70 reviews
This movie is about a man who takes a moral choice for his work but forgets values in his private life. I can't relate to such upside down philosophy. So, "hate" is surely a word too harsh but I don't care about his life.
Nevertheless, the story raises good questions:
For one time, you see a man becoming a "sex-object" and it's great to achieve this sort of equality with women in charge. From my point of view, it's not a revolution: I always thought, that in relationships, men court but women decide! But I am not the Di Caprio / Pitt / Clooney mold, too! Thus, the truth would be that it's the sexiest who runs the relation whatever the gender! It's a tyranny of beauty then!
And as depicted in the movie, nowadays, when beauty is there, money is not far away. What can we do for money? Is everything for sell? Money leads to freedom or alienation? When you see the beautiful opening credits, you wonder..
For sure, Lee is a talented director and knows how to tell a story, even disturbing for your beliefs.
PS: and don't forget FRANK WILLS, a man who stayed true to his principles instead of money!
Nevertheless, the story raises good questions:
For one time, you see a man becoming a "sex-object" and it's great to achieve this sort of equality with women in charge. From my point of view, it's not a revolution: I always thought, that in relationships, men court but women decide! But I am not the Di Caprio / Pitt / Clooney mold, too! Thus, the truth would be that it's the sexiest who runs the relation whatever the gender! It's a tyranny of beauty then!
And as depicted in the movie, nowadays, when beauty is there, money is not far away. What can we do for money? Is everything for sell? Money leads to freedom or alienation? When you see the beautiful opening credits, you wonder..
For sure, Lee is a talented director and knows how to tell a story, even disturbing for your beliefs.
PS: and don't forget FRANK WILLS, a man who stayed true to his principles instead of money!
- leplatypus
- Mar 24, 2009
- Permalink
- wellesorson
- Apr 17, 2005
- Permalink
Starting plot is interesting & attractive : you can see a successful & handsome black man caught into a political glitch in 1 of these multi-national companies. In parallel, he's caught by his former girlfriend who appears to be a more dangerous shark than the main character colleagues at work.
... And then, the movie in unable to move on...
... The end is proposing a conclusion that is absolutely MILES AWAY from sharp & imaginative conclusion, not any hint of the usual Spike's mind-blowing vision on nowadays difficulty for minority men & women to emerge in our societies...
... Just a pity to see Spike Lee's talent absolutely wasted in that movie.
Perhaps he really needed to make some bucks ? Who knows...
... And then, the movie in unable to move on...
... The end is proposing a conclusion that is absolutely MILES AWAY from sharp & imaginative conclusion, not any hint of the usual Spike's mind-blowing vision on nowadays difficulty for minority men & women to emerge in our societies...
... Just a pity to see Spike Lee's talent absolutely wasted in that movie.
Perhaps he really needed to make some bucks ? Who knows...
I'm sure somewhere in "She Hate Me" lies a good story that would make for an entertaining movie. What we have, however, is a convoluted mess that tries too hard to be a social satire.
The premise: Jack Armstrong (Anthony Mackie), a hotshot VP at a pharmaceutical company, suddenly finds himself unemployed and in need of money. When his ex-fiancée-turned-lesbian Fatima Goodrich (Kerry Washington) offers him $10,000 to impregnate her and her lover Alex (the sexy Dania Ramirez), Jack realizes he could be a sexual cash cow. Next thing he knows, he's in high demand from wealthy lesbians who want children.
The problem is that Lee doesn't know what he wants his film to be. Or, what the story should be. He tackles way too many issues and never tackles any of them very well.
The film opens with a novel title sequence that ends with a broadside against President George W. Bush. Fair enough. Lee's bit actually works. The story then turns into some sort of diatribe against corporate greed, against the blatant excesses of the Enrons and WorldComs of corporate America. OK. Then there's also all this stuff about lesbians and impregnating them. And Jack's conscience about whether he's doing the right thing.
But the film then suddenly turns into a defense of Frank Wills, the black security guard who uncovered the Watergate burglary. Lee makes a valid point that while all the players involved in the burglary and subsequent cover-up went on to have lucrative careers as statesmen, authors, speakers and radio personalities, Wills died in obscurity. A tribute to Wills is long overdue. The man was a hero. But what the heck's his story doing in this film? And in a moment that seems completely arbitrary, Lee also throws in Oliver North into the mix of Watergate figures.
For a satire to work, it needs to satirize something. Frankly, I didn't know what exactly Lee was trying to send up. And, after a while, I didn't care. His movie's neither a sex comedy nor stinging social commentary. In fact, at times "She Hates Me" plays more like some sort of unbridled male fantasy. Not only are all the lesbians attractive, but also they want to get impregnated the old-fashioned way. The one lesbian who chooses artificial insemination fails and so has to plead with Jack to have sex with her.
Subtlety has never been Lee's forte. But in films such as "Do the Right Thing" (1989) and "Jungle Fever" (1991), he somehow found a good balance between satire and social comment. Here, he does no such thing. In "She Hate Me," Lee's about as subtle as a sledgehammer.
What's ultimately disappointing about "She Hate Me" is the often-inane writing. When Fatima tells Jack she always was a lesbian, even when she was dating him, and was merely in denial, she adds, "And I don't mean a river in Egypt." That's how lame the dialogue is. It gets even worse, when Lee and co-writer Michael Genet give Brian Dennehy positively laughable dialogue later.
The corrupt business practices of Enron and its ties to the Bush administration deserve to be told. As does a satire, if you must, of white collar crooks who get off relatively easy and wind up having hugely successful lives as a result of their crimes. But this isn't the film that does it.
Lee's clever, talented and certainly socially conscious, but just seems to be tossing in every idea he had into "She Hate Me." Instead of being bitingly satirical about society's lopsided values, this is a mishmash of a film that is never as funny as it wants to be or as provocative as it should be.
The premise: Jack Armstrong (Anthony Mackie), a hotshot VP at a pharmaceutical company, suddenly finds himself unemployed and in need of money. When his ex-fiancée-turned-lesbian Fatima Goodrich (Kerry Washington) offers him $10,000 to impregnate her and her lover Alex (the sexy Dania Ramirez), Jack realizes he could be a sexual cash cow. Next thing he knows, he's in high demand from wealthy lesbians who want children.
