Product Details

• Actors: Peter Coyote, Karen Allen, Robert Burke, Amber Willenborg, Jock MacDonald
• Directors: Rich Cowan
• Format: Anamorphic, Closed-captioned, Color, Dolby, DTS Surround Sound, Dubbed, DVD, Special Edition, Widescreen, NTSC
• Language: French (Dolby Digital 2.0 Stereo), German (Dolby Digital 2.0 Stereo), English (Dolby Digital 2.0 Stereo), English (Dolby Digital 5.1), Spanish (Dolby Digital 2.0 Stereo)
• Subtitles: English
• Region: Region 1 (U.S. and Canada only. Read more about DVD formats.)
  
• Aspect Ratio: 1.85:1
• Number of discs: 1
• Rating: PG (Parental Guidance Suggested)
• Studio: MGM (Video & DVD)
• DVD Release Date: December 11, 2001
• Run Time: 104 minutes
• Average Customer Review: 3.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (26 customer reviews)
• ASIN: B00005QW5Q
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #35,262 in Movies & TV (See Bestsellers in Movies & TV)
• For more information about "The Basket" visit the Internet Movie Database (IMDb)

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com

The Basket, set in the United States during World War I, is a quiet family film about tolerance and basketball. German orphans Helmut and Brigitta are adopted by the pastor in the tiny farming town of Waterville, Washington. The people of Waterville are suspicious--both of the new "Huns" in town and new schoolteacher Mr. Conlon (Peter Coyote). Conlon sets the town abuzz by teaching (gasp!) German opera and showing his students a new game from the east called basketball. Can the small-town hayseeds beat the juggernaut team, the Spokane Spartans? Will Helmut get to play? And what about that new tractor everybody wants? The Basket doesn't generate quite the excitement of, say, Hoosiers, but it is not a bad movie at all and is beautifully shot, to boot. It's also a great way to teach kids that it isn't as easy as you might think to spot the bad guys. --Ali Davis

Product Description

Peter Coyote (E.T., Erin Brokovich) and Karen Allen (The Perfect Storm) star in this touching family drama about the unifying power of basketball in a community torn apart by war. Both a riveting sports film and a tale of triumph over adversity, The Basket is "a hoop dream movie with a whole lot of heart" (Dallas Morning News)! In 1918, when the wheat-farming townspeople of Waterville, Washington, welcome home their first wounded son from WWI, they'restruck by the harsh reality of war. And just as bigotry and hatred toward two German orphans dividethe close-knit community, a new schoolteacher, Martin (Coyote), rolls into town with some strange ideas and an even stranger leather ball. Through the brand-new game called basketball, Martin strivesto bring harmony to the town...before it tears itself apart!

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

18 of 18 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Overlooked by Hollywood, October 17, 2001

By	Jim Nendel (State College, PA USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Basket [VHS] (VHS Tape)

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.

15 of 15 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Disney and Hallmark Cannot Make a Family Movie This Good!, November 2, 2001

By	"betternot" (Monterey, California) - See all my reviews

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"

14 of 14 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars The best film of 2000 that you didn't see, October 5, 2001

By	Tim Drake "Author and Journalist" (Saint Joseph, Minnesota) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

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.