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Jim Brown: All American (2002)
Tomatometer
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Reviews Counted:14
Fresh:8
Rotten:6
Average Rating:6/10
Synopsis: Self-professed sports fanatic Spike Lee steps back into the documentary arena (4 LITTLE GIRLS) with this reverent tribute to one of Black America's most notorious cultural icons. At New York's... Self-professed sports fanatic Spike Lee steps back into the documentary arena (4 LITTLE GIRLS) with this reverent tribute to one of Black America's most notorious cultural icons. At New York's exclusive Manhasset High School, Jim Brown shattered school records as a triple-threat athlete, where he excelled in lacrosse, basketball, and football. After a successful four-year reign at Syracuse University, Brown embarked on one of professional football's most celebrated careers. A devastatingly imposing physical specimen, Brown's strength, quickness, and mental toughness enabled him to intimidate opponents before he even stepped onto the field. Stepping off the gridiron nine years later, Brown used his overflowing masculinity and sexuality to establish his name in Hollywood, starring in films such as THE DIRTY DOZEN and THREE THE HARD WAY. Throughout all of this, Brown remained a staunch activist in the black community, dedicating himself to foundations such as the Negro Economic Union and the Amer-I-Can program, where he continues to devote his time. Leaving no stone unturned, Lee's film blends archival footage with interviews conducted with major players in Brown's life--including former coaches (Ed Walsh), teammates (Paul Warfield), and co-stars (Raquel Welch)--to paint a comprehensive, revealing portrait of the controversial, misunderstood legend. [More]
Starring: Jim Brown, Melvin Van Peebles, Raquel Welch, Paul Warfield
Starring: Jim Brown, Melvin Van Peebles, Raquel Welch, Paul Warfield, Hank Aaron
Director: Spike Lee
Director: Spike Lee
Producer: Spike Lee
Composer: Terence Blanchard
Reviews for Jim Brown: All American
Treating the [controversial] incidents with kid gloves allows Jim Brown: All-American to fit into the encomium template, but a more forthright approach is demanded.
What Lee does so marvelously compelling is present Brown as a catalyst for the struggle of black manhood in restrictive and chaotic America...sketchy but nevertheless gripping portrait of Jim Brown, a celebrated wonder in the spotlight
Once the sports and film clips run out, Lee doesn't have much more to work with than talking heads, and they aren't enough to keep anyone but diehard sports fans interested.
Though overall an overwhelmingly positive portrayal, the film doesn't ignore the more problematic aspects of Brown's life.
Only an epic documentary could get it all down, and Spike Lee's Jim Brown: All American at long last gives its subject a movie worthy of his talents.
[Lee] treats his audience the same way that Jim Brown treats his women -- as dumb, credulous, unassuming, subordinate subjects. And Lee seems just as expectant of an adoring, wide-smiling reception.
A well-rounded tribute to a man whose achievements -- and complexities -- reached far beyond the end zone.
As the movie traces Mr. Brown's athletic exploits, it is impossible not to be awed by the power and grace of one of the greatest natural sportsmen of modern times.
Lee's achievement extends to his supple understanding of the role that Brown played in American culture as an athlete, a movie star, and an image of black indomitability.
Since Lee is a sentimentalist, the film is more worshipful than your random E! True Hollywood Story.
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