This film will not be taking any major awards, but I found myself being drawn in by it's simplicity. An alcoholic seeking redemption with basketball as a backdrop was also the subject of the 1986 film "Hoosiers", but it was there more as a sub-plot to the principal story. Ben Affleck was effective here in his role as Jack Cunningham, and it's not evident at first why he's as angry as he is, often ending his evenings being helped home from the local gin mill by a loyal friend who did the same for his father. The family dynamic of his childhood came into play, but even more so, the loss of a child leading to the breakup of his marriage was highly instrumental for his seeking solace in a bottle. The coaching job he was offered by the administrators of Bishop Hayes High School helped Jack discover a side of himself that proved beneficial for members of the team, although things reached a point with his drinking and cursing that eventually forced Father Edward (John Aylward) to take a disciplined stand. As much as one roots for Jack's success though, the film ends inconclusively with a number of threads left hanging, thereby thwarting closure for the viewer. Jack doesn't really win his battle with alcoholism, doesn't get rehired as coach, or reach any sort of understanding with his estranged wife, thus leaving the viewer to use one's own imagination as to where his life goes next. I would have preferred a more definitive ending, even if that meant setting aside a feel good resolution.
Review of The Way Back
