The First Slam Dunk (2022)

Ehrlich calls the film a thrilling, emotionally layered crowd-pleaser. He especially praises how its detailed depiction of basketball turns the game into an expansive source of human drama.

Rosenfield finds the film thrilling and calls it a total slam dunk. She particularly praises the clarity and exhilarating choreography of the basketball action.

The critic praises the film as kinetic, poetic anime. They single out its supercharged basketball drama and motion.

Oller finds the film an ambitious, effective balance of familiar sports-anime storytelling and visual innovation. He especially praises the kinetic animation and heart-stopping finale, while noting that the film can feel repetitive and retains racist tropes.

The critic finds the film an exhilarating, emotionally grounded sports anime, even though its story relies on familiar formulas. They single out the fluid, tactile animation for capturing the speed and physicality of basketball.

McIndoe finds the film exhilarating despite its difficulty fitting the manga’s many stories into two hours. He praises the vivid, inventive animation and the way the basketball game gives characters’ inner lives physical expression.

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Ide finds the film dynamic and unexpectedly affecting, while noting that its basketball strategy can feel overcomplicated. She praises its sparse, handsome animation and springy nonlinear structure for refreshing the sports-movie genre.

Robertson finds the film’s long, difficult pacing ultimately pays off in suspense. He praises the kinetic basketball sequences and inventive animation, while noting that the film assumes familiarity with basketball.

The review finds the film an uneven blend of heartfelt drama and a meat-headed sports movie. It criticises the jarring animation styles and the sporadic flashbacks, which undermine the match’s tension.