Even though the plot forgoes the formulaic slam-dunk, hackneyed devices, low production values, and the stilted direction (by Preston A. Whitmore II) dribble the ball off the shoe and out of bounds.
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04/23/09
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Crossover (2006)
2
%
Tomatometer
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Reviews Counted:61
Fresh:1
Rotten:60
Average Rating:3.2/10
Consensus: This heartfelt but incompetent, cliche-ridden sports picture is the cinematic equivalent of an airball.
Theatrical Release:Sep 1, 2006 Wide
Box Office: $7,009,668
Synopsis: Director and screenwriter Preston A. Whitmore II (THE WALKING DEAD) tells the tale of two old friends whose lives seem very different. Tech's (Anthony Mackie) dream is to play basketball, but he... [More]
Starring: Anthony Mackie, Wesley Jonathan, Allen Payne, Lil JJ
Director: Preston A. Whitmore
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Reviews for Crossover
The movie is also burdened by some amateurish acting in supporting roles, but Mackie and Jonathan are the real deal, and they get good support from Wayne Brady as a smarmy sports agent.
08/07/08
A real air ball, so poorly scripted that most of the major plot developments occur offscreen.
12/26/06
Top CriticIf BET made after school specials, this is what they would look like.
09/29/06
The streetball scenes, much like the plot, have a few high points but never hit their stride.
09/23/06
Writer-director Preston Whitmore II's basketball film is a well-intentioned but utterly clichéd slice of Detroit life.
09/23/06
The inspirational sports movie cliches notwithstanding, Crossover is just bad filmmaking that does not serve either its cast or its audience well.
09/16/06
Here's a story that wanders all over the place with an ending that just about anybody could predict.
09/08/06
The beginning of Crossover looks like a mash-up of McG's Fastlane and Wayne Brady's storied appearance on Chappelle's Show.
09/07/06
I hated this movie. It’s a piece of junk.
09/05/06
Top CriticThe movie looks as though it was edited in a Cuisinart, more concerned with frenetic cutting than coherent storytelling.
09/05/06
Despite a superb cast, Crossover dribbles slowly, with not nearly enough time on the basketball court.
09/04/06
The budget appears to have been blown entirely on a single yellow motorcycle and team uniforms for the underground streetball games that are the film's raison d'être.
09/02/06
An end-of-summer throwaway that resembles last year's Supercross in its naked ineptitude and willingness to cut corners at every turn.
09/02/06
Much as they would like it to, basketball can't save the youthful inner-city players here. Nor does the ultra-fast-paced street version of the sport save this movie from predictability and tedium.
09/01/06
Top CriticThe Annapolis of basketball movies... The movie bounces from scene to scene like some sort of round rubbery sphere.
09/01/06
Just a few more tweaks and Crossover could have been something special -- a truly terrible movie to savor for the ages. But nooo, this street ball movie has to settle for middle-of-the-road badness.
09/01/06
Top CriticDetroit-born independent filmmaker Preston A. Whitmore II's astonishingly inept drama revolves around the high-stakes world of streetball and the efforts of two teenagers to resist its flash and cash temptations.
09/01/06
You can't blame Crossover for being comfortable with its own clichés. It's so blatantly formulaic that it actually grows on you if you don't dismiss it in the first five minutes.
09/01/06
Crossover has one redeeming quality: a heart that's in the right place. It's a bad movie with a good message -- but does anyone really want to pay $10 for an ABC After School Special version of He Got Game?
09/01/06
Top CriticLatest News for Crossover
September 05, 2006:
Box Office Wrapup: Invincible Scores Another Win at #1
Moviegoers had football on their minds for the second straight weekend as Disney's true-life NFL tale "Invincible" remained atop the North American box office over the... More...
August 31, 2006:
Box Office Preview: "Crank" Closes Up Summer Movie Season
The summer movie season comes to an official end with the Labor Day holiday weekend unleashing three new releases plus the national expansion of a fourth. More...
August 31, 2006:
Critical Consensus: "Crank" Is Well-Ranked; "Illusionist" Is Magic, "Crossover" Is An Air-Ball, "Wicker Man" Gets Burned
This week at the movies, we've got hoopsters with big dreams ("Crossover," starring Anthony Mackie), scary goings-on on remote islands ("The Wicker Man,"... More...
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