Love & Basketball

Instantly, when I watched this one, I could not help but harken back to Everybody's All-American, which had sports as an undercurrent to the central love story between Gavin and Babs streching a full quarter-century in spanning four decades. Even with football enveloping all which had entwined their lives, the humaneness of those two characters could not be discounted, especially with Babs emerging into a more stronger character who came into her own as a woman and an individual toward the film's end.

I bring that up to start my assessment of Love and Basketball. Yes, there were differences, of course, with Quincy (Omar Epps, of whose work I have been a fan of since "Juice" in 1992) and Monica (Sanaa Lathan, who has seemingly come from nowhere to emerge as a serious talent to be reckoned with on the screen!) both being African-American. And instead of football, the sport was basketball. And instead of one athlete, there were two, as Monica was a superior talent on par with Gavin Gray and Quincy McCall. And the story, of course, was set more in the recent past, from 1981 to the present.

Nonethelss, this was also a film which touched my heart. I loved the depth which both actors in this film displayed, showing them not only as athletes and people, but also as they were with regard to their families as well. And the depths from where they came to where they ultimately went, from their beginnings as children to the adults they grew up into, was nothing short of amazing. I saw this not as a "black" movie, but rather as a movie about African-Americans and their dreams, desires, pains and triumphs as individuals and as a couple.

The way this was broken down into four quarters is a testament to Gina Prince-RockByTheWood's astute writing and directing. And the supporting cast was on-mark also, from Alfre Woodard and Debbi Morgan on through to Dennis Haysbert and Harry J. Lennix...as well as Tyra Banks in her smaller yet significant role as the film bore on down the stretch. All-in-all, a film definitely worth the see. I came away with a warm smile not only on my face, but in my heart as well.

It was fantastic film, full of love and emotions and believe in the sport's spirit.

i must of watched this film a hundred times it is so fab. Sanaa Lathan and Omar Epps are brillant in this movie. It is not only a super love storey but it shows the womans rights to play a sport she loves. This film is by far the best film i have ever seen the actors the director everybody involved in this movie was totaly brillant. There has been many love stories that are typical they meat fall in love and live happy for the rest of there lives, this movie shows the ups and downs of a relationship but still the bond between them is never broken. This is a movie worth getting.

I loved that Monica was fierce about her love of basketball, had a quick temper on the court, and knew exactly what she wanted. I kept waiting for her to punch out those idiot female high school classmates of hers who kept picking on her because she was a tomboy. There was a nice contrast between Monica's independence and the traditional homemaker route that her mother took. The subplot about the troubled marriage of Quincy's parents was also well done. I have seen other basketball movies ("Above The Rim" and "He Got Game" comes to mind), but this is one of the better ones, esp. since it tells the story from the viewpoint of the female athlete, and an African-American one, at that. I wholeheartedly recommend this. It's free of the fluff that permeates other romantic dramas.

Follows the relationship of Monica and Q from elementary school, through high school, college, and life afterwards as they grow to maturity on the court and off. Sanaa Lathan is great as Monica, the girl who wants nothing more than to be the first woman to play in the NBA yet slowly begins to realize there is something greater missing from her life. Omar Epps does his usual fine performance as Q, a boy striving to be better than his NBA star father who learns that a man doesn't necessarily have to be a star. The basketball scenes are well shot and pretty realistic in the aspect of how male and female teams are viewed by the fans. Overall a very enjoyable movie.