Just finished watching Hoop Dreams this morning. I started half of it last night and the rest today, it's amazing that a three hour documentary moves as astonishingly well as this one does. I haven't seen hoop dreams in its entirety since it came out in theatres, over ten years ago. I remember not being bored by it but not really getting all of the racial/class/societal questions the film asked. Then again I was only ten years old. It's a really great film though, Roger Ebert called it one of the best films ever made about american life, I haven't seen enough to certify that statement but I would say its up there. There is also a scene that I swear Spike Lee took down page for page when he wrote He Got Game. It's when one of the kids (William) is being recruited by Marquette university and they take him down to the stadium and bring him up to the press box where he listens to a fake play by play of himself hitting the game winning shot of the championship. College basketball is some sleazy shit, hell, basketball in general seems like sleazy shit. The other kid Arthur is recruited off of the playgrounds by a fancy private school called St. Joe's because the scout thought he could be the next isiah thomas. When it doesn't turn out that way as quickly as they would have hoped and his grades aren't up to snuff, they shit can him and make his parents pay thousands of dollars for tuition they promised they would pay. Anyway, the movie is remarkable and if you have a chance to rent the brand new dvd that just came out, definitely do so. Or burn it. I haven't done a plug in a while, so I figured it's about time.
Two more days, until Revenge of the Sith I don't know what else to say really. All sorts of reviews being posted, I do something really stupid whenever I read these opinions. Obviously I dont read the reviews because critics don't give a crap about spoilers, but a negative review gets me more bummed out then a positive review gets me excited. I don't know why that hapens. I shouldn't care what the village voice thinks, we've had our differences in the past. Anyway, maybe the next time you hear from me I'll be revenged, maybe not though. Maybe I'll write about what i eat for lunch today. I'll see ya.
"People always say to me, when you get to the NBA, don't forget about me. Well, I should've said back, if I don't make it to the NBA, don't you forget about me."
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Another great basketball movie quote, I know Nate agrees with me on this one: "Y'know, someplace, someplace in America right now, there's some 10 year old kid. He's out there on that playground, and he's playin', he's dribbling between his legs, he's goin' left, he's goin' right, he's already above the rim, he's stuffin' it home. You know what's gonna happen to this kid? Five minutes from now, he's gonna be surrounded by agents, corporate sponsors and coaches. Y'know, people like me. Just drooling over this kid because he holds our future employment in his hands. I mean, that's what we've made this game. That's what we've done. Y'know, the best coaching job I ever did, that wasn't tonight. It was last season. Y'know, when we were 14 and 50 and we had a losing season. But goddamnit, those kids, they gave me their HEARTS! They gave me everything they had! They played up to the MAXIMUM of their ability! They gave it EVERYTHING! And y'know, it wasn't good enough! It wasn't good enough for me, it wasn't good enough for you, it wasn't good enough for anybody! That's pathetic. I mean, that's really pathetic. I've become what I despise. And, y'know, I cheated my profession. Cheated myself. I cheated basketball. There's two words I didn't think'd ever come out of my mouth. I didn't think I'd ever be able to say 'em: I Quit!"
College basketball IS sleazy, so is the NBA. The "business" of basketball is sleazy. As is the "business" of the movie industry and many other industries. But to say Basketball in general is sleazy, I think that's a sweeping, unfair generalization. For every sleazy, manipulative coach or team that exists there is a player, coach or team doing something positive. Just like for every Grazer & Bruckheimer there are good independent filmmakers out there as well.
Wednesday I am doing a 5 movie Star Wars marathon culminating with Episode III on Thursday!
Hoop Dreams blows. Above the rim...I know gabe loved that.
In my defense, I did say Basketball seems like sleazy shit. But I guess I was being a bit unfair, I retract and propose to amend the term with the business of basketball being sleazy as gfonseca stated.
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