School Daze (1988)

Spike Lee's follow-up to his unlikely hit She's Gotta Have It was this ambitious--some would say too ambitious--attempt at a musical about college life. But Lee, ever the provocateur, doesn't settle for a simple college comedy. Rather, he wants to make a point about the social divisions within all-black colleges: between the socializers and the socially conscious, and between light and dark-skinned blacks. Laurence Fishburne plays a politically aware student trying to bring his fellow students together; Giancarlo Esposito plays the fraternity boss who constantly seeks to insert a wedge between the haves and have-nots. Lee himself plays a pawn in the middle, a would-be frat boy undergoing a wicked Hell Week as a pledge. The story doesn't pull together and the musical numbers--more spoof than anything else--only serve to fragment it. While it offers interesting points, it never does so in a particularly cohesive way. --Marshall Fine Amazon.com

College in the 80's? A slight rant...

Many reviewers have commented on how accurate Spike Lee's portrayal of 1980's college life in "School Daze" was. I cannot claim this, but having graduated college in 2006 I can say that I have seen nearly all of Lee's poignant scenes with my own eyes during my college career in the 00's. In this sense, Lee has a gift for seeing things, writing about them and directing them so realistically on film. Not to mention the fact that his insights have obviously stood the test of time (well, at least 20 years). The insanity of fraternities and sororities, the social activists on campus, the virgins, nuances of being a lighter skin African-American or a darker skin African-American, the sweet innocence of bringing someone to your dorm room at home (when your roommate is not there, hoping to get lucky!), the sports games (which Spike doesn't even show you the field, only the reactions of the onlookers), men teasing each other, woman teasing each other, the non-student townies wandering the streets. Spike's got this film jam-packed with the essence of college.

Lee's father's music is once again in this film, which is great. The actors, are great. Everything is perfect, however not me.

I can't quite explain it, but after watching this movie I thought, "Well, that was OK". This is now, the second film of Spike Lee's that I have watched, and I must say that, if I did not know who the director was before I watched the movie I think that I would easily guess that this was made by a young person. A person who is still hoping to change the world by shouting, rather than by doing. For this, there is something about this movie that is annoying. Don't get me wrong, I enjoyed this movie, it was surely fun, entertaining and poignant to some extent, however I just can't seem to get over an air of immaturity. But what am I looking for? Spike Lee is just over thirty when he made this picture. Before I talk smack about Spike, let's see what I have accomplished by the time I turn thirty! Enjoy Spike's second joint. March 30, 2008

excellent! One of the classics!

This was an excellent movie for those of us who grew up during that time period. The message came across. Those who are spike lee fans know that he always tried to deliver a message in a fun unconventional way. I attended a historically Black college and I could identify with what he was saying. I love going back to watch that movie from time to time and seeing another person I recognize. I think that was the last appearance of Phyliss Hyman or one of the few before. The soundtrack is great. People should just enjoy the movie for what it is - a Spike Lee Joint. February 28, 2008

One of the best!!!

This is a beautiful movie about black college life. It shows struggle, ignorance, foolishness and intelligence all in one film. With a long line of talented actors Spike Lee amazingly gets his message across in a beautiful yet unorthodox way. In fact the entire movie is unconventional but this is probably why it's so exciting and fun.

If I were you I would definitely buy this movie. It is a little culturally bias in that it is not really geared for Caucasian people to understand. It's mostly aimed at the African American community.
December 13, 2007

YOU CAN'T FIND "SCHOOL DAZE" LIKE THESE IN A YEARBOOK!

My My My 1988. A lot was going on that year. The Huxtables was in the middle of captivating audiences worldwide as America's favorite family on "The Cosby Show". "A Different World" wasn't yet the funny and insightful spinoff it would become in later seasons. The showtime Lakers were the reigning NBA dynasty, the "Bad Boy Pistons" were quickly becoming the beast of the east, and Micheal Jordan became the fastest rising star of the NBA. Underprivileged Blacks and working class americans were still feeling the effects of "Regannomics" only to give way to the Bush Sr. era (which wasn't any better). The Golden era of hip hop was in full effect with the most priceless possession being Public Enemy's "It takes a nation of millions to hold us Back". Guy and Keith Sweat would only revolutionize R&B in a way that P.E. revolutionized hip hop. and any Mike Tyson fight was a major event on television.

