Film: The Basketball Diaries

[JTMarlin]

Catch Me If You Can is a really good movie, probably the best one with him in it, check that one out. Of course it's a Spielberg movie with Tom Hankss...

 

[Chik.]

I watched Basketball diaries back when i was about 16.... Well before i even considered trying drugs, and i fucking loved it. No it didnt make me want to take drugs. I was quite anti them actually.....

I dont care what anyone says, Leo is a fantastic actor! Just like Brad Pitt.... Not just a pretty face.

Basketball Diaries is definately in my top 5 fave movies. Now i feel like watching it!!!!!!

 

[human paraquat]

iam going to go against the grain here and say i was thoroughly dissapointed with this film. dont get me wrong, i think dicaprios performance was tits...but having been through heroin addiction (and also having read carrol's book), there are a couple of things that get to me about this film.

1)quite simply, this film (and book, to a lesser extent) is packed with tired cliches. jim is saved by the noble black man...the overall diary entry mood...jim is seen in a seedy bar watching neurtron in the all-star game, the message of "if you use drugs you will end up on the streets selling your body" etc, etc. everything occurs in a short, haphazard, unstructured manner. there is no patience.

2) we are led through jims harrowing descent into addiction and eventually hell (again, superb acting). but what about his recovery and eventual redemption? this part is a breeze through, yet it should be one of the most important parts of the film, IMO.

3) poor character development...lorraine braccos portrayal of jims mother is emotionally charged, yet she serves as a one-dimensional character...her only rapport with jim being one of "tough love".

4)overall, the film is taken far too literally from the book. much of the poetic feel and eroticism of the novel is lost. the film also fails to recognize jims use of heroin as a huge part of his rejection of catholicism.

 

[wanderlust]

the last point i also would have liked to have seen explored more fully

 

[JTMarlin]

He pretty much summed it up at the end: generally, when you're poor and addicted to something as expensive as heroin (it cost about 30x as much in the 60's as now) it will ruin your life. This isn't always so for middle- and upper- class people, however.

 

[cravNbeets]

nice critique hp. i think movies about addiction are very prone to falling victim to cliches. some films (trainspotting most noteably) have deviated from the standard formula when portraying herion addiction but its difficult.

 

[alasdairm]

FILM: The Basketball Diaries

rate this movie

alasdair

 

[dazednconfused33142]

does it show leo giving someone a blow job?

 

[blahblahblah]

^in so many words, Yes...

 

[wanderlust]

along with whacking off on the roof....
i heard so much about that scene, basically the first thing anyway ever had to say about the movie... and when i saw it i was like thats it? wha? did not live up to it.

 

[dazednconfused33142]

omg,he was one horny bitch,and all for H

 

[stAr shAdow nEt]

i liked this movie

 

[Jabberwocky]

The Basketball Diaries

Watched this last night and thought it was a very good film.
One thing that slightly annoyed me, well, just made me think "eh" was the part when Jim does coke with the twins.
He is sitting in bed writing and snorting and he won't stop sniffing, rubbing his nose and moving his lips around the inside of his gums.

When i snort i do sniff and rub etc but not THAT much! It felt they were trying to emphasise it a little too much.

 

[wanderlust]

merged, please search
thanks bub

 

[Jabberwocky]

Cheers
Didn't think it was a popular enough film.

 

[Jabberwocky]

There is one thing that confuses me slightly about the film.
It's the part in which Jim and his friend are buying smack from that Spanish guy in the park...

Before they hand over the money they try it and they both say yeah, it's good. Then they realise it's shit,bunk. Why didn't they realise beforehand? Is there some trick that dealers use to do this?

 

[psychetool]

It was OK... nothing spectacular but still a good story, taking those pills before the basketball game was some funnnny shit!

 

[belfort]

it was an OK flick, better cuz it is based on fact...like already said, drug flicks are pretty basic, not much to expand on imo....dude supposedly "has everything going for him" then finds drug, then his world crumbles..wow, how original...

 

[Zagenth]

^ May not be original, but it is relavant. Happens enough to where the story is noteworthy.

 

[pillsnapa]

Just watched it....and had to cancel meeting my friend ...i'm so depressed. Good flick though.

Leo is painful to watch in a good way.

Now watching some Tiesto live in Rotterdam to pick myself up again.