Themes: Fathers and Sons, Basketball Players, Inner City Blues
Main Cast: Denzel Washington, Ray Allen, Milla Jovovich, Rosario Dawson, Hill Harper
Release Year: 1998
Country: US
Run Time: 134 minutes
MPAA Rating: R
Plot
Denzel Washington and writer-director Spike Lee team for the third time with this contemporary basketball drama focusing on a promising athlete, the son of a convict-father. Jake Shuttlesworth (Denzel Washington) has been in prison for six years when tough prison-warden Wyatt (Ned Beatty) tells him that he's getting a temporary parole with the promise of a commuted sentence. However, there's a trade-off -- Jake must talk his son, Jesus Shuttlesworth (NBA star Ray Allen of the Milwaukee Bucks), the top-ranked high-school basketball player in the country, into signing with the governor's alma mater, Big State. A flashback makes it clear that Jesus' mother (Lonette McKee was accidentally killed by Jake during a violent family fight. After Jake went to prison, the resentful Jesus was left alone to raise his sister Mary (Zelda Harris). Now several colleges are offering Jesus scholarships, and montages satirize the manner in which young athletes are wooed by educators and coaches across the country. However, Jake will soon be back behind bars if he can't get Jesus to sign with Big State within the week. Meanwhile, the greed of other family members begins to surface. John Turturro is seen in a cameo as Coach Billy Sunday, and several real-life coaches can also be spotted in this movie. Music by Aaron Copland (1900-1990) with songs by Public Enemy. ~ Bhob Stewart, All Movie Guide
Review
After laughable big-screen forays by Shaquille O'Neal and Dennis Rodman, it may come as a surprise that there are professional basketball players who can actually act. One such diamond in the rough is Ray Allen, who came out of nowhere to be the heart and soul of He Got Game, Spike Lee's first film about his favorite sport. Allen's flawless performance as a Brooklyn high-school prodigy at the center of a maelstrom of attention and expectations is just one of the astonishing things about Lee's triumphant film. Another is Denzel Washington, whose Jake Shuttlesworth lands in the unenviable position of trying to sweet-talk his estranged son, Jesus (Allen), who blames Jake for the death of his mother. The gifted actor knows just how to walk the thin line between menace and sympathy in portraying the flawed convict who nearly broke his son's spirit trying to perfect the young boy's game. At its core, Lee's film is a poetic homage to hoops (check out the loving opening credits montage) and an examination of the complexity of family relations. But it's sharpest -- and indeed quite funny -- when it dissects the interwoven web of coaches, agents, women, and tenuous acquaintances who are just chomping at the bit to exploit these star players. Jesus' opportunities come so fast and furious that it takes intense will power to avoid the kind of slip-ups that could cost him his eligibility, and quite possibly, a promising NBA career. As ever, Lee's film is enhanced by a strong soundtrack, especially Public Enemy's memorable update of Buffalo Springfield's "For What It's Worth." ~ Derek Armstrong, All Movie Guide
David Stein - Art Director, Aisha Coley - Casting, Sandra Hernandez - Costume Designer, Mike Ellis - First Assistant Director, Spike Lee - Director, Barry Alexander Brown - Editor, Alex Steyermark - Musical Direction/Supervision, Public Enemy - Songwriter, Wynn P. Thomas - Production Designer, Malik Hassan Sayeed - Cinematographer, Spike Lee - Producer, Jon Kilik - Producer, Carolyn Cartwright - Set Designer, Allan Byer - Sound/Sound Designer, Mathew Price - Sound/Sound Designer, Randall Balsmeyer - Special Effects Supervisor, Spike Lee - Screenwriter, Aaron Copland - Featured Music
Jesus Shuttlesworth (Ray Allen) is an extremely talented basketball player being pursued by the top college programs in the nation. Washington's character is a convicted felon serving time at Attica State Prison for accidentally killing his wife (Jesus's mother) by pushing her while arguing with Jesus at the age of 12. The father is temporarily released by the governor, an influential alum of one of the colleges Jesus is considering, so that he might direct his son to sign with the governor's college.
Box office
He Got Game was produced on an estimated $25,000,000 budget. In the opening weekend of its release, it was shown on 1,319 screens, and took in $7,610,663 at the U.S. box offices debuting at number 1. It eventually grossed a total of $21,554,585.
Critical response
Time Out London, in a negative review, summed up with, "Most scenes play too long, with a surplus of ideas, textures, tones and characters, and after 134 minutes it's clear Lee's problem with closure hasn't gone away."[2]
Roger Ebert gave the film three-and-a-half-stars, and called it Lee's best film since Malcolm X. He was particularly encouraged by Lee's determination not to adhere to typical conventions.[3]
The soundtrack for He Got Game was composed of numerous orchestral pieces by Aaron Copland with songs created by the political rap group Public Enemy. It was released by Def Jam on April 21, 1998.
MTV Movie Award Best Breakthrough Male Performance — Ray Allen (nominated)
Notes
^ Corcoran, Tully. "KU attracts Brooklyn star", The Topeka Capital-Journal, October 26, 2007. Accessed September 17, 2009. "Lincoln High School in Brooklyn, N.Y., is to high school basketball what OdessaPermian High School, in Texas, is to high school football. Basketball rules there. Stephon Marbury starred there. Marv Albert went there. Even Jesus Shuttlesworth, the fictional baller played by Ray Allen in He'ssic Got Game went there. Kansas coach Bill Self may be spending a bit of time there in the next year, too. Lance Stephenson, a 6-5, 195-pound junior guard from Lincoln who is the No. 4 overall player in the class of 2009 recently contacted Self about his interest in Kansas."
