Sports movies follow a pretty predictable pattern, especially when based on real-life events. The hero gets faced with seemingly insurmountable odds, perseveres, maybe endures a montage or two, and then has a last-minute victory with music swelling up around him as the audience swells with applause themselves.

It's hard to avoid, because audiences like sports movies and they don't like sports movies about someone who loses the battle. Pay no attention to that Brian's Song in the corner. Director Phil Joanou knows this; he's been around a while and has faced insurmountable odds of his own. The man directed Madonna in a watchable movie.

Okay, so that was a documentary, Truth or Dare, but Gridiron Gang has a similar pedigree. Based on a documentary of the same title, this new film starring Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson fits its structure within the usual tropes of sports movies but does something unusual. It plays utterly straightforwardly and honestly with the audience.

Screenwriter Jeff Maguire has clearly lifted huge chunks of dialogue and situations from the documentary about Sean Porter (The Rock). Some of Porter's speeches seem almost too well constructed, too dwelled upon by a good writer, and then at the end of the film, there's the real guy actually delivering that speech to a real group of sullen gangbangers in the prison dormitory.

Granted, as inspiring as Porter's story is, it's also clear the real man does not have quite the charm (nor does he need it) of Dwayne Johnson. That's not to say The Rock coasts here. Gridiron Gang gives him the chance to prove that he has more than charisma; the man's got acting chops.

From the beginning, the film dispatches the by-the-numbers feel. Setting us up to follow one of Porter's charges, Joanou devastatingly shifts the focus to Willie Weathers (Jade Yorker), a gang member completely trapped by his life. If he can avoid one bad choice, another one pops right up. It's no wonder he has no hope and ends up in jail.

What he and dozens of other troubled boys have now is Sean Porter, a warden tired of seeing Youth Authority be a revolving door, with a 75% rate of death or serious jail time. With his co-worker Malcolm Moore (Xzibit), Porter decides to draw upon his background as a college football player and teach these boys the game that will hopefully make them men: football.

Obviously, it won't be easy, as many on the team come from rival gangs and violent pasts. Joanou doesn't play up these conflicts. Instead, they occur naturally within the context of practice and real play on the field.

Set against that is Porter's struggle as his mother (L. Scott Caldwell) slowly succumbs to cancer. She's clearly his biggest fan, and provides the catalyst for The Rock getting to stretch as an actor. Yes, The Rock cries - and believably so.

While doing a star turn, the former wrestler shows humility in his performance. The subject matter is close to his heart, and not just in working with at risk kids. Having documented his own struggles growing up and issues with his father, a scene in which Porter finally confronts the demons left by an abusive dad could have been histrionic and false; instead, it really is the moment that proves Dwayne Johnson is far more than a pretty pectoral muscle.

Joanou has also assembled a talented supporting cast. Every kid gives a believable performance, and because the film doesn't shy away from its honesty, some of those performances will break your heart by the end.

This is not a movie about a program that miraculously turns kids' lives around. Sean Porter has significantly lowered that 75% rate, but not eliminated it, and Maguire's script keeps that in the foreground.

Joanou has also made an interesting and right choice. In this movie dealing mainly with kids that have a "gangsta" attitude, he eschews the use of rap or hip hop, going with a much more traditional film score by Trevor Rabin. The absence of a pounding beat reminds us that even though football is a violent game, Porter is working to save these kids from a life of violence that rap too often glamorizes, even when it's honest.

Gridiron Gang isn't necessarily one of the best movies of the year, but it reaches pretty high without being flashy about it. It's unexpectedly challenging, and thanks to its honesty and solid performances all around, one that will definitely suck you in again and again.

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Derek McCaw