Release calendarTop 250 moviesMost popular moviesBrowse movies by genreTop box officeShowtimes & ticketsMovie newsIndia movie spotlight
    What's on TV & streamingTop 250 TV showsMost popular TV showsBrowse TV shows by genreTV news
    What to watchLatest trailersIMDb OriginalsIMDb PicksIMDb SpotlightFamily entertainment guideIMDb Podcasts
    OscarsEmmysToronto Int'l Film FestivalHispanic Heritage MonthIMDb Stars to WatchSTARmeter AwardsAwards CentralFestival CentralAll events
    Born todayMost popular celebsCelebrity news
    Help centerContributor zonePolls
For industry professionals
  • Language
  • Fully supported
  • English (United States)
    Partially supported
  • Français (Canada)
  • Français (France)
  • Deutsch (Deutschland)
  • हिंदी (भारत)
  • Italiano (Italia)
  • Português (Brasil)
  • Español (España)
  • Español (México)
Watchlist
Sign in
  • Fully supported
  • English (United States)
    Partially supported
  • Français (Canada)
  • Français (France)
  • Deutsch (Deutschland)
  • हिंदी (भारत)
  • Italiano (Italia)
  • Português (Brasil)
  • Español (España)
  • Español (México)
Use app
  • Cast & crew
  • User reviews
IMDbPro

Magic & Bird: A Courtship of Rivals

  • TV Movie
  • 2010
  • TV-PG
  • 1h 25m
IMDb RATING
8.2/10
2.4K
YOUR RATING
Magic Johnson and Larry Bird in Magic & Bird: A Courtship of Rivals (2010)
BasketballSports DocumentaryBiographyDocumentarySport

An exploration of the fierce rivalry between NBA superstars Larry Bird and Magic Johnson during their decade of dominance.An exploration of the fierce rivalry between NBA superstars Larry Bird and Magic Johnson during their decade of dominance.An exploration of the fierce rivalry between NBA superstars Larry Bird and Magic Johnson during their decade of dominance.

  • Director
    • Ezra Edelman
  • Writers
    • Aaron Cohen
    • Charles Olivier
  • Stars
    • Magic Johnson
    • Larry Bird
    • Steve Springer
  • See production info at IMDbPro
  • IMDb RATING
    8.2/10
    2.4K
    YOUR RATING
    • Director
      • Ezra Edelman
    • Writers
      • Aaron Cohen
      • Charles Olivier
    • Stars
      • Magic Johnson
      • Larry Bird
      • Steve Springer
    • 10User reviews
    • 10Critic reviews
  • See production info at IMDbPro
  • See production info at IMDbPro
    • Awards
      • 1 win & 2 nominations total

    Photos1

    View Poster

    Top cast32

    Edit
    Magic Johnson
    Magic Johnson
    • Self
    Larry Bird
    Larry Bird
    • Self
    Steve Springer
    Steve Springer
    • Self - LA Times
    Evelyn Johnson
    • Self - Sister
    George Fox
    • Self - High School Coach
    Bryant Gumbel
    Bryant Gumbel
    • Self
    Rick Robey
    • Self
    Mark Bird
    • Self
    Jim Jones
    • Self - High School Coach
    Bill Russell
    Bill Russell
    • Self
    • (archive footage)
    Jerry West
    Jerry West
    • Self
    • (archive footage)
    Charles Pierce
    Charles Pierce
    • Self - Boston Globe
    • (as Charles P. Pierce)
    Cedric 'Cornbread' Maxwell
    • Self
    Michael Cooper
    Michael Cooper
    • Self
    Arsenio Hall
    Arsenio Hall
    • Self
    Pat Riley
    Pat Riley
    • Self
    Ted Shaker
    • Self
    Brent Musburger
    Brent Musburger
    • Self
    • Director
      • Ezra Edelman
    • Writers
      • Aaron Cohen
      • Charles Olivier
    • All cast & crew
    • Production, box office & more at IMDbPro

    User reviews10

    8.22.4K
    1
    2
    3
    4
    5
    6
    7
    8
    9
    10

    Featured reviews

    10Jansaguttin1976

    The Magic Bird :-)

    For all my youth, Magic was the one, with even ever seeing the man play, but after seeing this Documentary, ewrything changed, and Larry Bird became my favorit Sports Star. This is the one Documentary, and the one Sports Rivalry that Towers above any one in Sports History. Its a Must watch.
    10adrianaprsouza-63886

    Must-see Documentary

    It's avaiable on You Tube in TheNBAHistorian, an Official channel!

    . Some may think one hour and a half of documentary about a rivalty in basketball would drag in some point but it doesn't and that's mainly because Aaron Cohen and Charles Olivier built a brilliant narrative. There are funny, dramatic, emotional and tense moments, we feel the roller coaster that is an athlete's life and these two have very interesting experiences. The film explores everything about Magic and Bird and shows how different they are personaly and professionaly. It covers their childhoods, their teenager years, how they got in the professional basketball, their careers and hobbies and when and why they retired. Always in order to make audience understand their personalities and choices in life... Nothing in the documentary is out of place. Magic is extrovert, really charismatic and fits the city life, Hollywood, fame, while Bird is very shy and simple, more apart from media. There is also an attention to the historical context in which they reached stardom, the Civil Rights era, when the different color of the players used to matter a lot to the fans and was a reason for fights inside and outside the court. Moreover, the material they have: pictures, match and advertising videos plus interviews is fantastic and beautifuly gathered by Charles Olivier. I loved the documentary because I fell in love with Magic and Bird and their incredible stories and relashionship so I can't recommend this film enough to anyone that enjoys sports and documentaries.
    10blitzhard56

    Wow

    As a basketball fan and knowing that HBO does an excellent job with documentaries, I had high expectations for this, and it certainly didn't disappoint.