Some of ya'll may be buggin' on my trip down memory lane but School Daze does that me! Out of all of Spike Lee movies, this may be his most overlooked film along with "Bamboozled" and "He Got Game". This inspired if flawed movie was ahead of its time in exploring the class differences in the black race. but rather than beat a dead horse that has alraedy been tried and won by other reviewers who made the same point about the point of black on black discrimination in this movie, I wanna bring up some points that adds to the high quality of this great movie.

In my opinion, the two key elements that makes this a powerful film are the three main characters and the musical skits. There's never a dull moment as Laurence Fishburne is reliably compelling as the soically aware Mission College student who's asking the school to divest their money in South Africa. Giancarlo Esposito is a convincingly menancing (in a school bully type of way) as the narcissistic frat leader of Gamma Fi Gamma. Not only is he the perfect moral adversary to Dap's(Laurence fishburne) agenda, his frat brothers, the hopeful Pledgers, and the those lovely Gamma Rays led by his Girlfriend Jane(Tisha Campbell), stregthens his power tripping vanity which provides many of the film's laughs. Half Pint (played by yours truly) brings more comic relief as the charmingly pathetic cousin of Dap as he pledges to be a member of G Fi G. He's also a perfect medium between the conscience driven Dap and the image driven Julian (or Dean Big Brother Almighty as Half Pint likes to call him).

Some complain about the musical skits being overdone. That's true, but they're also fun and provides an extra edge to the film's story. The hair musical between the light skinned Gamma Rays and the dark skinned sisters, drives home the point of how these opposing sides resents each other's skin color and how they wouldn't trade places with each other if they could save money on their next trip to the hair dresser. Powerful stuff Spike. That doesn't compare to the best scene of the movie when Dap and his boys interrupt G Fi G's stepping routine to perform a routine bashing the Gammas (Daddy long stroke). Too funny!! the daddy long stroke scene is one of Spike lee's best of all his films. EU's cameo appearance is bound to bring back nostalgic memories of times when we and our mamas were doing "Da Butt".

School daze has a steady balance between entertianment and the seriousness about the dislike blacks display toward each other.

While School daze is entertaining as well as educational it's not without its flaws. While Dap, julian, and Half Pint's intentions are clear, thier characters lack range. The film spends too much time reaffirming Dap's social conscience and Julian's vanity as a cocky frat leader. How many times does the film have to stress Dap resentment toward appartiad in South Africa and Julian's egocentric indulgences. They don't provide any personal insight to their characters that give viewers a reason why they act the why they do as individuals as it relates to the main story. In addition to the lack of motive, the film don't give the main characters a chance to deeply reflect on their lifestyles and views and how it affects themselves as well as those around them. The best and the worst of guys have motives and some sort of reflection and that's the film biggest setback. The dialogue is so repetitive that the film's finale with Dap urging everyone to wake up is not as climatic as it intends to be since that point has been hit home so many times throught the course of the film.

If the characters were better textured with more range and if they used that character depth to deepen the story, Spike Lee could've had another classic under his belt. But as it stands, I would say School Daze is a near classic that would've been a much tighter film without the excess.
It's all good because the scenes are so beautifully shot and the performances solid enough to make you overlook the flaws.

September 7, 2007

A Must For Anyone HBCU student...Past, Present, or Future!!!

School Daze is to an HBCU student as the Bible is to a Christian...you must know it. Not only is School Daze entertaining, but it also brings up some important issues that address the students at HBCUs such as Greek life, color complexes, and many more. Spike made this movie to challenge the minds of the watchers so that they can think about their actions. Hopefully we all will "wake up." Until then, enjoy School Daze. August 27, 2007

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