Preview

Film Analysis: Hoop Dreams

Good Essays
Open Document
Open Document
648 Words
Grammar
Grammar
Plagiarism
Plagiarism
Writing
Writing
Score
Score
Film Analysis: Hoop Dreams
The exceptionally engaging film, Hoop Dreams goes deep into the life that surrounds basketball. To make it, a player has to be something more then just a good player. They need to be belligerent, well trained, surpass academically, and unaware of anything that doesn't include basketball. The highly thought out, and heartrending film closely records the lives of two Chicago teenagers as we watch their struggle of basketball, to become the best.
For five years, Steve James, Frederick Marx, and Peter Gilbert record both the private moments, and communal encounters of William Gates and Arthur Agee. The product is both a kindhearted portrayal of two people and a spectacular interpretation of the method that develops student athletes.
The film

You May Also Find These Documents Helpful

  • Good Essays

    Movie Analysis: Fly Boys

    • 657 Words
    • 3 Pages

    As World War I rages in Europe and Allied forces in France, Italy, and England find their resolve quickly diminishing due to the overwhelming force of the German juggernaut, a handful of brave American soldiers volunteer to join their French counterparts in learning to fly and fighting for freedom from above as the true story of the legendary Lafayette Escadrille comes to the screen in a breathtaking war adventure from Academy Award-winning director Tony Bill and famed producer Dean Devlin. They have come from all over the United States, ready and willing to put their lives on the line despite their country's initial pledge to not get involved with the all-consuming war that rages throughout Europe. Few could have foreseen the challenges faced by the world's first fighter pilots, however, and upon arriving at their aerodrome in France, the aspiring aviators are assigned to a new squadron…

    • 657 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    slam, dunk, and hook

    • 722 Words
    • 2 Pages

    Basketball isn’t just a sport, it’s a lifestyle. It requires you to push yourself again and again and not give up until the final buzzer sounds. Basketball requires a lot of teamwork and that team is like your family. Working together like a family helps push every player to do their best and make each other proud. In the poem “Slam Dunk & Hook” the author Yusef Komunyakaa uses metaphors, allusions, and imagery to illustrate basketball which offers escape and triumph for the players.…

    • 722 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Hoosiers a Film Review

    • 1284 Words
    • 6 Pages

    Our setting is rural Indiana in a town called Hickory. It’s a place that’s resistant to change. Hickory is a place where, according to Myra Fleener, a character in the film, “basketball heroes are treated like gods”. This town takes their basketball seriously, a setting where the new basketball coach faces the obstacle of sleuth of second-guessing fathers.…

    • 1284 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Many authors/film makers realize that sometimes, in order to make a point, an idea is best conveyed through a stirring of the audience’s pathos, or feelings. An audience whose emotions have been affected is more likely to remember a message and take it into consideration. Hoop Dreams, a documentary by Steve James, is an apt example that employs heavy use of pathos in order to present its theme. The documentary follows two boys through their high school years in Chicago as they pursue their life dreams of becoming two players in the NBA. It is hard not to become engaged in the film as the boys must overcome many hurdles in order to work towards their dream. The filmmakers strive to stir the emotions of the audience by giving much…

    • 1137 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Powerful Essays

    Millions of people across the United States play sports and train everyday. Although sports are a glorious thing to watch, the people who play in them put in hours and hours of work to become that good, and sometimes the road to get there is not always easy. Two special stories of the path to greatness can be found in the Norton Field Guide. Marlen Esparza and Victor Cruz have very different stories, play different sports and have different backgrounds, but both ultimately go through hardships to become role models and achieve greatness.…

    • 1057 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Powerful Essays
  • Good Essays

    Hoop Dreams Themes

    • 719 Words
    • 3 Pages

    One of the themes we talked in class was the exploitation of the student athlete for the benefit of the school. Student athletes are expected to live up to the expectations of the coaches and the school and devote a majority of their time to the sport they participate in. If an athlete does not live up to the expectations of the school, he or she can be cut from the team. This theme was definitely prevalent in the documentary. Both William Gates and Arthur Agee were recruited by St. Joseph High School to help their basketball team win games. They basically served as an employee of the school because they were only brought in for this sole purpose and could be let go if they didn 't perform up to par. Because William Gates performed at a high level, he was given a free education, medical treatment, and academic support. On the other hand, Arthur Agee was basically forced out of the school after he didn 't perform as well as the school had hoped for. St. Joseph 's really only cared about their own success and not the success of these athletes outside of the sport.…

    • 719 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    When I first arrived at Rotunda D I thought to myself great I get to stand the whole time because there is not one open seat. Dean Nickels started the event off by introducing Scott Naggy, head boys basketball coach. Naggy then talked a little about how they recruit players for South Dakota State University. He then introduced two of his players. The first was from the West side of Chicago, he talked about how he would play basketball to escape from the hardships of growing up in West Chicago. The second player was from Michigan, he explained how basketball was the main sport played in that area. He explained how the teachers there didn't care how the students do in there class they will just pass them to get rid of them. He…

