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Before He Got Game, there was Above the Rim, a film that doesn't just tell a story about basketball, but about the entire ecosystem surrounding a young, Black, promising athlete in the projects.Kyle Watson (Duane Martin) is a Harlem baller on the brink of greatness. NCAA scouts are circling, scholarships are within reach, and the NBA dream feels possible. For Kyle, like many, basketball is framed as a ticket out of poverty; a path that might save not only him, but also his family. But in the same neighborhoods where scouts lurk with clipboards and promises, so do predatory figures like Birdie (Tupac Shakur), local drug lords who see the same talent and want a cut, even if it means pulling that talent down.
Above the Rim captures that precarious economic tightrope, where opportunity is rarely clean and pressure comes from all directions coaches, friends, hustlers, even your own mother. It’s a world where survivor’s guilt sets in early, where every move you make feels like it’s for everyone around you, and where a bad decision can cost everything. The film doesn’t offer easy answers, but instead paints a complex picture of how these situations force one to grow up fast, navigate loyalty, and form a moral compass under duress.
And beyond the emotional and political weight, there's style. The Death Row soundtrack is legendary. The cast is stacked Tupac, Marlon Wayans, Leon, Wood Harris, and Bernie Mac. And then there’s one of the film’s most fascinating low-key details: Tupac’s character wears 100 Miles, a Toronto streetwear brand that’s still alive today on Queen West. It’s a rare and iconic crossover; a piece of Toronto street fashion immortalized in a defining piece of '90s Black cinema. (FADUMA GURE)
Join The Black Nerds this September at the Revue Cinema and catch Above The Rim.
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Event Venue & Nearby Stays
400 Roncesvalles Ave, Toronto, ON M6R 2M9, Canada
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