movie feature | Thu. 01 13. 2005 12:00 AM EST
With its lightning-quick pace and see-sawing advantages, basketball was made for the movies. All you might need is a ball and a net, but the game has proven to be far more complex than that. It's a crucible where players can transcend class, underdogs can assert their worth, and you'll believe men (and women) can fly. With Coach Carter landing in
Blue Chips French Connection director William Friedkin films the hardwood action like a 10-car pile-up as Nick Nolte out-Bobby Knights Bobby Knight in the story of a coach who discovers his college is paying out recruitment bonuses. How else did he think he got Shaq on the team? White Men Can't Jump Venice Beach court hustlers Wesley Snipes and Woody Harrelson show off plenty of hoop skills, but this quick-fire comedy is all about talking trash. Oddly called "Women Prefer Browns" in Egypt, there are enough "yo mama" jokes here to see you through next season. Love and Basketball Two childhood friends negotiate both of the title sports, with differing results. This overlooked gem's heroine Sanaa Lathan finds that untangling her romantic life is just as tricky as proving her worth in a man's game. The WNBA will never seem the same. He Got Game Forget shot clocks. Play on Spike Lee's court and you're taking part in generational conflicts and contending with commercial exploitation as Aaron Copland and Public Enemy cheer you on. Contending in the most oedipal pick-up game ever are convicted dad Hoop Dreams The definitive basketball movie is a public TV documentary that follows two inner city teens who will do anything to be the next Isaiah Thomas. Over the course of three unbearably intimate hours, we learn what happens off the court is as essential to creating a future sports star as what happens on. |
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