''He Got Game'' is a 1998 American

sports Sport is a physical activity or game, often competitive and organized, that maintains or improves physical ability and skills. Sport may provide enjoyment to participants and entertainment to spectators. The number of participants in ...

drama film In film and television, drama is a category or genre of narrative fiction (or semi-fiction) intended to be more serious than humorous in tone. The drama of this kind is usually qualified with additional terms that specify its particular ...

written, produced and directed by Spike Lee and starring

Denzel Washington Denzel Hayes Washington Jr. (born December 28, 1954) is an American actor, producer, and director. Known for his dramatic roles Denzel Washington on screen and stage, on stage and screen, Washington has received List of awards and nominations ...

and Ray Allen. The film revolves around Jake Shuttlesworth (

), father of the top-ranked

basketball Basketball is a team sport in which two teams, most commonly of five players each, opposing one another on a rectangular Basketball court, court, compete with the primary objective of #Shooting, shooting a basketball (ball), basketball (appro ...

prospect in the country, Jesus Shuttlesworth ( Ray Allen). Jake, in prison for killing his wife, is released on

parole Parole, also known as provisional release, supervised release, or being on paper, is a form of early release of a prisoner, prison inmate where the prisoner agrees to abide by behavioral conditions, including checking-in with their designated ...

for a week by the state's governor to persuade his son to play for the governor's alma mater in exchange for a reduced prison sentence. The film marked the third collaboration for Lee and Washington, succeeding '' Mo' Better Blues'' (1990) and '' Malcolm X'' (1992).

Plot

Jesus Shuttlesworth, the top high-school basketball player in the United States, is being pursued by the top college basketball programs in the nation. His father, Jake, is a convicted felon serving time at Attica Correctional Facility for accidentally killing his wife, Martha, Jesus' mother, six years earlier. Jake is granted a work release by the governor, an influential alumnus of "Big State," one of the colleges Jesus is considering, so that he might persuade his son to sign with Big State. If successful, he'll get an early release from prison. In his first moments outside of prison, Jake contacts his daughter, Mary Shuttlesworth, who is happy to see him. When Jesus returns home from school, he refuses to look his father in the eye, and tells his sister to get rid of the "stranger" in their living room. Jesus later agrees to meet with his father at an alternative location away from Mary. Throughout the movie, Jake tries to persuade Jesus to attend Big State with seemingly no success. Eventually, he divulges the deal set up by the governor, but Jesus appears unsympathetic to his father's situation. Flashbacks illustrate the younger Jesus' grueling basketball training under his father and the night an argument between Jake and Jesus escalated into violence, resulting in Jake accidentally killing Jesus' mother after she intervened. Intertwined with the story of the Shuttlesworth family is the sub-plot of Dakota Barns, a prostitute who stays in the room next to Jake in a run-down hotel. Dakota is being abused by her pimp, Sweetness, which Jake overhears through the thin walls. Throughout the film, Jake helps Dakota by cleaning her wounds and giving her some of his per diem money and the two develop a romantic relationship. In one of the final scenes, Dakota rides a Greyhound bus away from

New York City New York, often called New York City (NYC), is the most populous city in the United States, located at the southern tip of New York State on one of the world's largest natural harbors. The city comprises five boroughs, each coextensive w ...

. Jesus is tempted with offers of cash and women on recruiting visits to big-time basketball programs. He also considers entering the NBA draft in order to play professionally sooner and immediately lift himself and his sister out of poverty. Unable to get through to his son, Jake challenges Jesus to one last game of one-on-one basketball. If Jake wins, Jesus will sign a letter of intent to play for Big State and if Jesus wins, he can make his own decision. After a competitive start, Jake tires during the course of the game and Jesus wins. As Jake is collected for transportation back to Attica, he turns to Jesus and says, "Let me tell you something, son: You get that hatred out your heart, or you'll end up just another nigga ... like your father." Ultimately, Jesus decides to sign to play for Big State and gives Jake his blessing. However, the governor does not give Jake the promised reduction, as Jesus did not sign the letter of intent, and Jake's work release is fabricated to the media as an escape attempt. Jake ultimately finds freedom by casting away his dreams and burdens to his son, symbolized by his throwing of an old basketball over the prison wall where it magically lands on the Big State court where Jesus is practicing alone. Jesus clutches the ball, knowing it is a message of hope from his father.

