According to writer / director Gina Prince, love and basketball do not go hand in hand because each element is too time consuming on its own. On the other hand, her film, Love and Basketball, works beautifully, combining convincing and endearing acting with a sweet and engaging story.
Quincy McCall (Omar Epps) loves basketball and everything that goes along with it. His father, Zeke (Dennis Haysbert), cherishes an excellent career in the NBA, even though he plays for the Clippers. The McCalls are one of the only black families living in their upscale Southern California neighborhood. Although Quincy's mom, Nona (Debbie Morgan), seems to have grown weary of her husband's grueling schedule, the family is successful and happy.
In 1981, when Quincy is 11, a new kid moves in next door. It turns out that this new kid is even more adamant and knowledgeable about basketball than he is. Oh yeah, the catch: this new kid is a girl. In the era long before the WNBA, Monica Wright (Sanaa Lathan) dreams of becoming the first female player in the NBA. Her dream is never too much of a stretch, however, because she is tremendously talented at the game. As she grows older, her mom, Camille (Alfre Woodard) wants her to focus on more typical aspirations of girls, especially when it comes to doing up her hair and showing off her true beauty. But Monica is much too devoted to basketball to let any of this get to her.
Quincy and Monica quickly become friends as they go through high school and then college together. While their focus is always on their respective basketball teams, they gradually come to realize that maybe the love of their life is living right next door.
Along their journey, we are treated to many well done basketball scenes with both boys and girls. Unlike many sports films, however, these scenes focus on other aspects of the game than just the final shot. I believe that more screen time is spent on the practice floor than during actual games, very true to real life.
While I will not go further into the plot, I must mention that side stories, most notably involving Zeke, are well orchestrated, actually adding to the impact of the film, instead of just taking up time. Unlike those of most romantic comedies, Prince's story and script are very believable and honest. Though the film has obvious feminist undertones in Monica's justified comparisons of men's and women's basketball, they never come on so strong as to alienate any unsympathetic viewers.
The most impressive aspect of Love and Basketball definitely comes in the performances of its two leads. Omar Epps delivers the best performance of his career, always believable in the basketball scenes and captivating in the rest of the story. Even outshining him, however, is Sanaa Lathan in an outstanding breakthrough performance. She is 100% convincing in her very demanding basketball scenes, and, off the court, she plays every emotion to perfection. Although I had never heard of her before this film, I can say with conviction that she is one rising star for which to watch.
Featuring an entertaining story for both men and women, very impressive performances from the entire cast, and a definite sense of heart and soul, Love and Basketball scores as one of the best date films of the year.
8 out of 10.
Rated PG-13 for language, sexuality, and brief nudity
DVD Extras: Love and Basketball has recently been released on DVD with a fairly impressive line up of bonus material. Seven deleted scenes can be seen with or without commentary, though they are all very short and unimportant to the film. A bloopers reel is included, but it seems poorly edited, the worst one that I have ever seen on a DVD. One interesting feature that I enjoyed for the first time on this DVD is the inclusion of four audition tapes of different scenes from the film. I found it interesting that during the audition of one of the scenes, four "f" words are used, likely indicating that the film was originally intended to be "R" rated, but major changes were made before production. This was a very good decision because the story is now accessible for young teen audiences, though at times the sexuality is still fairly strong.
Also included is a thirty some minute documentary on feminism, mainly focusing of course on women in basketball and other sports. Although I dare not go into my feelings on the issue here, I will say that if this interests you, it is probably worth checking out. An audio commentary featuring the director and Sanaa Lathan is also included, but having rented the DVD, I did not have time to check it out. An isolated score, storyboards, a music video, and trailers are also included; and of course, the film is presented in its original widescreen format. All in all, this is a very comprehensive DVD, another fine delivery from New Line Platinum Series.
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