The Long Green Line (2008/Running/LGL DVD)
Picture:
C Sound: C Extras: C Main Program: B
If you
wonder where real American values have gone without being politically hijacked
by Right Wing oafs, you can look no further at the amazing story told in
Matthew Arnold’s The Long Green Line
(2008) in a documentary portrait of the remarkable Coach Joe Newton and the
legacy of making his local high school into the small town school that could
when it came to training some of the best runners of the last few
generations. Some even made it to the
Olympics.
Unlike
the trend that began (especially in the 1980s) of an infamous bait and switch
dirty trick routine where a person not on your side asks you if you have the
energy, enthusiasm and willingness to do anything for success, only to be told
to do something stupid that will not work, never be to your benefit, will be to
your detriment and something stupid you could do without the person on the
other end really trying to con, trick, rob, embarrass and use you, Newton does
not leave his people high, dry and gutted.
Instead,
he inspires them to be their best, is realistic and honest without being
degrading, spewing toilet humor and trying to get the vulnerable to agree to
more misery not-so-cleverly disguised as some kind of progress. In an increasingly rare instance, one that
used to build America before others decided to tear it down, Newton knows how
to build up people and really, truly, honestly cares and his heart and soul are
never for sale!
The results
are amazing, helping all kinds of young men who otherwise might not have the
chance at opportunity, pride and achievement.
Over the decades, Newton has built a model of success that is what this
country used to be about and can be again.
Though this is a great piece of work about people and an individual man
who makes a tremendous difference, it (especially at this time) becomes about
The American Dream, who it is still possible and the real reason the best
United States of America will always be the best country there ever was. Don’t miss The Long Green Line!
The letterboxed
1.78 X 1 image is soft and loaded with aliasing errors throughout, but at least
has good editing and if you can adjust to the quality, can be involving. The Dolby Digital 2.0 sound is raw location
recording, so playback can be rough and even a tad harsh. Extras include trailers and a set of extra
scenes that do not have a “play all” option and all open with a loud, obnoxious
“boom/slam” sound that is
- Nicholas Sheffo
