"Radio" was decent at best. Actually it was pretty good, but pretty good as a stageplay I suspect and simply average as a motion picture.

Academy Award winner Cuba Gooding Jr. (Jerry MacGuire) stars in this true life story about a man ailed with some never described mental problem, which local high school football coach Ed Harris warms up to for some undisclosed reason until the later half of the picture.

Slowly, Radio, Gooding's character's nickname, is accepted as a part of the school's coaching staff and eventually as a student.

The film's strength is depicting the town in which this unusual relationship takes place. Small minds think alike at every bend of the story, but the film fails to deliver scenes which are tougher to swallow. Much like a stageplay, the death of Radio's mother, a pivotal moment for his character's personal journey, is given to us in the form of dialogue. We are told about it rather than shown it. We are only left with "hearing" about Radio finding his mother passed on and robbed of what could have been THE scene for Cuba Gooding Jr. to nab an Oscar nomination.

Without scenes like that for the audience to actually be a part of, Gooding's performance must remain in the shadows of Dustin Hoffman's performance in "Rain Man."

Writer Mike Rich's dialogue and inner motivations were crisp and highly believable. I just think he may have chosen the wrong artistic medium. The same complaint I had when I saw "Finding Forrester" in 2000, another of Rich's scripts.

Director Michael Tollin put his best foot forward with this project to glorify an otherwise lacking resume. I do strongly suggest seeing this one. Definitely a feel good pic and for some a tear jerker, but I think Rich and Tollin could have given us more to chew on.

Benn - Where's the Humanity?