MY REVIEW of RED HOOK SUMMER

I'll come out right away to say this.

I LOVE SPIKE LEE.

LOVE YOU SPIKE. Not like THAT but you know what I mean.

Loved and supported you since SHE'S GOTTA HAVE IT till RED HOOK SUMMER. I even paid for SHE HATE ME (...)

You are a pioneer and the only filmmaker I will pay to see.

Now that we got all that out the way.

I saw RED HOOK SUMMER

JUST WTH???

This is two in a row now of WTH. The first was MIRACLE OF ST. ANNA where I first said WTH. I had hopes for this, especially when word got out you reprised your role as "Mookie" from your classic, your "Citizen Kane" film "DO THE RIGHT THING" but I was let down. badly.

RED HOOK SUMMER tells the story of a boy taking a trip to Atlanta with his FINE mother (I so wanted to know and SEE more of her) to spend time with his Overbearing preacher grandfather (a great GREAT Clarke Peters) in the Red Hook section of Brooklyn, NY. We don't know why the mother has an attitude when she drops her only son off then vanishes. The boy doesn't want to be in the hood nor wants to attend church, singing praises and hearing sermons all day. On non church days, he cant watch TV, play video games, eat healthy food, instead he's forced to work for the church with this "crazy" deacon (Thomas Byrd who looked like his character "Eroll Barnes" from CLOCKERS got saved and more screwed up in the head), befriends another girl from the church who is LOUD and carries her asthma inhaler like an ipod, and passes out tracks to people out in the street.

Yeah

I would be pissed at my moms for sending me some where so boring. And I'm a Born Again Christian too.

Now I was fully prepared that Christianity was going to get a bad rep, like it always does in the media: Money hungry preachers taking from vulnerable black folks praying to a white God-FAR FROM THE TRUTH but with every film I try to keep an open mind to see Spike and writer James McBride point of view. Though false prophets exist, there are Pastors who care for the community and their congregation so I was waiting to see if there was a hint of any characteristics in the film. There was none. What I saw was an angry, personal attack on the church. It was very one sided instead of having a balance on the issue, especially with the climatic unpredictable last half hour. 

This film, like most Spike Lee films, have a plot but something else always goes on left field making it a distraction such as a Blood gang member (Excellent NATE PARKER) who wants to be a rapper, steals the boy's ipad and the preacher's money. OK....AND????

Without giving the climax away, I still didn't understand why the mother did what she did (again you have to see it). There was no solution, no ending, and nothing special about Red Hook. I'll enjoy Country Club section of the Bronx, thank you.

Spike is known for having the best actors in his films, shine. SPIKE please next time, hire ACTORS, child actors particularly. Deal with the stage moms, its a headache but at the end of the day, you'll have a great performance from them like the kids from CROOKLYN. The kid characters dialogue seemed as though the kids wrote it themselves on the spot. 

THE MUSIC. sometimes less is best or NONE AT ALL and this is a common trend with Spike Lee films-loud volume music over gripping scenes. The opening scene alone I actually said aloud "CUT THE MUSIC OFF". Not saying the soundtrack is bad because its not, its just used wrong. I loved the church songs. A lot. Especially towards the end at "that scene" I cant say.

I was disappointed seeing MOOKIE who...looked like Spike walking onset. I find it hard to believe that he would still be an old man delivering PIZZA wearing expensive jordans. Instead of Mookie he should have bought back MARS BLACKMAN who wasn't about nothing anyway so I would like to see what he would've evolved into. I DID however love the fact that NOLA DARLING (Tracey Johns) from SHES GOTTA HAVE IT appeared as a Jehovah's Witness. I thought that was a breath of fresh air. 

This film in my opinion felt personal from the writer and I hope and pray that his eyes of understanding will be enlighten on the issue of Christianity. We are all not like what you appeared or showcased in your film. 

I still love you Spike. Why? because you got this film made on your own. I may not have liked it but who cares. You got my $14 and this is the reason why we make films: to tell the story YOU want to tell, despite if I like it or not, and like Mookie says "I GOTS TO GET PAID". 

I didn't like it. Not at all. But I will continue to support you when OLDBOY is released. Your last good film to me was INSIDE MAN. Your last EXCELLENT flawless film was MALCOLM X. I'm waiting for the next masterpiece from you brother. This wasn't it.

-end of line