MOVIEmeter
Top 5000
Down 198 this week

The Basketball Diaries (1995)

 -  Biography | Crime | Drama  -  21 April 1995 (USA)
7.1
Your rating:
    1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 -/10 X  
Ratings: 7.1/10 from 52,035 users   Metascore: 46/100
Reviews: 142 user | 34 critic | 19 from Metacritic.com

Film adaptation of street tough Jim Carroll's epistle about his kaleidoscopic free fall into the harrowing world of drug addiction. As a member of a seemingly unbeatable high school ... See full summary »

Director:

Writers:

(novel), (screenplay)
Watch Trailer
0Check in
0Share...

User Lists

Related lists from IMDb users

a list of 2309 titles created 5 months ago
 
a list of 974 titles created 10 Mar 2012
 
a list of 10000 titles created 3 months ago
 
a list of 100 titles created 15 Aug 2011
 

Connect with IMDb


Share this Rating

Title: The Basketball Diaries (1995)

The Basketball Diaries (1995) on IMDb 7.1/10

Want to share IMDb's rating on your own site? Use the HTML below.

Take The Quiz!

Test your knowledge of The Basketball Diaries.

Videos

Photos

Learn more

People who liked this also liked... 

Biography | Comedy | Crime
    1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 7.9/10 X  

A true story about Frank Abagnale Jr., who, before his 19th birthday, successfully conned millions of dollars' worth of checks as a Pan Am pilot, doctor, and legal prosecutor.

Director: Steven Spielberg
Stars: Leonardo DiCaprio, Tom Hanks, Christopher Walken
Invincible (2006)
Biography | Drama | Sport
    1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 7/10 X  

Based on the story of Vince Papale, a 30-year-old bartender from South Philadelphia who overcame long odds to play for the NFL's Philadelphia Eagles in 1976.

Director: Ericson Core
Stars: Mark Wahlberg, Greg Kinnear, Elizabeth Banks
Capote (2005)
Biography | Crime | Drama
    1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 7.4/10 X  

Truman Capote, during his research for his book In Cold Blood, an account of the murder of a Kansas family, the writer develops a close relationship with Perry Smith, one of the killers.

Director: Bennett Miller
Stars: Allie Mickelson, Philip Seymour Hoffman, Catherine Keener
Blow (2001)
Biography | Crime | Drama
    1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 7.5/10 X  

The story of George Jung, the man who established the American cocaine market in the 1970s.

Director: Ted Demme
Stars: Johnny Depp, Penélope Cruz, Franka Potente
Biography | Drama | Sport
    1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 6.9/10 X  

The film follows the surf and skateboarding trends that originated in Venice, California during the 1970's.

Director: Catherine Hardwicke
Stars: Emile Hirsch, Victor Rasuk, Heath Ledger
Biography | Drama | Romance
    1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 7.9/10 X  

The story of James Braddock, a supposedly washed-up boxer who came back to become a champion and an inspiration in the 1930s.

Director: Ron Howard
Stars: Russell Crowe, Renée Zellweger, Paul Giamatti
Monster (2003)
Biography | Crime | Drama
    1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 7.3/10 X  

Based on the life of Aileen Wuornos, a Daytona Beach prostitute who became a serial killer.

Director: Patty Jenkins
Stars: Charlize Theron, Christina Ricci, Bruce Dern
The Hurricane (1999)
Biography | Drama | Sport
    1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 7.4/10 X  

The story of Rubin "Hurricane" Carter, a boxer wrongly imprisoned for murder, and the people who aided in his fight to prove his innocence.

Director: Norman Jewison
Stars: Denzel Washington, Vicellous Reon Shannon, Deborah Kara Unger
Raging Bull (1980)
Biography | Drama | Sport
    1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 8.3/10 X  

An emotionally self-destructive boxer's journey through life, as the violence and temper that leads him to the top in the ring, destroys his life outside it.

Director: Martin Scorsese
Stars: Robert De Niro, Cathy Moriarty, Joe Pesci
Crime | Drama | Sport
    1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 7.5/10 X  

A wrongfully expelled Harvard undergrad moves to London, where he is introduced to the violent underworld of football hooliganism.

Director: Lexi Alexander
Stars: Elijah Wood, Charlie Hunnam, Claire Forlani
Serpico (1973)
Biography | Crime | Drama
    1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 7.8/10 X  

The true story about an honest New York cop who blew the whistle on rampant corruption in the force only to have his comrades turn against him.

Director: Sidney Lumet
Stars: Al Pacino, John Randolph, Jack Kehoe
Biography | Drama | Sport
    1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 7.6/10 X  

The story of Michael Oher, a homeless and traumatized boy who became an All American football player and first round NFL draft pick with the help of a caring woman and her family.

