The 25th Hour

[Victor]

25th hour was great for the most part, psh, ed, and anna especially, all the scenes in the club (with the exception of the last one with the gun) were terrific, and i thought at first the 'fuck you' scene was a straight call back to Do The Right Thing (my favorite Lee film), but the more it went on the more original it became and the more i liked it. The 'fuck you' on the mirror reminded me a lot of 'catcher in the rye'. The only problem with the movie is that it didnt really have anywhere else to go, it didnt really lead to a climax. I liked the ending for its ambiguity, but it kind of felt like it was trying to be something it wasnt. All the 9/11 stuff in it feels a little tacked-on too. The shot of Barry Pepper and PSH against the window overlooking ground zero was powerful, and combined with the score and dialouge gave the scene great tension, however the opening credit sequence and a few of the other 9/11 refrences were unneccesary and didnt feel natural. All in all though, terrific film, Spike rules.

And yeah, Damon Wayans pissed the shit out of me in Bamboozled. It was a good movie, a bit uneven maybe, but why why WHY would he cast that motherfucker for the lead? And Micheal Rappaport is so fucking good why the shit is he wasting his talent on that piece of garbage Boston Public?

Im just keepin it real...

[budgie]

If you haven't seen this movie, then shame on you.

If you think this movie is anything less than brilliant, then eat your own head, yes, that's what I said...

It's emotionally and intellectually massive and as for the Sept 11th refs being 'tacked on', wasn't it the whole subject of the film? Lee pointing a big and wholly righteous finger at white American masculinity and saying so whose fault was it and what are you gonna do about it, you bunch of bullshitters? Think about the title.

Loved everything. The soundtrack was terrific, the visuals and camerawork. Even the polemic was justified. As for the 'fuck you' scene... what about Fight Club? I saw a dialogue with that film throughout the whole thing (Ed Norton for a start), only instead of letting us off Lee pulls away any possibility of escapism. It kills me that this film will be ignored while Gangs of Fucking New York (all the bullshit Lee so skillfully dissects) will win awards.

Had to post because the person I saw this movie with 'didn't get it'   .

[RegularKarate]

Well, if Budgie came back to us just to say that, I must see this film.  It had better be good though Budge.

I saw a dialogue with that film throughout the whole thing

Have drinking you been?

[MacGuffin]

Had to post because the person I saw this movie with 'didn't get it'   .

Way to go, cbrad.  

[©brad]

Am I missing something?

[Gold Trumpet]

I thought about posting this on the dvd thread for the movie, but felt since this will be my thoughts on the movie, it should go here.

Well, call me part of the minority, but I did not like this movie. Through out the entire movie, I felt the unecessary need for the movie to over extend itself into the material at hand being right for symbols on other subjects. One of the most surprising things about this movie for me was how subdued it was, even in the face of what this guy is facing. The movie has all the trappings of being a film that wants to display anger on the face of this man or inside him, but never seems to pull it off. The drama is typical novel narrative and instead of going for the feeling of this man and his world as it crumbles, it over extends its scenes into long conversations that talk about other subjects that really aren't very interesting. This was saddening because the opening scene caught my attention right away and seemed promising on making a good movie. The fuck you scene with Norton in the mirror was from do the right thing, yes, but its problem is that it didn't fit for the tone of the movie. The movie so much wanted to realize or feel like the anger he showed in that mirror when he let his third face talk. The subdued tone of the rest of the film just didn't seem to fit the rest of the movie. Add to this that in scenes of turmoil for Norton's character, he acts with benevolence as in the scene when given the truth of who set him up. Though I find Budgie's reasoning on the September 11th theory interesting, I didn't believe it really while watching the movie and for reasons mainly stated in that 25th Hour talked about a subject, but set itself up in such a casual manner of talk toward the subject it could never get past the smallest lining of this subject. Everything is on general basis here with good filmmaking and lighting. Lee was lighting this so well I feel he is finally ready to make a fucking musical complementary of the Powell and Pressburger comedies. Maybe a remake of The Red Shoes. Norton also seems to be taking tips from Pacino in acting. In casual roles, Pacino is confused for achieving greatness because he can be so interesting at just naturally acting up and talking. When he is able to really be someone else, he really is of greatness. Norton's career so far feels like the attempt to talk interesting like Pacino can. All in all with this movie, I think the author was given too much power in presenting the material and whoever said Lee hasn't been on since '92 with Malcom X is right in my eyes.

~rougerum

[MacGuffin]

Daniel Robert Epstein: The fuck you scene that Ed Norton has into the mirror in The 25th Hour is reminiscent of a scene in Do the Right Thing.

Spike Lee: It is but interestingly enough that scene is in the novel The 25th Hour. When I read it I thought it would give me a chance to expand on what we did in Do the Right Thing. In Do the Right Thing we never cut away from people talking to the camera, in The 25th Hour we do cutaway to the people Monty Brogan is talking about.

DRE: What attracted you to The 25th Hour?

SL: The script. It was sent to Edward Norton and me at the same time. Originally the novel was optioned by Tobey Maguire for him to star in, at one time Tobey was going to play Monty but then he got cast as Spider-Man.

DRE: There are a lot of 9/11 references in The 25th Hour. Is Edward Norton's character of Monty Brogan,? a heroin dealer,? more sympathetic because there are people like Osama Bin Laden out there?

SL: No, Bin Laden has nothing to do with Monty Brogan. Bin Laden is part of the cloud that is hanging over this post 9/11 New York City but to say that Monty Brogan is more sympathetic because of Bin Laden is not the point.

DRE: The opening shots of the Twin Tower light memorial are amazing. It's great that you acknowledge that. What do you think of filmmakers that are cutting the Twin Towers out of their movies?