The problem is that Lee doesn't know what he wants his film to be. Or, what the story should be. He tackles way too many issues and never tackles any of them very well.
The film opens with a novel title sequence that ends with a broadside against President George W. Bush. Fair enough. Lee's bit actually works. The story then turns into some sort of diatribe against corporate greed, against the blatant excesses of the Enrons and WorldComs of corporate America. OK. Then there's also all this stuff about lesbians and impregnating them. And Jack's conscience about whether he's doing the right thing.
But the film then suddenly turns into a defense of Frank Wills, the black security guard who uncovered the Watergate burglary. Lee makes a valid point that while all the players involved in the burglary and subsequent cover-up went on to have lucrative careers as statesmen, authors, speakers and radio personalities, Wills died in obscurity. A tribute to Wills is long overdue. The man was a hero. But what the heck's his story doing in this film? And in a moment that seems completely arbitrary, Lee also throws in Oliver North into the mix of Watergate figures.
For a satire to work, it needs to satirize something. Frankly, I didn't know what exactly Lee was trying to send up. And, after a while, I didn't care. His movie's neither a sex comedy nor stinging social commentary. In fact, at times "She Hates Me" plays more like some sort of unbridled male fantasy. Not only are all the lesbians attractive, but also they want to get impregnated the old-fashioned way. The one lesbian who chooses artificial insemination fails and so has to plead with Jack to have sex with her.
Subtlety has never been Lee's forte. But in films such as "Do the Right Thing" (1989) and "Jungle Fever" (1991), he somehow found a good balance between satire and social comment. Here, he does no such thing. In "She Hate Me," Lee's about as subtle as a sledgehammer.
What's ultimately disappointing about "She Hate Me" is the often-inane writing. When Fatima tells Jack she always was a lesbian, even when she was dating him, and was merely in denial, she adds, "And I don't mean a river in Egypt." That's how lame the dialogue is. It gets even worse, when Lee and co-writer Michael Genet give Brian Dennehy positively laughable dialogue later.
The corrupt business practices of Enron and its ties to the Bush administration deserve to be told. As does a satire, if you must, of white collar crooks who get off relatively easy and wind up having hugely successful lives as a result of their crimes. But this isn't the film that does it.
Lee's clever, talented and certainly socially conscious, but just seems to be tossing in every idea he had into "She Hate Me." Instead of being bitingly satirical about society's lopsided values, this is a mishmash of a film that is never as funny as it wants to be or as provocative as it should be.
This movie made me think of how its premise was created. Suppose a man wanted to push the fantasy about being sexually desired by women to the extreme. How would he proceed? 1) Must be pursued sexually by many women. Certainly more than 2. Better make it 18. 2) If the women are not normally attracted to men, their attraction to him is theoretically more impressive (by some rationalizations). So make them lesbians. Better make them cute too, there is no prestige in ugly women. 3) To emphasize the premise, have the women actually pay him to have sex with him. Make it be it a lot of money. $10,000. The problem is that this premise seems obvious and silly by itself. To make it less obvious, state that the women are motivated by the desire to get pregnant. You can still slip in the implication that they want sex with him because they didn't choose artificial insemination. I got the impression that this is how the premise for "She Hate Me" was developed. It has many other subplots of interest, but I think it is based on a somewhat obvious and adolescent fantasy.
- George_Jetson_802701
- Sep 7, 2004
- Permalink
It's safe to say that most people don't like Spike Lee. He's a radical, he's racist, and a lot of people don't like his movies. That would explain the 3.3/10 rating for She Hate Me on IMDb, considering most of them haven't seen the film. Either that, or they couldn't handle everything that Lee (and co-screenwriter Michael Genet) put onto the plate. However, Lee could barely handle all of it, and it shows. There's so much for Lee to rant on and make fun of that the movie occasionally lags and feels too heavy for having way too much to talk about. At 138 minutes, it does go on for a little too long, but that's the only way Lee can fit everything he wants to talk about into his movie. Surprisingly, it all has a place, and for the most part works pretty well.
John Henry Armstrong (Anthony Mackie), aka Jack, works for a prestigious drug company whose drug for curing AIDS has just been rejected by the FDA. However, CEO Leland Powell (Woody Harrelson) performs some illegal transactions, causing Jack to blow the whistle and subsequently get fired. Not being able to get a job anywhere else, Jack's broke until his ex-fiancée Fatima (Kerry Washington) comes to him with a plan. For $10,000, he will impregnate her and her partner Alex (Dania Ramirez). He's initially reluctant, but he decides to go ahead. Soon, Fatima brings a bunch of lesbians to his place, all for $10,000 each. Jack has morality issues to deal with, but also, his former company frame him for the corrupt business practices.
From the opening credits, where dollar bills float, ending with a $3 with George W. Bush on it, you know that this movie isn't going to be easy. Lee throws in another attack on Bush later, and he tackles the subjects of corporate corruption, homosexuality, the stereotypes of black men (and women), and the importance of whistleblowing. That definitely is too much material to work with, and it shows. In the film, there's about 45 minutes with no talk of the framing of Jack that's being planned. And there's some funny comedy thrown in, that is quite funny, but makes the film disjointed. One serious scene connects directly to a funny one. It wasn't very balanced. And I could have done without the subplot of Jack's parents. It didn't really lead anywhere. And then everything boils down to a courtroom climax.
However, the film is always fascinating when Lee exposes these things. It's too much for him to handle, as I've said, but what he can throw in coherently is interesting and entertaining. The movie is one of the most entertaining of the year, and during the aforementioned courtroom climax, you're rooting for Jack, because you've been through what he's been through. You recognized the cruelty of the company, so you feel with Jack, and because he's such a normal character, you can go along with what he's feeling and everything unfair that happens to him (which is a lot). Although it's comedic, you understand what he's going through when you see animated sperm with Jack's face on it, when he's too tired to continue with the impregnation.
Mackie does a great job. He does some emotional work, and although in one place or two, it seemed like he was going by the book, he puts in a sympathetic acting job. Washington does a more realistic acting performance, but both are great. They both add to She Hate Me, a somewhat muddled but entertaining, funny (if in the wrong places), and criticizing drama. You'll either love it or be offended by it. I think the chance is worth taking. By the way, that flashback with Nixon, et al., might be the funniest moment of the year.
