The Basketball Diaries

This movie streams no where in the US, so I was glad to fine it on blue Ray. It came in quickly and was in great shape

One major thing I was taught by my high school film teacher years ago was that when watching a film that was based off a novel, you are grading only the movie -- not the book. I agree completely. Staying true to a book's original plotline is not relevant in the reviewing process anymore. Leaving major plot points out -- or adding fluff that never existed -- are not necessarily indications of poor filmmaking. The film stands alone as its own work of art, and now it must be critiqued without acknowledging the novel.That being said, here we have a slightly different situation. Jim Carroll's original epithet is not a narrative, fictional story -- it's his own diary from his adolescence, his own thoughts and observations he happened to jot down during those fragile times. It doesn't really bother me that discrepancies exist between his real life accounts and film, but it does bother me that those differences are the most major in the whole theme of the story itself, and thus had the audience miss the point to it all and replaced it with a cliche one.Examples? Well, in reality...He didn't get clean thanks to Riker's. There was no Reggie to nurture him out of his addiction. He had a father and a sibling that provided for interesting experiences at home (but no, he has to be a lonely kid, to show why he did drugs!). Headquarters wasn't some run-down abandoned pile of bricks that anyone could crawl in and out of -- it was the apartment of some of his friends. And Jim actually did accomplish a lot of things while still battling heroin, including getting good grades, winning a scholarship to the elite Trinity and making it to the National All Star Game. Oh, and remember the scene where he barges into class in a dream and shoots everyone in the chest? That horribly cheesy adaptation was taken from an entry completely unlike it: In the journal he simply writes that sometimes he gets the urge to fire a machine gun off to his right side and directed upward when he's in a certain class, NOT particularly at anybody, unless they accidentally got in the way. It's a gentler and more intriguing way of handling such a desire for a release of tension. No need to show the angst-ridden kid going Columbine to make a statement. I'm sorry, but the story in the film was like a childishly simplified version of his actual life story, and for what purpose? To be another don't-do-drugs movie with the same formulas we've seen before.Read the book to get a full glimpse of what I'm trying to say here, 'cause I could ramble on forever. Before you decide I'm incorrect, though, research Jim Carroll's own thoughts on the film. I've been a fan of his work since high school. Apparently, while he adored the performances and thought it was a well-made film (as do I), apparently director Scott Kalvert "had no idea what my book was even about." "I said, 'You're not going to go and make it all messed up and preachy, right?' and they said no, and that's exactly what they did!" All Carroll's quotes.It became a cliche film about a cliche spiral down into drug addiction. The diary though had so much more substance, simply beCAUSE it was so real. There were gray areas, it wasn't all about drugs being so obviously bad but Jim's falling into it anyway because of angst, it was just so unexplainably fresh and original. I love Leonardo DiCaprio and this is a tremendous performance, and I was somewhat entertained by the film -- hey, there are some really good scenes. But you can't possibly read the original diary he wrote and then watch the film and decide it was an accurate portrayal not just of the facts, but of the true and original ESSENCE of the story and what he's trying to say.

Great story and well directed movie that has character, style and hard core reality combined!

I was looking to get a diary to write about my basketball accomplishments in. I thought cool. Leo DiCaprio is on the cover. I like him. He's a good actor. Why not own a diary with a picture of him on it? I couldn't wait to get my diary. I was gonna write all about my first slam dunk & 27 point game last week. Then I received my package & to my surprise, it was a movie! Can you believe that?! Why would they call it a basketball diary?! I can't even begin to imagine how many people bought this & were bummed. Especially if they ordered some real cool pens to write in it like I did. What the heck am I going to do with these pens now? I bought like 5 of them. They just sit on my desk now. Anyway, I watched the movie. It was good.

I’ve been looking for this movie on streaming services for at least two years. They never have it so I was forced to order it online. I guess it’s viewable, but it’s not full screen that’s my only complaint about it.

It showed up a few days after I ordered it. The case and disc were in new condition. No scratches whatsoever. I didn't notice when ordering that it was an imported dvd from Korea. Although the picture shows Korean writing if you look closely. I popped the disc in my Bluray player and it played fine. The quality of the movie is 1990's Dvd quality. The sound was alright. And the movie was in english. No subtitles popped up and it wasn't dubbed. So although at first I was a little worried it turned out great. I love this movie and I'm happy to have it. I would have prefered the Bluray version but it's not available.

This movie remains among the best I have ever seen. Everything about it is as good as it gets. Before it is over you know that every single camera angle, every casting selection, every song used, and every location was somehow, perfect. Yet it doesn't come off as a polished Hollywood high budget film. The story and characters are presented in a believable way that makes your heart bleed even when they screw up, because they are that real. The real Jim becomes irrelevant. There are a million Jims. DiCaprio dug deep for this one, and so did his co-stars. I give a lot of credit to Director Kalvert and can't believe that he is a one-hit-wonder. This movie makes me want more from the man. Two scenes that were most incredible are when Jim's mom chains the door locking him out. Only his arm and face are visible through the gap allowed by the security chain. It doesn't take an addict to feel his pain. And at the same time, Lorraine Bracco is on the other side of the door and you know how bad it hurts her. Both put forth a superb performance throughout the movie, but this is where they shine. One must see it to believe it. The other scene is when DiCaprio, as Jim, is in Reggie's house alone having just come clean the day before. His demons return and the camera work in this short but important scene is magic. DiCaprio remains stationary while the camera spins. Each time the camera pans past him his state of agitation is increased. It was a great way to portray something that could otherwise have been a long drawn out boring sequence. Watch it, you won't be disseminated.

An amazing movie.If you’re a Jim Carroll fan, it’s a must.A shame it has no extras nor subtitles or close caption at least.DiCaprio is amazing.

Dvd kan niet worden afgespeeld wegens regiocode die verkeerd is. Al enkele weken geleden besteld en nu pas de tijd gevonden om te kijken... Terugsturen zal dus ook niet meer lukken.

Excellent

Deze film speelt zelfs niet af wegens verkeerde area code! Wat een afknapper! Jullie weten toch in welke regio ik woon. Onbegrijpelijk! Nu moet ik nog de moeite doen om al deze ongebruikte rommel terug op te sturen!

気持ち悪い。今の現代禁句なシーンが多かった。