Nowitzki: The Perfect Shot, directed by Sebastian Dehnhardt, made its state-side debut last night at the Dallas International Film Festival and I wanted to share a few thoughts on the movie. Let’s get one thing straight before moving forward. If you’re coming to Mavs.com for a distinguished review of a documentary centered on Dirk Nowitzki, odds are you know what’s coming.
Yes, this is a fantastic film.
Here’s the thing, though. I write for a number of other (non-Dallas related) websites and would say, without hesitation, that this is a great film that people should go see.
When creating a piece of art that is centered on sports, you run the risk of narrowing your audience by a lot. The Perfect Shot appeals to more than just sports fans, though. It’s different from most other hoops docs I’ve seen. This is a charming story that goes beyond basketball and into the life of someone worth knowing.
For a broader audience, narrative is key. The Perfect Shot offers everything required of a great story. For starters, there’s a hero with all the right qualities — caring, hard-working, thoughtful, etc. The villain in this film is dramatic change in culture, public criticisms and the Miami Heat (kidding!).
We get to see Dirk journey from Wurzburg to the NBA and live through the struggles he endured at such a young age. This goes far beyond adapting his game to the rough ‘n’ tough NBA style of play. Dirk had to adjust his whole way of life. The film offers first-hand accounts from those who helped Dirk overcome these struggles, people like his parents, Don Nelson, Donnie Nelson, Michael Finley and Lisa Tyner — who offered up the most support during Dirk’s darkest hours. If I knew nothing of basketball, this film would still draw me in and I would have a vested interest in this foreigner named Dirk.
For general hoops fans out there, this thing is crack. Kobe Bryant, Yao Ming, Vince Carter — those are only a few names of many NBA personalities featured in the film.
Everything involving Dirk’s trainer, Holger Geschwindner is must see TV. We get to take an exclusive look at how Holger’s mind works as he explores math and music to develop the elusive ‘perfect shot.’ Watching Dirk’s training sessions with Holger was an absolute treat. At a certain point, the film takes draws a direct line from the origins of basketball to Dirk Nowitzki. My favorite part was having Holger take the audience through his thoughts on outer space and how it correlates with basketball. What a ridiculous statement. In that very same segment we see Holger working with this software system, titled “Dirkmetrix,” that features a digitized stick figure of Dirk and all the ways he can adjust Dirk’s shot. Incredible.
Finally, if you’re a Mavs fan, there is no doubt that you will absolutely adore this film. It portrays the same charming personality as the man himself with tons of insider stories and anecdotes. Here is just a small handful of things to look forward to if you’re a Mavs fan …
The biggest takeaway from the film is getting the opportunity to understand the kind of person Dirk is. His relationship with Dallas becomes obvious in the film. Find another league All-Star, league MVP, Finals MVP who hangs out at the team’s payroll manager’s office just because. Dallas changed Dirk and Dirk changed Dallas. Even cooler, both seem to recognize that fact. For a world-wide superstar to be as gracious and as grounded as he is — that’s a rare thing.
As Dirk puts it, “It’s crazy to think I’m good at throwing a ball in a basket because I’m 9 feet tall. And there are so many people who are as good as me at what they do.”
I would recommend this film to those who have never watched SportsCenter a day in their life because this is more than just another documentary about a basketball player. It’s a well-executed story about friendship, hard-work, change, failure and perseverance …
It just happens to star my favorite basketball player of all time. Go see The Perfect Shot.
EDITOR’S NOTE: “The Perfect Shot” will be released to the public in July at select Landmark theaters.
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