"He Got Game" Review

Always interested in Spike Lee's work, although I consistently recognize it's imperfection, I watched "He Got Game" with Denzel Washington, Ray Allen (I know right), Rosario Dawson, John Turturro, and a cast of NBA/college all-stars and coaches.

This movie could have been a million stories of anyone who grew up in the ghetto, was pushed too hard by his father, affected by those around him in prison, and ultimately became a star athlete as the only real means out of the struggle. As a result though, every single person in his life tried to get theirs, through him, except his sister. His girlfriend was getting paid to introduce him to an agent, his coach was handing him stacks of hundred dollar bills, his adoptive father tried to get a deal for him that resulted in a new car, his friends constantly asked him for money, and ultimately his father asked him to choose his college to get him out of prison. Although the premise of the movie, Denzel killing his wife on accident and getting a chance to cut his jail sentence in half in exchange for swaying his son's choice to the governor's college of choice, is clearly ridiculous, as I explained to my roommate, "It's Spike Lee." I have the same problem when people call Wes Anderson dry, I simply ask, "What the fuck did you expect?"

Interestingly, Jesus, the name of the basketball player played by Ray Allen, is supposed to be a savior (the name is too obvious for words) but he, like all other mortals, is not perfect himself. He has admirably raised his kid sister (even she is caught up in the hype of being the sister of the greatest pro prospect of his generation), but the movie never even delves into how he is supposedly financing their apartment and life together without a job. Perhaps it was better not to explain where this money comes from. Jesus is a good kid who has prevailed after watching his father kill his mother on accident and endured torturous one on one games with his father that ultimately made him great, but also made him hate his father. He really cares about getting an education more than the instant payday, which is admirable considering his economic circumstances, and does a good job of resisting the goods and impure focuses of those around him. It is him and his sister versus the world, and he's doing pretty well for himself.

While watching this movie, I kept thinking that it was like a Greek tragedy, almost predictable how it would end. Although it ultimately did not end in tragedy, it expectedly ended in a 1 on 1 rematch between father and son that made more and more sense as the backstory of their lives unfolded during the course of the film. The non-linear story telling worked well I thought. But instead of a Greek tragedy, it was almost an allegory or a morality play. The colleges were hilariously named (Tech U and Big State) and the characters were exaggerative caricatures expressing a serious flaw and representing different pools of impure interests. The agents, the coaches, the friends were all very specific people but very general at the same time. It was like they represented the people in the life of anyone in Jesus's position, this story is the story of all inner-city athletes.

Sure, Spike Lee tends to oversimplify to get at the root of a problem and he also tends to have hyperboles as characters, but he is a wonderful filmmaker. Each of his films is a love letter to the city it is shot in, immaculately textured with iconic shots of the area. The cinematography, the editing, the rhythm, the Spike Lee textbook barrage of speakers juxtaposed and skillfully woven into one speech from a million mouths; he is an incredible director. The score, combined with the Public Enemy soundtrack, was also wonderful. Although he is flawed, biased, and certainly vulnerable to attack, Spike Lee always brings out some sort of metaphysical truth from the situations and seems to be able to tap into the collective unconscious of a culture (not just blacks, has anyone seen "25th Hour"). His movies are indicative, albeit exaggerated, films about the collective experience of a people. He may be many things, but he is one of the most powerful and talented directors in the game. We should never underestimate how rare it is for a director to have the ability to make us feel, to make us empathize, and understand some truth from an experience, especially one that feels alien to the world we personally know.