Crooklyn - 35mm print

(Spike Lee, US 1994, 115 min., 35mm)

Five years after burning down Brooklyn in the ferocious conclusion to Do the Right Thing, Lee returns for a gentler, semi-autobiographical account of life in the Bed-Stuy neighborhood circa 1973 as seen through the eyes of a young girl (Zelda Harris) and her four raucous brothers raised by a jazz musician father and a strong-willed mother. Alfre Woodard, Delroy Lindo, and a top-notch vintage soundtrack turn this sweet memory piece into one of Lee’s most satisfying works. Expertly drawn performances anchor this nostalgic evocation of urban life before crack and Reagan. The screenplay for this virtual Lee family album was written in collaboration with Spike's sister Joie and brother Cinqué.