My rating: 7/10
Rated R for strong graphic sexuality/nudity, language and a scene of violence.
John Henry Armstrong (Anthony Mackie), aka Jack, works for a prestigious drug company whose drug for curing AIDS has just been rejected by the FDA. However, CEO Leland Powell (Woody Harrelson) performs some illegal transactions, causing Jack to blow the whistle and subsequently get fired. Not being able to get a job anywhere else, Jack's broke until his ex-fiancée Fatima (Kerry Washington) comes to him with a plan. For $10,000, he will impregnate her and her partner Alex (Dania Ramirez). He's initially reluctant, but he decides to go ahead. Soon, Fatima brings a bunch of lesbians to his place, all for $10,000 each. Jack has morality issues to deal with, but also, his former company frame him for the corrupt business practices.
From the opening credits, where dollar bills float, ending with a $3 with George W. Bush on it, you know that this movie isn't going to be easy. Lee throws in another attack on Bush later, and he tackles the subjects of corporate corruption, homosexuality, the stereotypes of black men (and women), and the importance of whistleblowing. That definitely is too much material to work with, and it shows. In the film, there's about 45 minutes with no talk of the framing of Jack that's being planned. And there's some funny comedy thrown in, that is quite funny, but makes the film disjointed. One serious scene connects directly to a funny one. It wasn't very balanced. And I could have done without the subplot of Jack's parents. It didn't really lead anywhere. And then everything boils down to a courtroom climax.
However, the film is always fascinating when Lee exposes these things. It's too much for him to handle, as I've said, but what he can throw in coherently is interesting and entertaining. The movie is one of the most entertaining of the year, and during the aforementioned courtroom climax, you're rooting for Jack, because you've been through what he's been through. You recognized the cruelty of the company, so you feel with Jack, and because he's such a normal character, you can go along with what he's feeling and everything unfair that happens to him (which is a lot). Although it's comedic, you understand what he's going through when you see animated sperm with Jack's face on it, when he's too tired to continue with the impregnation.
Mackie does a great job. He does some emotional work, and although in one place or two, it seemed like he was going by the book, he puts in a sympathetic acting job. Washington does a more realistic acting performance, but both are great. They both add to She Hate Me, a somewhat muddled but entertaining, funny (if in the wrong places), and criticizing drama. You'll either love it or be offended by it. I think the chance is worth taking. By the way, that flashback with Nixon, et al., might be the funniest moment of the year.
My rating: 7/10
Rated R for strong graphic sexuality/nudity, language and a scene of violence.
- movieguy1021
- Sep 4, 2004
- Permalink
I loved the movie. It reminded me of days gone by when I actually stood for something. In my opinion it follows typical Spike Lee style of story telling and cinematography. Spike is still a great story teller--even if you don't like the stories he chooses to tell. The story starts out with a young African American executive faced with a moral decision of whistle-blowing on his company. He apparently makes a decent salary and it will cost him loose this job. He makes his decision and has to live with the consequences. We follow the path of his decision which goes in a whole new direction--which could be its own movie, "She's Gotta Have It Part 2." As with many Spike Lee films, it is designed to make you think. There are several key issues: Lesbians' rights to have children, corporate corruption, health-care, and parental responsibility. I did not find it as preachy as some of Spike's other works but I haven't been to church in some time so I just may not remember what "preachy" is.
- bigbrutha2da5th
- May 3, 2006
- Permalink
So the anti-Bush campaign that makes up the first 45 minutes or so of the movie are pretty clear. Even the attack on Bush's anti-gay tendencies are pretty clear. What's not clear is what the movie's trying to do. Jack is a corporate employee with serious potential who finds himself unemployed because of his refusal to ignore the massive corporate corruption with which he suddenly finds himself surrounded. So then he goes home to his fancy apartment, which he can no longer afford to maintain, and then has to deal with the torturous proposal of impregnating lesbians at $10,000 a piece.
The most difficult endeavor that the movie takes on is in trying to make us believe that Jack was actually conflicted about all of this, and it fails miserably. There a nonsensical subplot about him still being upset about his ex-girlfriend, the lesbian who is bringing all of her lesbian friends to be impregnated by Jack, but only after her.
Keep in mind that their breakup happened FOUR YEARS EARLIER, and not only was he belligerently furious to come home and find his sexy girlfriend having sex with another sexy woman, but he hasn't gotten over it four years later. They actually get into screaming arguments in the movie about this ancient history between themselves.
I'm reminded of one of Julia Roberts' many great lines from Closer "What are you, 12?"
So while he's not busy acting like a junior high school kid who's heartbroken about some girl who cheated on him, he's having sex with whole lines of lesbians and trying to act like it's just hell to him. Please. At the risk of sounding like some typical jerk, for such a thing to be torturous to a man we need to have a real, real good reason for him to hate doing it, and still being upset about a relationship that ended nearly half a decade earlier isn't even close to reason enough.
I can accept that the movie wants to suggest that this guy genuinely loved his girlfriend and truly feels like he has lost the love of his life, but let me tell you one thing. Showing a guy suffer through Every Man's Fantasy is not the way to do it. At all. Unless, of course, you have some ulterior political motive, but that's just not Spike Lee's style, right? Right?
I won't spend much time talking about the ludicrous premise about the lesbians. Whether you've seen the movie or not, you probably already know all about it. The problem is that you also come into the movie already knowing what a socially and politically conscious filmmaker Spike Lee is. We know that he is going to be making political statements in the film, and some of them are clear while others are not, unless Spike has completely lost all sense of balance. There are scenes where it is increasingly obvious what social ills are being dealt with, such as the terrible scene where Jack has some wooden and massively unrealistic conversation with his friend, who is trying to make money donating sperm. It's a god-awful scene, but it's relatively clear what is being said.
I could, of course, come up with some pretty solid theories about what is being said about the homosexual content of the film, how Jack the black man is forced to descend to that level, but it is such a gigantic portion of the film that it even overshadows that picture of Bush on the $3 bill at the end of the opening credits, and that's a difficult image to overshadow. Lee puts so much stock into the lesbians in this movie that it borders on low- grade soft porn.
