Carter's son Damien, a good student who attended and played basketball at the private school St. Francis, quits the private school (against his father's wishes) and transfers to Richmond High School to play basketball on his father's team. Carter only agreed after Damien signed a contract stating that he will maintain a GPA of 3.7.
The movie shows the personal side of some players like Kenyon (Rob Brown), whose pregnant girlfriend, Kyra (Ashanti) has given up on her plans for college in favor of having the baby, even though she sees first-hand how that has gone for her cousin. Kenyon becomes confused, unable to decide whether he should continue with his academic life and play basketball in college or take care of the baby. Meanwhile, Cruz goes back and forth between dealing drugs and playing on the team. He walks in on practice one day, asking to return. Carter challenges him with the seemingly impossible task of 1000 suicides and 2500 pushups to be completed in less than a week. Cruz comes close to the set number but is unable to fully finish. His teammates impress Carter by offering to do the rest of the suicides and pushups for Cruz, after which Carter allows Cruz back on the team. Together, Carter and the team, after a heavy course of working out win their first match only to be followed by multiple consecutive wins while in the previous season the team had lost 22 games and only had four wins. Carter is also found on several occasions through out the movie asking Cruz what is his deepest fear.
Despite the team's winning record, Carter eventually realizes the players are developing bad attitudes by being arrogant and taunting the other teams, and that many of them are not living up to his academic requirements. Carter solved the former problem by making fun of them in practice and eventually putting a rule that cocky behavior was prohibited. Later, the team is invited to play in a tournament which they win in dramatic fashion over the home squad. Not only did they win the tournament but they also were invited to a rich girl's house for a party with her friends. They sneaked out only to be discovered missing when Carter went looking for his son. A taxi driver offers to tell Carter about the team's whereabouts. Carter goes to the house to confront his players, coming face to face with the home's owners who had just arrived home. Carter finds Damien in the pool with two girls, kissing one of them. Other members are also soon found including one player who was upstairs with the daughter of the owners, who are unaware of the party's existence. Carter is infuriated with the team's behavior, threatening them with the toughest practices they've had to date.
After receiving the poor grades reports of the team, Carter cracks down on them and locks them out of the gym in the midst of the still undefeated season. He cancels basketball practice, forfeits games including the most important game of the season, and makes the team spend practice time in the library, being tutored by some of their teachers. Although a few of the players are fulfilling the contract (including Kenyon, who protests that he has a 3.3 GPA), Carter insists that all the players must accept the consequences for their collective actions as a team. All of this leads to Cruz quitting the team a second time, eventually going back to work for Renny.
Late one night, Renny is shot and killed on the sidewalk while Cruz is walking back to him after greeting his friends from the team. Cruz ends up at Carter's house that night, apologizing for his behavior and begging him to allow him back on the team.
Eventually, the school board and the parents fight back against Carters actions. The board eventually votes 4–2 to end the lockout, the dissenting votes being the school's principal and the chairwoman of the board. Carter is on the verge of quitting, but when he arrives at the gym to pack up his things, he finds the players sitting at school desks in the gym, with their teachers tutoring them. The players point out that even though the gym is reopened, the school board can't force them to play. Cruz is finally able to answer Carter's question, "What is your deepest fear?", by quoting Marianne Williamson:
"Our deepest fear is not that we are inadequate. Our deepest fear is that we are powerful beyond measure. It is our light, not our darkness that most frightens us. We ask ourselves, 'Who am I to be brilliant, gorgeous, talented and fabulous?' Your playing small doesn't serve the world. There is nothing enlightened about shrinking so that other people won't feel insecure around you. It is not just in some of us, it is in everyone, and as we let our own light shine, we unconsciously give other people permission to do the same. As we are liberated from our own fear, our presence automatically liberates others."
Carter is heartened and decides to stay, thanking the players.
After a fight with his girlfriend, Kenyon receives a full scholarship to Sacramento State University. He then goes back to his girlfriend, telling her that the college wants to help them, as married students with a baby only to discover that she chose to abort the pregnancy. Regardless, they get back together.
The team makes it into the state high-school championship playoffs. The big climactic game takes place at the state tournament's first round against the #1 ranked team in the state, St. Francis (starring a superstar NBA prospect). The score, with four seconds to go, is 68–67 Richmond. In the last possible second, Ty Crane, St Francis's leading player shoots a three point goal, taking the score to 70–68 St. Francis. The team is understandably disappointed by the loss, but Carter gives them an inspirational talk about all they've accomplished, and tells them that this loss wont ever take away what they've accomplished.
Over the closing song, it is told that six of the players went on to college (this was a school at which only about 50% of students graduated, and only 6% of those who graduate usually went to college). Junior Battle went to San Jose State University on a full scholarship. Jason Lyle went to San Diego State University and received a degree in Business Administration. Timo Cruz attended Humboldt State University where he became a starting guard. Jaron "Worm" Willis received a scholarship to San Francisco State University where he played point guard for four years. Kenyon Stone attended Sacramento State University and received a degree in Communications. Damien Carter went on to break the Richmond High School scoring and assist records previously held by his father. Upon graduation, he attends the U.S. Military Academy at West Point.


This is my favorite quote in the movie...
"Our deepest fear is not that we are inadequate. Our deepest fear is that we are powerful beyond measure. It is our light, not our dark that most frightens us. Your playing small does not serve the world. There is nothing enlightened about shrinking so that other people don't feel insecure around you.We are all meant to shine as children do. Its not just in some of us; its in everyone. And as we let our own lights shine, we unconsiously give other people to do the same. As we are liberated from our own fear, our presence automatically liberates others."