The Permian High Panthers were the crown and glory of the small, impoverished town of Odessa, Texas - a place so quiet that a pin drop could be heard from a mile away.
That is, until Friday nights.
A story about a sleepy town and a championship football team, "Friday Night Lights" might seem like just another high school sports movie. But it is definitely a step above the rest.
The film, based on the novel of the same name by H.G. Bissinger, is the true story of the Permian High Panthers' 1988 football team and the adults living vicariously through their children's lives.
Before the game, players are fed for free, businesses close and everyone in town is ready to cheer for their football team - hopeful they will bring home honor and attention to the impoverished, otherwise ignored and overlooked town.
But, quickly, "Friday Night Lights" becomes more than the typical high school football story and develops into an examination of the lives, relationships, hopes and dreams of the people in Odessa, using football to assure them that there is life outside their small town.
Directed by Peter Berg, the film explores issues of alcoholism, child abuse and racism, among other social themes. These, along with the pressures of bringing home a state championship, make for an excellent story line.
The cast of "Friday Night Lights" delivers an outstanding and heartfelt performance, full of compassion and short of the brawn you might expect coming to see a film on football.
Billy Bob Thornton does a superb job playing Coach Gary Gaines, who is trying to find the balance between being a coach, a friend and a father to the players. Lucas Black plays Mike Winchell, a tight-lipped quarterback who doesn't realize that he is the heart of the team. The intensity in his eyes speaks much louder than any word he utters throughout the film.
