Basketball fans may still debate MJ vs. LeBron for GOAT status in basketball. While Jordan’s story of not making his high school basketball team is part of his legend, Shooting Stars (now streaming on Peacock) aims to elevate James’ own past to such status. This is a story not about a singular drive to succeed that clouds out everyone else in the path — it’s one about how a community of people plays a part in that journey.
The Gist: The Shooting Stars to which the title refers is LeBron James’ (Marquis “Mookie” Cook) AAU youth basketball team, where he and some teammates begin to develop undeniable chemistry both on and off the court. Years later, the group begins to splinter based on varying talent levels, but the shortest of the crew, Dru (Caleb McLaughlin), spearheads a plan trying to keep himself from getting left behind. The Fab Five takes their talents to Akron’s St. Vincent-St. Mary High School, a predominantly white Catholic high school.
In their freshman year, the group makes a big splash as freshmen because former college coach Keith Dambrot (Dermot Mulroney) puts his trust in the group, although he quickly abandons them — thrusting Dru’s dad (Wood Harris) into a role overseeing the team’s skyrocketing trajectory. By junior year, LeBron becomes a national sensation thanks to a Sports Illustrated cover. The tight bonds of the Fab Four begin to buckle under the stress. We know what happens to LeBron — but what about the other four?
What Movies Will It Remind You Of?: LeBron superfans may recall the story of his high-school days has been told in the documentary More Than a Game. But in terms of a narrative arc, the movie it most recalls is actually something like Don’t Think Twice, a tale about a tight-knit group of comedians dealing with the fallout of one member going supernova in their career.
Performance Worth Watching: LeBron James might be a star on the court, but the actor playing him in Shooting Stars isn’t necessarily the star of the film. Caleb McLaughlin of Stranger Things fame steals the show as Dru, the shortest of the Fab Four who acts out of an intriguing sense of self-protection.
Memorable Dialogue: “You’re good at basketball — LeBron, you’re great,” his high school sweetheart Savannah tells the future NBA star. “But if you don’t check yourself, basketball’s gonna be all that you have.” (Luckily, such a devastating read is not his Joker origin story like The Social Network found it was for its interpretation of Mark Zuckerberg.)
Sex and Skin: Nothing more salacious than shirtless poolside camaraderie.
Our Take: Whether musicians or athletes, the story of a group that comes undone is sadly all too familiar. At nearly two hours, Shooting Stars spends a bit too long on a tale whose broad contours we recognize. It’s smart enough to center the friends and the group bond they share rather than immediately relegating them to sidekick status around the superstar, though the film does get more LeBron-centric as it goes on, to its ultimate detriment. This is a competent if not entirely confident fictional telling of the real-life story. It’s a bit disappointing to watch it whiff on moments like the Fab Four getting yelled at by a passing car in their freshman year for selling out, hinting at some conflicting feelings they raised within the Black community. But this thematic thread gets treated like many others outside the immediate purview of the players — relegated to being an afterthought.
Our Call: STREAM IT. Shooting Stars is exactly the movie you’d expect about LeBron James given that he produced the film along with business partner Maverick Carter. It’s not going to the Hall of Fame for basketball movies, but it’s just good enough to eke out a win in the end.
Marshall Shaffer is a New York-based freelance film journalist. In addition to Decider, his work has also appeared on Slashfilm, Slant, The Playlist and many other outlets. Some day soon, everyone will realize how right he is about Spring Breakers.
Watch Shooting Stars on Peacock