Rating summary

Movie		5.0
Video		4.5
Audio		4.5
Extras		4.5
Overall		4.5

The Last Dance Blu-ray Movie Review

Reviewed by Martin Liebman November 13, 2020

The great allure of sport, dating back as far as man's history records physical contests, certainly lies in the drama of human competitiveness, the challenge to withstand and overcome the various trials on the fields, or courts, of competition. But perhaps the unsung draw into the sporting world lies with the stories that take place away from the game, the human interest narratives that can manifest during or away from competition and come to define, or redefine, a man or a team, a game or a season, an organization or a lifetime. Director Jason Hehir's The Last Dance chronicles the life and career of Michael Jordan, widely regarded as one of the finest athletes, competitors, and champions ever to competitively play a game. His story is told within the prism of the Chicago Bulls' 1997-1998 season, seeing the team seeking a sixth world championship amidst both lofty expectations and high drama off the court.

The Chicago Bulls were the team of the 1990s and then reigned as the best team in NBA, and perhaps in all of sports. Though lacking the title count held by the Los Angeles Lakers and the Boston Celtics, the decade of dominance elevated the team beyond the conversation of “best ever” and into a viable contender for that title. Entering the 1997-1998 season, the Bulls were in search of a third consecutive title and a second “three-peat” in an eight-year span. The club won its first title in 1991 against the Lakers, its second in 1992 against the Portland Trail Blazers, and its third versus the Phoenix Suns in 1993. After a two-year championship hiatus (with Michael leaving basketball for baseball in 1993-1994 and the team returning to, but failing in, the playoffs with his return in 1994-1995), the team would go on to defeat the now-defunct Seattle Sonics in 1996 and the Utah Jazz in 1997. With the players aging and Coach Phil Jackson’s contract up, the future of the team came into question despite a core coming off two championships and the best player to ever lace ‘em up taking the court every night.

For the 1997-1998 season, a film crew was granted unprecedented access to the Bulls, both on and off the court, documenting a franchise at the top of the mountain that looked to stay there while the world expected a fall from grace. General Manager Jerry Krause did not chart a clear path for the team to properly defend its championship, including questions on whether the front office would pay Phil Jackson what he believed he was owed. Jackson’s contract was ultimately renewed for one more season with the promise that it would be his last. With Jackson dubbing the season “The Last Dance,” the Bulls embarked on a journey that took them from Paris in the preseason to Utah in the season’s ultimate battle of wills and talents with a sixth title, and a timeless legacy, on the line.

The superficial story surrounding the 1997-1998 Bulls is compelling within its own self-contained narrative, but the 10-part The Last Dance explores far more deeply than a generic game-by-game recap. In many ways, the season's ebbs and flows and outcomes are secondary to the larger narrative of not only history in the making but exploring the personalities within the organization and the stories that shaped the championship run off the court. The series does not shy away from honesty in its reporting; for every positive proclamation of the Bulls' on-court success there's a story of struggle, of tumult, of something that threatens to break not simply the season or the streak but break the backs of key players and personnel within the organization. It's the life off the court that propels the narrative, both for the interest in the content and how the team rallies and rebounds on the court to maintain composure and maintain a stratospherically high level of excellence at game time.

The series' full focus is not just on the 1997-1998 team. Each episode highlights a key personality (Scottie Pippen, Dennis Rodman, and Phil Jackson) and/or reflects on Jordan's larger career, from College to Chicago, the club's fledgling fortunes in the 1980s, drafting Jordan and the team's slow ascent to the top, his meteoric rise to stardom on and off the court, the five titles, and the mid-90s hiatus. The narrative runs seamlessly in a perfect marriage of sight and sound, with the structure fluctuating between newly minted interviews and vintage footage. There's no jarring transitions from one to the other thanks in large part to the rich storyline and engaging composition on both ends. It's a rewarding expose of not just a team, but a time; of not just man, but of humanity. Its length never feels excessive, its subject never too romanticized, its structure never overbearing. It's the perfect Sports Documentary that brings together both the individual and team aspects of competition and highlights both the interests on the court and the story shaping details off of it.

The Last Dance Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

There's a wide array of image sources in play, including vintage standard definition video, classic film, and newly minted digital content. The material on the floor varies the most wildly (and widely), with everything from fuzzy TV broadcasts to tack-sharp and finely grainy film stock components at work, the latter bringing the era to life with a clarity far beyond what most everyone expects to find looking back at the 1990s NBA scene as most experienced it on the small screen with limited definition and detail and lacking true, impactful color. Much of it is a revelation to find the period footage looking so clear and organic. The new video interview footage is tack sharp, showcasing subject details and the surrounding environments both without flaw and boasting superior color reproduction. It's altogether a lovely presentation, free of artifacts beyond those existing in the original video footage. It's a winner.