At one point in the movie, while bike riding together, Jack's brother gives him a bright, sparkling gem of advice get a vasectomy and call it a day. Now, there are two things that could lead a man to give such advice to his brother. First, it could be because he's been having too much sex, or second, it could be because he's making ten thousand dollars at a time doing it. Either way, it's a good reason never to take advice from your brother again. Jack, of course, reacts by throwing a temper tantrum like an 8 year old kid, resulting in one of the great many scenes that made me want to put a pot over my head and start beating on it with a serving ladle.
One of the biggest problems with the movie is that not only does it bore and irritate but it deliberately insults the audience. Granted, I didn't know a lot of the details about some of the homages that are made in the film, such as the XFL player that inspired the title of the film and the security guard who exposed the Watergate break-in and ruined his own life in the process. I can understand if Lee wants us to be aware of what he's talking about, but he literally stops his movie to put these stories up on billboards and then hits us over the head with them.
By the end of the movie I was literally standing up, pacing back and forth I was so irritated and desperate for it to end. There are times when I wish I didn't have this determination to finish watching movies, even the abysmally terrible ones.
The really sad thing about She Hate Me is that it isn't even not very good for a Spike Lee film, this is just a bad movie overall. It's almost weird to think that it was directed by the same man that directed true classics like Do The Right Thing, one of my all time favorite films. She Hate Me is Spike Lee's version of Spielberg's 1941, but worse.
Much worse.
The most difficult endeavor that the movie takes on is in trying to make us believe that Jack was actually conflicted about all of this, and it fails miserably. There a nonsensical subplot about him still being upset about his ex-girlfriend, the lesbian who is bringing all of her lesbian friends to be impregnated by Jack, but only after her.
Keep in mind that their breakup happened FOUR YEARS EARLIER, and not only was he belligerently furious to come home and find his sexy girlfriend having sex with another sexy woman, but he hasn't gotten over it four years later. They actually get into screaming arguments in the movie about this ancient history between themselves.
I'm reminded of one of Julia Roberts' many great lines from Closer "What are you, 12?"
So while he's not busy acting like a junior high school kid who's heartbroken about some girl who cheated on him, he's having sex with whole lines of lesbians and trying to act like it's just hell to him. Please. At the risk of sounding like some typical jerk, for such a thing to be torturous to a man we need to have a real, real good reason for him to hate doing it, and still being upset about a relationship that ended nearly half a decade earlier isn't even close to reason enough.
I can accept that the movie wants to suggest that this guy genuinely loved his girlfriend and truly feels like he has lost the love of his life, but let me tell you one thing. Showing a guy suffer through Every Man's Fantasy is not the way to do it. At all. Unless, of course, you have some ulterior political motive, but that's just not Spike Lee's style, right? Right?
I won't spend much time talking about the ludicrous premise about the lesbians. Whether you've seen the movie or not, you probably already know all about it. The problem is that you also come into the movie already knowing what a socially and politically conscious filmmaker Spike Lee is. We know that he is going to be making political statements in the film, and some of them are clear while others are not, unless Spike has completely lost all sense of balance. There are scenes where it is increasingly obvious what social ills are being dealt with, such as the terrible scene where Jack has some wooden and massively unrealistic conversation with his friend, who is trying to make money donating sperm. It's a god-awful scene, but it's relatively clear what is being said.
I could, of course, come up with some pretty solid theories about what is being said about the homosexual content of the film, how Jack the black man is forced to descend to that level, but it is such a gigantic portion of the film that it even overshadows that picture of Bush on the $3 bill at the end of the opening credits, and that's a difficult image to overshadow. Lee puts so much stock into the lesbians in this movie that it borders on low- grade soft porn.
At one point in the movie, while bike riding together, Jack's brother gives him a bright, sparkling gem of advice get a vasectomy and call it a day. Now, there are two things that could lead a man to give such advice to his brother. First, it could be because he's been having too much sex, or second, it could be because he's making ten thousand dollars at a time doing it. Either way, it's a good reason never to take advice from your brother again. Jack, of course, reacts by throwing a temper tantrum like an 8 year old kid, resulting in one of the great many scenes that made me want to put a pot over my head and start beating on it with a serving ladle.
One of the biggest problems with the movie is that not only does it bore and irritate but it deliberately insults the audience. Granted, I didn't know a lot of the details about some of the homages that are made in the film, such as the XFL player that inspired the title of the film and the security guard who exposed the Watergate break-in and ruined his own life in the process. I can understand if Lee wants us to be aware of what he's talking about, but he literally stops his movie to put these stories up on billboards and then hits us over the head with them.
By the end of the movie I was literally standing up, pacing back and forth I was so irritated and desperate for it to end. There are times when I wish I didn't have this determination to finish watching movies, even the abysmally terrible ones.
The really sad thing about She Hate Me is that it isn't even not very good for a Spike Lee film, this is just a bad movie overall. It's almost weird to think that it was directed by the same man that directed true classics like Do The Right Thing, one of my all time favorite films. She Hate Me is Spike Lee's version of Spielberg's 1941, but worse.
Much worse.
- Anonymous_Maxine
- Apr 22, 2005
- Permalink
I must say Spike Lee made another movie that many people didn't like, "Girl 6," and I agree with the majority on that one but not this time. There are some scenes from "She Hate Me," which don't work. I think the foremost one is the mafia kingpin scenes with John Turtorro and his daughter, who only seems 10 or 15 years younger than him. But, one whole scene is not enough reason to dish this film. The cast is otherwise exceptional. Even though I don't always agree with Spike Lee's political views, I thought the humor here was both hip and politically relevant. I also liked the scenes with the Watergate security guard and the FBI agents who really get into their job. The sex scenes were some of the funniest ones I've seen in years. I suppose some people thought the animation was extreme, but I really thought it was both funny and original. I think the film also accurately reflects what life in contemporary urban America is like today. And, though I never the experience, I am sure that losing a woman to a lesbian lover is indeed as painful as it seems here. I imagine some radical feminists did not care for Lee's pov here, but I think he hits the nail on the head.I took a risk on this film and in the end it was worth it. As much as I like Turtorro, I think Spike Lee should have edited them out or used them minimally to make the film closer to 120 minutes in length. But, in spite of this major flaw, I dug this film. It was fun. The screenplay is quite unique and holds on its own. And, contrary to what some may say, it is proof Spike Lee can make good comedy films.
