The Good

A very well done documentary that makes the viewer feel what Sebastian Telfair is going through.

The Bad

It would have been great to have gotten a commentary track from Telfair and his brother Jamel Thomas.

Through the Fire: Sebastian Telfair’s Defining Year is an extraordinary documentary about Coney Island basketball legend, Sebastian Telfair. Since he could walk, it seems like this kid was destined to do great things on the basketball court. We begin with him announcing his intentions of going to the University of Louisville and the film ends with him entering the NBA. The thing is, all of that is just part of the drama. His brother, Jamel Thomas, was thought to be a prodigy and while he is indeed a very good player, he never made it to the NBA. Sebastian’s goals are not only those of his whole family but for everyone in Coney Island who has been touched by his spirit.

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Features

Deleted Scenes

Featuring things like the “Greece Trip” and the “2004 New York State Finals,” these deleted scenes are cut very well. They don’t play like normal deleted scenes that linger along. These move at a really nice pace and play very much like their own little movies.

Extended Interviews

These are some interviews with the likes of Jamel Thomas, Louisville coach Rick Pitino and Telfair himself. I really like that there has been a steady editing hand in these supplemental features, because all of them play in a very interesting way. Even though they are much longer than in the completed film, they really work well on their own.

Basketball Highlights

Some of these are “Lincoln vs. Edgewater,” “New York City Playground Clips” and Telfair’s “Senior Year.” These were the only clips in the film that I thought could have been left off the DVD. I understand they are on here to give us more of a perspective than what we saw in the film, but in my opinion, the actual game playing is much less interesting than the drama unfolding off court.

Featurettes

This segment gives us a “Q & A with Sebastian Telfair” as well as an “Excerpt from ‘The Life’ with Stephon Marbury.” I really liked the “Q & A” but in all honesty, I think they should have left the “Marbury” piece off of here. This is Sebastian’s story and there’s no reason to cloud it without NBA players.

Jonathan Hock and Director of Photography Alastair Christopher give a great account of what it was like making this movie. They talk about getting the shots for the film, choosing the order of the scenes in the final edit, the shooting conditions and just about everything else that went into making Through the Fire: Sebastian Telfair’s Defining Year the terrific movie that it is.

Video

Widescreen - 1.78:1. Shot on video in what seems like the “Sports” setting, I really applaud the way this film was cut together. The filmmakers seem like they were always in the right place at the right time (and they even admit on the commentary that they “setup” some shots), and in being everywhere they have given us a film that truly captures a young man’s ascension into manhood.

Audio

Dolby Digital 5.1 Surround Sound. I was amazed at how good the audio was on this disc. As I said, this movie was shot on video and we get crystal clear audio from many yards away. We get terrific court dialogue as well as moments where the characters are just whispering to each other. Jonathan Hock and his Director of Photography, Alastair Christopher, have done a great job capturing this film.

Package

Telfair stands on the front cover with the city of Coney Island behind him. The back cover features various shots from the film, a description of what it’s about, a “Bonus Features”/Technical Specs listing and a cast list. My only problem with this packaging is that it might look too serious minded for people who want sports entertainment. Don’t let the artwork full you, Through the Fire: Sebastian Telfair’s Defining Year delivers everything a sports fan could want.

Final Word

I didn’t expect to become nearly as engaged by Through the Fire: Sebastian Telfair’s Defining Year as I did. Truthfully however, ESPN knows how to cut this footage together to make the story really resonate. It gets inside the politics of the NBA and it shows us a behind the scenes look at how a star is made. There are no “unscripted moments” on TV it seems. There are just moments that people know will push certain buttons within viewers emotional states. This is done throughout this documentary as well as by other people as they are seen making up Sebastian’s image.

The only thing I don’t recall seeing in this highly entertaining film are scenes of how “Bassy” (Sebastian’s nickname) handled his schoolwork throughout this whole year long ordeal. That however is a minor complaint about an otherwise flawless film.

Through the Fire was released January 1, 2005.