Republished from the show notes of my other site, Fuds on Film.
In a way Mo’ Better Blues revisits the themes of She’s Gotta Have It, but from a male point of view, namely jazz trumpeter Bleek Gilliam, played by Denzel Washington. His jazz quintet are the star attractions at a nightclub, although Wesley Snipes’ Shadow Henderson is causing some friction with his grandstanding solos. The largely ineffectual band manager, Spike Lee’s Giant, advises Bleek to have a word, lest Shadow, well, I’m not sure what, mount a coup or something.
Bleek’s career is juggled with two women, not like literally. That would require a great deal of upper body strength. Joie Lee’s Indigo Downes and Cynda Williams’ Clarke Bentancourt may not know about each other, but they do know that Bleeks’ music is the only thing he’s truly committed to.
The break points in Bleek’s love life are perhaps obvious, but soon things are fracturing in his career too, with the rest of the band looking for their promised pay rise that Giant has not been able to secure from the club’s owners, Moe and Josh Flatbush, played by John and Nicholas Turturro. This can only accelerate Shadow’s designs on putting together his own band, perhaps with Clarke as a singer, but ultimately it’s the fallout from Giant’s gambling addiction that’s going to cause issues big enough for Bleek to radically change his outlook on life.
To a large degree this is a film about loyalty, whether that’s between Bleek and his old friend Giant, or between the band members, or the lack of it between Bleek and Indigo and Clarke, and the consequences of those bonds. It shares a little in common with other Lee joints in as much as it’s throwing a fair amount of thematic content at you, but unlike his next film Jungle Fever, discussed in podcasts passim, here it’s woven into the narrative in a more satisfying way.
Backed up with an almost impeccable series of acting performances – I think this is the last time Lee casts himself in a role of any significance, which is good, he can now afford better – there’s a lot to like in Mo’ Better Blues. It’s an easy watch with a great soundtrack, interesting characters and a solid narrative. Not peak Lee, but a very solid mid-league finish for the youngster who’ll surely be one to watch next season.