Spike Lee's latest effort "She Hate Me" has been a debate for moviegoers. Some like it, some don't. I love Spike's work but that doesn't mean I am biased. I went into "She Hate Me" expecting the worst. But like most of Spike's films, I liked it. Some parts did make me cringe a bit but overall it is a clever film. You all know who the story goes, Jack Armstrong (Anthony Mackie) witnesses the suicide of his co-worker and finds a CD with his co-worker confessing of the company's (Progeia) wrong doings. Jack gets fired from his VP position and his bank accounts are frozen. His ex-fiancée Fatima (Kerry Washington) and her lesbian lover Alex (the stunningly beautiful Dania Ramirez) gives Jack an offer he can't refuse. He gets to impregnate ("the old fashion way") 18 lesbians for the price of 10 grand each. He does what he has to do until his ex-boss Leland Powell (Woody Harrelson) finds out about it and get him on charges. Also in the storyline is Monica Bellucci's character get impregnated with her mob family knowing about it. I heard that this film is confusing and a big mess but if you follow Spike's films you know that he has done this his whole career. All of his film's go off the storyline and gives the audience a chance to know the character. By the end of the film, you feel connected with Jack, Fatima, Alex and all the other characters surrounding them. Another thing that Spike did a good job on was the portrayal of lesbians. Unlike other films, "She Hate Me" doesn't portray them as sex vixens who have nothing on their mind but sex. But as smart, intelligent and funny women that are concerned about family values and the society surrounding them, and maybe a little bit of sex. I really think that Spike redeemed himself with "She Hate Me". Nothing was wrong with "25th Hour",it's a great film, but it just didn't feel too much like a Spike Lee joint. "She Hate Me" is a sassy comedy and very entertaining. Watch out for the Bush bashing scenes.
She Hate Me- rated R *** out of ****
She Hate Me- rated R *** out of ****
I thoroughly enjoyed "She Hate Me", but I did so because it's such a masterpiece of howling ineptitude. It's a kind of movie you cut some slack the way you would Guns N' Roses' "Estranged" video (the one with the flying dolphins and Axl jumping off an aircraft carrier), because it's clear to you that the visionary behind it has clearly lost his mind. Spike Lee, who always makes movies with something to say, here tries to cover corporate greed, lesbianism, a touch of the mob, and the plight of the brave whistle-blower, but he crams his movie so full of ideas that nothing seems to clearly get through. And it's too long, with scenes where a character describes something in detail, and then we see it reenacted in flashback; as well as a cameo by John Turturro where he has a monologue that is completely unnecessary given the purpose of the scene. But the film's hilarious male-fantasy premise (as well as the ending) make it an entertaining experience. If anything, it's what a parody of a Spike Lee movie would probably look like.
- dannyclark80
- Feb 11, 2005
- Permalink
Fired from his executive position within a medical research company for reporting unethical behaviour, John Henry Armstrong finds himself hung out to dry, blaming by the CEO for the drop in share value and with his assets frozen. When his ex-girlfriend and her lesbian lover come to him asking for his sperm to get them pregnant in return for $5,000 a time an offer he eventually accepts. Once the deed is done, Fatima starts bringing him other professional lesbian couples who have failed to have children by any of the more conventional routes. As this becomes his new profession, the corporate witch-hunt for a fall guy continues with him in the spotlight.
I will always try and see a Spike Lee film. Not because he is the world's best director (he is not) nor because his films are always fantastic (they most definitely are not) but because even his poor films provide interest and brain food in a way that so many Hollywood films do not. It is easy to just dismiss him but to do so misses so much of what he does that is good and worth seeing. I certainly cannot defend this film on the grounds of narrative because it is all over the place Enron, sexual ethics, the failures of the corporate world and political system to "ordinary" people, all this while still having sex scenes and animated sperm and eggs. If you let it, the fragmentation of the narrative will annoy you it bothered me a little bit and I wished that the film had been shorter with a tighter focus. However, it is still interesting and it engaged my brain; you can imagine the "man gets lesbians pregnant" concept being the next cheap and nasty "comedy" at number one in the box office charts and, although he seems to enjoy the sexual humour of the material, Lee deserves credit for not forgetting that I (and many audiences) like to have my brain stimulated before anything else.
If the opening credits ($3 bill) doesn't give you a clue what it is about, then the film helps with the corporate world setting. The themes are business, money and ethics and the film preaches a lot at points but generally is interesting. There is a lot of slack in the film that should have been removed and for some of it the point was totally lost on me but I was thinking all the time and that is a good thing. Lee's direction is as good as ever and the cinematography is slick. With so much focus on theme instead of story, it is no surprise that the actors aren't that great, but they do all do enough to keep the film working. Mackie is not a great actor but he is effective enough here and it isn't his fault if his character isn't developed that well. Likewise Washington, Barkin, Bellucci, Harrelson etc are all OK but they are more parts within a point rather than characters. Q-Tip is a non-character but is a nice presence in the sort of role that Lee would often play. Although it didn't bother me too much, I did wonder how much damage the portrayal of lesbians did the film or how fair it was? To my eye they seemed to be either lipstick lesbians that were very sexy, or larger women played for comic effect only one or two seemed like "normal" people; but with so many other things to niggle me, this was right at the bottom of my list.
Overall, the negative reviews are partly correct because this is a messy film with a narrative that is all over the place. Happily, Spike Lee is always worth watching because the film has interesting themes through it and Lee's anger may be overdone at times but mainly it has the desired effect of being very watchable. Worth seeing for what it does well even if it does a lot wrong.
I will always try and see a Spike Lee film. Not because he is the world's best director (he is not) nor because his films are always fantastic (they most definitely are not) but because even his poor films provide interest and brain food in a way that so many Hollywood films do not. It is easy to just dismiss him but to do so misses so much of what he does that is good and worth seeing. I certainly cannot defend this film on the grounds of narrative because it is all over the place Enron, sexual ethics, the failures of the corporate world and political system to "ordinary" people, all this while still having sex scenes and animated sperm and eggs. If you let it, the fragmentation of the narrative will annoy you it bothered me a little bit and I wished that the film had been shorter with a tighter focus. However, it is still interesting and it engaged my brain; you can imagine the "man gets lesbians pregnant" concept being the next cheap and nasty "comedy" at number one in the box office charts and, although he seems to enjoy the sexual humour of the material, Lee deserves credit for not forgetting that I (and many audiences) like to have my brain stimulated before anything else.