    Born in 1981, I never fully appreciated the rivalry as it was happening, but this certainly put it in perspective. It covers every intricacy of both the rivalry and the two men as individuals. After viewing it I'm not sure that there is any story in the history of sports that's as unique and special as Bird and Magic.

    It started in 1979 with the NCAA championship and continued on to the NBA for several years.

    On one hand you have Bird, the introverted type-A personality from Indiana; on the other you have Magic, the happy-go-lucky extrovert. The two men couldn't be more different personality-wise. So naturally in the early stages of the rivalry they had every reason to dislike each other. Yet as things progressed and as they found out more about each other, the relationship softened. For all their differences, they were eerily similar on the court and because of that there was a deep-rooted respect. Things really started to change when they got together to shoot a commercial for Converse at Bird's home in Indiana. And when Magic first announced he had HIV, Bird was one of the first people to reach out to him. It's obvious how much that meant to Magic.

    I believe that every professional athlete can learn so much from both of these guys. The respect they have for the game and for each other represents the greatness of sports. It's really what it's all about and this documentary captures it like nothing else I've ever seen. Brilliantly done.

    I also found it amazing how much pain Bird was in during the latter stages of his career. Yet he kept toughing it out game after game, season after season. You'd be hard pressed to find any one who'd do that in today's game.
    8view_and_review

    How Magic & Bird Saved the NBA

    If you grew up watching basketball in the 80's then you knew all about the Magic v. Bird rivalry. My brother is a Lakers fan to this day because of Magic and the Showtime Lakers, and I'm sure there are many Celtics fans out there because of Bird.

    This documentary chronicles their upbringing and their rivalry that began in college. There are interviews from pros, fans, and analysts about the two. Their rivalry may have been exaggerated for the sake of the NBA, but it wasn't a myth, and the world benefited as a result.
    10vochieng83

    Well Done Documentary

    What a lovely and well done documentary. I didn't plan to watch it all but the story just made me sit back and soak it all in. I wish I could have seen these two play. I started following the sport when I saw Michael Jordan with the Chicago Bulls.

    More like this

    Kareem: Minority of One
    7.4
    Kareem: Minority of One
    Shaq
    7.7
    Shaq
    Celtics City
    8.4
    Celtics City
    The Dream Team
    8.3
    The Dream Team
    Legacy: The True Story of the LA Lakers
    8.2
    Legacy: The True Story of the LA Lakers
    They Call Me Magic
    7.7
    They Call Me Magic
    We Beat the Dream Team
    7.3
    We Beat the Dream Team
    Winning Time: The Rise of the Lakers Dynasty
    8.3
    Winning Time: The Rise of the Lakers Dynasty
    The Redeem Team
    7.4
    The Redeem Team
    Larry Bird: Larry Legend
    Larry Bird: Larry Legend
    Larry Bird: A Basketball Legend
    8.4
    Larry Bird: A Basketball Legend
    Tiger
    7.8
    Tiger

    Related interests

    Woody Harrelson and Wesley Snipes in White Men Can't Jump (1992)
    Basketball
    Michael Jordan in The Last Dance (2020)
    Sports Documentary
    Ben Kingsley, Rohini Hattangadi, and Geraldine James in Gandhi (1982)
    Biography
    Dziga Vertov in Man with a Movie Camera (1929)
    Documentary
    Brad Pitt and Jonah Hill in Moneyball (2011)
    Sport

    Storyline

    Edit

    Top picks

    Sign in to rate and Watchlist for personalized recommendations
    Sign in

    Details

    Edit
    • Release date
      • March 10, 2010 (United States)
    • Country of origin
      • United States
    • Language
      • English
    • Also known as
      • 大鳥與魔術強生:不是冤家不聚頭
    • Production company
      • HBO Sports
    • See more company credits at IMDbPro

    Tech specs

    Edit
    • Runtime
      • 1h 25m(85 min)
    • Color
      • Color

    Contribute to this page

    Suggest an edit or add missing content
    • Learn more about contributing
    Edit page

    More to explore

    Recently viewed

    Please enable browser cookies to use this feature. Learn more.
    Get the IMDb App
    Sign in for more accessSign in for more access
    Follow IMDb on social
    Get the IMDb App
    For Android and iOS
    Get the IMDb App
    • Help
    • Site Index
    • IMDbPro
    • Box Office Mojo
    • License IMDb Data
    • Press Room
    • Advertising
    • Jobs
    • Conditions of Use
    • Privacy Policy
    • Your Ads Privacy Choices
    IMDb, an Amazon company

    © 1990-2025 by IMDb.com, Inc.