"Man, I really liked Red Hook Summer and hope Spike Lee makes more movies like that", said nobody ever. Lee's attempt to go back to his cinematic roots proved a disastrous failure, but then again so did his last mainstream work with the Oldboy remake. Obviously that wasn't going to win him any support with studios, so Lee took the only option afforded him by crowd-sourcing his latest film, Da Sweet Blood of Jesus. And after some scathing early reviews, easily some of the harshest I've ever read, the film has a distributor, a release date for 2016, and now a new trailer.
A remake of unremarkable 1973 cult horror Ganja & Hess, Da Sweet Blood of Jesus stars Stephen Tyrone Williams, Elvis Nolasco, Rami Malek, and Zaraah Abrahams. It centers on Dr. Hess Green, who gains an unquenchable thirst for blood after an encounter with a cursed artifact. He's not a vampire, however, and soon enters in a romance with Ganga Hightower, one that could prove deadly. Lee seems to be exploring some familiar themes of race and social class, which could prove interesting given the horror backdrop. It's kind of hard to trust him at this point, though.
Da Sweet Blood of Jesus opens February 13th.
Da Sweet Blood of Jesus - Trailer by Dread Central
