Price of Glory (2000)

This attempt to create a multi-generational Latino sports saga sprawls at times in an attempt to encompass an enormous amount of narrative and character development, but a mostly solid performance from lead Jimmy Smits anchors the proceedings. In his debut feature, director Carlos Avila makes conservative use of his camera, putting the actors front and center. While at times his portrayal of Arturo Ortega strays into self-conscious theatricality, and his accent waxes and wanes, Smits stretches in his role. In a return to feature films after several years in the hit TV series NYPD Blue, Smits strives with real effort to create subtle nuances in his portrait of a King Lear-like patriarch whose pride spells his family's doom. A notable performance is also delivered by actor John Seda, who ably conveys a fierce independence, fueled by anger and longing, in his supporting role. The Price of Glory runs into trouble only with its predictable and hackneyed script, which piles cliché upon cliché from other sports and family drama films, the film's message becoming diluted because of the source material's lack of originality. ~ Karl Williams, All Movie Guide