This documentary about the aspirations of high-school basketball players from inner city Chicago won awards from the Sundance film festival, the New York Film Critics Circle, and the Academy Award (Oscar) for best editing. Two young men are followed during their entire high-school career, beginning with their participation in playground games and ending with their being recruited by colleges. The obstacles these young men face include parental drug addiction, family poverty, and inner-city violence, as well as the usual obstacles that arise in competition, including physical injuries. While each aspires to leave the ghetto, there are many reasons to suppose they may not be able to, despite each beating the odds against them by winning college scholarships. ~ Clarke Fountain, All Movie Guide
Review by All Movie Guide
All Movie Guide
loved it.
The celebrated documentary from director Steve James, Hoop Dreams follows two young boys trying to take their basketball game from the inner-city streets of Chicago to the NBA. Tackling issues of racism, politics, and the dangerous power of hope, the film stands out as a complex and astute examination of the African-American experience. With the all-powerful image of Michael Jordan presiding over the film, Hoop Dreams exposes the way in which basketball has become the dominant force in the lives of so many African-American young men, who rely on their athletic skills to rise above the poverty surrounding them in a society that values only what these boys can do on the court. The film brilliantly elucidates a journey of lost innocence where the casualties of a game mean much more than simply losing on the court. ~ Rachel Deahl, All Movie Guide