He Got Game (1998)

Directed by Spike Lee. Starring Denzel Washington, Ray Allen, Rosario Dawson, Milla Jovovich, Jim Brown, Joseph Lyle Taylor, Bill Nunn, Hill Harper, Zelda Harris, Ned Beatty, Roger Guenveur Smith, Thomas Jefferson Byrd, Arthur J. Nascarella, Rick Fox, Jade Yorker, Michele Shay, Al Palagonia, Lonette McKee. [R]

One of Spike Lee’s typically audacious if unfocused joints, dazzling and daring at its best moments, half-baked and overly stylized at its least. Story concerns a convict (Washington) who’s given a temporary release to convince his son (Allen), the top high school basketball prospect in the country, to enroll and play ball for the governor’s alma mater. But Allen wants nothing to do with his father (for reasons made clear in a harrowing flashback), and his life is further strained by pressures from his girlfriend (Dawson), uncle (Nunn), recruiters, sports agents, his coach, and others, all wanting to “wet their beak” in the rewards of his talent and hard work. Well-acted (even by NBA player Allen) and filmed with dynamic color and energy, perceptive of the insidious system designed to corrupt sports youths with promises of flashy wealth and fame, but there’s nothing particularly new or shocking about this angle. Instead, it’s the father-son story, without any soap operatics or easy solutions, that stands out in this messy but sometimes superlative telling. Aaron Copland’s orchestral pieces are lively and melodramatic (though they’re sometimes used in an overbearing fashion); soundtrack is full of new songs by Public Enemy, a few of which rank among the group’s best work since Apocalypse 91… The Enemy Strikes Black. John Turturro has a walk-on.

74/100