Spike Lee: mad genius

Rating: 9/10 (13 February 1999)

Lee is one of the few directors working who is actually looking for a new approach to the entire cinematic process. While everybody is awaiting the return of Stanley Kubrick, Quentin Tarantino, Martin Scorsese, and Kevin Smith, wondering what happened to Robert Altman's comeback that seemed so hopeful in 1993, Spike Lee has continually marched to the beat of a different drummer. "He Got Game" has one of the most memorable ferris wheel rides since "The Third Man", breathtaking cinematography, outrageous satire worthy of Luis Bunuel and Lindsay Anderson (truly, more than a few connections can be drawn between "...Game" and "O Lucky Man!"), and irreproachable soundtrack selection.
The movie, as I expected, disappointed a great many people, and confused a great deal more, but it hooked me. I overlooked the misfired ending, and landed the film on my 10 best of '98. Please see the film, and with an open mind--there's a lot to admire here.