Radio (2003)

Radio is a 2003 American semi-biographical sports comedy film directed by Mike Tollin, and inspired by the 1996 Sports Illustrated article "Someone to Lean On" by Gary Smith.^[1] The article and the movie are based on the true story of T. L. Hanna High School football coach Harold Jones (Ed Harris) and a mentally challenged young man, James Robert "Radio" Kennedy (Cuba Gooding Jr.). The film co-stars Debra Winger and Alfre Woodard. It was filmed primarily in Walterboro, South Carolina because its buildings and downtown core still fit the look of the era the film was trying to depict.

James Robert "Radio" Kennedy, an 18-year-old man with mental disabilities, pushes a shopping cart along the streets daily. He is attracted to a high school football team and often passes by their practices. One day, a football flies outside the field and lands near Radio. Radio takes the ball, deaf to the demands to return it by a student athlete on the other side of the fence. Sometime later, the team members tie up Radio and lock him inside the gear shed. The team's coach, Harold Jones, hears the team members throw balls at the shed and goes to comfort Radio. He punishes the team for their actions. Upon meeting Radio on the streets another day, Coach Jones asks Radio to visit and help at training. Coach Jones returns Radio to his home, where he meets Radio's mother. It is revealed that Radio has a brother named Walter, who does not live with them, and that their father died a few years prior.

Coach Jones begins spending more and more time with Radio, which concerns the fathers of many of the team members. One of the fathers in particular, Frank Clay, suggests that the coach should stop associating with Radio as he could be a distraction to his own son's success on the team. Coach Jones resists, and he later reveals to his daughter that this resistance was partially due to a childhood incident in which Jones did not do anything to help a mentally disabled boy who was locked under a house.

While distributing Christmas presents to nearly everyone in the town, Radio is questioned by a police officer as to where he got the presents. The officer, seeing that Radio is unable to communicate properly and unaware of his mentally disabled state, places him under arrest on charges of possession of stolen property and takes him down to the police station. In fact, the presents had been given to Radio by the townspeople. After the officer roughly locks up Radio in a jail cell, he looks for his information. The other officers, taking pity on Radio after seeing him cry, take him into the staff-room to watch a basketball game together. Coach Jones soon arrives, releasing Radio. The offending officer is punished by having to spend the day with Radio to deliver the rest of the presents.

Radio eventually takes classes in the high school, and it is apparent that he never completed a formal education. After struggling, Radio eventually learns to read. Though well-liked by most of the students at school, Radio is still ridiculed by Frank's son Johnny and his friends. On one occasion, Johnny tricks Radio into entering the girls locker room. This triggers an incident with the School Board that puts Radio's ability to attend the high school at risk. However, Radio refuses to tell Coach Jones who told him to do it, leading Jones to say, "You're a better man than me, Radio." Coach Jones later figures out that it was Johnny who told Radio to go into the girls locker room, and punishes Johnny for his actions by ordering him to sit out from the basketball team for an indefinite time. After Coach Jones tells Johnny that Radio did not rat him out, Johnny begins to respect Radio and doubt his father's impressions. Radio's mother suddenly dies of a heart attack bringing severe agony to Radio, who destroys his bedroom in a fit of grief. However, with continued support and consoling from Coach Jones, Radio eventually heals from the loss.

After the football team's season ends, Frank places the blame for the team's inability to win on Radio being a distraction, and demands for Jones to end his association with him. In a meeting with the townspeople, Jones talks about how Radio has really been a blessing for the community, showing how people should treat one another. He then shocks everyone by announcing that he's going to resign as head coach so he can spend more time with his family. This causes many of the townspeople to turn on Frank, while Jones leaves with his family.

The film ends with Radio receiving a high school diploma at the graduation ceremonies, and the principal announcing that he will receive one every year to make him feel like part of the school. Johnny also gives Radio a letterman jacket. It then shows clips of the real life Radio on the football field with the real life Harold Jones.