1994 · documentary · sport
Hoop Dreams
Directed by Steve James2h 54m1994
Every school day, African-American teenagers William Gates and Arthur Agee travel 90 minutes each way from inner-city Chicago to St. Joseph High School in Westchester, Illinois, a predominately white suburban school well-known for the excellence of its basketball program. Gates and Agee dream of NBA stardom, and with the support of their close-knit families, they battle the social and physical obstacles that stand in their way. This acclaimed documentary was shot over the course of five years.
Our read: Hoop Dreams (1994) reads as a neutral, measured, grounded documentary · sport entry — measured in intensity, intimate in scope, measured in temperature, ambivalent in outlook.
Neutral, measured, measured documentary / sport, grounded in texture. Ambivalent, intimate, measured.
- measured
- intimate
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How Hoop Dreams feels to watch.
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“You want an epic human documentary about ambition, class, and basketball.”
Skip it tonight — Nearly three hours of real-life struggle is too much tonight.
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