Drazen

I'm from Hungary, grew up playing basketball in the 90's and 2000's so Drazen was a little before my time, but we knew about the yugoslavian dream team of the early 90's and all their great world class players, especially Drazen. He was truly a trailblazer for european basketball, the first who proved in the NBA that the best of Europe can compete with the very best the NBA has to offer.

This movie was sadly quite a disaster, nowhere near the quaily that such a legendary athlete would deserve. I was expecting something like the recent Disney movie of Giannis' life, but this is a low budget movie with a terrible choice for the lead actor. It's one thing that the guy doesn't have the phisique of an NBA star, but it's quite ridiculous that the real Drazen was much better looking than the actor portraying him. Like come on, couldn't they find someone who at least doesn't have a round face with a double chin? It was very distracting, but even worse, the story was boring although it could've had much more action and insteresting stuff. E g. They completely left out the 92 olympics or how the yugoslavian propaganda turned serbian and croatian players against each other before that. Only good thing I can say about the movie is that the ending was done tastefully, it was a nice touch.

Maybe one day a more talented croatian director will do a better work, until then we at least have the 30 for 30, Once Brothers ESPN docu which is a very good tribute to this legendary basketball player.

It's hard to imagine a more uninspired take on one of the most inspiring athletes in history. "Drazen", a film that should have been a moving tribute to the "Mozart of Basketball," is instead a lifeless and shallow portrayal that does a disservice to its subject.

The film makes an effort to show Drazen Petrovic beyond the basketball court - through his relationships with his parents, his brother, and a love interest - but every attempt at emotional depth lands with a dull thud. There's no spark, no tension, no feeling. Scenes that are clearly meant to be heartfelt come off as hollow and mechanical, like emotional checkboxes being ticked off without any real understanding of what makes a human story compelling.

The romantic subplot in particular feels dramatically empty. The relationship unfolds with all the emotional intensity of a phone commercial, and ultimately adds nothing meaningful to the film or to our understanding of Drazen Petrovic as a person.

The direction is uninspired, and the script seems written by someone with no understanding of character, pacing, or storytelling. Even the most basic emotional beats fall completely flat. There's no sense of triumph, no heartbreak, no intimacy. Watching this film is like reading a Wikipedia entry aloud, only with worse writing and less insight. It's hard to believe that the life of such an electric, driven and charismatic figure could be turned into something so emotionally sterile. Credit (or rather blame) goes to the director and screenwriter, whose utter lack of vision and storytelling talent reduces an extraordinary life into a bland slideshow of facts.

With source material as rich and compelling as Drazen Petrovic's life, the failure to create a meaningful, moving film isn't just disappointing - it's astonishing. This was a chance to honour a cultural icon, a global talent, and a deeply human story. Instead, we got a film that feels like it doesn't understand or care why Petrovic mattered at all.

"Drazen" isn't just a bad film - it's a wasted opportunity of epic proportions.

This movie is a great tribute to Drazen , his life , work , family, another dimension directed by Ljuban and Danilo.

Zrinka and Domagoj did fantastic job to create mother and son relationships and passed it on us deeply.

Movie did send me back when I was a kid and did wake up memories that didn't float over my body for long, long time.

Such a great selection of actors made this move even more better, specially young ones and less experienced but they showed us full power and I imagine how high expectations was for them Did enjoy every second of the movie.

Great music as well.

Thank you guys and all the best.

Greetings from Turanj near Karlovac.

To say that this movie is a disappointment is an understatement.

Pros: Technical aspects of the film such as cinematography and sound are well done; Zrinka Cvitesic as Biserka Petrovic is believable as a mother and a human being; Tonko Stosic is charming as young Drazen Petrovic; a fair amount of Drazens' basketball achievements are mentioned; Drazens' work ethic is briefly shown once or twice;

The End.

Cons: This movie fails as a movie, let alone a story about Drazen. When any pivotal conflict suddenly presents itself (via exposition, every single time) it immediately gets resolved (just in passing, every single time) via exposition or a montage in the next scene which sets up a new challenge and around it goes.

The movie is a series of scenes of Drazen hanging out in bars/offices/living rooms, chasing or getting chased by girls and basketball clubs while lightly discussing things he wants to do - and those goals being immediately achieved in a 20-second-montage.

Anything important and interesting is briefly mentioned (or not even mentioned at all), while the rest is an attempt at a Hollywood romantic drama. If you didn't know anything about Drazen before watching this and you blinked during montages about his basketball prowess you still won't know or remember anything about him at the end - well, I guess you'd know he was a basketball player and apparently was very good because everyone says so.

So little of his character was shown: his determination, his leadership, charisma, unbreakable spirit, relationships with people (other than his immediate family or love interests)... Some of it was attempted, but deemed less important.

Domagoj Nizic as adult Drazen doesn't have a passing resemblance to Drazen (even though the actor seems like a sweet guy) but the bigger problem is he can't believably convey Drazens' spirit nor is he believable as a basketball athlete.

I thought my biggest problem with this movie would be inconsistencies involving dialect or lack of basketball scenes, but a decent screenplay to begin with was apparently too much to ask.

I could go on but I respect Drazen (the Man, not this film) too much to go off on this production here...

TL;DR: Story about one of the greatest sports icons famous for his incredible work ethic and for overcoming great odds gets a below average ''tell, don't show'' romantic drama treatment, with some basketball clips running on a TV in the background and hours of talking about a basketball career (could've been about anyone).

Watch some highlights or a documentary instead - you will have a much, much better time.

I'm very sad... ''Zivot leti, kapetane.''

Drazen is an awesome movie that dives deep into the life of Drazen Petrovic, one of the greatest basketball legends ever. I'd give it a solid 9/10 stars. It's really well done, but I wish it was a bit longer so we could see even more of his life and legacy.

The film does a great job showing his journey from playing on the courts in Croatia to becoming a star in the NBA. It's not just about basketball though-it's about his passion, his struggles, and his dreams. What makes it special is how it balances the intensity of his career with the more personal, emotional moments. You really get to know him as a person, not just an athlete.

One of my favorite parts was seeing the scenes with Drazen and his brother. Their jokes and friendly competition added a light and positive touch that made the movie even more enjoyable. It felt real and reminded me of those sibling moments we all know and love.

The actors did a fantastic job bringing Drazen and the people in his life to the screen. You could really feel the emotions, especially in the more heartfelt and tough parts of the story. It was hard not to get a little choked up at times.

If there's one thing I'd change, it would be to make it a bit longer. There's so much to Drazen's story, and I would have loved to see more of his life beyond just the highlights. But overall, Drazen is a must-watch, whether you're a basketball fan or not. It's inspiring, touching, and a great reminder of how one person's passion and determination can leave an incredible mark.