Review: Gina Prince-Bythewood's 'Love & Basketball' Stellar and Infectious

Gina Prince-Bythewood is a name that should be more prominently known in the film world. I first encountered her work in 2014 with the exceptional "Beyond the Lights," which starred Gugu Mbatha-Raw as a chart-topping music artist faced with the pressures of success, relationships, and fame. It is a remarkably confident film that seemed to fly under the radar without receiving due recognition, and I imagine that perhaps it will craft its legacy over time much like the filmmaker's debut work, "Love & Basketball," did.

The 2000 romantic sports drama stars Sanaa Lathan opposite Omar Epps in a semi-autobiographical tale that Prince-Bythewood has cited as wanting to do "a black 'When Harry Met Sally.' " And frankly, the film certainly holds its own when pitted against such a formidable competitor in the history of romantic relationships on film. As she did with "Beyond the Lights," Prince-Bythewood brings a uniquely singular view to the world of a woman within an arena consistently focused on men. Particularly when you consider the "sports drama," movies like "Love & Basketball" are few and far between in terms of having a female-focused storyline, let alone one told via a multi-dimensional African-American character.

What has since rightfully become a cult classic in the last 21 years has been brought to Blu-ray by The Criterion Collection in a striking new 4K restoration, supervised by Prince-Bythewood herself. In what may interest many, this restoration includes additional footage that was cut from the original release. Furthermore, collectors will enjoy that the release includes two unique audio commentaries from 2000: One featuring Prince-Bythewood and Sanna Lathan, the other featuring Prince-Bythewood, editor Terilyn A. Shropshire, and composer Terence Blanchard.

Other bonus features include a new making-of documentary that features the cast and crew, as well as a fascinating featurette called "Editing 'Love & Basketball,' " which includes insights from Prince-Bythewood and editor Shropshire. Deleted scenes, a trailer, and audition tape excerpts round out the supplemental material, as well as two early short films by Prince-Bythewood – "Stiches" (1991) and "Progress" (1997) – both of which offer radiant insight into the filmmaker this talented artist would eventually become.

Fans of iconic romance, stellar sports drama, infectious R&B soundtracks, and quality filmmaking should definitely check out this new Criterion Collection release.

"Love & Basketball" is now available on Criterion Collection Blu-ray for the suggested retail price of $31.96