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On Movies & Media

Hoop Dreams: Why the Academy Snubbed It

  • Jeffrey Overstreet

Jeffrey Overstreet

10 Nov 2009
Filed under: On Movies & Media • Steve James • Oscars • Hoop Dreams

At long last, we know the story about why one of the great American documentaries was kicked to the curb by the Academy. Here's the story.

What a shame. Steve James has made two of my favorite documentaries. I'm actually even more fond of his lesser-known film Stevie.

Ethan Hawke is a Depression-era Odysseus in The Weight

Ethan Hawke is a Depression-era Odysseus in The Weight

So far in 2026, Ethan Hawke’s turn as an unjustly imprisoned man is my favorite performance by an American leading man.
30 Sep 2026 8 min read
First impressions of The Rivals of Amziah King (2026)

First impressions of The Rivals of Amziah King (2026)

The first hour of director Andrew Patterson’s second feature is some of the most surprising, joyous, fully alive filmmaking I've seen in a while.
21 Sep 2026 6 min read
Natchez: my favorite discovery of 2026 so far

Natchez: my favorite discovery of 2026 so far

In my favorite film of 2026 so far, director Suzannah Herbert gives us a tour of homes that reveal history that Americans ignore to their own peril.
20 Sep 2026 10 min read
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