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Robogeek says: "Go see SUMMER OF SAM !!!"
Robogeek here...
Go see this movie.
I'm tempted to simply end my review
there -- but all the posts in "Talk Back"
would say "why?" so I guess I'd better
tell you.
If you were to ask me to describe this
movie, the first word that would come out
of my mouth would be "mesmerizing." The
second would be "brilliant." "Engrossing"
would be third, and "terrifying" probably
the fourth.
In fact, I would classify "Summer of
Sam" as a horror film -- and a far, far
better one than the over-hyped "Blair
Witch Project." Comparatively, "Witch" is
little more than a curiosity, a trifle.
"Summer" is virtuoso cinema.
And while I'm on the subject of
comparing films, it's ironic to note the
timing of this film's release. I mean,
when most readers of this site think of
the summer of 1977, they think of "Star
Wars" -- especially giventhe current
prequel. Well, there were other things
going on in the world then, and this film
offers an infinitely more satisfying
journey than that served up by Lucas'
unmitigated exercise in unrealized
dramatic potential. "Summer of Sam" offers
a _real_ menace, one that is both palpable
and truly frightening.
But comparing this film to others
really does it a disservice. It is simply
hands-down the best film of the summer so
far -- though I admit that isn't saying
much. Perhaps a more resonant statement
would be to say that it's Spike Lee's most
accomplished film to date, and one of the
best films of the year. (Academy members,
you'd better remember it!)
Back to the timing of this film's
release, though: Aside from the fact that
it may fade from Academy members' memories
(dammit), it's perfect. Like all of
Spike's films, this one holds up a mirror
to our society, forcing us to examine
issues that aren't easy or simple, but
important and relevant.
The effects of violence are something
we, as a culture, are dealing with right
now in the wake of Columbine -- though not
very well. "Summer of Sam" dramatizes
_brilliantly_ the dangers of fear,
paranoia, and helplessness that violence
incites. And this is what is most
terrifying about the film -- not the
murderous violence incurred the serial
killer, but what it ignites and incites.
How rationality can so easily be tossed
out the window when we are consumed by
fear.
The fact that we, as Americans, are
currently thisclose to actually
considering censorship rather than
addressing our real problems is
terrifying. The fact that Spike Lee has
been taking static for making this movie
is so ridiculously insane it's
frightening.
Sure, to be honest, before seeing the
film I had some worries. I feared the
violence would be too extreme, and the
film might be too difficult and painful to
watch. And while the film is, at times,
terrifying, and the violence difficult to
watch, it is _right_. The film is honest,
responsible, and courageous. It's also
fantastic.
(By the way -- the troubles "Summer of
Sam" had with the MPAA ratings board were
not with the violence, but with the sex
scenes. Which, once you see the film,
you'll find ridiculous. But I digress...)
This film transports the audience to
the Bronx of 1977, in the middle of a
scorching summer. The serial killings of
David Berkowitz serve as a backdrop to the
drama, a springboard to the narrative. The
focus of the film is on an ensemble of
characters, their relationships with each
other, and how the murders affect them.
The characters are vivid, real, and
engaging -- perhaps the most fully
realized on film so far this year.
What struck me most about the film is
how impressive the acting is across the
board. Spike Lee gets superlative
performances from every single person on
screen -- though some may take issue with
his arguably distracting inclusion of
himself as a TV reporter, who pops up
periodically. But that criticism couldn't
possibly amount to more than a minor
nitpick in the context of such brilliant
work from leads John Leguizamo, Mira
Sorvino, Adrien Brody, and Jennifer
Esposito (who I am _thrilled_ to see on
film in a dramatic role after admiring her
comedic talents on ABC's "Spin City"). All
the supporting players shine as well, and
Michael Badalucco (who is perpetually
wonderful on ABC's "The Practice") gives a
terrifying and chilling turn as Berkowitz.
Don't waste your time and money going
to see crap like "Wild Wild West" when
there is a film this important and
brilliant out there. It is infinitely more
worthy of your attention and support, and
is the kind of film I wish there were more
of. I think you will come away from it
amazed -- so much so that you'll go rent
some of Spike Lee's earlier films that
you've never gotten around to seeing.
I hope that Touchstone gets behind this
film and pushes it hard, rather than drop
the ball after its opening weekend. This
film deserves to find an audience -- and
can build one if given a chance. I, for
one, look forward to voting with my wallet
this weekend and seeing this film a second
time -- especially since I suffered
through Cinemark-induced incompetence at
the sneak. (No THX is bad enough, but no
sound and bad framing for the first two
minutes is inexcusable. I hate Cinemark.
