Love and Basketball by Sanaa Lathan - Movie Review Example

Love & Basketball One of the issues our society had and is still facing until today would be the sexist point of view towards men and women. One strong view is portrayed at the first part of the film “Love & Basketball” during the scene where Monica wore a baseball hat when she approached the boys to play basketball with her. I see this as her way of giving a strong impression to the boys and convince them to actually play basketball with her instead of being seen as a “no match”, just because she is a girl and basketball has always been associated to a boy’s sport. However, because of her love for basketball, she slowly was able to make her guy friends see her as worth trying, most especially when she showed her skill in the sport and, at the same time, the discipline that men thought a woman will never share in game of basketball. Here you would see how it evoked the traditional perception of women being carried out until today as we pretty much are familiar that in the past, women have been looked at as a weaker counterpart of men, not being capable of doing what men can do and are objectified as the weaker gender. Taking this to deeper thought, although modern day women wish to counter this perception by proving the world that they are also capable of doing what men can, there still is an unavoidable trace from this mindset that keeps women having the need to prove themselves to men and to society, having the need to sometimes appear stronger than they really are to convince men and society that they can be seen equally with men. Though there is rationality to the thought that women should be seen equally with men, a lot about the movie still showed the differences and, at the same time, similarities between women and men not only in treating basketball as a sport but also as two opposite genders. Physically, the only difference one could see would be the truth that men were built to be stronger and more vicious when it comes to sports. One scene that induced this certainty would be during the first game of Quincy and Monica together where Quincy accidently pushed Monica too hard without doing it on purpose that made her fall on her face to the ground that caused her that scar. Though it was clear to be just an accident that normally happens in every game, a lot about the incident shows that boys are really built to be more aggressive than women while the latter, though are not made this way, could be able to match boys physically but would require more practice, work out, and hard work while it would seem to ensue naturally within men. Thus, the film has showed how Monica underwent rigid training to be able to prove herself in basketball. Another difference between Quincy and Monica as basketball players would be the fact that Monica was fueling her love for basketball as a sport not only by her passion for it but, at the same time, her growing feelings for Quincy. One of the strong motivators for her to really excel and stay in the sport would be the thought of having more time with Quincy which shows that women too often function based on emotions and are easily distracted by it. This was showed in the part of the film where Monica was struggling with her emotions at court caused by too many girls looming around Quincy, being the star player in his team. Of course, her fiery emotions resulted to technical fouls, getting benched, which without her realizing, resulted her to push many scouting opportunities away. Quincy, on the other hand, knew how to balance his feelings for Monica and his love for basketball. Although they were experiencing some technical problems between each other such as jealousy, he manages to make the scouts notice his skill for basketball and even consider him as one of the top prospects by having his mind on the game whenever he is in court. Lastly, another undeniable difference you can see between Quincy and Monica would be their motivation and attitude towards fame. While Quincy was managing to get himself to his dream team because he needed a way out from all his emotional burdens caused by his issue with his father and, at the same time, Monica; Monica, on the other hand, was slowly letting go of fame and opportunity she waited for so long to face what she was really feeling inside and went for actually savoring the feeling of pain instead of fooling herself and acting like everything was okay. However, despite all the differences between the two, there are also some similarities that they shared. First of all, we could not deny the great passion they have for basketball as a sport. Monica, though being a girl, did not let her gender and what the status quo dictated hinder her to actually excel in it and do what she loves. Aside from that, both were also able to raise above all their problems, though in two different manners and made themselves come out of all situations victoriously. This was shown when Monica, in the end, was able to still keep playing for her team even when she did not feel the same way about basketball already after Quincy had gone. Quincy, on the other hand, was still able to manage to pull himself up after the infidelity issues of his father by not letting go of, the only thing that is right as of the moment is the ability to join the NBA draft. Lastly, one common thing they both shared was that though both their families were at times dysfunctional, they still stuck to it but, at the same time, fought for what they believed in even when it cause some family misunderstandings at most, not only in the game of basketball, but also in the matters of the heart; as seen when Monica set aside all the odds of speaking of her feelings she still had for Quincy even when he was already engaged while Quincy taking the risk of calling off the wedding, as well as when it was already too late. Also, one of the big parts of the movie was built up on Monica’s relationship with her mom. You can see how they made very different decisions in life. Monica was one that would not hesitate in making almost impossible dreams come true by taking one step after the other, even when it was at most inconvenient, especially while it comes to her dream to play for a basketball team. On the other hand, her mother would make decisions based on what is within her comfort zone and, at the same time, what society would have her do instead of doing what would make her happy. She is a stay at home mother who have a traditional mindset on how a female should behave, thus, she found it necessary to quit her job to take care of her children. She thinks that women are supposed to serve and do certain sacrifices to fulfill their roles in society and their families, while Monica did not act based on status quo, often breaking the rules of feminists, thus, choosing a men’s sport, basketball, is something her mother does not totally approve. Taking all these into account, I think that being a female does not bound people of this gender to certain kinds of rules to fit what society views them. It is always about doing what makes you happy that makes you truly a woman. Speaking of Monica’s love for basketball, though in the end she was successful in it, the road she had to pave was not easy at all. One of the things she had to sacrifice would be her relationship with her mom as it has cost her a lot of fights and arguments with her, relationship problems with Quincy, and, at the same time, consistent hard work to prove herself to everyone. Indeed, as this movie showed me how impossible dreams do come true, I have had some changes in my choice of leisure, particularly in realizing that there is definitely no reason to hesitate to do a sport that not a lot of my own gender do, and just makes me want to try everything while I can. It would definitely cost me, perhaps, a dose of social suicide but making people realize that the important thing, after all, would be what your choices make you and the fulfillment I get from continuously doing it. Just like Monica and Quincy’s story reflected in the film, their love for basketball cost them a lot of things. You could see this in simple things they had to sacrifice such as night out with friends, having to skip class to attend trainings, and some bruises and scratches after every game. These little sacrifices would result in a bigger impact in their life such as emotional issues they have to deal with in the midst of all other expectations they have to deliver. Thus, in the middle of the movie, Quincy and Monica broke up because of the fact that while Quincy was struggling with the infidelity issues of his dad, Monica was at the top of her game and gave Quincy the feeling that he was taken for granted. However, because Quincy found Monica rising above every challenge, he was motivated to do the same, thus, made him to a decision to go pro. Indeed, all things fair in love and basketball. This is because of the fact that anything goes for the sake of winning a game, whether it is basketball or love. There are no rules and the only important thing is to get there. Bibliography: Love & Basketball. The Internet Movie Database (IMDb). N.p., n.d. 2000. Web. 29 Jan. 2012. . Read More