Article: There's little argument; `Debaters' has merit.(Arts and Lifestyle)

"THE GREAT DEBATERS"

Genius/Weinstein Co., $32.95, with Denzel Washington commentary, featurettes and deleted scenes, available Tuesday.

Grade: A-

Like many movies that are inspired by true events, "The Great Debaters" is predictable, formulaic and sprinkled with cliches. It is also intelligent, challenging and, most important, compelling.

The story of the debate team from Wiley College, a small black school located on the Texas-Louisiana border in the middle of the Jim Crow South of the 1930s, has been embellished. The Wiley team did defy the odds and societal convention by challenging white universities and ultimately beating the national champions. That the ...

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