26. HOOP DREAMS (1994)
Nearly 100 years of documentary film preceded Hoop Dreams — and 14 years of copycat docs have followed it — but, truly, nothing before or since has managed to feel so quietly epic. As we watch two poor, black Chicago teens try to make it to the NBA, we're hooked into their every surge and crash.
See more of the New Classics:
The Best Movies Since 1983: No. 100-76
The Best Movies Since 1983: No. 75-51
The Best Movies Since 1983: No. 25-1
