NFL
By: Matt Overton
The Second Joint
Spike Lee’s second film, School Daze shows us what Homecoming weekend is like at Mission College, a historically black university. Known for diving headfirst into race politics, Spike’s sophomore feature is unabashedly his creation, chock full of stimulating dialogue, relevant discussions, and an in your face style that is so ubiquitous even this early in his career. With a phenomenal cast including Laurence Fishburne, Giancarlo Esposito, Ossie Davis, Bill Nunn, and a brief cameo by Sam L. Jackson, School Daze delivers audiences an ambitious story wrapped up in the most derivative college film imagined.
Shockingly, School Daze is the only Spike Lee joint Fishburne ever worked on. As Dap, he leads the film as its moral compass. A successful student who is nearing graduation, we find Dap on the cusp of his radicalization. As a vocal critic of apartheid and the divestment movement on campus, he proves to be a thorn in the administration’s side. He has history with Esposito’s Julian, aka Dean Big Brother Almighty, the president of the Gamma fraternity. All Julian cares about is prepping all of his newest pledges, Spike’s Half-Pint among them, and that means putting them through the most belittling activities possible.
This rivalry is the driving force of the narrative, but divestment and frat bros is not all this movie has to offer. Dap hits all the expected beats of a college relationship, Half-Pint transforms into a bonafide Gamma man, there’s the hilarious homecoming football game feature a rousing pep talk by Ossie Davis, and there are a handful of creative choreographed scenes. There’s a full blown song and dance sequence inside of a barbershop, which makes two in a row for musical numbers in Spike’s movies. I think this man enjoys musicals.
There’s a lot going on in this picture and it’s quite impressive for Spike’s second turn behind the camera. There’s probably a few too many pieces to it and is a bit long, but the film accomplishes a lot. There’s a great energy to Spike’s filmmaking. That can make a messy plot like this all the more engaging to watch. I’m going to continue his filmography in order. I’ve set my mind to it and I’ve committed so there’s no backing down now. Not even after I discovered that there’s a 140 minute project about inseminating lesbians.
