Hoosiers (2-Disc Collector's Edition) (DVD)

Sit back and try to think of a good basketball film other than Hoosiers... I'll give you a minute...

Yeah, can't can you? Hoosiers is the pinnacle of sports movies, and I know some of you like that cheesy Rudy story but it can't even come close to this one as it mixes emotion and sports drama to the utmost of extremes and this special edition DVD capitalizes on every minute of it.

Starting off, the film has received an all-new high-definition transfer, and while the audio offered is just your standard Dolby 5.1 rather than a hoped for DTS track the presentation is excellent.

The first disc carries the film, the theatrical trailer as well as an audio commentary with director David Anspaugh and writer Angelo Pizzo, which is actually quite lively and informative, and even offers up parallels between Hoosiers and last year's comedy Dodgeball if you can believe it. Just a bit of trivia for you before you buy this one, the uniforms in Dodgeball are not red and gold just by coincidence.

However the bulk of the goods can be found on the second disc, which is absolutely a must own for any basketball, or sports fan for that matter. Along with a making-of feature that delves into the true story that inspired the film as well as the making of the movie, a load of deleted scenes introduced by Anspaugh and Pizzo, you also get the complete Milan vs. Muncie 1954 Indiana High School Championship Game!

Milan is the team that inspired the Hickory Huskers and while the game is old and grainy, just wait until you see where some of these guys pull from. Remember this is back before 3 pointers were around and yet these guys are pulling from 35 feet or further. Plus you will see just how closely the end of this game resembles the final minutes of the game portrayed in the film.

Hoosiers is a classic because it is one of those films that you can watch at anytime, I am sure several of you have been flipping the TV channels, stumbled on Hoosiers and watched however many minutes were remaining.

Gene Hackman, Barbara Hershey and Dennis Hopper give amazing performances as does the entire supporting cast. Aside from Hopper's speech in True Romance I would wager to say this is his best performance ever.

On top of the DVDs themselves the set also comes encased in a ridged basketball feeling slipcase that throws you straight in the mood just by touching it. This set is whole-heartedly recommended for anyone that loves sports or just plain good filmmaking.