Director: John Lee Hancock
Stars: Sandra Bullock, Tim McGraw, Quinton Aaron
Edit

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
...
...
Marilyn Sokol ...
...
...
...
Roy Cooper ...
...
Construction Worker (as Vinnie Pastore)
...
Jimmy Papiris ...
Nick Gaetani ...
...
Bobo (as Alexander Gaberman)
Ben Jorgensen ...
...
...
Edit

Storyline

Film adaptation of street tough Jim Carroll's epistle about his kaleidoscopic free fall into the harrowing world of drug addiction. As a member of a seemingly unbeatable high school basketball squad, Jim's life centers around the basketball court and the court becomes a metaphor for the world in his mind. A best friend who is dying of leukemia, a coach ("Swifty") who takes unacceptable liberties with the boys on his team, teenage sexual angst, and an unhealthy appetite for heroin -- all of these begin to encroach on young Jim's dream of becoming a basketball star. Soon, the dark streets of New York become a refuge from his mother's mounting concern for her son. He can't go home and his only escape from the reality of the streets is heroin for which he steals, robs and prostitutes himself. Only with the help of Reggie, an older neighborhood friend with whom Jim "picked up a game" now and then, is he able to begin the long journey back to sanity. Written by Mark Fleetwood <mfleetwo@mail.coin.missouri.edu>

Plot Summary | Add Synopsis

Taglines:

The true story of the death of innocence and the birth of an artist See more »


Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated R for graphic depiction of drug addiction with related strong violence,sexuality and language | See all certifications »

Parents Guide:

 »
Edit

Details

Country:

Language:

Release Date:

21 April 1995 (USA)  »

Also Known As:

Basketball Diaries  »

Box Office

Gross:

$2,424,439 (USA)
 »

Company Credits

Show detailed on  »

Technical Specs

Runtime:

Sound Mix:

|

Color:

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1
See  »
Edit

Did You Know?

Trivia

After being nominated for an Oscar for Running on Empty, MTV asked River Phoenix what he wanted to do next. He responded by pulling out a beat up paperback of "The Basketball Diaries" and stated "I wanted to play Jim Carroll." Later, the Los Angeles Times declared, "River Phoenix may have wanted it too much." Leonardo DiCaprio was a fan of Phoenix's. See more »

Goofs

The NBA ball signed by the players would not have been around at that time. Spalding didn't start manufacturing the NBA ball until 1982 or 1983. See more »

Quotes

Father McNulty: [wakes Jim up from his dream by slamming his cane against his desk] Wake up, Mr. Carroll, it's later than you think!
See more »

Connections

Referenced in Entourage: The Scene (2004) See more »

Soundtracks

"Catholic Boy"
Written by Jim Carroll
Performed by Jim Carroll with Pearl Jam
Pearl Jam appears courtesy of Epic Records
See more »

Frequently Asked Questions

This FAQ is empty. Add the first question.

User Reviews

 
Very powerfull statement against drugs.
26 February 2000 | by (Delft, Holland) – See all my reviews

I think 'The basketball diaries' is a realistic and very important movie. It shows the road that one walks to being addicted to drugs. From taking dope once a week to taking dope every day, every hour. Leonardo DiCaprio playes a basketballplayer, a schoolkid(Jim Carrol) who walks this path. He experiments with drugs 'till there is no way back. He gets himself in all kinds of stupid situations. He starts robbing stores, ripping off money from old ladies just to get some cash for dope. His life is beginning to look like a living hell. His basketballcoach wants to have sex with him, and when he passes out on the basketballfield due to taking a wrong kind of 'pep-pil', he gets kicked out of the basketball team and from school. From this moment on everything goes in a downward spiral for DiCaprio.

An excellent scenario you would say, and it is. The acting from DiCaprio is great. We saw it earlier on in his career when he got oscar-nominated for 'What's eating gilbert grape'. A gripping drama in which he playes a disabled kid. But in 'The basketball diaries' he playes an equally difficult part. Not a lot actors would have put down this kid who's life is wrecked, and who is constantly thinking about dope as well as DiCaprio did.

The statement the movie delivers is a powerfull one. Being addicted to drugs is horrible. Usually people learn about this aspect trough seminars or televisonshows such as Oprah Winfrey. But it never really gets the kind of attention and understanding from the audience as 'The Basketball diaries' delivers.

The amazing performance by DiCaprio, the fact that this movie is actually based on a true story and the reality the movie is set in, 'The basketball diaries' deserves a 9 out of 10.


75 of 98 people found this review helpful.  Was this review helpful to you?

Message Boards

Recent Posts
Incredibly underrated... If your thinking about watching user-533-952938
Pretty poor mobaljames
Would people pay to 'give' someone a blowjob? Mcice88
Hated it! moonie2011
What would make them jump into a river... ajreal05
Movies like this redhead940
Discuss The Basketball Diaries (1995) on the IMDb message boards »

Contribute to This Page