mastermind
Rest In Power Kobe
they had those two kids that got shot up who were like 19 and 19, but I do see that point.
Closest we got was Nick Cannon telling the story of his life and the little girl who was killed.
CHIRAQ trailer (spike lee joint)
- Thread starter Booker T Garvey
- Start date
Closest we got was Nick Cannon telling the story of his life and the little girl who was killed.
Dr. Narcisse
Veteran
But then thats a missed opportunity for Spike though. It easier for people our age and up to get the message. But if he had teenagers (or at least actors in their 20's who could pass for being teens) I think that would have a big impact on them.
I think thats why older people are like...whats the big deal
. But maybe the younger one's can't connect/relate to it.
My sister said she liked it
Ill probably see it this week
I gotta see Krampus tho
My man told me that shyt is wild crazy when you smoked out
Ill probably see it this week
I gotta see Krampus tho
My man told me that shyt is wild crazy when you smoked out
Saw it Saturday night and enjoyed the movie, knew what it was going into the movie. Went with my girl she didn't really like to it due to the rhyming style dialogue, i had basically explained to her how it was a satire and in play form. I can see why some wouldn't like it and i also see why some would like it. I like how they gave an idea at the end of the movie with Fortune 500 companies creating jobs with and creating treatment & mental health healing centers in and near the hoods.
Mortal1
Superstar
I read the play this semester still haven't seen the movie but knew what the film was going to be like the minute I saw the trailer.
Dr. Narcisse
Veteran
ogc163
Superstar
Horrible movie.Spike is one of my favorite directors, and I just admire the man in general.The character development was horrible and all over the place, the aesthetic was horrible, and the Christian/Religious aspect was overdone.
One of the gifts that Spike Lee has had throughout his career and distancing himself from the likes of John Singleton is that he was always able to articulate and provide visuals while not being stuck in shallow internal tropes. As a result of not being bogged down by those tropes, he has consistently been able to push forward conversation even when it leads to highly uncomfortable conversations within the Black community.
Two films that pushed conversation that are especially important to me personally were School Daze and Bamboozled. School Daze presented and articulated a criticism of HBCU's and the Black middle class that was clearly heavily influenced by the man in my avi, and it forced people to rethink certain principles of the community just like E.Franklin Frazier had done two decades prior. Bamboozled as a result of me being a law student and likely entering the corporate arena also hits home, as I have seen Black law students while initially "playing the game" become so consumed with the ideas of perception and money that they get lost and attempt to rationalize white behavior that is clearly anti-black. I am sure Bamboozled made Blacks who were inside of corporate america take a look at themselves and re-evaluate things.
Chi-raq brings nothing new to the table in the same manner as the aforementioned films did. It doesn't make folks re-evaluate and construct new paradigms for change or force uncomfortable conversations. It may be an age thing, Lee was clearly influenced and inspired by the modern twitter activists and so that lead to articulating something based on the views of parties that are often themselves so detached from whats going on in the hood. Maybe its a class thing, the film and subsequent interviews showcase a condescending and overall shallow view of folks in the hood, especially as it relates to the men. It comes off as a misguided performance of outrage from a middle class black man talking down to poor folks. That is not to say "don't present the message", but most importantly one must remain mindful of the the tone and substance in which they articulate it. 25 years ago Spike was able to do that, it's obvious he no longer can.
One of the gifts that Spike Lee has had throughout his career and distancing himself from the likes of John Singleton is that he was always able to articulate and provide visuals while not being stuck in shallow internal tropes. As a result of not being bogged down by those tropes, he has consistently been able to push forward conversation even when it leads to highly uncomfortable conversations within the Black community.
Two films that pushed conversation that are especially important to me personally were School Daze and Bamboozled. School Daze presented and articulated a criticism of HBCU's and the Black middle class that was clearly heavily influenced by the man in my avi, and it forced people to rethink certain principles of the community just like E.Franklin Frazier had done two decades prior. Bamboozled as a result of me being a law student and likely entering the corporate arena also hits home, as I have seen Black law students while initially "playing the game" become so consumed with the ideas of perception and money that they get lost and attempt to rationalize white behavior that is clearly anti-black. I am sure Bamboozled made Blacks who were inside of corporate america take a look at themselves and re-evaluate things.
Chi-raq brings nothing new to the table in the same manner as the aforementioned films did. It doesn't make folks re-evaluate and construct new paradigms for change or force uncomfortable conversations. It may be an age thing, Lee was clearly influenced and inspired by the modern twitter activists and so that lead to articulating something based on the views of parties that are often themselves so detached from whats going on in the hood. Maybe its a class thing, the film and subsequent interviews showcase a condescending and overall shallow view of folks in the hood, especially as it relates to the men. It comes off as a misguided performance of outrage from a middle class black man talking down to poor folks. That is not to say "don't present the message", but most importantly one must remain mindful of the the tone and substance in which they articulate it. 25 years ago Spike was able to do that, it's obvious he no longer can.
