Lenny Cooke

After seeing this, I do believe that Lenny Cooke would have been a big star if he had been chosen for pro level.

There's not much to this very simple documentary but it's an eye-opening watch for curious parties. Lenny Cooke was the #1 high school basketball player in the country and was up for the NBA Drafts - and though there was a ton of hype around him at the time, all of his commensurates got picked, and he didn't. And then, nothing else ever happened for him. Witness the build up, the disappointment, and then the void.

To me, it does feel like it has a slightly exploitive edge to it but it's the Safdie Brothers and speaking of edges that is where they initially found theirs. I mean, have you seen their next movie, Heaven Knows What? Do you know the story behind that one? One of the darkest films of the century, through exploitive means, and it's a masterpiece. God handed them the torch and they carried it.

After exploring the Safdie's earlier works, I really appreciate their dynamics and diversity. While Good Time and Uncut Gems have quite a lot of similarities, all of their other films are extremely different from one another, yet they all have a lot of merit. Truly some of the most admirable filmmakers of the last 15 years.

I hope Lenny is doing well.

It's a bit ironic that just as Lenny's basketball career was misguided by those trying to exploit him, the life story of such was utterly misguided by two sibling film makers who, most assuredly, likely promised an insightful tale of highs and lows to a man once ranked above King James himself.

The film was obviously unique in a way. One half is conspired by a different film maker entirely (pre-draft Lenny), and the other poorly conspired half is done by the sibling film makers that handle the post-2002 draft fallout into the present day. The latter half prides itself on it's truly raw look into Lenny's life - friends, family, and beyond - yet reverts back to college film class special effects such as having modern day Lenny talk to a younger Lenny about making the right decisions. This was cheap and unnecessary. It also carried on quite a bit where many viewers were checking their watches. The cinematography was quite guerrilla which is a bit headache inducing. I will say this, however - the decision to not include the injuries that plagued his late career was a strong one. It would have burdened the film with unnecessary overtones that would most certainly not have furthered it's message.

One telling piece in their post film Q&A is that they did not understand why Lenny wasn't drafted in 2002. How amazing is it that the point of their film was completely lost on them! Lenny wasn't drafted because he didn't have a love for the game. The game was always a means for Lenny, not an end: he'd play for anyone who offered him a few hundred bucks and a pair of Jordans. He didn't play to play. He wanted to be drafted by the team that paid him the most. The man played overseas and visited countries all over the world. For all intents and purposes the man lived and is still living a tremendously blessed life. Instead the film makers chose to focus on the story of a guy who could have had everything but failed, when the real story is a man who fails to realize what he does have.

It is quite a shame. I think the story of Lenny is one that should be told. It just should have been told by film makers who understand it's subject.

Lenny Cooke follows the story of a former #1 ranked high school basketball player and his challenges and struggles while trying to get into the league. The documentary style film-making makes it very easy to follow and gives a unique perspective. It amazes me how much footage was filmed during the 2000s but the movie really comes together and leaves an imprint on its audience.

The story is impeccable and very interesting especially to basketball fans. This movie isn't necessarily groundbreaking but has good core elements. It is my least favorite Sadfie brothers film but it is a doc so they dont get to play with it as much.

Overall very entertaining and better than lots of films out there today 7/10