She's Gotta Have It (1986)

The film makes a home in your brain and the only cure is to see it again.

Ok... Let's be honest. It cannot be the best movie but is quite enjoyable. The movie has the potential to develop a great plot for future movies

The thing I enjoyed most about the film is the fact that it doesn't shy away from being a super-sized-cliche;

This movie feels like it was made purely to piss off people who want good shows

The story of Nola Darling's simultaneous sexual relationships with three different men is told by her and by her partners and other friends. All three men wanted her to commit solely to them; Nola resists being "owned" by a single partner.The New York Times wrote that the film "ushered in (along with Jim Jarmusch's Stranger Than Paradise) the American independent film movement of the 1980s. It was also a groundbreaking film for African-American filmmakers and a welcome change in the representation of blacks in American cinema, depicting men and women of color not as pimps and whores, but as intelligent, upscale urbanites." Although my feelings on Spike Lee are mixed, I have to say this is a decent film. I love that the message is a hard one to swallow -- that a man can date three women at the same time, but if a woman does it, she is a "freak" or a "nympho" or something. This was a bold thing in 1986 and it remains a bold thing in 2016. Strong, independent, sexual women are a scary thing... will this ever change? (And, we may as well ask, should it ever change?)

In Brooklyn, Nola Darling dislikes commitment and she has three lovers at the same time. Jamie Overstreet is sweet and looking for a lifelong companion. Greer Childs is a self-obsessed model. Mars Blackmon (Spike Lee) is a loud-mouth childman. Nola, her friends and family narrate the movie talking directly into the camera. Opal Gilstrap is a lesbian who likes Nola. Her free-love policy runs into trouble when the three men discover each other's relationship with Nola.This is Spike Lee's first full-length feature as a writer/director and he is also a major supporting actor. This announces the arrival of a new American cinematic voice. It's inventive and different. Sure the actors are mostly amateurs but everybody has a good charismatic energy. Spike Lee is bringing a lot of different elements into this movie. Most impressively, he has turned the normal sexual relationship between man and woman upside-down. It is a great debut and an imaginative indie.

Ask the most anal cinephile you can find what kind of films Spike Lee makes and before you get an efficient answer your question will be modified properly. Spike Lee doesn't make films; he makes "joints." Before every film and every directorial effort by the man you will see these faithful words, "Ask Spike Lee Joint." Words of this nature are foreign to films of such a smart, dignified stature. How infrequently I see films with so much substance and subversive qualities be branded with a slangy phrase by a mature, well-conducted director.She's Gotta Have It, made in 1986 on a budget smaller than a shoestring and shot for roughly less than two weeks, was Spike Lee's first film,. showcasing potential and reliability from him in terms of directing and acting. In contrast to his later works, Lee doesn't seem as cynical or as bitter as he does collective and free-spirited giving us a unique look in the idea of a character who has contently formed a love triangle and how each character reacts to being that specific triangle.The film adopts a style Woody Allen would've utilized in the seventies and the eighties, giving us characters who have been ostracized as societal freaks and a bright script that contrasts the way the picture is shot. I was reminded of Allen's Annie Hall, a film that had a self aware tone with a muggy, saturated filming style. This film features a black and white color scheme for its entire run time, albeit roughly a three minute dance sequence, and this palette especially works in its favor as it reminds us of a 1950's drama. We centre our sights on Nora Darling (Tracy Camilla Johns), a charming black woman who has been in a number of relationships in the past and is currently juggling three open-ended ones. The men are passionate romantic Jaime (Tommy Redmond Hicks), narcissistic model Greer (John Canada Terrell), and daffy, hyperactive Mars (Spike Lee himself).She's Gotta Have It is conducted in a non-linear, fourth-wall breaking format, with character monologues delivered directly to the viewer and characters being introduced to the audience formally , with title-cards. We are introduced to Nora right off the bat, then meet the men in the above order and are shown backstory on how they and Nora met up in the process. The care and attention Spike Lee brings to each character is professionally handled in an unbiased form, assuring each one is developed and human. Not to mention, the characters are only complimented by the strong actors who've graciously embodied them.This is a professionally executed debut project, although it doesn't even begin to sum up what Spike Lee would go to accomplish in his two decades in the film industry. Four years later, in 1989, Do the Right Thing was released to critical acclaim and is among one of the starkest, most intense dramas I have yet to see and then went on to make the successful biopic on Malcolm X, casting Denzel Washington as the leader himself. Lee's directorial debut shows a softer side of the man. One who is capable of delivering welcomed character traits and a familiar storyline taken in a pleasingly unfamiliar way.Starring: Tracy Camilla Johns, Tommy Redmond Hicks, John Canada Terrell, and Spike Lee. Directed by: Spike Lee.

I'm a Spike Lee fan from way back but missed this one. Now I'm an old retired lady with plenty of time to catch up. All I can say is that this was a wonderful funny erotic comedy. I liked the way the characters introduced themselves, especially the former roommate who moved out because Nola was entertaining so many men, and all the men who announced their charms. If you wouldn't get a laugh watching Greer fold his clothes before sex, I don't know what would tickle you! Spike Lee himself as Mars reminds me of my Border Collie: playful, obnoxiously demanding, adoring, and never understanding why he can't be #1.When Nola is convinced that she should consult a specialist for her addiction, she comes away with no resolution, but we are treated to a wonderful aside by the therapist.The only thing that keeps this picture from a 10 rating is the sequence in color, which I though was trite and out of keeping of the rest of the movie.