Hollywood’s ongoing love affair with true-life inspirational sports movies continues with The Express. It’s easy to see what makes movies like this so popular with audiences- the historical origins of the stories make the manipulations easier for them to swallow, while there’s plenty of sports action for those who just want to enjoy that part of the story. And let it not be said that the life of Ernie Davis isn’t perfectly suited to this treatment- racism, adversity, a championship football team, making a name for himself in the shadow of the great Jim Brown. Even the tragic final turn of his story should play well to this movie’s audience. For a movie of this type, The Express looks pretty good, even if the longstanding Cleveland Browns fan in me has trouble with a movie in which the character of Art Modell appears.
