A true freak show of a film. I've never seen such a confusing Spike Lee joint. Are we supposed to laugh? Did he just make this to troll us? Was he laughing the whole time? It's like a parody of Goodfellas with the style of something like The Butterfly Effect. Nearly every character feels like a parody of a New York personality rather than being a believable one, but I'm pretty sure this isn't supposed to be a comedy, right? And, Adrien Brody's case...I can't believe this was one of his first prominent roles. Just absurd. Everything about it feels so off, and so impossible to take seriously. But, this is the wonder of it all - this is what makes Summer of Sam such an anomaly, and what makes it a very entertaining viewing.
Some parts of effective...like the murder scenes, but you'll go right from some innocent couple getting their heads blown off to some ridiculous montage of "punk rocker" Adrien Brody rocking out to...The Who (woof) in his bedroom with his liberty spikes. I mean, this is no Green Room. Half of the dialogue is pretty goof-troop, but it's always entertaining.
It was a long time ago that I added this movie to my to-watch list and honestly I think it may have primarily been just to see more Mira Sorvino. Her character is one of the most believable and locked in and also she is stunningly beautiful so that never hurts. John Leguizamo does a great job of playing a fully despicable lead, but at 2 hours and 20 minutes, it's a long ride with a fool who you just want to see receive what he deserves - his performance is good enough that it almost feels out of place amidst the rest of this cheese. With many of these cast members who are typically great, it's almost as if Spike Lee directed them to act corny on purpose.
Regardless of all its confusing faults, Summer of Sam never slows down and stays amusing from scene to scene for all 140 minutes. My girlfriend and I mostly enjoyed making fun of it, but I could see it going both ways for people. "You look like a piece of mozarell!"
Some parts of effective...like the murder scenes, but you'll go right from some innocent couple getting their heads blown off to some ridiculous montage of "punk rocker" Adrien Brody rocking out to...The Who (woof) in his bedroom with his liberty spikes. I mean, this is no Green Room. Half of the dialogue is pretty goof-troop, but it's always entertaining.
It was a long time ago that I added this movie to my to-watch list and honestly I think it may have primarily been just to see more Mira Sorvino. Her character is one of the most believable and locked in and also she is stunningly beautiful so that never hurts. John Leguizamo does a great job of playing a fully despicable lead, but at 2 hours and 20 minutes, it's a long ride with a fool who you just want to see receive what he deserves - his performance is good enough that it almost feels out of place amidst the rest of this cheese. With many of these cast members who are typically great, it's almost as if Spike Lee directed them to act corny on purpose.
Regardless of all its confusing faults, Summer of Sam never slows down and stays amusing from scene to scene for all 140 minutes. My girlfriend and I mostly enjoyed making fun of it, but I could see it going both ways for people. "You look like a piece of mozarell!"