Fuck
this film and everyone in it!
This is a
sublime film about a man who has to tie up all
the loose ends of his life before turning
himself in to the cops the following day. He has
deep emotional issues with his father, his
long-time girlfriend and his two oldest and
closest buddies. The film is about regrets and
redemption and responsibility... and it mirrors
those sentiments on it's character and the
country we live in. It is a film that deals
candidly with 9/11 and it doesn't shirk the
responsibility of a film that has the balls to
deal with that tragedy. This is Spike Lee's best
film and deserves a place on your must-see list.
Ed Norton is fast becoming one of the greats of
a generation. Every film he does benefits from
his talent. He is marvelous here, bouncing from
scene to scene with intensity and energy that
pops off the screen. The rest of the cast is
equally superb. I really can't recommend this
film any more!
***
ODE TO NEW YORK CITY
Fuck me??
Fuck you!!
Fuck you and
this whole city and everyone in it.
Fuck the
panhandlers, grubbing for money, smiling at me
behind my back.
Fuck the
Squeegee men dirtying up the clean windshield of
my car, Get a fucking job.
Fuck the
Sikhs and the Pakistanis bombing down the
avenues in decrepit cabs, curry steaming out
their pores, Stinking up my day, Terrorists in
fucking training, Slow the fuck down.
Fuck the
Chelsea Boys with their waxed chests and pumped
up biceps, Going down on each other in my parks
and on my piers, Jiggling their dicks on my
Channel 35.
Fuck the
Korean grocers and their pyramids of overpriced
food, their tulips and roses wrapped up plastic,
Ten years in the country and still no speak-ee
English.
Fuck the
Russians in Brighton Beach, Mobster thugs
sitting in cafes sipping tea in little glasses,
sugar cubes between their teeth, Wheelin' and
dealin' and schemin', Go back to where you
fucking came from.
Fuck the
Hasidic Jews selling South African apartheid
diamonds.
Fuck the Wall
Street brokers, Self-styled masters of the
universe, Michael Douglas-Gordon Gecko wannabe
mother fuckers figuring out new ways to rob
hard-working people blind. Send those Enron
assholes to jail for fucking
life. Do you think Bush and Cheney didn't know
about that shit? Give me a fucking break! Tyco,
Imclone, Adelphia, Worldcom.
Fuck the
Puerto Ricans, 22 in a car, swelling up the
welfare rolls, Worst fucking parade in the city,
and don't even get me started on the Dominicans
because they make the Puerto Ricans look good.
Fuck the
Bensonhurst Italians with their palmated hair
and nylon warm-up suits and Saint Anthony
medallions, Swinging a Jason Giambi Louisville
slugger baseball bat, All trying to audition for
The Sopranos.
Fuck the
Upper East-Side wives with their earrings,
scarves and $50 Dalucci artichokes, Over-baked
faces, getting pulled and lifted and stretched
all taut and shiny. You're not fooling anybody,
sweetheart.
Fuck the
Uptown Brothers, They never pass the ball, They
don't want to play defense, They take five steps
on every lay-up to the hoop and then they want
to turn around and blame everything on the white
man. Slavery ended 137 years ago, Move the fuck
on.
Fuck the
corrupt cops with their anus-violating plungers
and their 41 shots, standing behind a blue wall
of silence, You betray our trust.
Fuck the
priests who put their hands down some innocent
child's pants.
Fuck the
church that protects them, delivering us into
evil and while you're at it, Fuck J.C., he got
off easy, A day on the cross, a weekend in Hell
and all the Hallelujahs of the legioned Angels
for eternity. Try seven years in
fucking Otisville J.
Fuck Osama
bin Laden, al-Qaieda and backwards-ass
cave-dwelling fundamentalist assholes
everywhere, On the names of innocent thousands
murdered, I pray you spend the rest of eternity
with your 72 whores roasting in a jet-fueled
fiery Hell, You towel-headed camel jockeys can
kiss my royal Irish ass.
Fuck Jacob
Lewinsky, whiny malcontent. Fuck Francis Xavier
Slattery, my best friend judging me while he
stares at my girlfriend's ass.
Fuck
Naturelle Rivera, I gave her my trust and she
stabbed me in the back, Sold me up the river,
Fucking bitch.
Fuck my
father with his endless grease standing behind
that bar, Sipping on club soda and selling
whiskey to firemen and cheering the Bronx
Bombers.
Fuck this
city and everyone in it.
From the
roadhouses of Astoria to the penthouses on Park
Avenue, From the projects in Bronx to the lofts
in SoHo, From the tenements in Alphabets City to
the brownstones in Park Slope to the
split-levels on Staten Island.
Let an
earthquake crumble it. Let the fires rage. Let
it burn to fucking ash and then let the waters
rise and submerge this whole rat-infested place.
No, fuck you
Montgomery Brogan. You had it all and you threw
it away, you dumb fuck."
©
Written by TC Candler (Ode by Spike Lee)
Richard
Propes' Comment
Even when
everything goes wrong in a Spike Lee film, I
tend to be a fan of the film. In a case such as
"25th Hour," where nearly everything goes right,
I find myself nearing nirvana. Ed Norton gives
an intense, inspired performance as Montgomery
Brogan...a man having to face the choices he has
made in the last 24 hours before he goes to
prison for seven years. Norton's emotions,
actions and thoughts radiate throughout this
film. Truly, it's a magnificent performance. He
is joined by Phillip Seymour Hoffman playing a
teacher facing his own choices...and the closing
scenes between him and Anna Paquin are truly
outstanding. Paquin's face in the scene where
Hoffman finally kisses her exudes feeling beyond
words. Other performances of note include Barry
Pepper and Brian Cox. In a smaller role, Tony
former Indianapolis Colt Tony Siragusa does
wonders and reveals a gift for character acting.
A powerful musical score by Terence Blanchard
and cinematography by Rodrigo Pietro further
allow this film to capture the mood, energy and
emotions required. On its own, this is a
wonderful film...Post 9/11, this film dealt with
"Ground Zero" in a way that evoked respect,
dignity and honor. I highly recommend this film.
Jacob
Hall's Comment
N/A
