There is a nice authenticity to this film that drives most of it. This is not an all-star team with everything on the line, and indeed we do not see too much of Brianna that makes us think she is the next Cynthia Cooper. What we actually see for most of the film is the gritty reality of a thin shot at something slipping away because someone else is better than her on the day. I liked this aspect of the film, and the hustle and dark low-keyness of the film adds to it.
The film leaves a major twist to the back end of the film, which sees Bri's rival taken out of the starting lineup. This twist feels like a shock ending to the film, and personally I would have preferred it as just a part of the story – because this is what it feels like. The story is much more about Bri's struggle, and in the end of the film that struggle just became a lot more interesting with the pressure being added to with guilt. Unfortunately this is played out in a few very quick shots, which I thought was a shame because it is a big interesting shadow hanging over the narrative. That said, I did like the open nature of the ending, although I'm not wholly sure what it was trying to say – or maybe this was just a good place to end?
It is a solid film that does something a little different within the genre, but I do wish it had pushed into Brianna as a person much more, particularly considering the events that play out.
The film leaves a major twist to the back end of the film, which sees Bri's rival taken out of the starting lineup. This twist feels like a shock ending to the film, and personally I would have preferred it as just a part of the story – because this is what it feels like. The story is much more about Bri's struggle, and in the end of the film that struggle just became a lot more interesting with the pressure being added to with guilt. Unfortunately this is played out in a few very quick shots, which I thought was a shame because it is a big interesting shadow hanging over the narrative. That said, I did like the open nature of the ending, although I'm not wholly sure what it was trying to say – or maybe this was just a good place to end?
It is a solid film that does something a little different within the genre, but I do wish it had pushed into Brianna as a person much more, particularly considering the events that play out.