Igloo Stix
Pro
Haven't seen the film yet. But, I appreciate your measured, well thought out response. Your criticism is understandable. Much respect.
Sane
All Star
DaRealness
I think very deeply
http://www.thestranger.com/film/feature/2015/12/02/23212222/fukk-you-spike-lee
Movie reviewers are pretty solitary people. We silently file into dark theaters with our notepads and watch a screening, we nod at the studio rep on our way out, perhaps giving a vague quote like "Interesting" or "Nice soundtrack" when asked for a first impression. Then we go home, write our 700 words, and collect our commission. It's a good job for people who like to watch others interact, without ever having to do so in real life.
As I walked out of Chi-Raq and was asked for my first impression, I started with my usual response, "It was... interesting." But then I stopped and added, "And it was bad." Then I nodded my head a little more confidently, "Yes, it was very bad."
"Oh, thank God," said a voice behind me, "I was worried I was the only one." Another reviewer walked up. "I almost walked out halfway through," he added. "How does a movie like this even get made?" another reviewer asked.
Here we were, the most antisocial people in the writing world, reaching out to share the pain we had just experienced. The pain of Chi-Raq, Spike Lee's ambitious new film tackling inner-city Chicago violence through the power of the p*ssy (I wish I were exaggerating, but it's based on the ancient Greek playLysistrata). A fukking horrible film. This film is so bad, that even after 20 minutes of commiserating with other reviewers, even after bytching about it on my date later in the evening for another 20 minutes, I still don't know how to pour all my hate for this film into one review.
So I'll start here: Chi-Raq is bad. Everything about it is bad. Don't see it. For those of you who need more than that before being convinced to not waste $12 and two hours of your life on this monstrosity, let me try to put into words what makes this film so awful, listed from least egregious to "Jesus, Spike Lee, what happened to you?"
1. John Cusack's character, a white preacher dedicated to Chicago's black community, seems like he might be a joke at first—the white dude who just "doesn't get it." But it turns out he's the only character in the film who does get it. He's the moral compass of the film and in fact makes so much sense that his character seems out of place in a film where every other character appears to be a farce. Why is the only white character in the film the only one worth watching? Spike Lee, you make no sense.
2. Samuel L. Jackson wears a mean suit.
3. Everyone speaks in rhyme. It's a Shakespearian twist that works more to highlight the banality of the dialogue than anything else.
4. The music is painfully bad. Nothing shows how out of touch Spike Lee is these days more than the shytty, overwrought music in this film. Spike used to put together a badass soundtrack, but the music in this film is nothing more a 50-year-old's guess at what the young kids are doing these days with their iPods and their hippity-hop.
5. The film is a gross oversimplification of inner-city violence and its causes. Aside from a spot-on monologue from Cusack, of all people, this film boils down inner-city violence to beef and ego. Gang members hang out under bridges on abandoned furniture, stroking their guns and listening to music on a boom box, like discarded characters from The Wire turned into actual trolls. There isn't an ounce of depth to any of these characters. It feels like what a Fox News anchor imagines gang life is like.
6. Women are reduced to walking vaginas. Did you know that in inner cities, black men are just walking around shooting each other all day, and black women are walking around in hot pants just waiting for the men to put down their guns for five minutes in order to sex them with their flesh guns? Women don't work, they don't have hopes or dreams, they don't do anything but get fukked by dudes. And because that's all they do, their vaginas have been imbued with such power that they can change the world. No, they don't change the world with their intellect or their work, they change the world by refusing access to their golden vaginas. I don't know how to make it clear that I'm not exaggerating—I really, really wish I was. This entire film is women walking around, scantily clad, with literal padlocks over their vaginas because that is their only power and they must lock it up in order to get men to do what they want while men scream that they are being denied their God-given right to bone. Denying a man sex is like denying him water or air—an extreme cruelty that makes men justifiably desperate. In a world where black women are more susceptible to domestic and sexual violence, this is a dangerous and tired trope. Elliot Rodger could have written this film.
7. Women's vaginas bring about world peace, end joblessness in the black community, and increase economic investment in inner cities. In the real world, black women are shyt upon daily. They suffer from discrimination, systemic oppression, gendered violence, and economic instability. Black women work to survive in a world that rapes them and their daughters, kills their sons and fathers. They struggle to give birth to healthy babies despite medical bias and rising infant mortality rates. They struggle to feed their kids in food deserts. They care for nieces and nephews and grandchildren when black men are locked away in our prison industrial complex. They are demeaned, brutalized, and neglected. But it turns out all they had to do was refuse to fukk dudes for a few months, and all their problems would be solved. fukk you, Spike Lee.
This film is an insult. It's an insult to black women, it's an insult to black men (who, guess what, are fully functioning humans not ruled by their dikks), it's an insult to Do the Right Thing, it's an insult to Malcolm X, it's an insult to who Spike Lee used to be. Somebody get Spike back to his people, he's been gone far too long.
