On this special edition episode of Cinematic Underdogs, we cover the first half (episodes 1-5) of our first Wild Card Flick: "The Last Dance"!

Given that "The Last Dance" is a sports documentary series and thus veers outside of the realm of feature films (it is actually not even a flick, come to think of it), your friendly Underdogs will be the first to acknowledge that we outright broke an explicit rule outlined in the introductory podcast: that we would not deviate from the insular domain of 'cinematic' sports movies.

But for Michael Jordan, Phil Jackson, Dennis Rodman, Scottie Pippen, Steve Kerr, and the superlative 1990's Chicago Bulls dynasty, an exception felt more than warranted: all rules were made to be broken anyways, right?

Even more integral to our decision to go renegade with this episode was the craze surrounding "The Last Dance" after it was released on ESPN at the start of the pandemic, in late April 2020. Without any live sports to occupy our restless energy, and claustrophobically confined to our houses (piled ceiling high with toilet paper and surgical masks), this documentary was expedited with the same zealous celerity that drove companies like Pfizer to so swiftly concoct, test, patent, and manufacture the Covid-19 vaccine. In a similar vein, the Powers-That-Be knew that sports addicts like ourselves needed an antidote, and so they offered us this addicting 10-part documentary that quickly became the cynosure of the digital 'water-cooler' squabbles:

Was MJ a megalomaniac? Should we trust the hagiographic aggrandizement of himself, given that his production company had the rights and last word on the editing of "The Last Dance?"
Should athletes be praised solely for taking a route of political activism, or can the stance of apolitical neutrality itself be a moral virtue?
Was Jerry Krause fairly portrayed in the documentary as being the squat, bumbling, evil overlord?
Did Scottie Pippen get screwed over by his lowball contract, or did he simply not know his own worth when negotiating? And did Pippen get screwed over again by being marginalized in this documentary?
Were the Detroit Pistons the dirtiest team of all time?

These are just a smattering of the many controversial contretemps that we cover, squeezing out countless juicy subplots from the almost 10-hour running time of the immersive exploration of basketball greatness and high-stakes drama in "The Last Dance."

Finally, if you enjoy the Cinematic Underdogs podcast, please share it, like it, add it, subscribe to it, and comment on it wherever you are engaging with it.

You can also find us on Twitter (https://twitter.com/CinematicUnder) or Letterboxd (https://letterboxd.com/synemastehsia/) by clicking those links or just searching for 'Cinematic Underdogs' on the websites.

A quick side note: this episode's audio admittedly oscillates between hi-fi & lo-fi. Due to a buzzing microphone, lots of post-production techniques had to be implemented to silence the feedback. Fortunately, with some help from tutorials on YouTube, our raucous 2-hour celebration of "The Last Dance" was salvaged. That said, when listening you will likely notice conspicuous shifts in sonic quality. Our advice is simple: think of it as no different than how "The Last Dance" leaps between grainy footage of old NBA Playoff clips and glossy interviews with the now retired Bulls players & coaches / the bevy of other cultural icons & talking heads (Obama / Justin Timberlake / ESPN analysts). What truly matters is that the content of our conversation is absolutely discernible, and our conjectures, nostalgic riffs, and playfully combative debates are as fully fleshed out as ever.

Enjoy!

18. Don Shanahan's Top 5 Sports Films & Moneyball

Cinematic UnderdogsBy Paul Keelan / Jordan PugaJan 26, 2021