A superb time-capsule of mid-century, mid-western Americana.

Rating: 9/10 (7 March 2005)

This movie is authentic nostalgia for anyone who grew up in the mid-west in the 50's and 60's. It's what life looked like when I myself "came down to this planet" in the late 1940's and experienced my teens in the 60's.
The old school with high ceilings and gleaming wooden floors, the gyms with the gold-toned wall-tiles, even the hospital scene with the nurse in her starched white uniform -- all evoke a peculiar beauty that you no longer find today.
There is even a scene where a young teen girl yells "NO!" to an unjust referee call, and her pointy glasses and pony tail look so much like me back then, it feels like a glimpse into a parallel dimension.
I'd say this is a must-see experience for people my age -- although all ages can thoroughly enjoy the basketball action.
I'm glad for the social progress since then. But there is a "peculiar beauty" from those times that is starkly missing today.