Like many of you, the first exposure I had to the documentary “The Street Stops Here” was the movie trailer on YouTube.
The three minutes of this video are intriguing, well-edited, emotional, fascinating — all one pretty much could ask for out of a documentary.
So, when I was able to watch an advanced copy of the movie — which will be shown for the first time to the public at 9 p.m. Wednesday on PBS — I was looking forward to it.
It’s too bad that I had built the movie up so much. Because, truth be told, it made for a bit of a letdown.
Obviously, many Kansas basketball fans will watch the movie to see its portrayal of Tyshawn Taylor as a high-schooler at St. Anthony’s. And though Taylor isn’t a focal point through most of the movie, he plays a large enough role to keep Jayhawk fans interested.
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Former KU forward Quintrell Thomas also has a brief cameo as a player on rival school, St. Patrick’s. Again, he isn’t seen much, but he’s in there enough to be spotted a few times, especially during game action.
What’s most disappointing about the film is that it could have been so much more if the producers would have just picked out an angle and stuck to it.
Instead, it’s almost like they couldn’t decide which storyline was best, so they watered down 10 different ones and tried to cram them all into an 82-minute documentary.
Unfortunately, it doesn’t work.
To me, the movie is both too short and too long.
I found myself getting bored during periods when, repeatedly, the producers chose to reiterate the financial struggles that St. Anthony’s faces.
Then, just when I felt like I was starting to get a feel for the players, the movie ends. It was like eating popcorn when you’re expecting steak: The documentary might have held off starvation, but it didn’t stop me from being hungry for more.
With so much video shot from that season (the video crew was given unlimited access, according to the movie’s press release), I’m surprised at just how little we saw from the team.
The documentary is mostly focused around St. Anthony’s coach Bob Hurley, who has coached 36 years at the school and won more than 900 games.
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Immediately, North Carolina coach Roy Williams talks about how great Hurley is as a high-school basketball coach: “All the wins that he has pale in comparison to the life lessons that he has taught his kids.”
Duke coach Mike Krzyzewski follows, saying that Hurley turns kids’ dreams into reality.
After being told how great Hurley was by two Hall of Fame coaches, I expected that I’d see some of that magic over the next hour and a half.
It never happened.
In fact, the foul-mouthed, disciplinarian Hurley does little in the film to make himself look like a good guy or a caring coach. He creates drama on his team even when there isn’t any and oftentimes appears to play mind games with his players when it appears they would have functioned just fine without the tinkering.
When St. Anthony’s wins its first 11 and rises to No. 1 in the nation, he runs his players harder, almost punishing them for their victories. When star guard Mike Rosario is named a McDonald’s All-American, Hurley jumps on his case quicker.
And even though Hurley demands near-perfection from his players, at one point he taunts an opposing coach, telling him to look up at the scoreboard where St. Anthony’s holds a comfortable 32-point lead.
While I waited for the good side of Hurley to come out, I was disappointed that the players’ stories were mostly glossed over. The editors give us a decent glimpse into the hardships of Jio Fontan (USC), Travon Woodall (Pittsburgh) and Mike Rosario (Rutgers), but the rest of the guys barely received a mention early in the film. In movies like this, you find yourself wanting to cheer for the players. You want to know their stories. Unfortunately, we don’t delve deep enough into the players’ lives to get to know them as well as we could have.
Perhaps part of the reason for making the documentary was to help raise funds for St. Anthony’s. I’m sure the movie will increase donations to the school that could definitely use help.
But the fund-raising portions of the documentary were the most dull and disappointing. Throughout the film, everyone keeps saying (dramatically of course) that if money isn’t raised, St. Anthony’s will shut down.
Yet, when the fund-raising efforts mostly fail, the school still goes on. Hey, I thought you said the school would close if that happened?
Let’s be honest: Most of the people reading this blog will watch the film to see Taylor. And they should. The documentary is interesting and shows a different side of the Jayhawk guard.
This movie reminds me a bit of some lyrics from the Gin Blossoms, though: “If you don’t expect too much from me, you might not be let down.”
That’s my advice when watching the documentary: Just don’t expect too much like I did.
It’s the best way to avoid a letdown.
