criterionforum.org

Hoop Dreams

[img]http://criterion_production.s3.amazonaws.com/release_images/1328/289_box_348x490_w128.jpg[/img]

Two ordinary inner-city kids dare to dream the impossible — professional basketball glory — in this epic chronicle of hope and faith. Filmed over a five-year period, Hoop Dreams follows young Arthur Agee and William Gates as they navigate the complex, competitive world of scholastic athletics while striving to overcome the intense pressures of family life and the realities of their Chicago streets. The Criterion Collection is proud to present this landmark documentary chronicling two remarkable families who challenge the American dream.

Special Features

- Two audio commentaries with stars Arthur Agee and William Gates and filmmakers Peter Gilbert, Steve James, and Frederick Marx
- Segments from Siskel and Ebert tracking the acclaim for Hoop Dreams
- Original music video
- Theatrical trailers
- A booklet featuring a dedication to the Gates and Agee families written by the filmmakers; new essays by writer and cultural historian John Edgar Wideman, and Sports Illustrated senior writer Alexander Wolff; and Michael Wise's Washington Post article - Looking Back at Broken Dreamsâ€

Criterionforum.org user rating averages

Feature currently disabled

Bittersweetness never tasted so sad: Father of 'Hoop Dreams' Star Shot to Death.

There is mention that the family has recently been interviewed for an upcoming, April, DVD. Whether or not this is Criterion can only be supposed from the rumors of the new line deal.

I hope it is a Criterion. This is one of my favorite documentaries of all time. Being a former basketball player, the film had a great impact in my life. I think it will fit perfectly as a Criterion since it has so much material that they could put as special features.

Edit: Great news! Is good to hear that Mike Leigh's Naked is also in slate for a future Criterion release. I was planning to purchase it on laserdisc, but now I'm going to wait.

how definite/confirmed is this i wonder?

note the post linked to above says: I did learn about several titles that seemed to be in R1 limbo. Mr. Deutchman, who is a big part of FIne Line, and the only truly direct and honest of the speakers, had made a deal with Criterion many years ago and they were the ones who would be putting out the DVDs for Hoop Dreams, An Angel at My Table, one other title, and one of my favorites, Mike Leigh's Naked.

what i have highlighted indicates there may be delays/problems.

I can only speculate that this will have a Roger Ebert commentary, as he named it the best films of the 90s.

Yeah I pointed that out a long time ago that when Hoop Dreams hit DVD at last that Ebert would do a commentary or at least be on the extras somewhere to talk about this film. Both Siskel and Ebert called the film the best of the year, Ebert going as far to list it as the best film of the 90's. Even Siskel before he died said that he wished we could have seem more films like Hoop Dreams and Fargo made since these films were what made going to the movies a joy.

We'll probably get liner notes from old Rog, but a commentary would be redundant.

Two ordinary inner-city kids dare to dream the impossible—professional basketball glory—in this epic chronicle of hope and faith. Filmed over a five-year period, Hoop Dreams follows young Arthur Agee and William Gates as they navigate the complex, competitive world of scholastic athletics while striving to overcome the intense pressures of family life and the realities of their Chicago streets. The Criterion Collection is proud to present this landmark documentary chronicling two remarkable families who challenge the American dream.

Is it just me or does it seem like the dvd is light on the extras? I thought for sure that this would have been a 2 disc set. With the film being almost 3 hours I would have thought that there would have been a second disc with some follow up interviews.

Maybe, but it is 29.95 MSRP w/ two commentaries, and a couple of other minor extras. Pretty good deal for Criterion.

$25 Canadian on Amazon.ca!? I ain't complaining! I caught this film not too long ago on IFC for the first time since I saw it in high school. I never got around to getting it but am now. It won me all over again, and it really is just a totally involving and entertaining documentary. I'm happy it's finally on DVD, Criterion no less. I remember the Siskel and Ebert spot, it was a good one, especially since Siskel was obviously wanted to have babies with the film. He was so in love with it and it made the show so much better.

I thought there was going to be more extras included, since it was mentioned in the article of Arthur Agee's death that the family was interviewed for the DVD. Maybe the commentary is what the article refered to as the interview. I think this is a wonderful release for a great documentary.

