Review: The Way Back (2020)

Last Updated on August 2, 2021

PLOT: A former teenaged basketball phenom-turned alcoholic, middle-aged construction worker (Ben Affleck) is recruited by his alma-mater to be their new basketball coach.

REVIEW: In my mind, there have always been two Ben Affleck’s – the passionate, driven actor-writer-director and the movie star. Sometimes, both Affleck’s meet and we get movies like THE TOWN and ARGO, in addition to personal projects like GOOD WILL HUNTING, GONE BABY GONE, LIVE BY NIGHT and more. Affleck the movie star, however, is more of a mixed bag. Sometimes even as an actor for hire he knocks it out of the park (his little-seen THE COMPANY MAN features one of his best-ever performances), but then again, sometimes he seems to be on autopilot, such as in the recent THE LAST THING HE WANTED.

Luckily, THE WAY BACK is a movie Affleck clearly threw himself into, digging deep for this tailor-made role that hits close to home for the occasionally troubled star. Whatever part of his personal life he might have brought to this, no one can deny it ranks up there with his best-ever performances, with his character, Jack Cunningham, exposing a raw nerve in the actor that’s almost hard to watch. Never before has Affleck seemed to be playing a character he had so much in common with, and director Gavin O’Connor (director of the little-seen but amazing WARRIOR and Affleck’s better-than-expected actioner THE ACCOUNTANT) has probably been given license by his star to peel back all the layers, as uncomfortable as it gets.

Rarely has a screen alcoholic been as convincing as Affleck is here. He’s got the alcoholic bloat that comes from polishing off a fridge full of beer in one sitting (complete with the trick of swapping out beers in the freezer to keep them cold – something you only do when friends are over or you want to binge). He’s also got the ruddy, sweaty complexion that’s often glossed over in movies about substance abuse, with Hollywood having a long history of trying to make their alcoholics sexy. Here, there’s nothing sexy about what Affleck’s character is going through.

It helps that the script by Brad Ingelsby is rock solid, even if it does owe more than a little to that other basketball classic, HOOSIERS. We know Affleck’s gonna turn around his undisciplined team, in particular, the shy player he knows has the goods (Brandon Wilson) and the other one who’s a showboat that needs to learn humility (“American Vandal”’s Melvin Gregg). He’s got the nice guy assistant coach (Al Madrigal) as well as conflict with the parish priests due to his constant f-bombs, but really – you know how things are gonna play out. Or at least, you think you do – until you don’t.

What makes THE WAY BACK ultimately distinctive is that the big basketball climax happens 2/3 of the way into the film, with the last act revolving around what happens after the thing that’s been motivating you is done and the day-to-day of living with your problems sets in. That’s what makes it clear that, in the end, this isn’t a movie about basketball but rather a movie about alcoholism.

While Affleck’s show through and through, there are some nice supporting turns, including a good one by Michaela Watkins as his concerned sister, Janina Gavankar as his sympathetic ex, and Glynn Thurman as the older gent who carries Affleck back to his place after every drunken bender, although it also feels like a big chunk of his performance was left on the cutting room floor. I also got a kick out of seeing DOCTOR DETROIT’s T.K. Carter in a nice part as one of the player’s dads.

My only problem with THE WAY BACK is that to make Affleck’s character more sympathetic, he’s ultimately given a tragic reason for drinking, which feels like a bit of a cop-out. It’s an easy way to get your audience behind your hero, but arguably, giving him a more mundane reason for drinking might have made it a little more hard-hitting. Even still, THE WAY BACK is a rock-solid vehicle for Affleck, who more than proves here that given the right role, he’s as good as he’s ever been and ripe for a major big-screen comeback.

The Way Back

GREAT

8

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