A Review of Cheer, Season 1 by Nick Olszyk
FCC Rating*, TV-MA
CSM Rating†, 4+
Reel Rating, Three Reels
Cheerleading
is one of America’s most underrated sports. To be fair, I am biased. My first girlfriend
was captain of her team, and my sister was a flyer. It is not simply the demanding
combination of technical skill, high risk stunts, and aesthetical presentation
that makes this activity unique but the spiritual significance as well. Cheer
is a short docuseries on Netflix (six one-hour episodes) that follows the
Navarro College cheer team as they attempt to defend their title and does an amazing
job capturing this niche sport. Through their highs and lows, the audience
learns what it takes to be a winner both on the mat and in Heaven.
Navarro
College is a small Texas community school in Corsicana, a town of twenty-four
thousand people, where you can graduate in two years with Associate’s Degree for
less than the cost of a Toyota Corolla. Yet this blip on the map has diamond in
the rough; its cheer team has won fourteen national titles in the last twenty
years. It’s the Harvard of cheerleading. Cheer examines the 2019 season
of this illustrious group as they defend the title against their close rivals
Trinity College, another small institution only forty miles away.
The
film documents numerous subjects but focuses on six central protagonists in
three categories. First are the superstars: Monica (47) and Gabi (20). Monica is
the head coach, a no-nonsense country gal with unlimited ambition who created
this dynasty out of thin air back in 2000. She is tough on her athletes but
also maternal, protecting them on and off the field. Gabi is the star of team,
the most famous cheerleader in the country who began a YouTube tutorial channel
before she was ten. Between practices and matches, her agents (also called mom
and dad) fly her across the country for public appearances and commercial photoshoots.
Despite her fame and fortune, she has a grounded attitude and often seeks
solitude from her chaotic lifestyle.
Second
are the rebels, La’Darius (21) and Lexi (20). La’Darius is stunter and tumbler,
one of the most talented males on the team. Unfortunately, his exceptional
skill also comes with a perfectionist streak. When anyone makes the slightest
mistake, he quickly chews them out, even implying one of the flyers is fat and
thus hard to hold up. Lexi is best tumbler on the team who looks like she
defies gravity. Yet, she hangs out with a rough crowd, which leads to several
arrests and running away from home while still a minor.
Lastly
are the orphans, Jerry (18) and Morgan (22). I don’t think it’s a stretch to
say these two individuals are everyone’s favorites. Jerry is the most positive
member of the team who has spunk and drive but struggles being good enough to
be “on mat,” meaning they will be the ones to perform at National Championship
in Daytona, FL. He was raised by his mom, the guiding force in his life, who
passed away from cancer shortly before filming. Morgan is shy and a bit rough in
her technique, jeopardizing her place on the mat. After her father remarried,
she and her brother were so hated by their new family they were forced to grow
up in a trailer separate from the main house and had to find their own food.
All
sports represent the spiritual warfare humans experience daily, but there are
three that, in my subjective opinion, have a special spiritual significance: long
distance running, baseball, and cheerleading. St. Paul describes the church
triumphant as a “cloud of witnesses,” comparing it to fans watching a race.
Cheerleading captures this idea of intercessory encouragement. They lead the
crowd to root for the team, inspiring them with chants, acrobatics, and playful
banter. More than gymnastic prowess, they bring a sense of joy to the game and
provide an aesthetic attraction that guides the audience to the action on the
field. In cheerleading, looks do matter, not because wrinkles or cellulite are
immoral, but because cheerleaders represent an archetypical reality.
Monica
understands the significance of the sport better than anyone. Her athletes strive
for excellence inside and out. She also seems to have a sixth sense finding
people who come from broken backgrounds and giving them a home. The worst
sinners often become the greatest saints. The key is that Monica makes these young
adults work out their problems on the mat rather than each other. La’Darius,
not one to usually follow the rules, admits he “needed the discipline and
structure” in his life. People thrive when given a challenge and expected to
succeed. They also need the real possibility of failure. If they give Monica
lip or get caught doing drugs, they are off the team no matter how good they
are. Cheerleading is more than a sport, it’s a means of teaching life. Monica
understands if she can reach these kids now, they will “not stray” when older.
There’s
an aspect of Texan life that, as an Oregonian, I find both astonishing and
refreshing. Even though Navarro is a state funded school, the Bulldogs begin
every practice with prayer…to Jesus. Dozens of students, and Monica herself,
wear prominently displayed crosses. Frequently, students will be seen praying or
addressing spiritual matters. Right before the final performance, a teammate
tells Jerry, “Your mom is watching you from above” to smiles and nods. This is what
a Christian culture looks like, where religion is a common language and the rhythm
of life. This is one of the reasons the Navarro team is so successful. It’s not
that prayer will necessarily win matches, but that through a life guided by
God, both winning and loosing will have purpose and can be used for spiritual
growth.
There
is one disappointing elephant in the room. There are two common stereotypes for
cheerleaders. The first is that all female cheerleaders are ditsy, shallow, and
hypersexual, which Cheer goes to great lengths to dispel. Monica’s girls
are intelligent, driven, and most don’t have time for relationships. The second
is that all male cheerleaders are gay. Half of the Navarro team is male and every
single one, including the two male coaches, behave in a stereotypically gay
manner (valley-girl speech, elaborate hand gestures, feminine mannerisms, etc).
The issue is usually couched in the language of being “different” or “true to
oneself” rather than homosexual behavior. Monica defends her athletes, saying
she will “fight anyone,” including her pastor. Again, it is unclear whether she
is referring to their personality or sexual choices. The audience is introduced
to a few boyfriends of the squad but never a same-sex partner. It is telling
that the one person who does admit to being explicitly gay also discusses how
he was sexually abused by a male relative as a child. Teachers, coaches, and
parents should have the courage to confront young people on this problem rather
than sweeping it to the side. They don’t have to single kids out or insult
their personality, but they should treat sodomy like any other sin that needs
correction.
As
the day of the final competition approaches, tensions rise dramatically.
Several athletes are injured. Jerry keeps getting put on and off mat. Lexi
becomes the victim of revenge porn. The filmmakers do an amazing job ratcheting
up the action through stellar editing; this is a series that is nearly impossible
to watch without binging. There is elation at success, and despair at defeat.
Not everyone will make it out ok, but no one will ever forget this season. Cheer
is compelling, compassionate, and beautiful, a magnificent work. It can be easy
to become jaded when working with minors day in and day out. Cheer
reminded me that God continues to make saints of every generation.
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