$25 Canadian on Amazon.ca!?

Could you please tell me how much is that in US dollars, since I don't have the conversion table around?

According to xe.com it's 20.2303 USD. And there's a $10 coupon at dvdtalk on orders over $50.

According to xe.com it's 20.2303 USD. And there's a $10 coupon at dvdtalk on orders over $50.

Thanks! Just a couple of cents lower that from the .com counterpart. I wish they restore the Share the Love discount.

Yeah, as much as I've been looking forward to this DVD, I'm a little disheartened by the specs. I expected a two discer, with interviews with the families, coaches and other players involved; a crapload of deleted scenes; maybe some video footage of various games included in the documentary like they had on the "Hoosiers" DVD (with a play-by-play commentary track with Agee and Gates). Hell, I wouldn't have minded the "Hoop Dreams Reunion" TV special; or even that episode of "Walker, Texas Ranger" that the stars appeared in.

It still looks like a decent disc, one that I'm looking forward to getting. Just not the one I was really, REALLY looking forward to.

-BJ

This:

Two audio commentaries with stars Arthur Agee and William Gates and filmmakers Peter Gilbert, Steve James, and Frederick Marx

will be excellent. I've still got a beat-up copy of the film on VHS (which I purchased for like a dollar several years ago) and watch it once or twice each year. It's contrived to describe any film this way, but, for those who've not seen it, "Hoop Dreams" is completely engrossing.

Really, they dropped the 'reunion' special? Was that a local Chicago production? I have it on an old, VHS tape, taped as SLP unfortunately. Jim Brown, the Fox NFL commentator (no relation to the great football player Jim Brown, now incarcerated) conducts the interview with Gates, Agee, and the two filmmakers. They could've done more follow-ups,especially on how Chicago has changed. Some of the major projects, like Cabrini Green, have been shut down - and not because the residents all of a sudden got wealthier.

hearthesilence wrote: Some of the major projects, like Cabrini Green, have been shut down - and not because the residents all of a sudden got wealthier.

Yes an in depth documentary detailing how the social issues have changed in the years since the film would be really interesting to see, especially for someone like me whose only knowledge of Cabrini Green comes from Candyman!

Really, Cabrini Green was in "Candyman"? Growing up in Chicago, you'd always hear about gang violence in the projects, and Cabrini Green was one of the big ones.

One year, the Chicago Tribune decided to make every youth homicide a front page story, just to bring more awareness to the issue, and just about everyday had one or more homicides to report. A few books, including one good one called "There Are No Children Here," were written on the projects ("TANCH" was on Henry Horner Homes).

Chicago's now number one in the U.S. in homicides (depending on how you're counting them), but overall it's not as bad as it was in the 1980's, depending on how you measure 'bad.'

They should include the Mr. Show parody, "The Recruiters."

oldsheperd wrote:They should include the Mr. Show parody, "The Recruiters."

That sketch is great. I would be a nice addition, I doubt Criterion would put it on though.

I just caught a notice that ABC's "Nightline" will be doing a ten-year retrospective piece on "Hoop Dreams," with interviews with both Agee and Gates. It was originally supposed to air last Friday, but got bumped at the last minute for the Pope's Deathwatch. Can't get a listing as to when it's being rescheduled.

Just thought people would want to know about this.

-BJ

More precise specs up on HVE.

-Two audio commentaries with stars Arthur Agee and William Gates and filmmakers Peter Gilbert, Steve James, and Frederick Marx
-Segments from Siskel & Ebert tracking the acclaim for Hoop Dreams
-Original music video
-Theatrical trailers
-English subtitles for the deaf and hard of hearing
-Plus: A 40-page booklet featuring new essays by cultural historian John Edgar Wideman and Sports Illustrated senior writer Alexander Wolff; Michael Wise’s Washington Post follow-up article and a dedictation to the filmmakers

Marq wrote:From the features...:
"Letterbox presentation enhanced for widescreen televisions"
???
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0110057/technical

Mercifully, it's now been changed to 1.33:1 on the Criterion site.

From the New York Times, April 17, 2005: Dark Days After Bright Dreams

sounds outstanding!

After Stevie, this is not too surprising. Criterion's apparently continuing involvement is surprising, though. So now they're making their own films for the collection?