Another basketball film that found its way to the silver screen in part because of LeBron James, who served as producer, Rez Ball tells the story of the Chuska Warriors, a Navajo reservation Native American high school basketball team from Chuska, New Mexico, who lose their star player to suicide at the start of the season.
Based on the novel Canyon Dreams: A Basketball Season on the Navajo Nation, by New York Times journalist Michael Powell, the film was shot on the Navajo Nation with the blessing of the local sovereign tribal nations.
On the court, the team has to rebuild around Jimmy, who faces personal challenges at home as well as as the teams new leader. The team loses nine games in a row before regrouping and finding their core. They make the decision to call plays in the Navajo language. The choice requires some to learn their language, bringing them deeper into their heritage.
The team rebounds winning fourteen in a row giving them an opportunity to attend the state championship.
The film was cast with many Indigenous actors and actresses, adding to the authenticity of the moments off the court. Cinematography is loaded with great shifts during the action of the game, separating the on court action with the off court narrative, allowing the viewer to walk away both inspired and impressed.
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