Such a beautiful film. It’s very warm, very heartfelt, yet so sad, so heartbreaking. It’s extraordinarily authentic and is the most personal Spike Lee film I have ever seen. From siblings bickering to family dinners and road trips to birthdays, this movie includes so many moments that feel incredibly genuine. This feels so real, the acting is on another level. Zelda Harris steals the show as Troy, Delroy Lindo is also a standout (especially during the scene when he has to break the bad news), and of course Alfre Woodard deserves the world. This movie is a fever dream yet it’s so down to earth and so realistic. But the reason I say it’s a fever dream is because there are so many crazy moments that are so oddly specific that they must’ve happened to either Spike or his sister when they lived in Brooklyn as kids. RuPaul’s cameo is an example, or the two glue huffers (one played by Spike himself) who at one point are shown floating down the street upside down, or even the dream Troy has about the glue huffers making her huff some and then she herself begins to levitate into the sky, and then there’s of course the dog in the couch. There’s just so much going on. I was a little thrown off by how the scenes down South looked, but maybe it was made to look that way because Troy didn’t really wanna be there. Also, Spike utilizes his famous double dolly shot a few times and I love it so much. But now it’s time to talk about the devastating ending. It took me by surprise. The rest of the movie had been pretty upbeat. It was simply telling a tale about a family in Brooklyn who were sometimes faced with problems, whether that be financial or familial or even neighborly. But, in the back of my mind I had a feeling something bad would happen. As I mentioned early Delroy Lindo did a magnificent job during the scene in which he has to deliver the bad news, it’s the saddest moment in the film alongside the scene when Troy runs downstairs because she thinks she hears her mom and dad fighting, but mom’s gone, it’s only dad. The exchange of words she has with her dad after that nearly brought me to tears, it was too much for me to bear. Oh how quickly a movie can go from being a vibe to making one sink back into reality and think deeper about everything. Life is sorta that way. Things seem to be going with the flow and then boom, something happens and the world flips upside down. I love Spike and his movies so much. He understands both sides of the coin and he can switch between the two so seamlessly. By the way, the soundtrack is one of the best I’ve ever heard.
Such a beautiful film. It’s very warm, very heartfelt, yet so sad, so heartbreaking. It’s extraordinarily authentic and is the most personal Spike Lee film I have ever seen. From siblings bickering to family dinners and road trips to birthdays, this movie includes so many moments that feel incredibly genuine. This feels so real, the acting is on another level. Zelda Harris steals the show as Troy, Delroy Lindo is also a standout (especially during the scene when he has to break the bad news), and of course Alfre Woodard deserves the world. This movie is a fever dream yet it’s so down to earth and so realistic. But the reason I say it’s a fever dream is because there are so many crazy moments that are so oddly specific that they must’ve happened to either Spike or his sister when they lived in Brooklyn as kids. RuPaul’s cameo is an example, or the two glue huffers (one played by Spike himself) who at one point are shown floating down the street upside down, or even the dream Troy has about the glue huffers making her huff some and then she herself begins to levitate into the sky, and then there’s of course the dog in the couch. There’s just so much going on. I was a little thrown off by how the scenes down South looked, but maybe it was made to look that way because Troy didn’t really wanna be there. Also, Spike utilizes his famous double dolly shot a few times and I love it so much. But now it’s time to talk about the devastating ending. It took me by surprise. The rest of the movie had been pretty upbeat. It was simply telling a tale about a family in Brooklyn who were sometimes faced with problems, whether that be financial or familial or even neighborly. But, in the back of my mind I had a feeling something bad would happen. As I mentioned early Delroy Lindo did a magnificent job during the scene in which he has to deliver the bad news, it’s the saddest moment in the film alongside the scene when Troy runs downstairs because she thinks she hears her mom and dad fighting, but mom’s gone, it’s only dad. The exchange of words she has with her dad after that nearly brought me to tears, it was too much for me to bear. Oh how quickly a movie can go from being a vibe to making one sink back into reality and think deeper about everything. Life is sorta that way. Things seem to be going with the flow and then boom, something happens and the world flips upside down. I love Spike and his movies so much. He understands both sides of the coin and he can switch between the two so seamlessly. By the way, the soundtrack is one of the best I’ve ever heard.
