The Express

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By L. KENT WOLGAMOTT / GZO

“The Express” tells the story of a little-remembered American football hero, Syracuse University running back Ernie Davis, who in 1961 became the first black man to win the Heisman Trophy.

But the filmmakers stuck too close to the standard sports movie formula for “The Express” to be great or even all that inspirational, especially because the advertising features the drama of the movie’s pivotal scene.

It’s also worth noting that “The Express” doesn’t cover Davis’ Heisman-winning year beyond the trophy presentation.

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Rob Brown stars as the first black Heisman Trophy winner Ernie Davis in "The Express." (Universal Pictures)

Rob Brown stars as the first black Heisman Trophy winner Ernie Davis in "The Express." (Universal Pictures)

Instead, the movie concentrates on 1959 when Davis (Rob Brown, who is rock solid) was a sophomore sensation, filling the shoes of the legendary Jim Brown and leading Syracuse to a national championship.

“The Express” takes its name from Davis’ nickname, “The Elmira Express,” a nod to the small New York town where he spent most of his youth.

But the film opens in a small Pennsylvania town where Ernie was living with his beloved “Pops” (a perfect Charles S. Dutton). Collecting bottles on the railroad tracks with a buddy, Ernie is accosted by a group of white boys spouting racist epithets and preparing to beat him up. He runs through a pair of the young thugs like he is breaking through the line and takes off, displaying the evasive running skills that later made him a football star.

Davis’ confrontations with racism are a constant theme in “The Express.”

That starts with his high school team in Elmira, extends to Syracuse (where black players were forbidden to date white girls), then to the South where Davis and Syracuse’s other black players had to endure Jim Crow segregation and on-field abuse from fans.

That struggle and the on-the-field battle for supremacy culminate in the 1960 Cotton Bowl, where Syracuse faced an all-white Texas team for the national championship.

Spurred on by a cousin deeply involved in the civil rights movement, Davis begins to realize he’s representing black people on the field, which sets up a potential conflict with his hard-edged coach, Ben Schwartzwalder (a very good Dennis Quaid). But as the TV commercials reveal, Schwartzwalder came to support his player, putting him on the Cotton Bowl field.

“The Express” covers a lot of other ground, including Ernie’s relationships with his mother, his girlfriend, his mentor Jim Brown and his teammates. And it ends tearfully, with a young promising life cut short (that’s not news if you know anything about Davis).

It was hard not to think this picture could have been much better, deeper and more involving had director Gary Fleder and writer Charles Leavitt chosen to depart from the standard sports movie story arc to deliver a more personal, less generic look at Davis.

But even with the formula, it’s a movie worth seeing. It’s a vivid reminder of how very different things were in sports and the rest of society just 50 years ago, and a fitting tribute to a football hero who should never have been forgotten.

Reach L. Kent Wolgamott at 473-7244 or kwolgamott@journalstar.com.