If the opening credits ($3 bill) doesn't give you a clue what it is about, then the film helps with the corporate world setting. The themes are business, money and ethics and the film preaches a lot at points but generally is interesting. There is a lot of slack in the film that should have been removed and for some of it the point was totally lost on me but I was thinking all the time and that is a good thing. Lee's direction is as good as ever and the cinematography is slick. With so much focus on theme instead of story, it is no surprise that the actors aren't that great, but they do all do enough to keep the film working. Mackie is not a great actor but he is effective enough here and it isn't his fault if his character isn't developed that well. Likewise Washington, Barkin, Bellucci, Harrelson etc are all OK but they are more parts within a point rather than characters. Q-Tip is a non-character but is a nice presence in the sort of role that Lee would often play. Although it didn't bother me too much, I did wonder how much damage the portrayal of lesbians did the film or how fair it was? To my eye they seemed to be either lipstick lesbians that were very sexy, or larger women played for comic effect only one or two seemed like "normal" people; but with so many other things to niggle me, this was right at the bottom of my list.
Overall, the negative reviews are partly correct because this is a messy film with a narrative that is all over the place. Happily, Spike Lee is always worth watching because the film has interesting themes through it and Lee's anger may be overdone at times but mainly it has the desired effect of being very watchable. Worth seeing for what it does well even if it does a lot wrong.
- bob the moo
- Apr 21, 2005
- Permalink
There's an old premise that the best storytelling is shown, not told. In terms of the latest Spike Lee Joint, 'She Hate Me,' no truer words have ever been uttered.
Jack Armstrong (Anthony Mackie) is a young vice-president of a pharmaceutical company on the verge of unveiling a vaccine for HIV, pending FDA approval. Through the nefarious actions of greedy senior executives, Jack finds himself pegged as the scapegoat for this drug that ultimately will not be approved and the subsequent tumble in company stock. Think Enron, Worldcom, et al. but Spike won't let you think for yourself, as he keeps their specific names prominently displayed throughout the movie with overt and pointed references. Margo (Ellen Barkin) who looked eerily like Martha Stewart only further illustrates this point.
In a scenario reminiscent of 'Enemy of the State,' Jack loses access to all of his finances and is 'forced' to consider alternative means of generating income. After an unexpected visit by his former fiancée he accepts her offer to become father of her child her child and her lesbian lover's child.
$10,000 for 2 successful impregnations is the deal and Jack 'reluctantly' accepts. The next thing you know, he has lesbian women knocking at his door daily, five at a time, offering $10,000 each per impregnation.
If you've ever seen a 'Spike Lee Joint,' you're aware of the common threads woven into all of his movies. You come to expect certain elements and even certain actors. The fact that the supporting cast included such venerable thespians as Ossie Davis (Judge Buchanon), John Turturro (Don Angelo), Lonette McKee (Lottie) and Joie Lee (Gloria), while featuring a fabulous soundtrack by Terence Blanchard should be a surprise to no one. The fact that those actors, combined with Monica Belucci (Simona), Brian Dennehy (Chairman Church) and Woody Harrelson (Powell) didn't amount to a great movie should be tremendously surprising and disappointing.
From the opening credits, Spike Lee's signature is everywhere. From the rich combination of jazz and orchestral sensibilities in the underlying music bed that set the tone and timbre of the movie, you know Spike Lee is here. From the blatant opening reference and disdain of President George Bush; you knew the direction this vehicle headed and who was at the wheel.
According to Lee, 'The story of 'She Hate Me' is very simple. It's about sex, greed, money and politics.'
Yes and no. It's about all of those things, but it's far from being simple.
The message to be delivered was loud and clear. Unfortunately, this message was one of at least 75 different and varied lessons 'She Hate Me' would offer to its viewers. Even more unfortunately, Spike chose oration for each and every 'message' in sermonizing character dialogue. Either Spike no longer respects his viewers enough to allow them to 'figure it out on their own' or that verbally bludgeoning them with his viewpoints (all 75 of them) is now considered a more viable storytelling alternative.
The story of 'She Hate Me' is ostensibly about Jack Armstrong and his attempt at getting out of one sticky situation by entering another. In fact, it's not. This movie is more about the relationships and realities of women in love with one-another. This movie is at its best when Spike demonstrates that regardless of gender or orientation; insecurity and jealousy are universal. The desires of family and fidelity are also universal, irrespective of familial unit structure. Most importantly, the need to be accepted unconditionally is a definitive trait in all of us. Those arguably were the most important messages in this movie and Lee is right on the mark.
Where 'She Hate Me' specifically missteps is that the story is from the point of view of an unsympathetic character. When Jack first started his new 'business' he supposedly needed money for the moment to counterbalance his frozen assets and continuing financial responsibilities. Yet 18 women, 19 children and some $180,000 later, neither Spike Lee, co-writer Michael Genet nor character Jack himself offers a reason as to why he continued such dangerous and fruitless indiscretions, for so long.
The characters and relationships most enjoyable in this movie were fleeting in nature; components remarkably and conspicuously absent after introduction for most of the film. Jack's relationship with his father Geronimo (played by Jim Brown) was engaging. The sight of football Hall-of-Famer Jim Brown playing a character fighting diabetes and to save his marriage simultaneously was moving. The newly evolving relationship of Geronimo with his son in the midst of the chaos around him was another meaningful subplot; one of many that Lee didn't revisit until nearly the end of the movie.
A monologue by Don Angelo (John Turturro) gave us another glimpse of Turturro's acting brilliance. John Turturro is a future Academy Award winner; it's just a shame this won't be the role that does it for him.
If there is an explanation as to why some sub-stories and sub-plots were not covered as deeply as others it would be the fact that there are so many characters, all of which feel compelled to tell their life story. In fact, there are just too many people to keep up with, too many to care about in the end. It's like juggling fiery bowling pins, where too much concentration on one leads to really bad consequences.
Visually, 'She Hate Me' pays homage to films of the 1970's, with its simplistic camera angles devoid of lighting tricks or steady-cams. The knowing use of varying hues and blurred frames was quite appealing stylistically, even cool. This, combined with great musical cues featuring tenor saxophone melodies was a nice tip of the fedora to the Film Noir genre.