Cast

as Jake Shuttlesworth * Ray Allen as Jesus Shuttlesworth ** Jade Yorker as Jesus Shuttlesworth (age 12) *

Milla Jovovich Milica Bogdanovna Jovović; ; ( ; born December 17, 1975), known professionally as Milla Jovovich (), is an American actress and former fashion model. Her starring roles in numerous science fiction film, science-fiction and action films led th ...

as Dakota Barns * John Turturro as Coach Billy Sunday * Rosario Dawson as Lala Bonilla * Jim Brown as Spivey * Joseph Lyle Taylor as Crudup * Hill Harper as Coleman "Booger" Sykes ** Shortee Reed as Coleman "Booger" Sykes (age 12) * Zelda Harris as Mary Shuttlesworth ** Quinn Harris as Mary Shuttlesworth (age 6) *

Ned Beatty Ned Thomas Beatty (July 6, 1937 – June 13, 2021) was an American actor. In a career that spanned five decades, he appeared in more than 160 film and television roles. Throughout his career, Beatty gained a reputation for being "the busiest ac ...

as Warden Marcel Wyatt * Bill Nunn as Uncle Bubba * Michele Shay as Aunt Sally * Thomas Jefferson Byrd as "Sweetness" * Roger Guenveur Smith as Willie "Big Time Willie" * Lonette McKee as Martha Shuttlesworth * Travis Best as Sip * Walter McCarty as Mance * Kim Director as Lynn * John Wallace as Lonnie * Rick Fox as Chick Deagan * Leonard Roberts as D'Andre Mackey *

Jennifer Esposito Jennifer Esposito (born April 11, 1973) is an American actress. She is known for her roles in the feature films ''Summer of Sam'' (1999), ''Don't Say a Word'' (2001), ''The Master of Disguise'' (2002), ''Welcome to Collinwood'' (2002), ''Crash (2 ...

as Ms. Janus * Tiffany Jones as Buffy * Jill Kelly as Suzie * Al Palagonia as Dom Pagnotti * Arthur J. Nascarella as Coach Cincotta

Production

For the role of Jesus Shuttlesworth, Spike Lee drew up a list of NBA players who could pass for a high school senior. Kobe Bryant was Lee's original choice, but after Bryant shot several air balls that resulted in a brutal playoff loss to the Utah Jazz in the 1997 NBA Playoffs, he withdrew to begin an extensive workout plan to help maintain his strength throughout the season. Lee found Tracy McGrady too reserved and was not impressed by Allen Iverson's performance. Management for Kevin Garnett and Stephon Marbury wanted a guarantee that one or the other would be offered the part. Travis Best, Walter McCarty, and Rick Fox also auditioned, and Lee cast them in supporting roles. Lee approached Ray Allen during halftime of a Bucks- Knicks game, ultimately offering him the role of Jesus. Allen had never acted before, and he trained with an acting coach for eight weeks before filming. Filming took place between July and September 1997. Locations included Coney Island, Brooklyn, Cabrini–Green housing projects in

Chicago, Illinois Chicago is the List of municipalities in Illinois, most populous city in the U.S. state of Illinois and in the Midwestern United States. With a population of 2,746,388, as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, it is the List of Unite ...

Elon University Elon University is a private university in Elon, North Carolina, United States. Founded in 1889 as Elon College, the university is organized into six schools, most of which offer bachelor's degrees and several of which offer master's degrees or ...

Charlotte, North Carolina Charlotte ( ) is the List of municipalities in North Carolina, most populous city in the U.S. state of North Carolina and the county seat of Mecklenburg County, North Carolina, Mecklenburg County. The population was 874,579 at the 2020 United ...

, and

Los Angeles, California Los Angeles, often referred to by its initials L.A., is the List of municipalities in California, most populous city in the U.S. state of California, and the commercial, Financial District, Los Angeles, financial, and Culture of Los Angeles, ...

. NBA players

Shaquille O'Neal Shaquille Rashaun O'Neal ( ; born March 6, 1972), commonly known as Shaq ( ), is an American former professional basketball player who is a sports analyst on the television program ''Inside the NBA''. He is a and Center (basketball), center ...

, Reggie Miller, Bill Walton, Scottie Pippen,

Michael Jordan Michael Jeffrey Jordan (born February 17, 1963), also known by his initials MJ, is an American businessman and former professional basketball player, who is currently a minority owner of the Charlotte Hornets of the National Basketball Ass ...

, and Charles Barkley,

Syracuse University Syracuse University (informally 'Cuse or SU) is a Private university, private research university in Syracuse, New York, United States. It was established in 1870 with roots in the Methodist Episcopal Church but has been nonsectarian since 1920 ...

coach Jim Boeheim, NBA coaches Rick Pitino and

George Karl George Matthew Karl (born May 12, 1951) is an American former professional basketball coach and player. After spending five years as a player for the San Antonio Spurs, he became an assistant with the team before being appointed as a head coach ...

and broadcaster

Dick Vitale Richard "Dick" John Vitale (; born June 9, 1939), also known as "Dickie V", is an American basketball sportscaster. A former head coach in the college and professional ranks, he is well known for his 41-year tenure as a college basketball broadc ...

made cameo appearances early in the film. Former football legend Jim Brown also appears as one of Jake's parole officers, assigned to keep tabs on him while he's away from the prison.

