‘The Express’ opens nationwide, receives criticism
MORGANTOWN, W.Va. – The nationwide release of ‘The Express’ this weekend was not well received in West Virginia.
Officials across the Mountain State condemned the film, which depicts the life of legendary Syracuse University tailback Ernie Davis, for its portrayal of West Virginia University football fans. The scene in question features Mountaineer fans shouting racial slurs at Davis and lobbing objects onto the playing field.
At the Syracuse-West Virginia football game at Mountaineer Field on Saturday, a press release was circulated denouncing the scene and claiming that it ‘never happened.’
‘While an important sports story during a time of racial tension in America, the film portrays WVU fans, the team and the coach in an unfavorable light,’ the press release said. ‘… According to reports from former players and fans, this is simply untrue.’
The press release goes on to quote former Syracuse quarterback Dick Easterly, who claimed ‘the scene is completely fictitious.’
At the very least, the film contains several inconsistencies.
The movie portrays a game between the two schools at the old Mountaineer Field in 1959, the year of SU’s only national championship. Except Syracuse didn’t play in West Virginia that year. The teams played at SU’s now-defunct Archbold Stadium, a game the Orangemen won, 44-0.
Syracuse did play at West Virginia the following season. But there has never been any concrete evidence of racist actions or abuse by Mountaineer fans during that contest.
The game depicted in the film also takes place at night. No night games were played at the old Mountaineer Field.
As a result, the film has drawn the ire of many West Virginians, including the state’s governor, Joe Manchin, and university officials.
‘The depiction of WVU in this movie is nonsense,’ WVU interim President C. Peter Magrath said in the press release. ‘Diversity is an essential characteristic of a 21st-century land-grant university, and WVU consistently works to enhance its commitment to diversity.’
Ernie Davis played at Syracuse from 1958-1961. He led SU to its only football national championship in 1959, and two years later became the first African-American to win the Heisman Trophy. In 1963, Davis developed Leukemia and died at the age of 23.
Universal Pictures’ ‘The Express’ stars Rob Brown as Davis and Dennis Quaid as former SU head coach Ben Schwartzwalder. The film premiered in Syracuse at the Landmark Theatre on Sept. 12 and was released in theaters across the country this weekend.
Published on October 12, 2008 at 12:00 pm