But I digress...)
Go see this movie.
- Robogeek
P.S.: I've been having problems
receiving mail at my
robogeek@aint-it-cool-news.com address, so
if you've sent me mail there in the last
week or two, please resend it to my old
address at robogeek@hotmail.com. Thanks!
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This is the first time i've been first but i'm not 'talking back' just to say that but to enforce my view that not only will this film be one of the best of this year but one of the best of the decade. PLEASE somebody E-mail with the UK release date for 'Summer of Sam'.
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I've been waiting years (figuratively, of course) for a film like this to be made. So many times we see works where the killer and his/her plan is the central focus of the story. This film is supposed to deal with the emotional repercussions of real-life terror... something that embracers of violence don't seem to think about. I can understand why many seem to assume that Spike Lee is doing what prior film-makers have done (Natural Born Killers excluded), though. They seem to be expecting the "same old thing". Thankfully, it doesn't sound like Lee is going to give it to them. He's giving us something better...
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Call me sadistic, but most of my favorite films from recent years have involved serial killers. Movies like "Seven", "Copycat", "NBK" and even a lesser known flick like "Bone Daddy" have proved to be hugely entertaining... Now, David Berkowitz may have been a skillful serial killer, but I'd have preferred to see the real master of the serial killing community at work - none other than the infamous Ted Bundy! This guy puts most other serial killers to shame, although anyone who's read the Crime Library website, will probably have a soft spot for Richard Ramirez - AKA: The Night Stalker. This guys closing statement at his trial was fucking incredible. It made PERFECT sense, and was as close to the truth as it's possible to be. But, almost everyone writes off serial killers as being nothing but sick fuckers, when many of these so-called "Psychos" make a lot more sense than the politicians who decide our future. I'd have preferred Ted Bundy as president rather than Bill Clinton! At least Bundy was smart, while Clinton fucks gals with cigars in the Oval office regardless of the chance of discovery! Unless that's his way of getting a thrill!? However, I digress, this does sound like it'll be a great flick and will definitely be on my list of must-sees. Fuck movies like TPM and "Blair Witch Project". It's flicks like SoS that deserve to be seen, and they warrant far more attention than bullshit movies like Lucas's toy commercial, TPM!
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Spike Lee is a hypocritical racist hack who would rather criticize real filmmakers than to take a long hard look at himself. From "School Daze" to "Summer of Sam" this guy has done nothing but milk stereotypes, and always portray the black man as the hero, and that "whitey" is evil. The fact that he can get away with calling Tarentino and Lucas racist is a goddamn joke, and shows where we are as a country. What the hell do you think would happen if George Lucas were to go on national television and call Spike Lee a racist. . .HOLY SHIT. . .every fucking group on the planet would be boycotting Lucas and calling him the mother fucking anti-christ!! What the hell gives Lee the right to reverse it?!?! Because he's black?!?! That's racism anyway you slice it, but we conveniently accept it because he's a black guy. That's fucking bullshit, man. . .plain and simple. He hasn't even seen Episode 1, yet he KNOWS it's racist. This guy is a joke, and the only reason he gets the attention he does is because he's got a big goddamn mouth, throws little baby tantrums on the sidelines at the Garden (thinks he on the team), and goes on BET (the home of reverse racism) slamming anyone who has an even remotely different agenda than him. If you're a white filmmaker and have a black character in your film. . .no matter what the role, be prepared to have this pint-sized shit for brains hack criticizing you WITHOUT EVEN SEEING YOUR GODDAMN PICTURE!! I won't spend a nickel to support this guy, and his racism towards anyone that isn't black.
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As someone who shares the name David Berkowitz, I'm not thrilled that the serial killer's getting all this publicity. Still, it looks cool. Go Spike!
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Just got back from a matinee showing of SUMMER OF SAM. All I can say is "Wow!" Spike Lee tops himself with this one. I would even call it his best (and I'm a huge fan of MALCOLM X and CLOCKERS). John Leguizamo is great, as is Mira Sorvino. But I think top acting honors go to Adrien Brody (from THE THIN RED LINE -- THE war film of 1998), as a punk wannabe. I think it was very wise that Lee didn't show Son of Sam David Berkowitz that often. As in many great chillers, the unseen is often more terrifying than the seen. I never thought I'd see an urban horror film by Spike Lee. I would definitely rank it right up there with that other urban nightmare, TAXI DRIVER. SUMMER OF SAM is that good.
