Clockers April 11, 2006
Posted by clydefro in : Modern Films, 1990s , trackback
Based on Richard Price’s novel, Clockers
Price originally set his novel in the fictional Dempsey, New Jersey, but director Spike Lee changed the location to Brooklyn, a more familiar venue for the filmmaker. It was Martin Scorsese who actually was originally to direct the film, but he decided to make Casino instead and Lee took over. In my mind, Clockers is the superior film. (See my thoughts on Casino here) Whereas Scorsese’s film meandered and sputtered out, Clockers is a more focused and interesting work. When the final revelation about Strike and his brother is laid out, the audience realizes that the “murder mystery” is not that important afterall. To some, this may seem anticlimactic, but I would argue that Lee (as well as Price, who also cowrote the script) has developed Strike’s character so well and given the audience such a feeling for his surroundings, that the mystery aspect of the film becomes inconsequential. It doesn’t matter if Strike or his brother was the killer. What matters is that Strike realizes his life as a “clocker” must come to an end.
Strike is obviously not your typical Hollywood gangsta thug drug dealer. Plagued with stomach ulcers, he’s frequently seen downing Chocolate Moo, a Yoohoo type chocolate drink. His hobby is electric trains and his apartment is filled with elaborately displayed and functional train sets. When a young neighbor, despite his mother’s fierce warnings, takes an interest in some of the drug dealers, Strike takes him back to his apartment and shows him his trains while telling the kid the evils of drugs. Unfortunately, since Strike is none too bright, he also shows him the gun he keeps underneath his mattress, which sets up the film’s final scenes.
Mekhi Phifer is perfect as Strike. He manages to skillfully balance the line between dangerous drug dealer and naive dimwit. His vulnerability gives the audience a reason to not give up on the character. We understand when Keitel’s cop is determined to nail Strike for the murder his brother has confessed to, but, as things become murkier, we begin to see how initial perceptions are not always accurate. Turturro is much less interested in who actually killed the victim than Keitel since they have a confession. By the end of the movie, one cynically wonders if Keitel regrets not listening to Turturro’s plea to just accept the confession and move on.
Released in 1995, Clockers is a gritty, complex film and it looks appropriately stark and unpolished. The cinematography gives the film almost a documentary-like feel and makes it easier to accept the dark themes found throughout the story. Lee even begins the film with shots of murder victims riddled with bullets and blood, perhaps as a way of preparing the viewer for the realistic and desensitizing violence. The two murders that serve as bookends are accompanied by crowds of onlookers, including Spike himself, who seem to accept the violence as a reality they cannot escape.
Also of note is the film’s theatrical poster, shown above, which was an homage of sorts to the Saul Bass-designed poster for Anatomy of a Murder. Instead of just a dead body, however, the Clockers poster has a bullet-riddled black victim. There’s also a version where the body is white and I have not been able to determine the significance or rationale behind the difference.
I know that Spike Lee has plenty of detractors, but I find him to be one of the most interesting American filmmakers working today. His films are frequently brilliant, if uneven, and he consistently manages to display his unique talent on the screen. I don’t want to digress into a Spike Lee defense manifesto, but he may be the most important black filmmaker ever and he should not be reviled for speaking his mind. For those who dislike his personality or opinions, it might be a good idea to separate the work from the man. Since he gained so much notoriety for Do the Right Thing
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