Strong and Moving!

The plot isn't so bad, but the pace of storytelling is too slow which makes people bored. Certain moments are so obvious and unnecessary for the main plot. I would've fast-forwarded those moments if it was an online streaming. The ending looks like implying a sequel, not sure if this movie will get one

This is a coming of age storyline that you've seen in one form or another for decades. It takes a truly unique voice to make yet another one worth watching.

A clunky actioner with a handful of cool moments.

This is in my top 10 and along with Roger Ebert and Gene Siskel I think this is 1994's best movie! It's 172 minutes long but it's worth your time. The movie follows 2 boys who want to become NBA basketball players. This is limited to see(though as I write this it's free on Demand) and it needs more attention! Fun Fact: Steve James, the director, appreciated Roger's acclaim so much that he directed his biography! If you can't see it on Demand, you can get it for $30 at Barnes and Noble on DVD(that's how I own it.) This is very much worth your time- so please see it!

A film following the lives of two inner-city Chicago boys who struggle to become college basketball players on the road to going professional. Gates lived in Cabrini–Green while Agee and his family resided in West Garfield Park.Although never a basketball player or from a poor neighborhood, this touches home for me a bit because I am from the Midwest and have spent a fair amount of time in Chicago. And then add Marquette University, a place I have been to countless times, and you are practically in my backyard.The strength of this film is that -- despite the title -- it is not about basketball. That is what drives the narrative, but the deeper story is one of race, class, poverty, unemployment, crime, family values and more. These are real issues, and whether or not we face them, they are holding entire communities back from succeeding.Although violence is never a focus of the film, it remains ever on the edges. The families of both men have experienced losses since the release of the film. On Thanksgiving morning 1994, Agee's older half-brother, DeAntonio, was gunned down at Cabrini–Green. In September 2001, Gates' older brother, Curtis, 36, was shot to death in the Chicago Lawn neighborhood. Arthur's father, Bo Agee, was murdered in 2004.

Hoop Dreams is about two promising basketball players and their experiences playing in high school. At the beginning, the two boys get a scholarship to a private school known for having an exceptional basketball program. Even though it requires each of them to take a ninety minute bus ride one way every day, the school presents a huge opportunity for both of the boys; it's much better in practically every way than the lousy under-privileged schools they previously attended.The film is very restrained in making its point which is something I found odd for a documentary film; I don't watch many films like this but I thought the idea was for the film-makers to make a clear argument rather than present a load of facts and allow the viewer to draw his own conclusions. In any case, it's pretty clear to me that the film is critical of the process that leads these students to be recruited to play basketball at the tender age of 14. It turns out that the scholarship the boys get doesn't cover all expenses and so it proves to be impossible for Arthur Agee, the boy who initially shows less promise, to remain at the school for more than a year. This wreaks havoc on the already pathetic boy who has to deal with his family's extreme poverty due to his father's drug addiction and his mother's health related inability to keep a job. William Gates, the more promising boy, can't afford to pay the fee either but the school finds a sponsor to help him because of his more advanced skills.Arthur is really the more interesting character here as he is plagued with problems from the get-go and he has to try harder to get anywhere. In addition to his poverty, he has to deal with his father's attempts to live vicariously through his success. He struggles to find his own identity. For a good portion of the film, Arthur tries to copy the success of an NBA star from his area, going so far as to borrow the older man's nickname for his own use.It struck me that both of these boys weren't paying enough attention to academics or social skills as they both seemed rather immature and ignorant, particularly in terms of their future potential outside of basketball. Their academic failure is also made clear by their struggle to make an 18 on the ACT, a score that is well below the national average.Hoop Dreams does a good job of telling the story of a little more than four years of the lives of two boys; it's an engrossing enough film to make its three hour run time go by fairly quickly. The film also tells something about the environment promising athletes are thrust into from an early age and how they're sometimes manipulated into spending huge amounts of time doing something that really won't do them much good in life all in the name of making the dream of NBA stardom a reality. I would have liked the film more if it had a bit more context and scope; as it is this work doesn't add up to much more than the story of two individuals when it probably should have said more about the entire system they're immersed in. I also feel that the film-makers should have taken a stand and made some attempt to analyze the story they told, their refusal to do so looks like a combination of laziness and cowardice to me. Still, Hoop Dreams does enough right to make it a worthwhile viewing experience.

I'd heard a lot about this documentary, but had never seen it. I've even read comments by few people calling it their favourite film, "even though it's a documentary" (as if that was a bad thing!). It's understandable to see why this film speaks to the hearts of so many people."Hoop Dreams" follows two teenaged Chicago residents, Arthur Agee and William Gates, and their dreams of becoming professional basketball players - more than that, basketball superstars a la Michael Jordan. From their first year of high school until they start college, we observe all of the expectations, efforts, joy, disappointments, and numerous obstacles that make their journey.Will Agee and Gates manage to overcome all the obstacles and become more than most of their peers even dream to achieve? The suspense is well-built through clever editing and a good sense of rhythm, pace and storytelling (documenting is also storytelling, after all), and the film doesn't feel 170 minutes long. By the end, you realize you've watched two real people growing up and doing what they can or cannot - failing and trying again - to achieve their goals and dreams, no matter what are the odds imposed by their economical and social backgrounds. Hoop Dreams come(s) true as both a slice of life and a fascinating socio-anthropological study. Not bad for a 'basketball documentary'.