SL: Sometimes I think the studios overrule the filmmakers. People have to direct their films and studios have to do what they do. That was a punk move removing the Twin Towers from Spider-Man. They would have not lost a penny. All they are thinking about is the bottom line. They weren't trying to be sensitive. They're worried about some type of controversy and impact of the box office. That film still would have made the same amount of money. As a New Yorker I was pissed off about that.

How many times did we see those planes going into the Twin Towers? To see the Twin Towers in Spider-Man is not going to make me walk out of the theatre distraught. I don't think so. People can do want they want to do but this is my film and incorporate 9/11. It was not a big decision to do this. The bigger decision was how would we incorporate it.

DRE: When Monty gets Barry Pepper's character, Frank Slattery, to beat him up is he really punishing himself or does he really want to look bad before entering prison like he says?

SL: Both. He's punishing himself and he does not want to go into the slammer the pretty white boy.

DRE: Edward Norton does have somewhat of a reputation of wanting a lot of control on the movies he works on. Did that worry you at all?

SL: When you work with people they come in with reputations but Edward and I are cool. We became friends way before we shot this film. He's a very smart person and actor. All he wants to do is make the film as good as it can be and I'm cool with that.

DRE: What did Tobey Maguire do as producer?

SL: He was making Spider-Man at the time. He was in another stratosphere and anyway I have final cut.

DRE: What was working with Anna Paquin like?

SL: She was great but she was at a disadvantage because we had to replace someone a week before the shoot started. She came in and hit the ground running. It was good luck for us that Philip Seymour Hoffman had directed her in a play in London recently so they had a rapport.

DRE: After so many years in the industry what still surprises you?

SL: What surprises me is that Hollywood still doesn't respect the intelligence of its audience. The films they make, how I hear executives talk about her audience, calling them idiots. On the hand sometimes what the American movie going public goes for surprises me also. I guess the audience has been conditioned.

I'm beyond the point of worrying about whether the audience understands my films. If I worried about that I wouldn't have been able to do 16 films in 17 years. I'm trying to do work.

DRE: Who really is Spike Lee?

SL: Just look at the work. You can see what kind of person and artist I am from that.

DRE: Looking back on your body of work, would you do it the same way again?

SL: I owe a lot to trailblazing filmmakers like Oscar Micheaux, Melvin Van Peebles, Ossie Davis. Because of those people I'm able to do what I do. It's like handing down the torch.

My film She's Gotta Have it and Robert Townsend's Hollywood Shuffle both came out [in 1987] within a couple months of each to her that made the door open ajar a little more.

DRE: I spoke with Ernest Dickerson [Spike's former cinematographer and a prominent director now as well] earlier this year and he said that Denzel Washington and Halle Berry winning their Oscars will not change Hollywood's perceptions of African American actors.

SL: I agree. People who were screaming from the top of their roofs about a new day having come in Hollywood because of Denzel and Halle. People who make a proclamation like that are premature. Don't you think you have to wait five maybe ten years to make an intelligent assessment of the ramifications of that. Who's to say that we won't have to wait another forty years before another African American male wins Best Actor. We don't know. I think sometimes we lose focus. In the long run what affect does all that have on the industry. It's miniscule. Until we get into the position of the gatekeepers. That‚s where the power is. They run the studios, the networks.

If we had a person of color as studio head that's something else. If we look at civil rights in Hollywood you would have thought there would be a lot more people of color in Hollywood. There's not.

In my opinion white females benefited more from the civil rights movement than black people. Sherry Lansing runs Paramount, Amy Pascal runs Sony, Stacey Snider at Universal and there are more. Not to say they shouldn't have jobs but there is not one black person in any of those positions. I've been dealing with the studio for years and I have never sat across the table from an African American with any kind of power. There's not one black person I know that can greenlight a picture.

DRE: What's it like for you?

SL: You can't really use me as an example because I'm a freak of nature. One African American gets hoisted up. Michael Jordan or Miss Winfrey, Bill Cosby. That's just a couple of people. There are more African American males in prison, jail or on parole than there are in college.

DRE: Has Hollywood and the music business caused a lot of that perception?

SL: I'm not going to say all rap music but certain aspect of it and definitely music videos. That's one of the reasons I wanted to do Bamboozled[released in 2000] because I think in today's sophisticated because I don't think you have to have on blackface to be a minstrel show. A lot of these rappers to me are minstrels and they don't even know it.

DRE: After the shootings at Columbine there were some comments in the press between you and Charlton Heston. Did you see Michael Moore's Bowling for Columbine?

SL: Yes I think Bowling for Columbine is the best movie of the year. Best film and most important film. Michael Moore and I think very similarly.

DRE: Have you gotten your license to drive in New York City yet?

SL: I got it about three years ago. You've got to keep up. But I haven't driven on the highway yet.

DRE: Thanks Spike.

[Stefen]

haha I love how Spike Lee is like "Yeah so and so was a producer and so and so starred, but they didn't do shit anways" It's awesome cause it's about 25th hour which was a good movie. Spike Lee rules, recognize, chumps. These interviews are the best Mac.

[SiliasRuby]

I just rewatched the commentary for 25th hour again last night. I love to hear spike talk. So relaxing.

[atticus jones]

Who's to say that we won't have to wait another forty years before another African American male wins Best Actor. We don't know.

jay me fluckin is there another x layin around foxx...

chris cross makes me wanna jump jump...but white men cant so I won't

i enjoyed the pic but am annoyed by the prick

[Myxo]

Without looking at the photo I thought Dr. Dre was interviewing Spike Lee.



I need sleep.