Directed by: Scott Kalvert Main Cast: Leonardo DiCaprio, Lorraine Bracco, Mark Wahlberg, Michael Imperioli
Summary: Film adaptation of street tough Jim Carroll's epistle about his kaleidoscopic free fall into the harrowing world of drug addiction. As a member of a seemingly unbeatable high school basketball squad, Jim's life centers around the basketball court and the court becomes a metaphor for the world in his mind.
A best friend who is dying of leukemia, a coach ("Swifty") who takes unacceptable liberties with the boys on his team, teenage sexual angst, and an unhealthy appetite for heroin -- all of these begin to encroach on young Jim's dream of becoming a basketball star.
Soon, the dark streets of New York become a refuge from his mother's mounting concern for her son. He can't go home and his only escape from the reality of the streets is heroin for which he steals, robs and prostitutes himself. Only with the help of Reggie, an older neighborhood friend with whom Jim "picked up a game" now and then, is he able to begin the long journey back to sanity.
Review: This film was one I had heard mention of here and there over the years as a good piece of work by a young Leonardo DiCaprio. I had never really known anything about the storyline, and truly had no idea going into my first viewing that it was at all a drug story, which was the main focus of the story.
DiCaprio really does shine here, and he really carried the film. I couldn't quite decipher whether it was the lighting or the cinematography or perhaps a combination of both, but save for a few key scenes, the whole film looked like a low-budget TV production. There was also very little in the way of story arc. The film did little to show Jim's life before his drug problems began, and he was only clean and sober for about the last 5 minutes.
It was pretty evident that the film was being driven by a fairly inexpierienced director. There were some pacing difficulties, and some of the character developments were really hammered into our heads. Mark Wahlberg's character seemed to be displaying the same emotions in about 20 different scenes in slightly different circumstances, all just to convey to the viewer his character type. Also, Lorraine Bracco was particularly bad here. It may have been that her character wasn't given much to work with, but she seemed to stand out like a sore thumb, and not in a good way.
The entire film was extremely predictable. This may have been a bit on purpose, so as to show the plague of millions of people stricken with drug addiction, but there were just so few surprises here that it just didn't work.
As far as the soundtrack, which is extensively bragged about on the films cover, it was good music, but it wasn't used at the correct times in many cases. For example, in a scene following the death of one of Jim's close friends, he plays basketball and a really attitude-filled rock song plays. Although one might argue that this was done to show the sense of resolution Jim had attained concerning his friend's death, this emotion was not accurately developed or displayed by the director, so any deeper meaning was lost. There were a number of cases like this, with the unintentionally contrasting music and images.
One notable high point was the supporting cast, oddly enough. I really enjoyed Bruno Kirby who I had previously known from Godfather II and Donnie Brasco. The man doesnt seem to visibly age. Also, Juliette Lewis and Michael Imperioli were both excellent in their roles, and Vincent Pastore appears for about 30 seconds as well.
Overall, a decent effort worth seeing only for DiCaprio.
Direction – 14/20 Acting – 18/20 Story – 11/15 Rewatchability – 9/15 Music – 8/10 Depth – 9/10 Cinematography – 2/5 Supporting Cast – 4/5 TOTAL = 75%
75% = 3/5 Stars
Best Quote: "You gotta have presence on the court. Presence like a cheetah rather than a chimp. Sure, they both got it, but Chimpy gotta jump his nuts around to get it. The shy cheetah moves with total nonchalance, stickin' it to them in his sexy, slow strut. Me? I play like a cheetah."
