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DVD Review: Hoop Reality  |
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In 1994, the award winning documentary “Hoop Dreams” chronicled the lives of two gifted inner city basketball protégées. Arthur Agee from Marshall High School and William Gates who attended the prestigious St. Joseph’s both in the Chicago, Illinois area were filmed as they circumnavigated their four years of high school with dreams of playing basketball on the professional level.
While the story of these two young gentlemen enthralled audiences and the Sundance Film festival and the movie became a teaching tool to thousands of high school athletes for over a decade, neither Agee nor Gates ever fully attained their own personal “end of the rainbow.”
Fast forward to 2009 and we quickly find out that even though much has changed, even more remains the same in a urban life so devoid of promise that the incredible long shot of becoming a scholarship athlete or pro athlete is the only “ticket out” of the ghetto for thousands of young black men.
This time Agee himself is the one with the off court vision instead of being boxed in by the lines of a basketball court. “Hoop Reality” follows another teen phenom, just like Agee was a decade and a half ago. Patrick Beverly is now the subject of the film and even though many of the lessons haven’t changed, the message is update.
When “Hoop Dreams” came out in the 1990’s, reality TV wasn’t even a thought in American audience’s heads. “Reality” updates the style of the documentary and takes out some of the bumps along the way that bogged down the original.
“Reality” catches the audience up on some of the characters involved in the original without sacrificing the poignant storytelling of this young man’s life. The pitfalls are so great, it’s amazing that anyone succeeds in life, let alone the basketball court.
If one has not seen the original, it’s worth it for a refresher and a primer for “Reality.” A great film and worth 4 out of 5 backboards.
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