Rating: 
Summary: For everyone, not just basketball fans
Review: Hoop Dreams is more than a documentary about two inner-city teens hoping to make it to the NBA, it's a brilliant, true-life tale of the American Dream told from a different context and point of view. I watched this because I saw that Roger Ebert had voted it as the best movie of the 1990's. I was skeptical at first (partly because I don't follow basketball), but when it was over I realized that it really was a great movie. Don't miss it!
Rating: 
Summary: Simply BORING
Review: Hoop Dreams was a Hoop Nightmare. It moved so slow and the information they gave me about the basketball players was so irrelevant I felt nothing for them. And this is a 100% true story, too. That's gotta make for a pretty bad documentry. The only pleasure I got from seeing this turd of a film was when they showed the words "Sophomore Year" or "Junior Year" on the screen. I thought "Good. We're a step closer to the end." Since this is a documentary, there is no acting to comment on. The feel and atmosphere of this movie made me want to make like Oedipus and gouge my eyes out with a knife. If you are completely obsessed with basketball, then by all means see this film. I guess that's the only way to make watching it bearable. You may identify with the characters if you played in high school. Otherwise, avoid this film at all costs.
Rating:
Summary: One Of The Best Ever!
Review: Hoop Dreams! The critically acclaimed masterpiece about two kids trying to make it into the NBA! Absolutely flawless in every possible way. A knock-out film!
Rating:
Summary: Hoop Dreams is the must see movie of the millenium
Review: If you have a pulse and know what basketball is you will love this movie. It is a truly emotional movie. Every middle schooler, grade schooler, and high schooler who has dreams of going pro in ANY sport should see this movie. It is an eye opener and portrays the truth of what life is really like. There's no Hollywood to dress it up and make it a nice story. You will get to know Arthur and William and feel their pain and their triumphs. This is the best put together movie I have ever seen. You should rent or buy this movie as soon as you can.
Rating:
Summary: One of the greatest
Review: In my opinion, being a big fan of the genre, Hoop Dreams stands as one of the greatest nonfiction works of film, most probably the most important movie of any genre made in the last 35 years and a serious contender for the somewhat silly "greatest movie of all time" credential, comparing favorably with such cultural fixtures as Citizen Kane. I'm not a sport fan whatsoever, I dont know anything about basketball, and my life has been about as different from the two kids in the film as possible. When I first saw this movie about ten years ago I was bracing myself for some blaxploitation movie. I have since watched it at least a half a dozen times since, and I never fail to be awed by the incredible scope and pathos of this film. On the surface, the movie is about basketball, poverty, aspiration, frailty, loss, hope, marginalization, ghetto life, and youth. When put together over the most engaging 3 hours I have ever had, the film constructs a monumental testament to the human experience. Brilliant in its themes, virtually flawless in its execution, stunningly humane in its treatment of its subjects, Hoop Dreams is big, important, and excellent. Like other true greats, its greatness is often overstated, but it's the type of movie that if you have half a brain and half a heart, you will be seized by the brilliance dripping from every pixel.
Rating:
Summary: Absorbing Documentary, Absolutely Unforgettable!
Review: One of the best crafted and most satisfying documentaries ever made. Instantly absorbing, it is the story of two young inner city basketball players (William Gates and Arthur Agee), as we see them go through all kinds of problems; family school, money, physicall illness, etc. A touching film that seems all the more powerful because it is real. The story also takes high dramatic tones that we forget it's a documentary. Smoothly flowing over it's whoopping 3 hour running time, it's surprisingly never boring and always holds your attention. A multilayered film that makes us slowly care more and more about this characters. A blistering example of the power and determination of the human spirit. This excellent documentary is also one of the best films of the decade. From a scale of 1-10 I give this film a 9!
Rating:
Summary: Just to make up for that poor review.
Review: Somebody gave this film one star. I'm just trying to compensate, because i'm sure that guy never saw the movie. Actually, Hoop Dreams deserves 6 stars.
Rating:
Summary: One word only: MASTERPIECE!
Review: The best documentary ever made. More than a true story, Hoop Dreams is simply what anyone could describe as a masterpiece. Not only the six years of work with the two characters and their family show the long and hard path to follow one's dream, it also takes us far from any clichés and stereotypes we inherit from the Press. A real lesson for life itself! MUST BE SEEN!
Rating:
Summary: Highs, lows and real struggles of basketball hopefuls
Review: This 1994 award-winning documentary is about William and Arthur, two Chicago African-American teenagers who, in the eighth grade, are recruited to play basketball for a middle-class parochial high school. Both are good at basketball but struggle with their academics. And both dream of playing for the NBA.The film follows these two boys for a full six years. It also follows their families and we get a glimpse of the challenges of everyday life in the ghetto. These are real people, not actors, and they have to cope with a lot, including Arthur's father drug problem and the economics of living on $268 per month on welfare. Wisely, the camera is never feels intrusive, and I felt I was right there with them, watching them grow, both mentally and physically. There's a lot of struggle, with highs and lows in their personal lives as well as on the basketball courts, and it is always fascinating. The film is almost three hours long but it is so intriguing that I could have watched it for another hour. This might not be fiction, but the individual stories are filled with drama as it deals with some very sensitive issues of class, race, maturity and hard choices. And the director, Steve James, who wrote the film along with Fredrick Marx, managed to edit it so perfectly, that I was totally unaware of anything else but just being a part of this world for the duration of the film. Highly recommended for everybody. Do see it! It's wonderful!
Rating:
Summary: Life...More Exciting Than Any Movie
Review: This film brings you into the homes of two aspiring NBA stars and lets you witness the obstacles and hard realities of ghetto life. Istead of the typical movie with the predictable plot, you get real people, real struggles. It's more exciting than any movie, because it's real life.
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