Let me start this review by pointing out that Red Hook Summer was filmed in three weeks on an incredibly low budget. Let me also point out that this does not excuse this film's execution. Spike Lee-one of the most influential filmmakers of all time has made quite possibly the most boring film by a great director. Yes-I remember Gus Van Sant's Psycho and 1941 by Steven Spielberg and I even recall David Lynch's Dune. It is far from the level of awfulness of the three I just mentioned have but at least those films have life. Psycho, 1941 and Dune at least had something in them..a scene or two of excitement. Red Hook Summer feels more like a lecture by a really boring professor who tries to hammer the idea into your head as hard as possible.
That is actually my biggest problem with the film. Lee gets way too preachy with the God babble only to turn to unneeded violence and a subplot that comes in halfway through the film that is not only cliche but appallingly done. By appallingly done I do not mean it was so badly done that I was appalled by the low quality of it (although it is very poorly done). By this I mean that it is done is such a way that you may have to hold back your lunch after seeing one scene in which they confirm that the subplot is accurate. Also..the two kid actors...Jules Brown as Flik and Toni Lysaith as Chazz are awful. Apparently they went to the same junior high that Lee went to but that does not excuse them from having no energy whatsoever. As well...Flik and Chazz are both poorly written characters. They cause trouble for no reason multiple times in the film and in the end we're supposed to care about them, but we simply don't. In fact..there was no single character in this film that I could tolerate.
Furthermore...Red Hook Summer goes for the easy shots throughout. As I said...it turns violent at the end for no reason but then quickly throws on a sappy, obvious ending. Some of the film is shot via Flik's I-Pad 2. This really separates the audience from the film. Rather than giving us a fascinating look at these people as this technique could have and should have done....it just makes it so that we don't get enough of these characters.
The film is also entirely too long. At exactly two hours the film feels like it got its point across way too much by the end. The film also features some entirely too obvious gospel music choices from Lee. Finally...this feels like everyone other film by Lee except this one, unlike most of his is poorly made.
I can not say that I hated Red Hook Summer entirely but I can say it is a fairly pathetic attempt at some kind of observation-both moral and critical. Lee has made a bad film here. In fact..he's made his worst since Bamboozled. However...while this film is bad in many more ways than one...I can not say it is particularly dreadful. Sure it's boring but I respect how Lee made this film with so little and some of what he's trying to say. However....I can not recommend this out of the good of my heart because Lee made too many mistakes and never seemed to be able to get his feet off of the ground.
(1 and 1/2 out of 5 Stars, The film is rated R for brief violence, language and a disturbing situation)
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