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I agree that Spike Lee is kind of an asshole and that he's definitly one of the leader's of reverse racism today. But don't skip a great movie just because you don't like the director personally. Spike Lee is a great film maker, even if he is an asshole offscreen.
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They are almost always completely uneccessary. He Got Game was one of my favorite films of last scene but boy, that sex scene came right out of a porn. I mean, everyone's scared of the killer but soemhow John Leguizamo and Mira Sorvino have time to get into an orgy? Not that I don't enjoy seeing Mira Sorvino in a sex scene, as no heterosexual man would disagree. Still, Spike has to have some will power with these sex scenes. They're more distracting from his films than anything. This one sounds great though. Meaning no disrespect to the victims and their families, I'm glad Spike went ahead and made the film. It's a good story for the screen.
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ok Mr. Franks I don't know what you've got stuck in your craw that you have some kind of personal agenda aginst Spike Lee, but HOW the hell do you know that there is Black Hero in Summer of Sam, John Leguzimo isn't black, his hispanic, Mira Sorvino=white, Adrian Brody=white, Jennifer Espisto=hispanic...from what I understand this is mostly a white and hispanic cast, a first for Lee...but lets get back to the point of Spike Lee and reverse racism, I'll agree with you that Lee does throw temper tantrums and does go out of hand with his critism of "white" directors that protray blacks negativly. But Lee does make good films and his films, at least the ones I've seen have never seemed racist. The only film of Lee's I didn't enjoy was Girl 6 but that was for personally reasons not because it delt with a black char. I thought Get On The Bus was a great charather study. But that is what Lee does, he does Char. study movies of blacks. Is that wrong, No it's not. Spike is just the result of several generations of Hollywood elite protraying minorities negativly, from early classics like The Jazz Singer to some of todays modern films. Each of us reflects what wwe know and what Spike knows is the black community, he knows how it thinks an dhow it reacts. Lets take a look at Lee's finest film, in my opinon, DO THE RIGHT THING. Here's a movie that yes protrayed SOME whites in a negative light but it also showed whites in a positive light. for example Don Aiello's char and his youngest son, who was Lee's friend in the movie. But it also showed Aiello's raciset older son and the raciset cops. It also showed how violence begets violence and how that is wrong. He wasn't justifying the actions of the blacks on that community but mearly showing us how things begin and hows things get out of control. But I guess in your redneck litle mind Mr. Franks you can only look at the fact that Apike Lee populates his movies with negative sterotypes of whites and positive sterotypes of blacks, when in actuallity Spike is showing us both sides of the coing, the positive and the negative of MAN, not white man or black man or hispanic or asian, but how Man is and how he suffers and how he reacts. That is why I'm loking foreward to seeing Summer Of Sam, because it will show us a freash look at man and how he reacts to real terror, not imagined terror or fake terro like most of todays horror movies but a real terror. And before you accuse me of being some knee-jerk NAACP liberal, I want you to know that I'm a WASP and a Republican to boot
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Just got back from taking a peak at "Summer of Sam" and honestly i gotta say, probably the best film so far this year! (i have yet to see eyes wide shut), i mean this film was briliant!, big ups to Spike the filmmaker and not the racist, he has made a film worth watching (all 2 and a half hours of it) and at one point i even found myself scared!, i cant wait to see blair witch!
Peace out -
See what I mean people?!? Its the same thing I said earlier on this site!! This is a bunch of bullcrap!! I have nothing against seeing a movie about a serial killer, unless the killer is glorified(natural born killers) What I do have a problem with though is the fact that hollywood must include some overly exotic sex scenes that have absolutly nothing to do with the film. This is why I wil not see this movie, or the movie eyes wide shut. They are typical of the mindless t&a that hollywood wants to push on us. I would rather see Episode 1 a million times then to go see garbage like this! As for robogeek, why are you endorsing this pile of pornography?? I mean just because someone has a good idea dosent mean that he will express it the right way. Can I get you to agree with this?? When I saw the hollywood 1 on 1 about this film it looked great untill the bit about the unneeded sex giving them an unwanted rating. All I am trying to say is that if as a country if we get our kicks outta watching some people screw each other while a killer hacks people then we are all pretty sick and need to take a good hard look into ourselves. The government wonders why kids are killing each other in this country. Dont waste your money on this. It might be good film making but at what cost to ourselves.
