Pride (2007)

This is an inspirational underdog tale about a man who builds a swim team from the ground up.  With phenomenal acting and a wonderful screenplay based on the real-life accomplishments of Jim Ellis, the movie is a solid production, even if its originality leans towards the formulaic, with feeling good trumping some of the deeper issues.
Jim Ellis (well played by the fabulous Terence Howard) has ambitions and dreams, but due to racial discrimination in 1973 in Philadelphia, he’s forced to take a lowly city job cleaning up a nearly abandoned recreational facility. There, he discovers the crotchety janitor Elston (Bernie Mac) and a fully functional swimming pool. When the property is scheduled to be closed up and the basketball hoop outside is removed, the local kids who previously dominated the court accept an offer from Ellis to use the pool. After they realize the value of Ellis’ training and their own potential as a group, they form the city’s first African-American swim team – and must face the hardships of racism and injustice to rise to the top of the sport.  It is a warm feeling in the end, despite all the prejudice.