“The Express” The Ernie Davis Story Movie Review

Written By Rhonda Ridley

Rated : PG
Distributor: Universal Pictures
Release Date: 2008-10-10
Starring: Rob Brown, Dennis Quaid, Charles S. Dutton, Darrin Dewitt Henson
Directed by: Gary Fleder
Produced by: John Davis
Written by: Charles Leavitt

”Train up a child in the way he should go: and when he is old, he will not depart from it.”
- KJV - Proverbs 22:6

This scripture presupposes that parents have, themselves, been trained up in the way that they should go. Only then could they properly train up their children, correct? Parents want to believe that the many resources, tips and advice they’ve been given to raise their children will be the strongest foundational influence they’ll need; and it will be. However, if it’s flawed and more than likely it is, then what? The only way to be sure that your children are trained up properly, is to be certain that the Bible is the training manual.

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In the movie, “The Express,” based on the Robert Gallagher book, “Ernie Davis: The Elmira Express,” Ernest “Ernie” Davis (Rob Brown) was raised for the first 10 years of his life by his Grandparents in rural Uniontown, Pennsylvania. His grandfather, Willie “Pops” Davis (Charles S. Dutton) a quiet and gentle coalminer, was the father that Ernie never had and a man intent on living his life and raising his family by the Bible. Dedicated to his Lord and the legacy of his family, Pops Davis made sure his grandson knew the characteristics of God and hoped he’d carry these traits with him throughout life.

As a young boy, Ernie, who stuttered, witnessed pervasive racism yet he was inspired by a young Jackie Robinson who was with the Brooklyn Dodgers. He noticed that Jackie was making his mark in the prejudiced world without saying a word. People loved and respected him. Sort of like his grandfather; tender and powerful. It was then that Ernie reconciled that he was meant for more than working the Pennsylvania coal mines with his grandfather and cousin.