Netflix’s Rez Ball Lifts Spirits, Fulfilling its Purpose as a High School Sports Drama

Today sports drama, Rez Ball, drops worldwide on Netflix. Produced by the one and only LeBron James, it’s the story of a Native American high school basketball team figuring out how to play through the pain.

When the team’s star player, who delivered them to a number 2 seed in the league, takes his own life, the others must unite to find hope and spread it to their basketball-obsessed community. Even with heavy topics touching on suicide, depression, alcoholism and unemployment, Rez Ball manages to feel uplifting and motivating, exactly as you’d expect from a sports movie.

With a run-time of 111 minutes, the story starts with a full-court press and doesn’t let up, wasting no time on ambling introductions or detailed scene-setting. Instead, we’re dropped straight onto the court and into the world of best friends Jimmy and Nataanii, the dynamic duo of Chuska High. Just as the season begins, things get heavy as Nataanii battles depression after the death of his mother and sister. With an easy-to-miss cry for help, high-scorer Nataanii doesn’t make it to the next game. 

Based on the nonfiction novel Canyon Dreams by New York Times journalist Michael Powell, the narrative explores a team of youth discovering their power when the odds are against them, combining ancestral traditions with today’s reality. With a crew of B-ball playing non-actors, the dialogue feels natural and sometimes underplayed but very real.

As reported in Netflix’s Tudum, the team of 10 tried out as players as well as auditioned as actors, submitting video of layups, jump shots and free throws. All with Native American heritage, the majority of the team, including the lead, have had no previous film experience, making the story feel personal and fly-on-the-wall, with subtly delivered lines and a sweet peek at native customs paired with beautiful explainer moments.

The ensemble cast includes:

• Kauchani Bratt as Jimmy Holiday
• Jessica Matten (Dark Winds, Tribal, Blackstone) as Coach Heather Hobbs
• Devin Sampson Craig (Guardian Ancestor) as Bryson Badonie
• Julia Jones (Twilight Saga, Longmire, Dexter: New Blood) as Gloria Holiday
• Amber Midthunder (Avatar: The Last Airbender; Roswell, New Mexico) as Dezbah Weaver
• River Rayne Thomas (The Adventure of A.R.I.) as Tyson Yazzie
• Jojo Jackson as Warlance Yazzie
• Avery Hale (Hadaya: 2033) as Miles Martinez
• Hunter Redhorse Arthur (Killers of the Flower Moon, Father Stu) as Kobe Nez
• Henry Wilson Jr as Leland Tom
• Jaren K. Robledo as Levi Silversmith
• Damian Henry Castellan as Ruckus Largo
• Kusem Goodwind as Nataanii Jackson
• Dallas Goldtooth (Reservation Dogs, Seeds) as radio announcer Henry Tso
• Cody Lightning (Echo, Four Sheets to the Wind, Hey, Viktor!) as radio announcer Micah Tso

Directed and co-written by Sydney Freeland, she also directed Drunktown’s Finest and Reservation Dogs. Co-scriptwriter Sterlin Harjo created Reservation Dogs and Osiyo, Voices of the Children. In addition to a stunning backdrop, filmed with permission on a reservation in New Mexico, the music is also connective and resonant, speaking to the emotions and maturity of the characters.

Even as the team battles on to become more than the sum of their parts, there’s an almost assumed resignation over their greater lot in life. As if a lucky few might make it off the rez on a sports scholarship but for the rest, this may be their glory moment. The ‘1 Big Thing’ news story about the team brings that depressingly home, right alongside the stories of most of the adults they know. The pervading reservation vibe is revealed in one resonating sentence delivered by Jimmy’s mother. “That’s the thing about Natives – no matter how hard we try; we always find a way to lose. It’s in our blood.”

Fortunately, there are light and funny moments peppered throughout, lifting, brightening and dusting the storyline with possibilities. We’re talking high school students, after all, so there’s plenty of silly and fun conversation tucked in and accompanied by an endless jolly spew by a pair of die-hard radio announcers who call the games and narrate daily life. Altogether, it builds an inspiring yet understated package celebrating a real-life team.

Ready to press play? Stoodis!

What do you think of Rez Ball? Does it feel realistic to you? Smudge your thoughts in the comments below.  

Got questions? Catch our Rez Ball Ending Explained story here.

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