{"id":2090,"date":"2014-03-28T08:30:42","date_gmt":"2014-03-28T15:30:42","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.pbs.org\/independentlens\/blog\/?p=5450"},"modified":"2023-08-25T10:06:52","modified_gmt":"2023-08-25T17:06:52","slug":"march-madness-best-basketball-films","status":"publish","type":"blog","link":"https:\/\/www.pbs.org\/independentlens\/blog\/march-madness-best-basketball-films\/","title":{"rendered":"March Madness: Best Basketball Films"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>Looking back at the 2014\u00a0broadcast television premiere of<em> Independent Lens<\/em>&#8216;\u00a0<em><a href=\"https:\/\/www.pbs.org\/independentlens\/documentaries\/medora\/\">Medora<\/a><\/em>, not to mention that we&#8217;re in the midst of NCAA basketball \u201cMarch Madness,\u201d we have the sport of James Naismith firmly on our minds. While <em>Medora<\/em> is about much, much more than high school basketball\u00a0\u2014\u00a0\u201cThe film transcends the underdog sports doc,&#8221;\u00a0wrote John Fink in\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/thefilmstage.com\/sxsw-review-medora\/\">The Film Stage<\/a>, telling &#8220;a timely and important story with raw immediacy&#8221;\u00a0\u2014\u00a0the struggling underdog basketball team is the heart and soul of the film, both on the courts and off.<\/p>\n<p>The general feeling about basketball movies is that there aren\u2019t enough good ones, and while that may ostensibly be true, there have still been quite a few excellent films. Here are my picks for the best films about basketball, both documentary and fiction, some famous, some obscure.<\/p>\n<p><!--more--><\/p>\n<p>Let us know your own favorites in the comments.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Elite Eight:<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>1) <em>Hoop Dreams:\u00a0<\/em>Not just the greatest film about basketball, but Steve James&#8217;s film is frequently mentioned as the greatest documentary film ever, period. But don&#8217;t let such lofty praise deter you from glomming on to the absolutely moving humanity on display throughout in this story of two African American teens from Chicago, each with outstanding basketball talent, but with a jarring number of obstacles in their path (poverty, fractured family life, getting through school, and just the tough odds of staying healthy enough to compete against the best). Epic yet intimate, uplifting and heartbreaking. A masterpiece.<\/p>\n<iframe loading=\"lazy\" title=\"Hoop Dreams (1994) | Official Trailer\" width=\"500\" height=\"375\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/fuemPpgc-7s?feature=oembed\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share\" referrerpolicy=\"strict-origin-when-cross-origin\" allowfullscreen><\/iframe>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>2) <em>White Men Can&#8217;t Jump:\u00a0<\/em>Ron Shelton wrote and directed one of the best baseball films, <em>Bull Durham<\/em> (based in part on his own experiences as a minor leaguer), and he totally nails street hoops (and street hustling) with this fast, foul-mouthed, and flippant comedy. Woody Harrelson and Wesley Snipes make a great pair (and Rosie Perez adds sass) and the basketball action on the concrete courts of L.A. is super.<\/p>\n<iframe loading=\"lazy\" title=\"White Men Can&#039;t Jump | #TBT Trailer | 20th Century FOX\" width=\"500\" height=\"281\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/NHRvNAENaxk?feature=oembed\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share\" referrerpolicy=\"strict-origin-when-cross-origin\" allowfullscreen><\/iframe>\n<p>3) <em>Hoosiers:\u00a0<\/em>\u201cMy practices aren&#8217;t designed for your enjoyment.\u201d\u00a0A near-classic and also a cult favorite, despite (or maybe because of) its share of Hollywood moments, in which the great Hackman plays a coach with a checkered past who enlists the help of a local drunk (Dennis Hopper, also super here) to turn an Indiana town\u2019s high school basketball team into a championship contender. Based on a true story, <em>Hoosiers<\/em> makes an interesting double-bill with <em>Medora<\/em>, though the latter, obviously, is a bit more realistic.<\/p>\n<iframe loading=\"lazy\" title=\"Hoosiers - Trailer\" width=\"500\" height=\"281\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/HPiXuGojahA?feature=oembed\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share\" referrerpolicy=\"strict-origin-when-cross-origin\" allowfullscreen><\/iframe>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>4) <em>Inside Moves:\u00a0<\/em>Underrated drama from 1980, this features veteran actor David Morse (<em>St. Elsewhere, John Adams, Treme<\/em>) in his very first role, as a bartender-turned-pro ballplayer, and John Savage as the disabled bar patron\/friend who roots him on with a wary eye. Based on a book by Todd Walton, Richard Donner\u2019s film may be a little sentimental and unrealistic but it\u2019s still moving, satisfying, and well-acted.