The First Slam Dunk

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The First Slam Dunk

PG-13

Released Jul 28, 2023

2h 4m

Comedy

Drama

Anime

Sports

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100%

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47 Reviews

99%

Popcornmeter

100+ Verified Ratings

Shohoku's "speedster" and point guard, Ryota Miyagi, always plays with brains and lightning speed, running circles around his opponents while feigning composure. Born and raised in Okinawa, Ryota had a brother who was three years older. Following in the footsteps of his older brother, who was a famous local player from a young age, Ryota also became addicted to basketball. In his second year of high school, Ryota plays with the Shohoku High School basketball team along with Sakuragi, Rukawa, Akagi, and Mitsui as they take the stage at the Inter-High School National Championship. And now, they are on the brink of challenging the reigning champions, Sannoh Kogyo High School.

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Critics Consensus

A heart-pumping, breathtaking, wonderfully crafted manga adaptation, The First Slam Dunk shoots and scores.

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Wendy Ide

Observer (UK)

While it leans a little heavily on baffling basketball strategy and court-based machinations, it's a dynamic and unexpectedly affecting animation.

Rated: 3/5

Sep 3, 2023

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Esther Rosenfield

Little White Lies

Like the title says: a total slam dunk.

Rated: 4/5

Aug 30, 2023

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Phil Hoad

Guardian

The CGI-led courtside portions (as opposed to traditional 2D for the real-life stuff) are miraculously kinetic, with beautifully shaded character models. Inoue orchestrates it all into a rousing, garage rock-powered finale.

Rated: 3/5

Aug 22, 2023

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Anya Couture

Geek Vibes Nation

The First Slam Dunk strikes a perfect balance in showing what can make the sport so exciting. At the same time it delivers a gripping story that will charm you with its emotional trajectory, whether or not you’re even a sports or anime fan.

Rated: 9/10

Aug 9, 2025

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Yasser Medina

Cinefilia

The two-hour basketball game, rendered with solid animation that redefines the standard in the sports genre, moves at a fast-paced pace that never loses its pulse or excitement. [Full review in Spanish]

Rated: 8/10

Feb 21, 2025

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Tom Spoors

Loud and Clear Reviews

Takehiko Inoue’s The First Slam Dunk is a sports movie done right, with one of the best climaxes of the year that’s guaranteed to leave you fist-pumping the air.

Rated: 4.5/5

Jan 7, 2025

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Liz

Have read the entirety of Slam Dunk. I do like that this story is told by the perspective of Miyagi. Awesome movie overall, if you like basketball this is a great movie to watch even without any prior knowledge of Slam Dunk as a series. But trust me Slam Dunk is the best sports manga of all time. Inoue’s drawing and storytelling skills is on a different level compared to other sports manga/anime.

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

09/06/24

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Gori

This is not just an animation, it's just like watching a sports event. Lots of moments when you hold your breath!

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

08/08/23

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Kwame

Beautiful movie from amazing series. Honestly, it reminded me, How much I used to like basketball. It's a shame that nowadays, Unless it's extremely over the top sports You don't really see people liking sport animes like that. The last one I think that was really good was haiku, Still I'm glad I got to see it.

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

08/08/23

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William L

Watched it twice, was just as entertaining the 2nd time!

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

08/26/23

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Melanie

I never seem Slam Dunk before and I still enjoyed this movie. I was on the edge of my seat. I laugh at the players antic and cheered when they scored. It felt like I was watching a real basketball game. An amazing and awesome anime.

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

08/07/23

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Peter C

The identity of some of the characters, as they grow older, was a little hard to follow. On the hole, however, the artwork was pretty good, and the story was very good.

Rated 4 out of 5 stars

08/07/23

Full Review

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Takehiko Inoue

Director

Shugo Nakamura

Ryota Miyagi

Jun Kasama

Hisashi Mitsui

Shinichiro Kamio

Kaede Rukawa

Subaru Kimura

Hanamichi Sakuragi

Kenta Miyaki

Takenori Akagi

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Synopsis

Shohoku's "speedster" and point guard, Ryota Miyagi, always plays with brains and lightning speed, running circles around his opponents while feigning composure. Born and raised in Okinawa, Ryota had a brother who was three years older. Following in the footsteps of his older brother, who was a famous local player from a young age, Ryota also became addicted to basketball. In his second year of high school, Ryota plays with the Shohoku High School basketball team along with Sakuragi, Rukawa, Akagi, and Mitsui as they take the stage at the Inter-High School National Championship. And now, they are on the brink of challenging the reigning champions, Sannoh Kogyo High School.

Director: Takehiko Inoue
Producer: Toshiyuki Matsui
Screenwriter: Takehiko Inoue
Distributor: GKIDS
Production Co: Dandelion Animation Studio
Rating: PG-13
Genre: Comedy, Drama, Anime, Sports
Original Language: Japanese
Release Date (Theaters): Jul 28, 2023, Wide
Box Office (Gross USA): $1.2M
Runtime: 2h 4m
Sound Mix: Dolby Digital, Dolby Atmos

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