White Men Can't Jump

Name: White Men Can't Jump
Genre: Drama, Sport, Comedy
Released: March 27, 1992
Duration: 115 min
Rating: 65
Cast: Cylk Cozart, David Roberson, Ernest Harden, Jr., John Marshall Jones, Kadeem Hardison

1992

METASCORE

Generally favorable reviews based on 28 Critic Reviews

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USER SCORE

Generally favorable reviews based on 24 Ratings

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7.2

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7.2	User Score Generally favorable reviews based on 24 Ratings

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White Men Can't Jump

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Movie Details & Credits

Twentieth Century Fox | Release Date: March 27, 1992 | R

Starring: Cylk Cozart, David Roberson, Ernest Harden, Jr., John Marshall Jones, Kadeem Hardison, Marques Johnson, Rosie Perez, Tyra Ferrell, Wesley Snipes, Woody Harrelson

Summary: Black and white basketball hustlers join forces to double their chances of winning money on the street courts and in a basketball tournament.

Director: Ron Shelton

Genre(s): Drama, Sport, Comedy

Rating: R

Runtime: 115 min

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Metascore

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Critic Reviews

100

Staff (Not Credited)

Snipes and Harrelson bounce off the screen like Michael Jordan, while Shelton and cinematographer Russell Boyd perfectly capture the agile thrills of the game itself. A double-whammy slam-dunker of a movie. Read full review

Delores Barclay

Shelton takes us right to the street hoops and slam dunks a winner. The movie is funny, it's fast and it's funky. [26 Mar 1992]

Kenneth Turan

Graced with good-humored comic energy, they overcome sizable script problems and turn Ron Shelton's White Men Can't Jump into a sassy and profane urban fairy tale that finds laughs in some very clever places. Read full review

David Ansen

Shelton's strength is character, streetwise wit and funky, lived-in sexuality. Snipes, one of our most versatile young actors, gets to demonstrate his wonderful comic chops, and Harrelson, whose goofiness is part of his scam, partners him beautifully. Read full review

Stephen Hunter

The basketball sequences are the most magical in the film -- both Harrelson and Snipes can play -- but more to the point, he also has a great gift for evoking the needling hostility of athletes, the way the games aren't just about talent but about ego, will, self-esteem. Read full review

Peter Travers

What Shelton fails to provide is a coherent structure; the film is wearyingly repetitive. The boys do the same hustle and hurl the same racial epithets as our goodwill dribbles away. Read full review

Jackie Potts

White Men Can't Jump clocks in at just under two hours of court-stomping, in-your-face, anything-goes street basketball. And that's all, folks. [31 Mar 1992, p.E6]

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User Reviews

royalguy07

Feb 1, 2023

Some of the moves, passes, and shots are so silly on a basketball level and it is awesome. I enjoyed this greatly from start to finish. Wesley and Woody were awesome.

0 of 1 users found this helpful01

Thwompthing

Nov 9, 2021

One of the simplest plots in all of film, and it works brilliantly because of the cast and script. The dialogue between Woody and Wesley is superb and so believable you'd think they were best friends in real life. Expertly crafted film that deserves nothing less than a 10. I found noOne of the simplest plots in all of film, and it works brilliantly because of the cast and script. The dialogue between Woody and Wesley is superb and so believable you'd think they were best friends in real life. Expertly crafted film that deserves nothing less than a 10. I found no faults in this film that warrant it anything other than a 10.… Expand

0 of 1 users found this helpful01

DawdlingPoet

Jul 20, 2022

This is at times an amusing and a laidback, fun watch. I wouldn't say its a film you can have on in the background and not pay much attention to it to still follow it but its still laidback in tone. Given the plot, you do have to pay a bit of attention to see where things don't play out asThis is at times an amusing and a laidback, fun watch. I wouldn't say its a film you can have on in the background and not pay much attention to it to still follow it but its still laidback in tone. Given the plot, you do have to pay a bit of attention to see where things don't play out as planned. I liked the main characters and I thought both Snipes and Harrleson got on well on screen and Rosie Perez also gives a decent performance. I also liked the music played - some street/urban type songs but also some soul and rock classics (Jimmi Hendrix, Boyz II Men, Ray Charles and the O'Jays).

I enjoyed this film and would recommend it to other, yes. The only thing I'd maybe say is that it has aged a fair bit in what people wear and so on - its a film dating from 1992, so that's hardly surprising.… Expand

0 of 1 users found this helpful01

Robwinz

Aug 7, 2020

White Men Can't Jump is a really good movie. The movie's got a brilliant plot, which is about this lad called Billy (Woody Harrelson) who's pretty much making a living out by conning the African American basketball players. The way that he goes about it, is that he acts like he can't playWhite Men Can't Jump is a really good movie. The movie's got a brilliant plot, which is about this lad called Billy (Woody Harrelson) who's pretty much making a living out by conning the African American basketball players. The way that he goes about it, is that he acts like he can't play basketball at all and he later teams up with Sidney (Wesley Snipes), who's pretty much one of the original people who he was conning but they come together and they try to double his chances on winning.

The acting throughout this movie is brilliant, especially from Woody Harrelson and Wesley Snipes, the two of them give some really good performances throughout.

Also, the dialogue from the characters throughout this movie is pretty good, nothing feels too forced in any sort of way, it just feels natural and it's very good.

Woody Harrelson and Wesley Snipes have got some great chemistry throughout this movie, which is really good and it adds to their characters.

Finally, the cinematography from Russell Boyd is pretty decent, he captures the moments pretty well, which end up happening throughout this movie.

Overall, White Men Can't Jump is a really good movie. It's got a brilliant plot, brilliant acting, pretty good dialogue, great chemistry and some decent cinematography.… Expand

1 of 2 users found this helpful11

Dunkaccino

May 17, 2023

This is not a generic sports film with generic redemption arcs for our characters. White Men Can't Jump doesn't concern itself with setups and payoffs. As viewers, we are allowed to go with the flow and sink in. It keeps going and going, bursting into pure 90s excitement.

0 of 1 users found this helpful01

chemicalE

May 3, 2023

Although it started good and there's fun elements here and there, the overall product doesn't live up to what it set out to be.

0 of 1 users found this helpful01

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