'She Hate Me' is raw and gritty in its imagery, remarkable in its musicality and at times sensual in its delivery but ultimately not a good movie.
Jack Armstrong (Anthony Mackie) is a young vice-president of a pharmaceutical company on the verge of unveiling a vaccine for HIV, pending FDA approval. Through the nefarious actions of greedy senior executives, Jack finds himself pegged as the scapegoat for this drug that ultimately will not be approved and the subsequent tumble in company stock. Think Enron, Worldcom, et al. but Spike won't let you think for yourself, as he keeps their specific names prominently displayed throughout the movie with overt and pointed references. Margo (Ellen Barkin) who looked eerily like Martha Stewart only further illustrates this point.
In a scenario reminiscent of 'Enemy of the State,' Jack loses access to all of his finances and is 'forced' to consider alternative means of generating income. After an unexpected visit by his former fiancée he accepts her offer to become father of her child her child and her lesbian lover's child.
$10,000 for 2 successful impregnations is the deal and Jack 'reluctantly' accepts. The next thing you know, he has lesbian women knocking at his door daily, five at a time, offering $10,000 each per impregnation.
If you've ever seen a 'Spike Lee Joint,' you're aware of the common threads woven into all of his movies. You come to expect certain elements and even certain actors. The fact that the supporting cast included such venerable thespians as Ossie Davis (Judge Buchanon), John Turturro (Don Angelo), Lonette McKee (Lottie) and Joie Lee (Gloria), while featuring a fabulous soundtrack by Terence Blanchard should be a surprise to no one. The fact that those actors, combined with Monica Belucci (Simona), Brian Dennehy (Chairman Church) and Woody Harrelson (Powell) didn't amount to a great movie should be tremendously surprising and disappointing.
From the opening credits, Spike Lee's signature is everywhere. From the rich combination of jazz and orchestral sensibilities in the underlying music bed that set the tone and timbre of the movie, you know Spike Lee is here. From the blatant opening reference and disdain of President George Bush; you knew the direction this vehicle headed and who was at the wheel.
According to Lee, 'The story of 'She Hate Me' is very simple. It's about sex, greed, money and politics.'
Yes and no. It's about all of those things, but it's far from being simple.
The message to be delivered was loud and clear. Unfortunately, this message was one of at least 75 different and varied lessons 'She Hate Me' would offer to its viewers. Even more unfortunately, Spike chose oration for each and every 'message' in sermonizing character dialogue. Either Spike no longer respects his viewers enough to allow them to 'figure it out on their own' or that verbally bludgeoning them with his viewpoints (all 75 of them) is now considered a more viable storytelling alternative.
The story of 'She Hate Me' is ostensibly about Jack Armstrong and his attempt at getting out of one sticky situation by entering another. In fact, it's not. This movie is more about the relationships and realities of women in love with one-another. This movie is at its best when Spike demonstrates that regardless of gender or orientation; insecurity and jealousy are universal. The desires of family and fidelity are also universal, irrespective of familial unit structure. Most importantly, the need to be accepted unconditionally is a definitive trait in all of us. Those arguably were the most important messages in this movie and Lee is right on the mark.
Where 'She Hate Me' specifically missteps is that the story is from the point of view of an unsympathetic character. When Jack first started his new 'business' he supposedly needed money for the moment to counterbalance his frozen assets and continuing financial responsibilities. Yet 18 women, 19 children and some $180,000 later, neither Spike Lee, co-writer Michael Genet nor character Jack himself offers a reason as to why he continued such dangerous and fruitless indiscretions, for so long.
The characters and relationships most enjoyable in this movie were fleeting in nature; components remarkably and conspicuously absent after introduction for most of the film. Jack's relationship with his father Geronimo (played by Jim Brown) was engaging. The sight of football Hall-of-Famer Jim Brown playing a character fighting diabetes and to save his marriage simultaneously was moving. The newly evolving relationship of Geronimo with his son in the midst of the chaos around him was another meaningful subplot; one of many that Lee didn't revisit until nearly the end of the movie.
A monologue by Don Angelo (John Turturro) gave us another glimpse of Turturro's acting brilliance. John Turturro is a future Academy Award winner; it's just a shame this won't be the role that does it for him.
If there is an explanation as to why some sub-stories and sub-plots were not covered as deeply as others it would be the fact that there are so many characters, all of which feel compelled to tell their life story. In fact, there are just too many people to keep up with, too many to care about in the end. It's like juggling fiery bowling pins, where too much concentration on one leads to really bad consequences.
Visually, 'She Hate Me' pays homage to films of the 1970's, with its simplistic camera angles devoid of lighting tricks or steady-cams. The knowing use of varying hues and blurred frames was quite appealing stylistically, even cool. This, combined with great musical cues featuring tenor saxophone melodies was a nice tip of the fedora to the Film Noir genre.
'She Hate Me' is raw and gritty in its imagery, remarkable in its musicality and at times sensual in its delivery but ultimately not a good movie.
- gtown91-writing
- Jul 28, 2004
- Permalink
She Hate Me is like a whacky sex comedy with serious political ideas and probably like some criticism on current affairs circa 2005 (like George W Bush and affirmative action) and so forth. It has a great cast of characters who act very well and probably were lesser known for their time (Anthony Mackie, Kerry Washington). It even stars Monica Bellucci and other stunning actresses.
With all these different components the movie manages to work pretty well with some fancy editing and unexpected kinds of footage (like seeing an actual vagina in a giving birth scene). Sometimes though, and more towards the end, I was shaking my head wondering what was going on. Still the movie has a good sense of humor (like this guy has 19 kids, "sheeeeiittt") even though it sort of ends at another head scratching moment (what is this now a polyamorous family?) which does in mind take the movie toward fantasy. Just because the lesbians are hot and Anthony Mackie is hot doesn't mean that they all make like a happy family together.
This is an odd movie with some problems (what exactly was Anthony Mackie's character in jail for?) and I'm sure if you dug into it maybe more and maybe less would make sense. At face value though it's an entertaining film and that's what matters at the end of the day.