The Last Dance Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

The Last Dance dribbles onto Blu-ray with a well versed DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 lossless soundtrack. It offers purposeful music, widely spaced along the front and boasting a quality low end support in addition to solid clarity and modest surround extension. There's not much more here of a robust nature outside of music: no aggressive special sound effects or anything of the like. Music is the driving support component beyond the spoken word, which enjoys robust clarity and front-center placement. Obviously the newer interview clips are superior to the vintage broadcast elements, but it all works in harmony, anyway, and the track is very good at delivering what is available to it with near perfect output.

The Last Dance Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

The Last Dance contains extras on all three discs. The set ships in a sturdy slip box inside of which the DigiBook packaging, which first opens side to side and then up and down to reveal the discs and the booklet and timeline (more on those in a moment), winds up looking like an uneven "plus" sign with the top and bottom longer than the left and right panels. The glossy, full color booklet offers notes from Andy Thomson and Jason Hehir as well as episode recaps. The timeline folds open to show key events from the 1984-1985 season to the 1997-1998 season. On the rear is a photo pf the Bulls' championship banners. No DVD or digital copies are included with purchase.

Disc One:

• SportsCenter with Scott Van Pelt: Episodes One & Two Roundtable (720p, 8:36): Van Pelt is joined by Sam Smith, Jackie MacMullan and J.A. Adande who all contribute their personal recollections around the team and the NBA landscape of the time.
• SportsCenter with Scott Van Pelt: Conversation with John Salley (720p, 6:32): Salley remembers a controversial moment in the 1991 playoffs and Jordan's legacy.

Disc Two:

• SportsCenter with Scott Van Pelt: Episodes Five & Six Roundtable (720p, 7:43): Michael Wilbon and Jackie MacMullan join SVP to share their thoughts on some of the key moments from the episodes and their personal memories of the content revealed in the series.
• SportsCenter with Scott Van Pelt: Episodes Seven & Eight Roundtable (720p, 9:29): Wilbon and MacMullen return to explore the emotional centers depicted in episodes seven and eight.

Disc Three:

• Game 6: The Movie (1080i, 1:54:57): A cinematic, rather than TV broadcast, presentation of game six against the Jazz, which includes some pregame banter, sideline access, and play-by-play and color commentary. The game was shot on film and presents at 1.78:1, seen primarily from the typical angle from above and to the side of center court. It looks a bit zoomed in; it's sometimes a little difficult to follow the action and get a feel for the larger game in play. Still, it's an interesting perspective and aesthetic.
• SportsCenter with Scott Van Pelt: Conversation with Jason Hehir (720p, 10:04): SVP chats with The Last Dance director about his response to the series' release, its construction, the structure, the COVID shutdown's impact on the production, Jordan's response, the realism and rawness, Jerry Krause's portrayal in the series, and more.
• The Jalen & Jacoby Aftershow (720p, 52:45 total runtime): Jalen and Jacoby interview Director Jason Hehir about his experiences making the series. Included are the segments Meeting Michael Jordan, Working with Michael Jordan on 'The Last Dance' Soundtrack, Dennis Rodman, Interviewing Phil Jackson, Michael Jordan and Kobe Bryant, Jordan's Nike Deal, Working with Michael Jordan, Interviewing Michael Jordan, Betting with Michael Jordan, The 'Flu Game' Pizza Story, Jordan's Final Shot vs. Utah Jazz in 1998 Finals, and The iPad Interview Technique.
• In-the-Moment (720p, 21:21 total runtime): Vintage TV pieces. Included are Phil Jackson on Life and Coaching (September 6, 1990), Phil Jackson on Michael's Return to Basketball (April 3, 1995), and Rodman on Mindset and Madonna (May 22, 1995).
• Karl Malone on Michael Jordan (1080p, 2:53): An all-too-brief, newly minted interview clip in which The Mailman (humorously and somewhat combatively) talks about His Airness and his own career.
• The Last Dance Bonus Interviews (1080p): Included are Xavier McDaniel on Trash Talking vs. Michael Jordan (2:01) and John Michael Wozniak on Breaking Michael Jordan's Car Window (3:54).
• Stuart Scott and Michael Jordan Sunday Conversation (June 7, 1998) (720p, 22:28): The late ESPN host sits down with Jordan for an in-depth interview about a wide range of topics: his past performance, his future career, his legacy, and much more.

The Last Dance Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

It is perhaps trite to call The Last Dance "compelling," but that's exactly what it is, and at that compelling practically beyond measure for its widespread appeal beyond basketball: for its narrative structure, its story, its timeliness, and its timelessness. Ten episodes feel like two it moves so quickly, but even in all that time -- for its crude length and the rapid pace with which it plays out -- it never feels as if it's missing even a minor component in weaving together the story of a sport, a city, a team, a man, and the world that watched and remembers today. ESPN's thee-disc Blu-ray release of The Last Dance delivers high quality 1080p video and 5.1 lossless audio as well a fine assortment of extra content. This release comes very highly recommended.