Pride (2007)

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Pride Movie Poster

Directed by Sunu Gonera, Pride is an American Sport-Drama movie who based on Jim Ellis true story as a Black swim coach at 70s. He coached generations of African-American teenagers in competitive swimming in Philadelphia. This 104 minutes movie released on March 23, 2007 in United State and starring

Plot

Swim Team

Racist stereotypes of the late '60s, early '70s Philadelphia held black coach Jim Ellis at arm's length from his dream of training a team of professional swimmers. So he agrees to take whatever job he can find and is offered the job of cleaning out an old demolition-marked amusement center. Elston, Ellis sets to work and finds an indoor competition-size pool under all the junk after bumping heads with the building's live-in maintenance superintendent.After a long day of work, he fills the pool for his own fun, but he ends up inviting a motley crew of neighborhood kids with nothing better to do in the summer sun. With the hearty encouragement of the children and the help of the newly energized Elston, Ellis has decided to take on the informal task of rebuilding the Rec Center and creating the first African-American swim team in Philadelphia.

Pro

The movie depicts how Jim Ellis as a swimming coach showed fought for his swim team to become a winner of a late ’60s, early ’70s where racist treatment is still very much encountered.There's a scene Where he loses his temper and crosses the line, he instantly avoids getting involved in a major swim. And although he was shocked by the barbs of racism in his youth, Ellis did not allow his team to focus on racist actions committed against them and inspire them to take a higher path.[1]

The message that the film tries to impart is to be the best you can be despite the adversities thrown your way. "You can be anything that you wanna be if you strive for it and work for it. If you set a goal, work for it as a goal, you can achieve it." These words is to encourage everyone from different race or minority who ever feel that they dont fit in in society[2]

Controversy

Terrence Howard as Jim Ellis in "Pride"

Most remarkable is when the film portrays a more obvious version of racism. When A prep school athletic director (Tom Arnold) flatly refuses a job for Jim Ellis as a swim coach on the basis of his race. Later, when Jim takes his swimmers to the racist coach's suburban turf, white onlookers taunt them and boo their every mistake.[3] This movie also depict the struggle from Jim Ellis because he is an African American swimmer in the 60s in the South and as a coach of an all-black swim team in the 70s. Back when his college life he is the only black swimmer in the team and when he attends a meet, the other teams and spectators scream and yell that he shouldn’t be allowed to swim.[4]

Reference