Release

Box office

''He Got Game'' was produced on an estimated $25 million budget. In the opening weekend of its release, it was shown on 1,319 screens, and took in $7,610,663 at the U.S. box offices debuting at #1. It eventually grossed a total of $21,554,585.00, which was a box office flop considering it fell short of its $25 million budget.

Critical response

On review aggregator

Rotten Tomatoes Rotten Tomatoes is an American review aggregator, review-aggregation website for film and television. The company was launched in August 1998 by three undergraduate students at the University of California, Berkeley: Senh Duong, Patrick Y. Lee ...

, the film holds an approval rating of 80% based on 64 reviews, with an average rating of 6.80/10. The website's critics consensus reads: "Though not without its flaws, ''He Got Game'' finds Spike Lee near the top of his game, combining trenchant commentary with his signature visuals and a strong performance from Denzel Washington." At

Metacritic Metacritic is an American website that aggregates reviews of films, television shows, music albums, video games, and formerly books. For each product, the scores from each review are averaged (a weighted average). Metacritic was created ...

, the film has a weighted average score of 64 out of 100, based on 21 critics, indicating "generally favorable" reviews. Audiences polled by

CinemaScore CinemaScore is an American market research firm based in Las Vegas. It surveys film audiences to rate their viewing experiences with letter grades, reports the results, and forecasts box office receipts from the data. Background Ed Mintz, who ...

gave the film an average grade of "B+" on an A+ to F scale. '' Time Out London'' writing, "Most scenes play too long, with a surplus of ideas, textures, tones and characters, and after 134 minutes it's clear Lee's problem with closure hasn't gone away."

Roger Ebert Roger Joseph Ebert ( ; June 18, 1942 – April 4, 2013) was an American Film criticism, film critic, film historian, journalist, essayist, screenwriter and author. He wrote for the ''Chicago Sun-Times'' from 1967 until his death in 2013. Eber ...

gave the film three-and-a-half-stars, and called it Lee's best film since '' Malcolm X''. He was particularly encouraged by Lee's determination not to adhere to typical conventions. Both Ray Allen and Washington drew praise for their performances, with Roger Ebert writing that Allen "is that rarity, an athlete who can act," and ''Slate'' magazine writing that Washington's performance was "gorgeously underplayed". Bill Simmons' review for

ESPN ESPN (an initialism of their original name, which was the Entertainment and Sports Programming Network) is an American international basic cable sports channel owned by the Walt Disney Company (80% and operational control) and Hearst Commu ...

pointed out factual flaws in the story: "...coaches aren't allowed to discuss potential recruits until after the signing period. Come on, Spike. (And while we're at it, players aren't allowed to visit a college one week before the signing deadline; Jesus couldn't live alone with his sister without both of them being thrown in a foster home," and argued "there's NO WAY IN HELL that Jesus wouldn't have just turned pro if he was that good and that broke.)"

Soundtrack

The soundtrack for ''He Got Game'' was composed of numerous orchestral pieces by Aaron Copland with songs created by

Public Enemy Public Enemy is an American Hip-hop, hip hop group formed in Roosevelt, New York, in 1985 by Chuck D and Flavor Flav. The group rose to prominence for their political messages including subjects such as Racism in the United States, American r ...

. It was released by

Def Jam Def Jam Recordings (also simply known as Def Jam) is an American multinational record label owned by Universal Music Group. It is based in Manhattan, New York City, specializing predominantly in hip hop, contemporary R&B, soul and pop. The ...

on April 21, 1998.

Awards and nominations

; 1999 Acapulco Black Film Festival * Best Actor — Denzel Washington (nominated) * Best Director — Spike Lee (nominated) * Best Screenplay — Spike Lee (nominated) * Best Film (nominated) * Best Soundtrack (nominated) ; 1999 NAACP Image Awards * Outstanding Lead Actor in a Motion Picture — Denzel Washington (nominated) * Outstanding Youth Actor/Actress — Zelda Harris (nominated) * Outstanding Motion Picture (nominated) ; 1999 MTV Movie Awards * MTV Movie Award Best Breakthrough Male Performance — Ray Allen (nominated) ; 1998 Stinkers Bad Movie Awards * Worst Sense of Direction — Spike Lee (nominated)

References

External links

* * * {{DEFAULTSORT:He Got Game 1998 films 1990s sports drama films Films about interracial romance 40 Acres and a Mule Filmworks films American basketball films American sports drama films African-American films 1990s English-language films Films directed by Spike Lee Films set in Brooklyn Films shot in Illinois Films shot in New York City Films shot in New Jersey Films shot in North Carolina Films shot in Virginia 1990s hood films American prison films Films with screenplays by Spike Lee Touchstone Pictures films Films about uxoricide African-American drama films 1998 drama films Films about father–son relationships Films produced by Jon Kilik 1990s American films English-language sports drama films English-language crime films