BY MICHAEL GOODPASTER
Spike Lee makes art house films. There is no way to deny this. While his “era peers” like Tarantino make artistic films, Spike makes movies that are more art than flash and controversy. At the same rate, when comparing to his New York counterparts like Woody Allen or Martin Scorscese he doesn’t JUST stick to the same tones and rhythms. I really think it’s his blunt and bold opinionated personality is why he’s not given more credit. He is easily one of the best directors of ALL TIME. Yep. I said “all time”. I’m not even a Spike Lee fan boy. I’ve not seen ALL of his movies, but I can call them like I see them. He has a good balance of context, substance, art, and heart. When he makes a movie, he’s making it out of passion not because it’s a formula that worked before or it’s because he “has to make a new movie every year”. I don’t connect or engage into everything he does, but when I do it sticks with me. Seeing “Do The Right Thing” around the age of 10 or 11 was the first time I saw a black woman naked. Thanks for that! Later on, I’d absorb the movie and realize it was a damn good film. I learned a lot from the VERY underrated “Bamboozled”. “He Got Game” is one of the most underrated basketball movies of all time. I still reference and hold “Crooklyn” at a high standard to this day. I could go on and on. If Spike makes a new joint, I want in on the rotation. When I really think about it, his style and work has been an influence on my own writing and filmmaking. The latest movie he put out is “Old Boy”. It’s a Japanese remake of a movie I’ve never seen. I read the reviews that it was a violent and gory movie, but a good one to boot. I didn’t know much more than that. The story follows a sleazy scumbag businessman who gets drunk one night in the 90’s and wakes up in an enclosed room where he is forced to live for years. He is basically tortured through isolation and forced to rebuild himself. For well over a decade he sat in this room and lived life. He’d occasionally be shown news footage pertaining to his family. The first news cast reveals his exwife was murdered and that HE is the main suspect. This leaves his daughter an orphan. He gets little glimpses here and there through television pieces, but all in all he’s alone. This goes on until he finally gets free. At this point, he must utilize all of the martial art and physical training he did to pass the time to figure out why he was locked up, to save his daughter, to clear his name and to pretty much readjust to society. He comes out a bad ass and that is where the violence hits. It’s high impact and has some “oh shit” moments for sure, but if you only see that side of the story you’re missing the point. This movie is intense and never lets up. It keeps throwing more and more at you, through Brolin’s character, and you don’t get a chance to settle in or get bored at all. It’s a movie that happens so fast that you need a few days to really contemplate what was all going on. Before you know it, you realize that you just saw something pretty damn special. I have no desire to ever watch the original because I wouldn’t want to tamper with what Mr. Lee gave us in this movie. It’s worth it. Trust me. Of course it’s underrated, but it’s a movie I’d recommend for sure. If you like action movies, thrillers, mysteries, drama, and just good ass movies then you should give this movie your time. I have a hard time accepting that anyone (that’s not lame) will not appreciate this movie at least on some level. Seriously enthralling. I can only hope Spike Lee’s original 140 minute cut gets released so I can see this in its full intended glory. I won’t watch it again until I can, but in the meantime… YOU should see this. B+
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