Graycap23 said:

Why?

Krystal666 said:

He was talking like Malcolm X. When he introduced his wife it seemed very much like a contridiction.

bkw said:

It's great entertainment - nothing too deep but it brings a lot of freshness to the genre. Plus as it usually is with Spike Lee joints there is a lot of wit. GO SEE IT

Graycap23 said:

Well...I think interracial couples are a good thing...but yeah that would be kinda...odd I guess...

Oh Oh and I looove Mo' Better Blues

Krystal666 said:

I don't have a problem with interracial couples at all. He was going on and on about Black this and Black that. I almost laughed in his face when he introduced his wife. The irony was so.....so "there".

Lammastide said:

ok i get ya

Graycap23 said:[quote]

Case said:

"She Hate Me" was a well-intentioned film to satirize the stereotype of the sexually potent black male. It wasn't very successful and I can understand why lesbians were pissed at it. But I DO applaud Spike for putting Dubya on the 3$ bill during the opening credits.

Case said:

That's probably the biggest misconception or crock of shit, one of the two, that I've read here in a long time. Where are your numbers supporting this? Blacks see and support Spike films more than ANY other group of people and you surely aren't judging this based of your one visit to see Bamboozled...at least I sure the hell hope not.

I saw every Spike film in the theater from the period of "She's Gotta Have It" to "He Got Game" roughly from 1986-1998 and the theaters were majority or completely Black. Using "Bamboozled" as your sole test subject is ridiculous.

I also don't buy into the bullshit theory that Blacks don't like their dirty laundry aired yet there are COUNTLESS films abaut the ills of the hood that come out every year, so that shit holds no water.

The point of this movie was to show the satirical look of black people from the ages past and compare them to the satirical look of the present age. The problem is it never came across that funny, and if there is supposed to be any message at all it clearly isn't getting through to people.

It's evident in today's culture that young black people are all portrayed as jobless, whiney, 40oz drinking, gangstas. Whereas in day's past they were seen as servants or poor dancing bums that hung around in the countryside.

Why the movie fails is because the jokes of the satire fall flat. Every single joke. The old time jokes with Mantan and Sleep and Eat just are blatantly racist, and not really funny. The satirical look at the gangstas has been done to death and 10x funnier in many other movies. So maybe Spike is trying to put a message in his movie?

What is the message? I can not say for sure. There seems to be a couple messages in the movie but they aren't strong messages. Is he trying to say that black people shouldn't make fun of themselves as it can lead to your demise from a bitter secretary? Or is he trying to say that satire of one's race was never funny and he proved it with this movie? Or maybe the ended was just satire of some of his message laden movies of the past and he was looking to mock himself with an over the top ending? It's just, none of it was funny.

StoneCrib said:

Two things: This is largely a geographic stance that I'm taking. I lived in Detroit for 5 years and saw nearly every film Lee put out between 99 and 04. And it always happened: The theater was filled with white film geeks. Yes, there were some blacks, but the theater was predominantly white. So, no, I'm not referencing any statistics or numbers--something tells me that Entertainment Weekly has never done a tally count on how many blacks see Spike Lee movies. But Lee has long been accused of being an elitist and many people have said that he is not in touch with the poverty-stricken members of the black community (and it's worth noting that Spike grew up solidly middle class). Film Comment did a really good interview with Lee years ago and the interviewer got right up in his face and threw this up to him...and Spike's comeback was--to put it mildly--lackluster.

As far as the theory that blacks don't like their dirty laundry aired, here's some numbers for you. Compare the box office numbers for a stereotypical black comedy like "Soul Plane," "Don't Be a Menace," etc. to more thoughtful films that look at the so-called "dirty laundry" such as "Bamboozled" or "Crash." Black comedies do better at the box office than black dramas.

CalhounSq said:

You and me both, Calhoun.

i have seen it, i am a big spike fan.

the movie starts off VERY good, and then collapses in the third act, ike many spike movies unfortunately often do.

but it was still VERY good. one of the better spike movies.

cborgman said:

It's like they only write 1/2 a movie and give us a crappy ending. This seems to be a trend with Spike.