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Sorry, TrustNo1, you're way off base here. You admittedly haven't seen this movie, and therefore you just don't know what you're talking about. I too get pissed off when Hollywood puts gratuitous sex in movies - think of your typical action/thriller when the main reason for a young actress being in the movie is to get her topless and into bed with the "hero" for some glossy pseudo-sex. This stuff is ridiculous and not necessary. "Summer of Sam" is a very different case. This is not a movie about Son of Sam - as someone noted above it's a character study of 4 young people and how they and their neighborhood react to the events in NYC during that summer. The sex in the movie is very necessary because it helps us understand these characters - especially the terminally confused and pathetic Vinnie. This is NOT a case of a movie audience "getting off" on watching people screw while a maniac is on a killing spree. The sex is uncomfortable to watch, and it's meant to be, because we're seeing people misuse what should be a beautiful experience and hurting those they claim they love. BTW, the sex in this movie takes up probably less than 5 minutes of its over 2 hour running time. This is not a wall-to-wall sex fest as some reports I've read make it seem. Finally, I think many people will find this film uncomfortable because they may see part of themselves in these characters, whether it's the cheating on a partner, working up a hate for someone just because they're different, or just the general mysogyny the male characters exhibit. Spike Lee has once again held up a perceptive mirror on our society, and it's sometimes hard to look, but we have to if we're going to understand what's truly wrong in this country today and start to fix it. So put your prejudices aside and go see "Summer of Sam", a great film from one of America's few truly original filmmakers.
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How full of hubris is it, to call blacks discriminating against whites "reverse racism?" Anytime any ethnic group does that to another, it's racism, pure and simple.
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This must be one of the most controversial films to come along in the last several years. Though the consensus is clearly that the film is not very good (see http://www.rotten-tomatoes.com/ for a sampling of reviews) a lot of people apparently like it, including here at Aint-It-Cool-News.
I am *not* one of them.
I not only believe that it was awful, I would argue that there is a kind of epic grandure to its awfulness. It fails on a truly profound and obvious scale that few films match. Some of the problems:
1. There is virtually no screenplay. With a few exceptions, the dialog consists in a more or less random string of pointless expletives. I'm tempted to see the movie again, just to count the number of times one of the charcaters says "fuck" or "fucking." I would guess it's uttered from between 300-400 times. Excluding for a moment all of the *other* profanity, this means that the word "fuck" is spoken, shrieked, or mumbled about once every 20 seconds. Even this understates the case, as much of the film is visual set pieces without any dialog at all. Please understand, I'm not a prude (I love the Sopranos), but using profanity to make a point or to draw out a character is one thing. Using it because you simply have nothing to say is quite another.
2. Sidney Pollack once remarked that when he makes a film he always keeps in his mind that the film is *about* something: an idea, an issue, an emotion, something. What in the world is this film about? The Son of Sam killings? Nope. We actually learn very little about this. The two principles--Anthony LaPaglia who plays the cop trying to catch him and "The Practice's" Michael Badalucco as Sam--have very little screen time.
Roman Catholic working class sexism? The main characters--a married couple played by John Leguizamo and Mira Sorvino--have a bad marriage. Leguizamo's character plays a hair dresser who is paralyzed by a Madonna-whore complex, able to enjoy sex only with a series of pointless extramarital conquests. He hypocritically explodes in rage when his wife wildly expresses her sexuality only to "please her man." In fact, this is perhaps the most interesting aspect of the film, but it is drowned out by a relentless stream of sleazy subplots: Leguizamo has a friend who embraces the punk rock scene and earns a living as a male prostitute--who services other men in a bathroom no less--and as a porno actor (Is he gay? It's impossible to tell). Leguizamo's other friends sell drugs, gay bash, and hang out doing nothing in particular. A local mob chieftain (Ben Gazarra) controls the neighborhood and resents being asked to help catch Sam. Maybe the film is about sexual dysfunction. Just about every character (save Sorvino's) is expresses some serious sexual problem. In fact, Lee seems obsessed with twisted sexuality (is this supposed to say something about the NY of the 1970s???). One is tempted to believe that the film is about a slice of time: the summer of 1977 in New York depicted against a backdrop of the Son of Sam case, much the way Boogie Nights used the porn industry as a framing device in its portrayal of the late 1970s. However, Boogie Nights took it characters seriously. It gave them something to say, and something to talk about. We actually learned something about the porn industry and about the mores of that period of history. In Summer of Sam, because the characters are so grossly underwritten, we learn virtually nothing. Behaving like a witless degenerate does not, by itself, express artistic merit. In the end, Summer of Sam is about none of these things because it tries to be about all of them at the same time.