<\/p>\n<p>Cheesy TV ad for <em>Inside Moves<\/em>:<\/p>\n<iframe loading=\"lazy\" title=\"Inside Moves 1980 TV spot\" width=\"500\" height=\"375\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/ulD05B2wYXc?feature=oembed\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share\" referrerpolicy=\"strict-origin-when-cross-origin\" allowfullscreen><\/iframe>\n<p>5) <em>He Got Game<\/em>: As with many other Spike Lee film joynts, it\u2019s an uneven ride, but the highs override the lows, especially with Denzel Washington along as a felonious father looking for a second chance with his basketball-playing son (played by real-life NBA star Ray Allen). The two of them have memorable one-on-ones together on and off the court, and their story is both quite heartwarming and heartbreaking. Plenty of great visual moments in this film capturing the elusive dreams of playing in the pros\u00a0\u2014\u00a0and how it\u2019s become more a business than a sport. All make up for the film\u2019s occasional missteps.<\/p>\n<iframe loading=\"lazy\" title=\"He Got Game - Trailer\" width=\"500\" height=\"375\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/yIhthvNiPR4?feature=oembed\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share\" referrerpolicy=\"strict-origin-when-cross-origin\" allowfullscreen><\/iframe>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>6) <em>Black Magic<\/em>:\u00a0This two-part, four hour documentary for ESPN is both a complex civil rights story and a sports story, both illuminating and sad. It is the story of black college basketball teams before and during the Civil Rights Era, as the game became popular, and some of its players famous, but something was lost as well. Features such hoops luminaries as Earl \u201cthe Pearl\u201d Monroe, Oscar Robertson and Willis Reed, and an innovative but underappreciated coach named John McLendon, this tackles an underseen part of our sports history with a skillful mix of rare archival footage and interviews.<\/p>\n<iframe loading=\"lazy\" title=\"Black Magic\" width=\"500\" height=\"375\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/jMF30JBIKmc?feature=oembed\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share\" referrerpolicy=\"strict-origin-when-cross-origin\" allowfullscreen><\/iframe>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>7) <a href=\"https:\/\/www.pbs.org\/independentlens\/documentaries\/chiefs\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><em>Chiefs<\/em><\/a>:\u00a0David Junge\u2019s compelling, affecting look at a Wyoming <a href=\"https:\/\/www.pbs.org\/independentlens\/documentaries\/what-was-ours\/\">Wind River Indian Reservation<\/a>\u2019s high school basketball team\u2019s ups and downs as the student-athletes struggle to overcome the threats of alcoholism, poverty, racism, and depression while competing to win on the courts. Could be seen as a Native American answer to <em>Hoop Dreams<\/em> in its way (and in its style) but stands on its own as a rare glimpse into adolescent life on the rez.<\/p>\n<iframe loading=\"lazy\" title=\"Chiefs Documentary Trailer\" src=\"https:\/\/player.vimeo.com\/video\/17377532?dnt=1&amp;app_id=122963\" width=\"500\" height=\"283\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"autoplay; fullscreen; picture-in-picture; clipboard-write\"><\/iframe>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>8) <em>The Other Dream Team:<\/em>\u00a0Rousing\u00a0story of the 1992 Lithuanian national basketball team and their journey from communism to freedom and the Summer Olympics in Barcelona, featuring several groundbreaking NBA stars. This is a feel-good story of a band of tie-dyed shirt-wearing underdogs who are a quirky Eastern European version of <em>Hoosiers<\/em>, in their way.<\/p>\n<p><iframe loading=\"lazy\" title=\"Barcelona 1992: The Other Dream Team Documentary Trailer\" width=\"500\" height=\"375\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/X0i7tT3-loI?feature=oembed\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share\" referrerpolicy=\"strict-origin-when-cross-origin\" allowfullscreen><\/iframe><br \/>\n<strong>8 Honorable Mentions (The Sweet 16)<\/strong><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><em>One on One<\/em>: Robby Benson as a gifted basketball player, what more do you need? One of the first movies I remember seeing as a wee lad, as it turns out. See clip:<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<iframe loading=\"lazy\" title=\"One On One - Trailer\" width=\"500\" height=\"281\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/kFVKLgLiujY?feature=oembed\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share\" referrerpolicy=\"strict-origin-when-cross-origin\" allowfullscreen><\/iframe>\n<ul>\n<li><em>Fast Break<\/em>: Gabe Kaplan as a hoops coach, what more do you need? (Seriously, it may seem a little dated, but it&#8217;s still fun. Thanks for the reminder Sam in D.C.)