He Got Game

Movie review by Barbara Shulgasser-Parker, Common Sense Media
He Got Game Poster Image

Common Sense says

age 17+

Spike Lee sports drama has strong language, violence, sex.

R 1998 136 minutes
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Parents say

age 17+

Based on 2 reviews

Kids say

age 13+

Based on 1 review

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A Lot or a Little?

The parents' guide to what's in this movie.

What Parents Need to Know

Parents need to know that He Got Game is Spike Lee's 1998 exploration of the pressures placed on a fictional number-one high school basketball pick as colleges and NBA coaches line up to offer money, women, and cars. A dad with impulse control issues tries to get back into the life of the talented son who rejected him long ago. Corruption in high school and college sports is shown, as well as graphic sexual scenes with bared breasts, depictions of drug use, violence, and manslaughter. Women are largely portrayed as whores, sex objects, or betrayers. Condoms, abortions, and STDs are mentioned; prostitution plays a large role in the movie. The predominating subtext is the exploitation of Black athletes, and also the circumstances from which they often come -- deprived neighborhoods and schools, broken families -- in some cases caused by racism. Language includes "f--k," "s--t," "ass," "p---y," "d--k," the "N" word, "f-ggot," "scumbag," "ho," "bitch," "balls," and "poontang." Drug use -- cocaine, crack, crystal meth -- is discussed and shown in montage. A man accidentally kills someone when he's drunk. Denzel Washington co-stars.

Community Reviews

MovieLovingFamily
MovieLovingFamily Adult
November 21, 2020
age 18+

Unexpected graphic sex (male-biased), prostitution, and overall misogyny throughout the film make it a horrible watching experience

I felt compelled to write my first review because this movie is not properly packaged or introduced to viewers. You might think you are getting a movie about basketball. While I was not expecting a feel-good kind of sports movie like Remember The Titans, especially knowing this was from Spike Lee, I did not expect to see so many graphic sex scenes with a kind of demonization of the female "over-sexed" body (female as temptress and libido-crazed around money and fame), not to mention such a superficial, unexamined depiction of prostitution, blasting in our faces throughout the film. These are not romantic love sex scenes. They have the effect of being horrifying and should be avoided by any young audiences who will not be able to understand/interpret them for what they are. We love watching Denzel Washington act. And we seek out movies about the challenges of race in America. But this movie simply propogates the worst, sexist depictions of women. Too bad!!

This title has:

Too much sex
Bigballin
Bigballin Adult
June 19, 2020
age 16+

BEST BASKETBALL MOVIE

Any real basketball fan can tell you this is the GOAT of b-ball movies. Despite just casting Ray Allen and Denzel Washington, it is a heart felt great movie about Jesus Shuttlesworth’s life as a #1 prospect in high school with his father in jail and everyone depending on him

This title has:

Great messages
Too much sex
Too much swearing
Too much consumerism
See all 2 parent reviews

What's the Story?

Jesus Shuttlesworth (NBA star Ray Allen) is the number-one college basketball pick. HE GOT GAME focuses on the week before the Brooklyn high school star announces which college's full ride he will accept. Life has dealt him a tough hand as his father Jake (Denzel Washington) is in prison for killing his mother (Lonette McKee). Jesus has had to raise his younger sister. An aunt and uncle have played a role, but as offers of under-the-table money, cars, homes, and other enticements come from colleges and sports agents, his uncle (Bill Nunn) openly demands repayment for helping out. Jesus' girlfriend Lala (Rosario Dawson) wants hers too as she insists the reluctant Jesus illegally meet with an agent. Jesus' plate is full when his father, who has been offered time off from his prison sentence, shows up requesting that his estranged son sign with Big State, the alma mater of New York's fictional governor.

Is It Any Good?

There's much to appreciate in this film, but it's not one of the great director Spike Lee's best by a long shot. Allen, in his first role, and Washington are both fine, but more important, Lee's love of basketball is unmistakable, as is his admiration for those who dedicate themselves to mastering the game. And Lee's eyes are open to the exploitation of talented players, especially those from lower-income backgrounds who look to sports as a way out of poverty. Many insights are true and powerful, but scenes go on far too long, with some subplots completely unnecessary, and characters make agonizingly bad choices in ways that don't advance the plot at all.

As for rooting He Got Game in realism, Jesus never spends a moment going over the pros and cons of any particular college even though he still hasn't decided just days before that decision is due. These missteps make the movie difficult and even cringe-inducing to watch at times, but the opening is flawless -- a sequence set to Aaron Copland's music shows an array of young players sweating on courts in good neighborhoods and bad, honing their skills, a tribute to the purity of the game. That creative, economic simplicity is missing from the rest of the film. A few judicious cuts could have made this far more moving and effective.

Talk to Your Kids About ...

  • Families can talk about whether being regretful for bad behavior makes a difference if the bad behavior continues. Do you think Jesus might have accepted his father's overtures in if the dad demonstrated that he had changed? Why or why not?

  • How does He Got Game show that many people are mixtures of good and bad? Do you think that Jesus' father had good intentions, even when he mistreated his son?

  • Do you think forgiveness is important? Do some acts not deserve forgiveness? Explain.

  • How are women portrayed in this film?

Movie Details

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