3. Many of Lee's portrayals are strangely wooden and ineffective. In one of the film's most embarrassing (and unintentionally funny) sequences, a dog that has been tormenting the tormented Sam speaks to him like in the Taco Bell commercial. The film parades a series of other gaffes: Spike Lee plays a TV reporter covering the Son of Sam case, but he doesn't look like a TV reporter in a major metropolitan area, he doesn't talk like one, and he doesn't behave like one. He seems exactly what he is: Spike Lee gratuitously giving himself a part in his own movie. This is not perhaps the first time a director has miscast himself, but it's the most egregious example in recent years. Similarly, Jimmy Breslin (playing himself), whose narration opens and closes the film, has a stiff deer-frozen-in-the-headlights manner that one doesn't expect to see in major Hollywood productions. This is fairly typical. Much of Summer of Sam comes across like an ambitious student film.
In the end it's difficult to avoid the thought that this film was released only because a "name" director was attached to it, a director whose reputation was made 10 years ago by one truly great film , "Do the Right Thing," and who has since produced work that has ranged from the merely pedestrian (Malcolm X) to the just not very good (Girl 6). Let's hope that Summer of Sam is the nadir of Lee's work. It can't get much worse. -
Jul 05, 1999 8:03:24 AM CDT
Peter Franks racism will always live in movies as long as there
by axel foley
I said it before and I'll say it again. Peter Franks, what you wrote in your post is a clear indication of where America is as a country. Because of people like you there will always be racism in the movie industry. Unfortunately, I know you are not alone. Your opinion is echoed by millions of white audiences who unflinchingly refuse to identify with black people in movies because you cannot really see us as human beings like (I hesitate to say) yourself. ANYBODY WHO IS TURNED OF SEEING A MOVIE BECAUSE THERE A FEW BLACK FACES ON THE POSTER OR IN THE TRAILER IS PREJUDICED. I, as a young black man, would rarely watch films if I behaved like this about white people in films. I am sickened by the fact that you call Spike Lee a racist for trying to create some balance and provide some positive images of black people where there are so precious few. You complain that Lee "always portray the black man as the hero, and that "whitey" is evil...". Well I have news for you, "whitey" has been evil for hundreds of years. It is because of how history has been so disgustingly white washed that this FACT has been allowed to slide. I suppose you think Birth of a Nation was all the representation of black people that cinema needed. When black film makers (like Lee) attempt to show this with some accuracy, they are called every name from "racist" to "inciting racial hatred" and all kinds of bullshit. It is because many white critics and white audiences are (deservedly)made to feel guilty and are unable to deal with this, they scream that Lee is a racist and are angry with him for making them feel that way. So often I hear white people bitch and moan about how they hate being made to feel guilty by Lee's films. They would rather be babied and told that they or their fore fathers are not to blame for the racism the country is built on. Why do you think so many critics fail to accept that Do The Right Thing is a fantastic film and are quick to rate Clockers as Lee's best. It is because Clockers aims responsibilty at black people guilty of crime and lets white people off the hook to an extent that DTRT doesn't. I was about to go into viscious attack on your comments about BET but Dale Cooper beautifully pre-empted me in the talk back under Harry's great review. The fact that you could make such comments further underlines your prejudiced viewpoint. Every other channel is WET (White Entertainment Television) but with a different name. However, this seems to be fine and just to you. Whereas minorities trying to find a voice in the media in anyway they can is "reverse racism". You need to go and read Dale Cooper and filmy's posts and if you can't see the filth you have been posting, then you are simply prejudiced to the core.
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"Summer of Sam" was the WORST movie of 1999 HANDS DOWN! What a piece of crap! How can anyone call this movie brilliant after the goddamn talking dog scene? The portrayal of Berkowitz was absolutely laughable! Can we please put a film moratorium on mental patients who live in squalor-ridden apartments with newspaper clippings on the wall and flies buzzing around? I live in Yonkers and Berkowitz's former building is a nicely kept up co-op with a view of the Hudson river. And as for the scene where he yells at Sam Carr while leaning out of his window in a sleeveless undershirt, I can only assume that Lee's influence was "The Honeymooners". Carr lived about 5 blocks away from Berkowitz and never even knew that his dog was a bother. STUPID! And the scene where Carr is taunting him as he's led into the courthouse? Pure Scooby-Doo. The directing is sloppy, the camera-work uneven, the script flaccid and Spike Lee's performance as John Johnson (a real NY reporter)is sickeningly bad. His afro is right out of "Naked Gun III" and he's obviously reading off of cue-cards. If you haven't seen this movie yet...DON'T. Spend your money on the book "The Ultimate Evil" by Maury Terry. That book is a chronicle of the .44 killings by someone who possesses the one quality Lee lacks.
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