Movie Review: John Bakers Last Race

By Donald James Parker  

This movie was filmed in 1976 by Brigham Young University. I saw it soon afterward, and it had a great deal of influence on my life. I actually feature this film in a couple of my books with John Baker exerting influence on my hero to make a life-saving decision in his life. This is a movie that will require you have a box of Kleenex with you (unless you have a wooden heart).  It is not “quote-end quote” Christian in nature, but it’s a heartwarming story of courage and compassion. The most emotionally gripping aspect of this low-key, acted-out documentary is that it is a true story. Unfortunately the movie may not be quite so accurate in handling some of the details. The movie might not have been so impactful if some of the anguish that John went through in his fight to survive was allowed to surface. On the other hand, that might have enhanced the story. Actually another movie on this topic called A Shining Season did portray some of the difficulty John had in dealing with his situation. I read the book, but I don’t think I saw the movie.

John Baker was a runner extraordinaire. In the opening scene he is promised to be able to join the cross county team if he can convince a friend of his to turn out for the squad. This never bothered me the first few times I saw the film, but later it dawned on me that a cross country coach never turns down a participant. In fact, a school district would be liable for a discrimination lawsuit for not allowing a student to join a sports team because the coach didn’t think he was good enough. That scene enhanced the drama of John winning his very first meet and totally blowing the minds of his coach. This again smacks of unrealism. Unless the kid could only run fast when competing against other schools, he would have demonstrated his prowess in training runs against his own teammates. It seems that truth has to be embellished just a little bit in order to flavor it to perfection.

After becoming a star collegiate runner, John sets his sights on the Olympics. Unfortunately a bout with cancer waylays any plans he has for his athletic career. He begins the race of his life to fight the big C. His diagnosis is terminal. His attitude seems to be also – until he realizes that you’re never beat until you quit. He decides to devote the rest of his life to teaching school and giving to the kids. His attempts to bring a ray of sunshine into every child’s life provide the tear-jerking set-up material, preparing your emotions for the ending. As a former teacher, I teared up just thinking of how I had missed the boat in my own attempts to reach out to kids.

In addition to his work at school, Baker starts a track team for girls. One of the girls has a sister who has a disability. Baker’s inspiring encouragement of this young lady was a highlight of the film. Goosebumps are breaking out all over my body as I envision the ending once again.  John Baker tried to make all of his kids champions. He made the statement, "We are all champions if we just love each other." I think Jesus approves of that coaching philosophy. I highly recommend this flic, especially for anyone who is a teacher or thinking about going into the teaching profession.

You can find the movie for $8.95 at http://creativeworks.byu.edu/Catalog/ViewItem.aspx?item=TM014

About the reviewer: Donald James Parker is a Christian novelist in his spare time. See his seven books and more at www.donaldjamesparker.com?tcp

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