White Men Can't Jump (1992)

Very well executed

I am only giving this movie a 1 for the great cast, though I can't imagine what any of them were thinking. This movie was horrible

Each character in this movie — down to the smallest one — is an individual rather than a type, prone to spontaneous changes of mood and sometimes amusing outbursts of pettiness or ill humor.

By the time the dramatic fireworks start popping off, each one feels earned.

Please step ur game up Hollywood. Not a good good movie.

In White Men Can't Jump, Billy Hoyle uses other players' expectations of what a typical street-ball basketball player looks like to his advantage to hustle them. He is a white guy who dresses "like a chump" so that other players doubt that he can play. The first guy that Billy hustles is Sidney, who is one of the best players in the area. These guys join forces as two of the best hustlers to go around and play against whoever is willing and good enough to bet money on a game. The movie very effectively captures the attitudes and atmosphere surrounding this form of basketball, while also incorporating bits of comedy that make the movie more entertaining. As someone who enjoys the game of basketball, this movie was very intriguing to me as it successfully introduced a brand of basketball that I am unfamiliar with. This movie focuses equally on the hustler lifestyle and the everyday troubles these basketball hustlers face as well as the sport of basketball. Sports certainly don't seem to be the only emphasis of this movie, which may steer some viewers away from this movie. If one is looking for a typical basketball movie, then this may not be the movie for you. Although, it still teaches sports fans, specifically basketball fans, about a sports culture that may seem foreign to the majority them, which may be captivating and make this movie worthwhile to others.

I had heard of this film a few different places, but because of a Channel 4 countdown programme focusing on one of the lead stars, so I had to see if it was a worthy performance, from director Ron Shelton (Bull Durham). Basically former college basketball player Billy Hoyle (Woody Harrelson) makes a living hustling with street ballers who assume he can't well, because he is white, and his most recent play is with black arrogant but talented player Sidney Deane (Wesley Snipes) on Venice Beach. After being defeated twice and losing his money, Sidney thinks he could be useful, so he goes to see Billy and his girlfriend Gloria Clemente (Rosie Perez), who are on the run from mobsters demanding a gambling debt paid. He suggests a partnership to hustle other basketball players for money, but they lose their first game playing together, and Billy finds out that he was conned himself, and Gloria knows this. They go to his house and an appeal is made to Sidney's wife Rhonda Deane (Tyra Ferrell) and they agree to split the winnings and carry on a more trusting partnership, and they do win an honest game together, due to the ability to distract. Sidney does mock Billy about his inability to slam dunk, claiming "white men can't jump", but their friendship continues with playful bickering, but when they lose another game and of course the cash, Gloria leaves Billy. Sidney knows how he can win her back however, he has a friend who works as security for the studio that make the popular game show Jeopardy!, which she has dreamt of being on, and so he arranges it so she can be a contestant, and she gets the subject she knows best, leaving with a $14,100 prize. Billy wins Gloria back, but then Sidney gets burgled, so desperate for cash and knowing he owes a favour asks his fellow hustler friend to play a final game, but Gloria says she will leave if he gambles again, but he goes against her wishes. The end sees Sidney and Billy win this final, and the mobsters are paid, but it appears Gloria wasn't lying about leaving, but the friendship remains, and they walk away having a basketball banter. Also starring Cylk Cozart as Robert, Kadeem Hardison as Junior, Ernest Harden Jr. as George, John Marshall Jones as Walter, Marques Johnson as Raymond, David Roberson as T.J., Kevin Benton as Zeke and Nigel Miguel as Dwight 'The Flight' McGhee. Snipes gives a fun slick performance as the streetwise cool guy, Harrelson is equally great as the pro basketball playing white guy, and Perez also shines as the pro's sassy girlfriend, it is a film to enjoy for the basketball, the dialogue based jokes, and the small moments of serious stuff too, a most worthwhile sports comedy drama. Wesley Snipes was number 96 on The 100 Greatest Movie Stars. Very good!

I recently caught White Men Can't Jump and, after the joyful nostalgia for my youth wore off, I couldn't help but feel sad that more than a decade on, all the white/black misunderstandings and tensions remain. For the film's sake, that's good, as the jokes and quick-witted dialog remain relevant, but still....White Men finds Woody Harrelson and Wesley Snipes living hand-to-mouth as hustlers on the early 1990s LA street ball scene. Knowing a good con when he sees it, Snipes's Sidney Dean quickly convinces Harrelson's character to team up so they can exploit the perennial myth that white men can't play basketball. The relationship throws front-and-center each character's (mis)perceptions about the other's race, the permanent divide between men and women, and the crazy logic us dudes will often apply to justify taking a risk "just one more time."Great on-court scenes and sharp-tongued wordplay between Snipes and Harrelson keeps the movie on track. Definitely worth the time. Too bad it never helped spawn any sort of real-life dialog on race and class in this country.