‘Hustle’ Review: A Heartfelt Story Of Hope And Love For The Game

If you work hard enough, you can achieve anything. This is a movie trope we’ve seen before, but it’s one that I continuously enjoy watching. I also enjoy a good sports movie, despite not being a sports fan. Sure, I played on some teams when I was a kid, but I really don’t know much of anything about any game. I watch the Olympics, but I can’t say I’ve ever sat through a game of basketball, football, and even the few Yankee games I went to, I wasn’t fully invested. Despite that, I really love sports games.

A Nice Change of Pace for Adam Sandler

Adam Sandler’s new Netflix movie Hustle is one I suggest for those looking to watch an enjoyable story about basketball and hope. In this movie, you can see Sandler’s love for basketball shine through – as well as his ability to take a more serious approach to storytelling. I mean, if you’ve seen Uncut Gems, you know Sandler has the capability of doing something other than comedy. However, Hustle is certainly more emotional, less chaotic, and has a better message/ending than the previously mentioned film.

The Plot

Hustle tells the story of Stanley Sugerman (Sandler) who is a talent scout; his career seems to be taking off in a big way when something unexpected happens suddenly and threatens his career. Once Stanley finds Bo Cruz in Spain (played by Juancho Hernangomez), Stanley’s story becomes less of self-preservation and more selfless. It was nice to see that the big reveal in the movie wasn’t that Stanley never cared about Bo and only wanted to use Bo to catapult his career to the top. From the minute they met, Stanley was trying his best to ensure that he kept every promise he made to Bo. Their friendship was genuine and even during some of the tough times, Stanley never turned out to be a sleazy person. And Bo never screwed Stanley over. It was a refreshing change to how friendships like theirs are typically portrayed.

Rating: 9/10

Nothing about Hustle felt over the top. There was a lot of respect for the game and every person in the movie. Well, except for Vince Merrick (Ben Foster), but he didn’t deserve an ounce of respect. But, let’s go back to talking about Hernangomez. The 6’9″ Spanish basketball player is a professional athlete and this is his first acting credit. To say that he did a good job is an understatement. I’d say Hernangomez plays his role better than some actors in TV and movies today. I loved that Sandler got real players – it reminded me of the 2004 movie Miracle. It added an authenticity to the film. And as someone who doesn’t even watch basketball, I certainly giggled at seeing Boban Marjanovic on screen.

If you’re looking for a movie to watch on Netflix that will make you feel good and build up authentic anticipation in an organic manner, you should turn to Hustle. Even if you’re not a sports fan, you will enjoy the bond between Sandler and Hernangomez and the overall theme of hope, redemption, and family.

Hustle is currently playing in select theaters and is available to stream exclusively on Netflix.

[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nM4iy0reaCA]