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With his latest film He Got Game, writer/director Spike Lee has crafted a film that's both lovely and enjoyable to watch as his previous effort, Girl 6. Like Girl 6, Lee has chosen a subject typically worthy of an eighty-five minute picture and fashioned it into a sweeping epic.
Pssssst…I'm joking. He Got Game is a long, boring, meandering, dog of a movie. One might compare watching it to walking forty acres with a mule, but I see it as more of pissing-a-kidney stone with a side order of numb-ass.
The main story is simple enough to barely fill an after school special – jailed Jake Shuttlesworth (Washington) gets a one week release from prison to persuade his estranged son and top basketball recruit, Jesus (NBA's Ray Allen), to attend the Governor's alma mater in an attempt to win a chance at early parole. Since Jake is in the big house for killing Jesus' mom, his task seems a formidable one.
Among other prominent problems, Lee takes over two hours to lead the viewer to the glaringly obvious one-on-one game between Jake and Jesus. In fact, the two only have about four scenes together. So what do you fill the two hours with? For starters, there is the completely worthless sub-plot of Jake's romance with a fleabag whore (Jovovich). There's also Jesus' relationship with plotting girlfriend, Lala (Rosario Dawson). But mostly there is a whole lot of Oliver Stone-style flashbacks and editing, teamed with a nails-across-the-blackboard score by Aaron Copeland.
On a positive note, Game features one of the most graphically hilarious three-way sex scenes that I have ever viewed. And there is a vomiting scene, too. But these are not nearly enough to make Game worthy of renting, let alone shelling out green for. Stay home and roll your loose change instead.
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