Do you want to see ‘He Got Game’?

He Got Game (1998)

tomatometer

All Critics
Top Critics

Average Rating: 6.9/10
Reviews Counted: 61
Fresh: 49 | Rotten: 12

Though not without its flaws, He Got Game finds Spike Lee at or near the top of his late-period game, combining trenchant commentary with his signature visuals and a strong performance from Denzel Washington.

Average Rating: 6.8/10
Critic Reviews: 19
Fresh: 15 | Rotten: 4

audience

liked it
Average Rating: 3.6/5
User Ratings: 41,834

My Rating

Added to your Facebook Timeline. — undo

Movie Info

Denzel Washington and writer-director Spike Lee team for the third time with this contemporary basketball drama focusing on a promising athlete, the son of a convict-father. Jake Shuttlesworth (Denzel Washington) has been in prison for six years when tough prison-warden Wyatt (Ned Beatty) tells him that he's getting a temporary parole with the promise of a commuted sentence. However, there's a trade-off -- Jake must talk his son, Jesus Shuttlesworth (NBA star Ray Allen of the Milwaukee Bucks),

R, 2 hr. 14 min.

Drama

Directed By: Spike Lee

Written By: Spike Lee

In Theaters: May 1, 1998 Wide

On DVD: Jan 15, 2002

Buena Vista Internationa

Cast

Denzel Washington
Jake Shuttlesworth
Ray Allen
Jesus Shuttlesworth
Milla Jovovich
Dakota Burns
Rosario Dawson
Lala Bonilla
Hill Harper
Coleman (Bogger) Sykes
Zelda Harris
Mary Shuttlesworth
Jim Brown
Spivey
Joseph Lyle Taylor
Crudup
Ned Beatty
Warden Wyatt
Bill Nunn
Uncle Bubba
Michele Shay
Aunt Sally
Thomas Jefferson Byrd
Sweetness
Lonette McKee
Martha Shuttlesworth
John Turturro
Coach Billy Sunday
Roger Guenveur Smith
Big Time Willie
Jennifer Esposito
Kim Director
Lynn

Critic Reviews for He Got Game

All Critics (61) | Top Critics (19) | Fresh (49) | Rotten (12) | DVD (2)

Lacking the moral indignation and militant politics of Lee's former work, this vibrantly colorful father-son melodrama is soft at the center, but it's one of the most accessible films Lee has made and Denzel Washington is terrific.

March 25, 2008 Full Review Source: Variety

| Comment

Emanuel Levy

Variety

Top Critic

At the end of Mr. Lee's movie, all you feel is the distraction of Mr. Lee's stylistic exhibitionism, without which, I concede, he might not be regarded as a genius in some quarters.

April 27, 2007 Full Review Source: New York Observer

| Comment

Andrew Sarris

New York Observer

Top Critic

[Lee] gets a charming performance from Allen, who, in his acting debut, occupies his pedestal with grace and diffidence.

March 25, 2007 Full Review Source: Slate

| Comment

David Edelstein

Slate

Top Critic

As usual, Lee tries many kinds of stylistic effects and uses wall-to-wall music (by Aaron Copland and Public Enemy); what's different this time is how personally driven the story feels.

March 25, 2007 Full Review Source: Chicago Reader

| Comment

Jonathan Rosenbaum

Chicago Reader

Top Critic

Washington's Jake Shuttlesworth looks tough and hard, an odd but refreshing turn for an actor long associated with handsomely heroic roles.

June 18, 2002 Full Review Source: San Francisco Chronicle

| Comment

Peter Stack

San Francisco Chronicle

Top Critic

A two-hour air ball.

April 12, 2002 Full Review Source: Globe and Mail

| Comment

Rick Groen

Globe and Mail

Top Critic

A long, boring, meandering, dog of a movie.

January 7, 2009 Full Review Source: rec.arts.movies.reviews

| Comment

Jon Popick

rec.arts.movies.reviews

Lee's attack on how big business is not only ruining the game he loves but also playing with people's lives is direct and brave, while his passion, insight and intelligence are evident and admirable.

March 25, 2008 Full Review Source: Film4

| Comment

Film4

Though too long by a good half hour, Lee's latest film packs a genuine emotional punch.

March 25, 2007 Full Review Source: TV Guide's Movie Guide

| Comment

Maitland McDonagh

TV Guide's Movie Guide

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.

February 9, 2006 Full Review Source: Time Out

| Comment

Derek Adams

Time Out

Lee paints intimate characters who are about more than the game. Themes of integrity, honesty, loyalty and familial love are woven through the film resulting in a complex, thought-provoking human drama.

April 9, 2005 Full Review Source: Reeling Reviews

| Comment

Robin Clifford

Reeling Reviews

Shrewdly exposes the underbelly of college recruiting and the pressures exerted on talented high school basketball stars.

June 28, 2004 Full Review Source: Courier-Journal (Louisville, KY)

| Comment

Judith Egerton

Courier-Journal (Louisville, KY) Source: Courier-Journal (Louisville, KY)

Flawed but powerful.

June 7, 2004 Full Review | Comment

Dragan Antulov

rec.arts.movies.reviews

It is a wonderful thing to watch two artists work so well together. I am speaking, in this case, of Spike Lee and Denzel Washington.

February 8, 2003 Full Review Source: Film Quips Online

| Comment

John R. McEwen

Film Quips Online

The hypocritical misogyny of He Got Game is a fundamental weakness that reviewers so far have been happy to downplay or even to dismiss.

January 10, 2003 Full Review Source: Nick's Flick Picks

| Comment

Nick Davis

Nick's Flick Picks

Lee should have drawn up a tighter game plan but just the same his hoops hoopla still has enough game (mostly in the form of Washington) to win over the audience.

December 8, 2002 Full Review Source: Film Threat

| Comment

Tom Meek

Film Threat

As brilliant and perplexing as the filmmaker himself.

October 15, 2002 Full Review Source: Cincinnati Enquirer

| Comment

Margaret A. McGurk

Cincinnati Enquirer

Only a director as good as Spike Lee could make a coherent movie out of this messy, jejune set-up ...

July 31, 2002 Full Review | Comment

Philip Martin

Arkansas Democrat-Gazette

As much a technical achievement as a narrative one.

June 5, 2002 Full Review Source: Boxoffice Magazine

| Comment

Wade Major

Boxoffice Magazine

More Critic Reviews

Audience Reviews for He Got Game

View All

Great visuals and performances though it falls short in the end, still a worthwhile minor work from Spike Lee.

October 30, 2011

Graham Jones

Super Reviewer

Spike Lee is one of the very few filmmakers possessing the heart and soul of an auteur, but none of the self righteousness. He Got Game is a perfect example of the directors sensibilities. Most basketball movies tell coming of age stories against gritty backdrops that all lead up to some big game. Lee's film is

January 12, 2011