With all these different components the movie manages to work pretty well with some fancy editing and unexpected kinds of footage (like seeing an actual vagina in a giving birth scene). Sometimes though, and more towards the end, I was shaking my head wondering what was going on. Still the movie has a good sense of humor (like this guy has 19 kids, "sheeeeiittt") even though it sort of ends at another head scratching moment (what is this now a polyamorous family?) which does in mind take the movie toward fantasy. Just because the lesbians are hot and Anthony Mackie is hot doesn't mean that they all make like a happy family together.
This is an odd movie with some problems (what exactly was Anthony Mackie's character in jail for?) and I'm sure if you dug into it maybe more and maybe less would make sense. At face value though it's an entertaining film and that's what matters at the end of the day.
- Hallelujah289
- May 17, 2021
- Permalink
for some strange reason this movie was classified as a comedy, but its really not. it has some amusing moments, but its more a drama then a comedy. and its actually not that bad. the movie tells the story of a man who lost his job because he blew the whistle on his company. he's now unemployed and cannot get a job because his old boss burned him everywhere, so he is convinced by his lesbian ex to help lesbians get pregnant.
the movie is more an attempt to discuss the fate of the ones who blew the whistle, and some vague discussion of the morality behind impregnating about 18 women.
now, the discussion is not really very deep or interesting,you get the general idea that the director and writer think that impregnating that many women is somehow morally wrong, even tho there is a direct comparison to regular sperm donors. so maybe someone was trying to imply that donating sperm is wrong? maybe.. and as for the whole whistle blowing thing, well, i have never seen any movie talking about the fate of the man who blew the whistle and was abandoned by the government and society, so it was interesting.
so , to sum it up, its interesting enough to watch , as long as you don't expect too much.
the movie is more an attempt to discuss the fate of the ones who blew the whistle, and some vague discussion of the morality behind impregnating about 18 women.
now, the discussion is not really very deep or interesting,you get the general idea that the director and writer think that impregnating that many women is somehow morally wrong, even tho there is a direct comparison to regular sperm donors. so maybe someone was trying to imply that donating sperm is wrong? maybe.. and as for the whole whistle blowing thing, well, i have never seen any movie talking about the fate of the man who blew the whistle and was abandoned by the government and society, so it was interesting.
so , to sum it up, its interesting enough to watch , as long as you don't expect too much.
I have never really been a fan of Spike Lee and his techniques as a director (especially the way his scenes appear as though a human being is holding the camera in a not-so-still fashion- ugh!!!). But I am absolutely disappointed with this movie ('saw it for the first time last night), and Spike Lee totally lost any vote I had for him all together. What the hell was he thinking? 'Just a flick containing scattered thoughts of a man confused about life all together, it seems. I am especially disappointed in Kerry Washington. She does "Ray", and then she does this crap? I would think that film would've opened up doors for her. What had me the most upset was the fact that you had these "Lesbians" who want to have sex with this man because they want to get pregnant, but then you also see these "Lesbians" lusting after his body, and enjoying sex with him, being affectionate, orgasms- ??? The last time I checked, Lesbians were women who were into women, and did not lust after men. There are Lesbian women in my family- I know the drill. It is every pig's fantasy to "break" a Lesbian, and be the one to "turn her back" to men, and this film depicts that. And then at the end, Kerry Washington decided that she is Bisexual and not Lesbian after all, and then she and her girlfriend decide to have a three-way relationship with this guy, who has a child with each of them, along with having children with umpteen other women that they set him up to have sex with? And the worst thing of all, is the fact that after all the corporate scandal that this guy is wrapped up in, the only thing that gets him off is the fact that the judge feels a father of 17 children should be out working, and not in prison. What's the message here? The solution for a Black man to beat a Surpreme Court case in which he is being racially targeted is for him to have babies everywhere? I find this film sickening. I can only wonder how Lesbians feel, how Black men feel, how heterosexual Black women like me feel, how anybody feels after watching this crap. Spike Lee has run out of bright ideas, and needs to retire...
- ShuhDiamond
- Jan 1, 2006
- Permalink
- Nicol_Bolas
- Apr 28, 2006
- Permalink
I absolutely did NOT like this movie! What kinds of nasty couples do you know who would get down like that!!! I think Spike Lee should stick to political education and not delve into subjects that he clearly knows nothing about. Parts of this movie were so inaccurate, that I fell asleep out of sheer disgust and disbelief at the obvious pornographic insinuations that he was trying to depict of certain lifestyles. Just because he doesn't understand different peoples preferences does not give him the right to come to his own conclusions. He, of course, is only partially to blame, I also blame myself for being silly enough to trust a friends' rave reviews of that nonsense. So now I'm out $4.10!
- free_2live4me
- Feb 14, 2005
- Permalink
This movie really surprised me. I mean, I was raised watching Spike Lee movies simply because he was doing things other young directors weren't doing. He was the voice for voiceless masses of us blacks folks. He gave a platform to situations in the hood that most other people could case less about. However, as I aged and developed an eye for critiquing Spike's movies, I realized that he has this same formula for his movies which he rarely veered from and he always had to beat you over the head with the message. She Hate Me breaks that mold, just a pinch because he still follows his model, but this movie was surprisingly good. While I do feel he did bit off way more than he could have possibly chewed in 2 hours, he did address most of the issues he brought up quite well in the time alloted. Okay, from the previews, you know there's his guy whose lesbian "friend" approaches him to impregnate him, which in and of itself is a bit weird, but the movie is so much more deeper than that simply plot. Spike tackled tons of issues, mostly current issues that we all deal with now, but ultimately, the movie tackles, what would you do and how far would you go for money? This is a good movie worth spending 2 hours of time dissecting. I'm always recommending buying it so you can watch time and time again and discuss.
- Nicoletn11
- Feb 9, 2006
- Permalink
- Kevin_Maness
- Jun 10, 2006
- Permalink
Ladies and gentlemen, let's be serious. I know it is important to discuss views and all that but HONESTLY SPEAKING, this movie is total crap!!! Be honest with yourselves people. For those who enjoyed it: you are entitled to your opinion and choice, but it still is a lousy movie anyway. It is shallow, the plot makes no sense, the acting is B-class, the explicit "giving birth" scene is unnecessary......I could go on. Spike Lee was a man with a future (or so it seemed) but he just couldn't cut it. Then he makes a comeback with what I would rate one of the worst films ever made.....It's all over for him. As per Spike Lee's MO, he was most likely trying to make a movie that will spark debate about one issue or another but this time it just didn't work.