The Basket DVD with Peter Coyote, Karen Allen, Robert Burke (PG) +Movie Reviews

Overlooked by Hollywood

Jim Nendel | State College, PA USA | 10/18/2001

(5 out of 5 stars)

"The Basket is one of those films which causes you to think and yet allows you to walk away from the theatre glad that you spent the time and money to see it. Peter Coyote and Karen Allen do a wonderful job in their roles in this film set in Eatern Washington. The film is a great choice for those with families as the material is not objectionable in the least and yet has the ability to capture the audience with stunning cinematography and a plot which intracately weaves in and out throughout the movie. This film has the feel of a classic foreign film and does not provide easy answers to every question it raises. It also has a wonderful story line concerning the early development of the game of basketball which portrays that development accurately and yet retains the fun that sports films tend to characterize. The local actors called on to play the Spokane team are wonderful and led by their captain (played by Scott McQuilkin) they add great vitality to the film. Most of the viewing public were shortchanged in the limited release of this film, due to heavyweight Hollywood blockbusters which hog the screens across the country. Now with its video and DVD release The Basket has an opportunity to allow viewers to see one of the top movies to come out in 1999. Having seen this movie in the theatres in Spokane I have been awaiting its video debut. Enjoy it, it is a great movie."

Disney and Hallmark Cannot Make a Family Movie This Good!

betternot | Monterey, California | 11/02/2001

(5 out of 5 stars)

"I can only review what I saw in the movie theater last year. The VHS and DVD are not available to the public yet (today is 11/1/01). Anyone here who claims to rate the DVD obviously has a beef with the producers or something. The simple fact is "The Basket" won every top family entertainment awards and also beat-out the best Hollywood could offer. It is Dove Foundation Approved for Family Viewing. "The Basket" tells a great story set in the Pacific Northwest in 1918 during WWI. It combines an Original German Opera with the invention of a new game called 'Basket Ball.' Its a drama about team-work and a community coming together during tough times. Opera fans, sports fans, Peter Coyote fans, Karen Allen fans, 'Why-Can't-Hollywood-Make-Good-Movies-Anymore' fans have alot to love about this movie. Thanks, "BetterNot""

The best film of 2000 that you didn't see

Tim Drake | Saint Joseph, Minnesota | 10/05/2001

(4 out of 5 stars)

"Starring Peter Coyote and Karen Allen, The Basket tells the story of a new schoolteacher in Waterville, Washington during World War I. He uses the unlikely subjects of opera and the new game of basketball to help two sibling German orphans who are facing discrimination by others in the town. The film is at once a drama, a sports film, and has some light-hearted moments. It is a wholesome and uplifting film. The production quality is superb and the scenery is quite breathtaking. The film also contains an original soundtrack, produced in part by individuals from Spokane. This is a film which all ages can enjoy. The basketball game's final scene is a moving display of sacrifice you won't soon forget."

Couldn't wait for the DVD!!!

Roland R. Painter | Tigard, Oregon United States | 01/12/2002

(5 out of 5 stars)

"I originally saw this film on a flight to Germany last April. I guess you can't tell a book by it's cover, so when I saw the title "The Basket", I thought it couldn't be all that good. I put my book down, put on the head phones and was immediately drawn into the story and the characters. By the end, I was thoroughly impressed and noted that this film had to be one of the best I'd seen in years. It's such a great story, the music was great, and the scenery was fantastic. Since last April, I've been patiently waiting for the CD to come out, now that I have it, I've watched it a dozen times. I'll be watching for more films by Rich Cowan."

Any Small Rural Town in WWI Era America!

American_History_Rocks | Southeastern Michigan | 12/14/2002

(5 out of 5 stars)

"Forgive me to indulge myself with my appreciation for this film and its excellent representation on rural farm life during the WWI era. While the film is about a rural farming community in the Pacific Northwest, because of its brilliantly historical likeness to many small farm communities in this era it is a symbolic story of American farm life in the early 20th Century.The film places itself somewhere in the late summer through early fall of 1918 (before the Influenza outbreaks in October 1918 [for the Pacific Northwest region]) and before the Armistice in November 1918. The central characters are two orphan refugees from Germany who are sent to live with the local preacher/doctor. The townspeople of course didn't wholly welcome their new-orphaned neighbors. The movie plays itself out between the one-room schoolhouse and the farm families and their struggles to cope with social, cultural, and economic strains resulting from the times and the war. The "war to end all wars" was a blessing and a curse to American farmers. This film represents both ends of the spectrum. Sadly, WWI proved more of a curse than a blessing. Farmers, if they planned and timed themselves well, without throwing themselves into debt, could make a substantial amount of money on wheat and other agricultural related products. For most farmers, however, the war brought about extreme labor shortages, increased inflation, increased debt and greater reliance on mortgages. Socially and culturally the war brought about unchecked patriotism that resulted in hostilities towards German Americans and German war refugees, increased censorship and generally, an increased role of the Federal Government. The war took its greatest toll on farm families (and communities) who sent they young "doughboys" to war. If they returned at all, they returned with immense social, mental and physical scaring. In the end, after watching this film, you'll come out of the experience emotionally moved, historically aware and personally enriched."

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