Technically, Gavin O’Connor stayed true to his promise mentioned earlier, as he didn’t make The Way Back as a simple sports movie. It just happens to be a movie that contains sports, but centers its gravity around a man trying to better himself, and the events that happen along the way. No matter how you interpret the film for yourself, it’s undeniably a film that only O’Connor and his talented cast and crew could have made, and we’re all the better for it.
Article source: https://www.cinemablend.com/news/2491365/why-the-way-back-isnt-really-a-sports-movie-according-to-the-director