Michael Jordan to the Max is an American documentary released in IMAX in 2000, about the life and career of basketball player Michael Jordan. It is narrated by Laurence Fishburne.
Michael Jordan explodes on screen in this box office hit – “the most exciting live-action IMAX® movie ever” (New York Post). Follow Michael Jordan’s last basketball season as he leads the Chicago Bulls to their sixth NBA championship.
Michael Jordan To The Max provides a rare glimpse of Michael Jordan on and off the court, featuring electrifying on-court action and candid interviews with Phil Jackson, Steve Kerr, Doug Collins, and Bob Costas. Get ready to experience some of the greatest moments in modern sports history from one of the most dominant sports legends of all time.
Review
"In this age of the NBA where teams are loading up on superstars, Lionsgate has a reminder of the fella that all these divas want to be like: Mike. Michael Jordan to the Max is a 45-minute documentary looking at Jordan's life and his rise to basketball godhood, set against the backdrop of the Bulls' 1998 championship run, capped with Jordan's legendary game-winning jumper over the perimeter defense.
It's brief documentary, especially when you consider the breadth of
Jordan's career and influence, but credit to directors James Stern and Don
Kempf: they hit all the highlights.
The feature begins with Jordan's early family life and his initial attempts to
get onto his school basketball team, the failure of which has become the
hackiest of anecdotes for many a sportscaster. Then it's rolling on toward his
meteoric rise to superstardom in the NBA, with the guts of his pro ball footage
devoted to tracking the Bulls' 1998 playoffs adventure.
Intercut with sequences from the games are interviews with his peers and coaches and stuff from Mike himself, as he sits on a chair in an empty gym talking about “heart” and “commitment” and so on and so forth. It's a bit hokey, but it adds a nice slice of intimacy to the proceedings.
My favorite moments are from the games. There are some gorgeous shots here, zoomed in and slowed down so you can soak up all the supernatural athleticism the greatest basketball player of all time put on display. Even though I am diehard Knicks fan who spent his formative years watching MJ torture my team, I do agree he is the greatest ever. Obviously the filmmakers do as well and if there's a weak spot it's this: at times, the adulation comes across as too fawning. The guy's great, but to the Max ladles the cheese on thick." DVD Verdict