On C List of Movie Reviews
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Clockers (1995)
Rate:
7
Viewed:
5/06, 6/20
5/06:
Clockers is a gritty film about the drug culture and how black people are trapped within it.
Although Spike Lee does a nice job of transforming some scenes into a work of art, he's poor in trying to make the characters
appealing through talky dialogue. I don't understand why he has to revolve the plot around Strike who makes it impossible for
me to care about him.
The best part is the buildup toward the climax which is fascinating to follow, but the ending is rather too merciful.
They get away with murder after all? Ha! Only in Spike Lee's world. The four who give standout performances are: Delroy Lindo,
Harvey Keitel, Thomas Jefferson Byrd, and Isaiah Washington. Without doubt, the first could've been nominated for an
Oscar; he plays a bad motherfucker.
All in all, I'll have to see Clockers later for a re-evaluation.
6/20:
A box-office disappointment about blacks killing blacks, Clockers is a tale of two halves that may have ripped off a
film in many ways.
The first half is long and talky, and I was hoping things would speed up more. Then, it does during the second half,
finally getting my attention. However, I hate the ending. So, it's four black people getting away with murder? I just don't
think so. Murder is murder is murder, period.
There's a lot of talk involving Strike who's pressed by different guys from both sides, and it goes on and on and on. Yes,
it's interesting, but the movie becomes long this way. By the time the hassle ends, it's too late, and the show is over.
At the same time, I kept thinking of another movie called Strapped which came first in 1993. There are features
in common with Clockers. Strike and Diquan, Rocco and McRae, Rodney and Ben, and Tyrone Jeter and Chucky, and they
have similar subplots. Even Fredro Starr is in both films. While Clockers has a surprise ending,
Strapped is
shocking. That's why I say Spike Lee is a rip-off artist; hell, look at the movie poster: does it look like something
that Saul Bass did for Anatomy of a Murder?
If there's anything to like, it's the excellent acting. The strongest performance comes from Delroy Lindo. He plays
the baddest dude. Everybody else is pretty good: Mekhi Phifer (in his debut film role), Harvey Keitel, John Turturro, Thomas
Jefferson Byrd, Isaiah Washington, and Keith David. The dialogue is also well-written, even though it feels talky which will
be toned down during the second half. By the way, "clocker" means a "low-level drug dealer who operates on the streets."
All in all, I hate Spike Lee's films which are always overrated, but I have to say that Clockers is among few of the
best of his career along with He Got Game and Jungle Fever.