Drawing inspiration from the true story of a temperamental debate coach who molded the students of a small East Texas college into a formidable team that gave Harvard's squad a run for their money in the 1930s, Denzel Washington's The Great Debaters features the director himself as the ambitious educator, and Forest Whitaker as the resentful father of a student whose loyalties now lie almost exclusively with his coach.

Jason Buchanan, All Movie Guide