<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<iframe loading=\"lazy\" title=\"Fast Break 1979 TV trailer\" width=\"500\" height=\"375\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/UFITaQSXxP0?feature=oembed\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share\" referrerpolicy=\"strict-origin-when-cross-origin\" allowfullscreen><\/iframe>\n<ul>\n<li><em>The Heart of the Game:<\/em>\u00a0Patiently filmed over the course of many years, this is an engaging documentary on both Bill Resler, an eccentric University of Washington economics professor who moonlights as coach for a girls&#8217; high school basketball team and leads them to marked improvement, and his star player\u00a0Darnella Russell.<\/li>\n<li><em>The Fab Five<\/em>: An ESPN <em>30 for 30<\/em> doc on the remarkably talented, and also groundbreaking, freshman quintet who starred at the University of Michigan in the early \u201890s (Jalen Rose, Chris Webber, Juwan Howard, Jimmy King, and Ray Jackson). They were called by some \u201cfive Muhammad Alis\u201d for the brash swagger and impact they had.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<iframe loading=\"lazy\" title=\"&quot;The Fab Five&quot; ESPN Films Trailer - Airs March 13th, 2011 at 9PM ET\" width=\"500\" height=\"281\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/z6aQe4zLN2w?feature=oembed\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share\" referrerpolicy=\"strict-origin-when-cross-origin\" allowfullscreen><\/iframe>\n<ul>\n<li><em>Don&#8217;t Nobody Love the Game More Than Me<\/em>: Martha Pinson&#8217;s lovely little short film (full disclosure: an <em>Independent Lens<\/em> short, but I genuinely like it) is available to watch on YouTube:<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<iframe loading=\"lazy\" title=\"Don&#039;t Nobody Love the Game More Than Me\" width=\"500\" height=\"281\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/QFt_g5hUoX4?feature=oembed\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share\" referrerpolicy=\"strict-origin-when-cross-origin\" allowfullscreen><\/iframe>\n<ul>\n<li><em>No Look Pass:\u00a0<\/em>I saw this at the San Francisco International Film Festival in 2012 where it won the Audience Award; very well-done doc about a women&#8217;s basketball player at Harvard who feels like an outsider by being both Asian and gay.<\/li>\n<li><em>Above the Rim<\/em>: The script is full of clich\u00e9s\u00a0but both the basketball action and the performances are irresistible.<\/li>\n<li><em>Love and Basketball<\/em>: That rare feature about women and hoops, this debut from\u00a0Gina Prince-Bythewood is a sometimes clunky but winning romance-sports drama (maybe this can be a new subgenre: <em>spormance<\/em>?)<\/li>\n<li><em>Coach Carter<\/em>: Forgot this initially. It&#8217;s solid and inspiring underdog story based on a true story. Samuel Jackson rouses, of course, and what could&#8217;ve been totally standard film rises above it a bit. Directed by former <em>White Shadow<\/em>\u00a0(&#8217;70s TV high school basketball series) co-star Thomas Carter.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><strong>Two more<\/strong>:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><em>Glory Road<\/em>: Sure it\u2019s Disney-fied but it\u2019s still a great story: How Don Haskins led college basketball\u2019s first all-African American starting 5 (Texas Western, which became UT-El Paso) to the NCAA national championship. An able cast, led by Josh Lucas as Haskins and Derek Luke (<em>Antwone Fisher<\/em>) helps it rise above the formula.<\/li>\n<li><em>More Than a Game<\/em>: \u00a0A high school phenom named LeBron James and his friends form tight bonds and go through ups and downs while leading their Akron team to the national HS championship game.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Looking back at the 2014\u00a0broadcast television premiere of Independent Lens&#8216;\u00a0Medora, not to mention that we&#8217;re in the midst of NCAA basketball \u201cMarch Madness,\u201d we have the sport of James Naismith firmly on our minds. While Medora is about much, much more than high school basketball\u00a0\u2014\u00a0\u201cThe film transcends the underdog sports doc,&#8221;\u00a0wrote John Fink in\u00a0The Film [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":13,"featured_media":14818,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","template":"","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[939],"tags":[],"topic":[],"class_list":["post-2090","blog","type-blog","status-publish","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-lists"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v27.2 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/product\/yoast-seo-wordpress\/ -->\n<title>March Madness: Best Basketball Films | Blog | Independent Lens | PBS<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"In honor of March Madness and the broadcast premiere of Medora, about a scrappy, small-town basketball team, here&#039;s our picks for best hoops films ever.\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, 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