Remember the Titans Essay
By Jansen Sears
Remember the Titans starts out with a bang. The setting is Alexandria,
Virginia in 1981. The conflict is a racial uprising. In they’re town a black boy is
shot by a white store-owner. This is all happening simultaneously with T.C.
Williams High School is becoming desegregated. At T.C. coach Yoast is king. He
is an extremely successful coach but is about to be replaced.
Coach Boone is set to take over the role of head coach. This is the initial
conflict that sets the movie in motion. Herman Boone comes from South Carolina
and is eager to take the job. The addition of a black coach and having a biracial
football team causes huge conflict as expected. All the white players are
concerned for they’re starting spots and feel whites deserve them. Gary is T.C.
Williams’ star quarterback. Gary and Julius, the black defensive end are two of the
main characters because of they’re talent and leadership among they’re race on the
team.
As Coach Boone announces camp by laying down the law. All players are
to be ready to go at 7:29 in white shirt and tie, not a minute late. This is the most
conflict of the whole movie. The white players almost quit the team when Coach
Yoast was demoted to defensive coordinator. Coach Boone splits up the white bus
and black bus and makes an offensive bus and defensive bus. Also all players must
room with someone not of they’re race and get to know every player of the
opposite race. This creates huge conflict. Fights break out between roommates’
and there is big contention between the two sides. All of this up till now is the
initial conflict leading into the rising action.
Coach Boones requirements and tough conditioning works in the long run.
When the players jog to Gettysburg, they see the field where thousands of men
died fighting the same fight they were dealing with now. On the first day of school
protestors are outside. Coach Boone is aware that the school board didn’t think he
would make it through training camp and would be fired if he lost a game. Coach
Boone wasn’t always perfect. Him and Coach Yoast would but heads when one of
them made a mistake.
The season starts out running. T.C. Williams goes through the season win
after win till they stay undefeated. The team became unified more and more every
game. Then tragedy struck. Gary is injured in a freak car accident and is paralyzed
from the waist down. This sets back the team initially but ends up bringing them
all together. They still have one last hurdle to overcome though. They have a
formidable foe waiting at the state championship. At the half they trail. They
stayed perfect all season but it looks like they’re inspiring run might be over. In
the locker room Coach Yoast comes forward to pump morale into his players.
After this the team goes out on a mission and in the climax of the movie wins.
This movie totally follows the usual model for movies. In the beginning
with the schools and races blending together and the struggle with the team is the
initial conflict. The rising action is all throughout the training camp and the season
as they come together as one and achieve an undefeated record. The climax of the
movie is the championship game where they face they’re toughest challenge. They
have the set back but come back to win for the happy ending. After this the movie
wraps up. All of this demonstrates how Remember the Titans totally follows the
mold as do most movies.