Katie Crocker - Associate Editor
In the forthcoming ”McFarland, USA”, Kevin Costner plays real-life high school coach Jim White, who in 1987 led his team of unlikely cross-country runners to victory in the California state championships. In the film’s first trailer — which you can watch now on Yahoo Movies — we see White acclimate to McFarland High School and its student population of mostly Latinos, many of whom work as field laborers. White saw the endurance they faced — and transcended — in their daily lives, and tried to channel that spirit and perseverance into running.
Directed by New Zealand filmmaker Niki Caro — who helmed 2002’s Oscar-nominated ”Whale Rider” — ”McFarland, USA” focuses on the struggles White’s team faced: Not only did have to make do with limited on-the-field resources, they also had to balance their hectic work lives with their fast-paced sporting endeavors.
”McFarland, USA”, which costars Maria Bello, strides into theaters Feb. 20.
