The Last Dance (2020)

 As far as sports documentaries go, this is by far one of the best I have seen. From a cinematic point of view, this has everything you want and more. I am aware of the successes and accolades Michael Jordan has accumulated, but what he did in order to achieve, earnt him my respect even more as a sportsman. I would say that the documentary certainly helped in cementing Jordan's name as the best player to ever grace the NBA and one of the best athletes ever.

What was incredibly effective throughout the documentary was the use of time, going back and forth throughout. It always went through 2 different time periods. For example, in the first episode, it took us back to when MJ first started out as a college player at North Carolina in 1981.

 

We see him rising through the ranks and quickly garnering attention all over the country, which led him to be drafted by the Chicago Bulls. I had never really delved into Jordan's history, so I did take away a fair bit of information about Michael Jordan’s professional life. I guess from that part, the documentary did what it needed to do in terms of being informative…  

 

 This documentary took us on an emotional rollercoaster. The musical scores and the fast-paced editing of the show often heightened the nerves, the sadness, the joy, the elation that Michael and Chicago Bulls endured. Just watching the players going through it, I felt invested in the Bulls as if they were my own team. Or rather I felt as though I invested into Michael more than I was investing in Chicago Bulls or anyone else involved in this.

 

This leads to the things that I had a problem with- first off, the man himself: Michael Jordan. What I found interesting is that Jordan had the final say on the editing of the series. Of course, he had the footage and he could decide how to go about this and what to put in it.

 

This does become a problem as it leaves Jordan open to manipulate the truth or at least tell his own version of the truth of things that really happened (unfortunately there are no rules that say you can or cannot do this). The biggest example for me is the whole ordeal that went down with Scottie Pippen and his contract situation. A lot of this was told predominantly from Michael's perspective rather than his teammates. Pippen himself was upset according to Chicago Radio about the way Jordan had portrayed him and how he was labeled selfish. I will have to admit that was incredibly unfair on Pippen.

 

I was really intrigued as to why Jordan chose to omit himself from supporting Harvey Gantt, the man who could have been the first black Senate from North Carolina. Even more so his refusal to go into political situations that were happening around America- he chose to evade questions with excuses such as “I don’t have enough information on this right now”. Whilst I get it, he doesn’t have to comment on political situations, but to make a point of not doing so? That could have been handled better.

 

I guess Jordan also welcomed having the bad guy persona, a Machiavelli character. The villain, he did it really well and he seemed to embrace the idea of being that guy for his teammates in order to 'win at all cost'. I wonder whether this will have been something for Jordan to advertise his brand after all it was his company that created this.

 

This leads to the question that has been dominating social media. Is this the best sporting documentary ever made? The answer is probably not. From a film standpoint, the editing, the music, everything from that angle was spectacular. From a journalism point of view, some have said it is malpractice… Yeah, that might be a little too far. Yet I don’t think it was the best journalism. Or even a documentary in its purest form.

 

 I would love to hear your thoughts on The Last Dance. Is it the best sports documentary ever made? Is it not? Leave your comments down below.

 

Till next time.

Picture Reference: Medium  (https://medium.com/craft-ventures/be-like-mike-what-founders-can-learn-from-the-last-dance-eba3a523f678)