Movie reviewers are pretty solitary people. We silently file into dark theaters with our notepads and watch a screening, we nod at the studio rep on our way out, perhaps giving a vague quote like "Interesting" or "Nice soundtrack" when asked for a first impression. Then we go home, write our 700 words, and collect our commission. It's a good job for people who like to watch others interact, without ever having to do so in real life.
As I walked out of Chi-Raq and was asked for my first impression, I started with my usual response, "It was... interesting." But then I stopped and added, "And it was bad." Then I nodded my head a little more confidently, "Yes, it was very bad."
"Oh, thank God," said a voice behind me, "I was worried I was the only one." Another reviewer walked up. "I almost walked out halfway through," he added. "How does a movie like this even get made?" another reviewer asked.
Here we were, the most antisocial people in the writing world, reaching out to share the pain we had just experienced. The pain of Chi-Raq, Spike Lee's ambitious new film tackling inner-city Chicago violence through the power of the p*ssy (I wish I were exaggerating, but it's based on the ancient Greek playLysistrata). A fukking horrible film. This film is so bad, that even after 20 minutes of commiserating with other reviewers, even after bytching about it on my date later in the evening for another 20 minutes, I still don't know how to pour all my hate for this film into one review.
So I'll start here: Chi-Raq is bad. Everything about it is bad. Don't see it. For those of you who need more than that before being convinced to not waste $12 and two hours of your life on this monstrosity, let me try to put into words what makes this film so awful, listed from least egregious to "Jesus, Spike Lee, what happened to you?"
1. John Cusack's character, a white preacher dedicated to Chicago's black community, seems like he might be a joke at first—the white dude who just "doesn't get it." But it turns out he's the only character in the film who does get it. He's the moral compass of the film and in fact makes so much sense that his character seems out of place in a film where every other character appears to be a farce. Why is the only white character in the film the only one worth watching? Spike Lee, you make no sense.
2. Samuel L. Jackson wears a mean suit.
3. Everyone speaks in rhyme. It's a Shakespearian twist that works more to highlight the banality of the dialogue than anything else.
4. The music is painfully bad. Nothing shows how out of touch Spike Lee is these days more than the shytty, overwrought music in this film. Spike used to put together a badass soundtrack, but the music in this film is nothing more a 50-year-old's guess at what the young kids are doing these days with their iPods and their hippity-hop.
5. The film is a gross oversimplification of inner-city violence and its causes. Aside from a spot-on monologue from Cusack, of all people, this film boils down inner-city violence to beef and ego. Gang members hang out under bridges on abandoned furniture, stroking their guns and listening to music on a boom box, like discarded characters from The Wire turned into actual trolls. There isn't an ounce of depth to any of these characters. It feels like what a Fox News anchor imagines gang life is like.
6. Women are reduced to walking vaginas. Did you know that in inner cities, black men are just walking around shooting each other all day, and black women are walking around in hot pants just waiting for the men to put down their guns for five minutes in order to sex them with their flesh guns? Women don't work, they don't have hopes or dreams, they don't do anything but get fukked by dudes. And because that's all they do, their vaginas have been imbued with such power that they can change the world. No, they don't change the world with their intellect or their work, they change the world by refusing access to their golden vaginas. I don't know how to make it clear that I'm not exaggerating—I really, really wish I was. This entire film is women walking around, scantily clad, with literal padlocks over their vaginas because that is their only power and they must lock it up in order to get men to do what they want while men scream that they are being denied their God-given right to bone. Denying a man sex is like denying him water or air—an extreme cruelty that makes men justifiably desperate. In a world where black women are more susceptible to domestic and sexual violence, this is a dangerous and tired trope. Elliot Rodger could have written this film.
7. Women's vaginas bring about world peace, end joblessness in the black community, and increase economic investment in inner cities. In the real world, black women are shyt upon daily. They suffer from discrimination, systemic oppression, gendered violence, and economic instability. Black women work to survive in a world that rapes them and their daughters, kills their sons and fathers. They struggle to give birth to healthy babies despite medical bias and rising infant mortality rates. They struggle to feed their kids in food deserts. They care for nieces and nephews and grandchildren when black men are locked away in our prison industrial complex. They are demeaned, brutalized, and neglected. But it turns out all they had to do was refuse to fukk dudes for a few months, and all their problems would be solved. fukk you, Spike Lee.
This film is an insult. It's an insult to black women, it's an insult to black men (who, guess what, are fully functioning humans not ruled by their dikks), it's an insult to Do the Right Thing, it's an insult to Malcolm X, it's an insult to who Spike Lee used to be. Somebody get Spike back to his people, he's been gone far too long.
AyBrehHam Linkin
First Black Brehsident
AyBrehHam Linkin
First Black Brehsident
nikka got NO connects to Chi hoods
. Ask any Chi nikka in that life and you'll easily get the answer
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AnonymityX1000
Veteran
OK CHI nikkaz should make a movie then. I guess Spike beat them to the punch but it's definitely not too late.nikka got NO connects to Chi hoods
It's alot of factors, you