    • 409 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Satisfactory Essays

    I’ve never seen the film Love and Basketball, but it does sound like an inspirational film. I love that Monica still worked hard on reaching her goal as a basketball player. It’s nice that she found Quincy to share the love for basketball, but it’s too bad that their love for basketball is also the reason that they separated. It seems like the film shows how woman struggle from doing the same thing that is easily reached by men. Being stereotyped for being a woman in the sport, is her biggest struggle. I’m glad that she never gave up her dream, even if it was hard to reach. It looks like the film shows the woman struggle and determination to be someone they want to be in the man’s world. As woman we are expected to act certain way and I’m glad…

    • 229 Words
    • 1 Page
    Satisfactory Essays
  • Satisfactory Essays

    Movie Analysis: Doubt

    • 480 Words
    • 2 Pages

    Sister James and Sister Aloysius play a very important role in John Patrick Shanley’s movie Doubt, which is about the mistrust that takes place in a school directed by the church on priest Flynn command. There, sister Aloysius is the principal, so she is in charge of the student’s rights and responsibilities. On the other hand Sister James is a history teacher. Both characters are important for their way of handling the doubt.…

    • 480 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Satisfactory Essays
  • Good Essays

    Picture it: Miami, 1985. Four women from different walks of life with seemingly nothing in common decide to move in together. These strangers couldn't be more dissimilar: A sweet naïve Minnesotan, a sex-crazed Southern Belle, a cynical husky-voiced substitute teacher and her mother, a crazy little Italian munchkin. No one could see how these four souls would successfully live under one roof, but they decided to give it a try as they were all in a pinch for somewhere to stay. The truth is, at first all Hell broke loose and it seemed clear that they were just too different to share one house. But one thing led to another and soon enough they were sitting around their kitchen table, laughing, gossiping and sharing, you guessed it, a cheesecake.…

    • 757 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Cited: For the Love of the Game: My Story by Michael Jordan. Edited by Mark Vancil. Crown Publishers, INC. New York. 1998…

    • 971 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    For Sport Film Analysis assignment I decided to analyze a movie named Goal! The Dream Begins, which Is a film about a young Mexican that goes by the name of Santiago Muñez, who lives in the not so good part of los Angeles, is given a chance to achieve his dream of playing professional soccer by trying out for an English club team named Newcastle United when he is spotted by a talent scout with contacts with Newcastle united. In the Film Santiago Muñez is portrayed as a an overachiever who even though he is working two jobs as a gardener and cook at a Chinese restaurant he gives himself time to play in a recreational soccer team and is always wanting to give superior and impressive results through the excessive effort that he portrays in the game. As he is starting as a rookie in a low level of competition in soccer he has been playing this sport since he was a child and at the…

    • 1462 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Better Essays

    There was a general interest meeting for anyone who wanted to play on the school team. I was confident I could return to my geeky ways if there were no other beginners on the team. As I nervously walked into the gym, it seemed like every kid on the court was born with a basketball in his hand. I stood on the sideline and tried to look somewhat coordinated by bouncing an occasional dribble. I watched in awe as kids came up the court and effortlessly hit shot after shot. They could drive to the hoop with ease and made me feel like I was born with two left feet with their fancy dribble moves. The coach walked out of his office and announced to the group that basketball tryouts would be in November. It was already September, and it would take a miracle worker to bring me to the skill level I needed to make the team. I was short and had never touched a basketball in my life. What was I doing here? The mountain I anticipated was in reality Mt. Everest. I could never see myself in a million years having what it takes to be good at basketball. But I kept hearing soft whispers inside my mind to just try it. Maybe it was because it was a new school year and a new beginning. Maybe it was because I had friends who lived and breathed basketball. Whatever the reason, I signed up for…

    • 1136 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Better Essays
  • Good Essays

    In this essay "Athletes and Education" by Neil H. Petrie, he shows how student athlete’s education can be neglected or even overlooked. Genre and writer would be related by Petrie being an English professor and how this inspired him to write the essay. By being a university professor he was able to see how the athletes were treated among the university. The ethos would be that he is an English professor of student athletes.…

    • 364 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Satisfactory Essays

    dedicated to success

    • 384 Words
    • 1 Page

    For instance, Michael Jordan was cut from his high school varsity basketball team. Motivated to prove his worth, Jordan became the star of Laney high school’s junior varsity team, and played several forty point games. With dedication, he worked hard earned a spot on the varsity roster and then went on to play college basketball for North Carolina. After being drafted by the Chicago Bulls in the 1984 NBA draft, Jordan quickly became a fan favorite and was voted 1985 Rookie of the Year. Striving to be the best Jordan would stay after practice, play on the weekends, and work in the off season to get better. Game 5 or what has come to be…

    • 384 Words
    • 1 Page
    Satisfactory Essays

Related Topics