We Are Marshall

In 1970, an airliner carrying the Marshall University football team home to West Virginia crashed, killing most everyone aboard, including most of the players and the head coach. Encouraged by the students and community, the university brought in a new head coach, rebuilt the team, and came back with an inspiring season. The real-life story inspired both a documentary and this dramatic feature directed by McG, starring Matthew McConaughey as the new head coach and Matthew Fox as the assistant coach who was left behind for the away game. "Sports movies have become so formulaic that 'We Are Marshall' stands out just because -- for much of its two-hour-plus length -- it doesn't line up the usual locker-room clichés," critic John Hartl wrote on MSNBC. "The scenes before the crash are most effective ... Unfortunately, the script then heads off in so many directions that it loses the tense focus of those early scenes." Ian McShane, Anthony Mackie, Kate Mara and David Strathairn co-star. Also includes the documentary "Legendary Coaches: How Coaches Overcome Adversity" with more real-life stories. Available in separate wide-screen and full-screen editions, and in Blu-ray and HD-DVD formats.