Quartile rating: 7/10 · 1 rating
This documentary chronicles the life story of the Dallas Mavericks' Dirk Nowitzki and his inspiring journey from Germany to superstardom in the NBA.
A competent sports documentary tracing Nowitzki's remarkable rise from Würzburg to NBA superstardom. The narrative arc is genuinely compelling given the subject's unique journey, but the storytelling follows fairly conventional documentary beats — interviews, archival footage, highlight reels. Acting is not really applicable (rated low as participants are non-actors speaking naturally). Cinematography is serviceable but unremarkable for the genre. Novelty earns a modest bump for the cross-cultural angle (a European transforming the NBA's power game) and Nowitzki's singular personality, but the format itself is by-the-numbers sports biography. The ending benefits from the 2011 championship as a natural emotional crescendo.