Alot of Spike's movies tend to get way too long and then he just beats his message into the ground. I thought the ending got ridiculous and kinda cheapend the whole important things he was saying. Way over the top!
[Edited 4/4/06 9:03am]

Graycap23 said:

unfortunately, yes. his endings generally leave a lot to be desired. crooklyn played the same way to me. started off so good, lost it in the third act.

but, i still love spike. his is one of the freshest and most interesting voices in cinema.

Krystal666 said:

I agree.

Krystal666 said:

Case said:

Wait, let me get this straight. You took Spike's ENTIRE filmmaking career and based it off 5 years? Wow. No need to even address that with a comeback.

As for Bamboozled and Crash (Yet I STILL don't know how and why you want to use just 2 FILMS to base your ENTIRE theory on), how do you know how many Blacks went to see it? You just said yourself that you doubt trade papers tally how many Blacks go to see Spike movies, so are you saying they tallied them up for Crash and Bamboozled? Here's a thought, maybe NO one really went out to see Bamboozled, ever consider that? Black OR White OR Latino OR Asian.

I'm sorry, but nothing you've said holds any water. You lack the proof to verify your comments.

StoneCrib said:

No, look...I'm only basing this on what I've seen with my own eyes, man. Detroit is a predominantly black city--over 70% of its residents are black. And anytime Lee comes out with a film there, the theaters are either 1) empty. 2) filled almost entirely with caucasians. Now, I haven't seen Inside Man yet, so I can't verify that one--but I have a feeling it'd be the same ratio.

And let me ask you this: Do you agree or disagree that Spike has a mixed reception from the black community? I had many college professors who hated Spike's films, saying that he had no idea what it was like to be a poor black man. What was your opinion of "She Hate Me?" Spike got into some SERIOUS hot water with that movie, both from lesbians and the black community.

Case said:

Well, whenever I go see a Spike film the theater is majority Black.

Do I think he has a mixed reception? Yes. Now, can I ask if your professors were Black or White and what was the course(s) this was said in? Because you don't have to be a poor black man to know about being poor and black because chances are one of your relatives or friends is at the poverty line so one can gain knowledge from their experiences with that impoverished person and it be just as genuine as being impverished one's self.

StoneCrib said:

please make up your mind. here you say you don't have to be black to understand what it's like to be black, and on the other thread you told a black man he 'couldn't understand racism properly unless he was black'

which is it?

cborgman said:

You just LOVE to either make up stuff or not take the time to read people's posts properly don't you? I was speaking from a Black man's perspective (Spike Lee) and the fact that the chances are, HE, (Spike Lee - A Black man) knows someone (Another Black person) that lives at the poverty level either in his family (A Black Family) or one of his friends (A Black Friend).

Stop coming in on the tail end of a discussion and then just start posting. Read the ENTIRE exchange before chiming in.

StoneCrib said:

oh... so you don't have to be poor to understand what it's like to be poor, you just have to know someone who is poor, whereas to understand what it's like to be black, you have to be black except when you are black and are enjoying the technical merits of a film stonecrib dislikes... and then you are no longer black?

that about sum it up?

it is rather confusing.

cborgman said:

The funny thing is you don't think there's a difference between being BLACK & poor and being WHITE & poor. I'm not shocked though because it's what is to be expected, even from the progressive "liveral thinkers" here. What even makes you more of a headcase is that you've now chosen to bring in another discussion in a different thread. That's sad. And very desparate on your part.

StoneCrib said:

what would you know about being white and poor? if one can not begin to understand what it is like to be black unless they are black, what do you know about being white?

you are a massive hypocrite.

and it's hard to take you seriously as any kind of proponent of black equality and opponent of racial degradtion, when your avatar is a degrading picture of a black woman.

seriously.

cborgman said:

Hmm? So you're going to tell me that being WHITE & POOR is the SAME as being BLACK & POOR? I GOTTA hear this. The floor is yours...

StoneCrib said:

where did i ever say that?

cborgman said:

Yeah, I KNEW you'd back down after I set that challenge to you. Typical from someone that doesn't have the knowledge to take the challenge.

StoneCrib said:

you want a challenge?

you made an assertation that i feel that being black and poor is the same as being white and poor... prove it. where did i say that?