She Hate Me (2004)

19% of critics liked it
(100 reviews)
60% of users liked it
(7,464 ratings)

Directed by Spike Lee, She Hate Me follows John Henry "Jack" Armstrong (Anthony Mackie), who is fired from a posh job in biotechnology after informing the proper authorities of some sketchy business dealings from within the company. Unemployed and desperate for some quick cash, Jack accepts a… More Directed by Spike Lee, She Hate Me follows John Henry "Jack" Armstrong (Anthony Mackie), who is fired from a posh job in biotechnology after informing the proper authorities of some sketchy business dealings from within the company. Unemployed and desperate for some quick cash, Jack accepts a strange offer -- his ex-girlfriend Fatima (Kerry Washington) says she will pay him generously if he successfully impregnates her. Once word gets out among the lesbian community, Jack is inundated with requests, and is initially quite happy with his new direction in life. However, things -- as they are wont to do -- get complicated. There's his former employer, who is actively trying to pin the blame for their wrongdoings on his shoulders, for one thing, and it isn't long before the moral implications of his life as a sperm donor come to the forefront. The film co-stars John Turturro, Ellen Barkin, Woody Harrelson, Monica Bellucci, and Q-Tip. ~ Tracie Cooper, Rovi

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Rating, Runtime: R, 2 hr. 18 min.
Directed By: Spike Lee
Written By: Spike Lee, Michael Genet
Genres: Drama, Comedy

In Theaters: Jul 28, 2004 Wide
On DVD: Feb 1, 2005
Studio: Sony Pictures Classics

Critic Reviews

Joe Baltake, Sacramento Bee
If you're truly adventurous in your movie-going and fed up with movies that play by the numbers, play it safe and come with audience-fawning reassurances, then She Hate Me just might be the harsh cinematic tonic you crave.
Roger Moore, Orlando Sentinel
Succeeds in finding something to offend almost everybody.
Robert Denerstein, Denver Rocky Mountain News
A misshapen and sometimes sorry affair that aims for satire, without always being clear about what it's attempting to satirize.
Lisa Kennedy, Denver Post
[Lee's] most muddled message movie to date.
Stanley Kauffmann, New Republic
Lee presumably had two ideas, one an exposé of pharmaceutical greed, the other a sex comedy: then he decided that neither one would make a film in itself and came up with the lame idea of combining them.
Jeff Strickler, Minneapolis Star Tribune
Two movies mashed together.
Nell Minow, Common Sense Media
This extremely graphic movie is not for kids.
Cole Smithey, ColeSmithey.com
"She Hate Me" is just as tongue-tied as its ridiculous title.
Pablo Villaca, Cinema em Cena
Com idéias interessantes o bastante para render três filmes, Spike Lee realiza um filme assustadoramente caótico e sem foco para um cineasta com sua experiência.
Mark Palermo, Coast (Halifax, Nova Scotia)
Tighter focus would have incited the fury that She Hate Me's ambition demands. It's left saying too much but not enough.
Marty Mapes, Movie Habit
Seems like the ramblings of an insulated, precocious teenager
Anthony Del Valle, Las Vegas Mercury
[Spike Lee] is a genius who's never made a decent film.
Eric D. Snider, EricDSnider.com
Is Lee satirizing something? Is this all a metaphor for something? Or is it just a heavy-handed mess, full of non-sequiturs? My vote is for the latter.
Kimberley Jones, Austin Chronicle
The politest way to assess Spike Lee's latest polemic is to call it too ambitious. 'An unholy mess' might come closer to the truth.
Brian Gibson, Vue Weekly (Edmonton, Canada)
A bizarre stinker . . . it's too bad, for the sake of Lee's career, that this mistake of a movie didn't spontaneously combust on the first reel.
Sean Means, Salt Lake Tribune
A train wreck as only Spike Lee could make it.

Read all 16 critic reviews

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Featured Audience Ratings

Tsubaki S

Spike Lee is aiming for too many things here, in some is a hit, in others are a miss. The first half builds up around the usual relationships stuff, then the second half forgets about the first and goes into a socio-political-commentary rampage. Also the movie depends on just way too… More
Spike Lee is aiming for too many things here, in some is a hit, in others are a miss. The first half builds up around the usual relationships stuff, then the second half forgets about the first and goes into a socio-political-commentary rampage. Also the movie depends on just way too many wishifull thinking and "happy coincidences" to work properly and be convincing. If only Spike cut it off the political stuff, his movies would be actually a lot better. John Turturo's character, and all his dialogues and scenes were like if Spike was doing a parody of Do the Right Thing.
Lanning :

Aloha, Spike, what is up with this? No worry, shrimp curry, I've had some dry spells myself.
Walter M

[font=Century Gothic]In "She Hate Me", John Henry Armstrong(Anthony Mackie) is a 31-year old single vice-president at an up and coming biotech company. He is sad because he is not yet a father. He is even sadder when his friend, Dr. Shiller, jumps out of his 40th floor… More
[font=Century Gothic]In "She Hate Me", John Henry Armstrong(Anthony Mackie) is a 31-year old single vice-president at an up and coming biotech company. He is sad because he is not yet a father. He is even sadder when his friend, Dr. Shiller, jumps out of his 40th floor office to his death. A new wonder drug that the company has been promoting as a possible vaccine for AIDS has been denied approval by the FDA. There is a cover-up to prop up the stock price but Armstrong decides to blow the whistle. He is promptly fired, has his assets frozen and is under investigation by the SEC. Armstrong's ex-girlfriend, Fatima(Kerry Washington), who left him for another woman, just happens to pop back into his life with an offer he cannot refuse - father her child, her lover's child and any other lesbians within a 30-mile radius they can find in exchange for $10,000 for every pregnancy. Meanwhile, there is an unprecedented turkey baster shortage...[/font] [font=Century Gothic]Spike Lee started off as a provocative young filmmaker with plenty to say on matters of race in America. Early on in his career, he made two great movies - "Do the Right Thing" and "Malcolm X." But the quality of his films have fallen as of late - "Summer of Sam" is an interesting mess; "Bamboozled" is much too heavy handed and could have used a lighter touch and "25th Hour" misses an easy shot to take on the draconian New York Rockefeller drug laws. [/font] [font=Century Gothic]"She Hate Me" consists of a whole morass of ideas gone horribly awry:[/font] [font=Century Gothic]One of the targets is capitalism but if that is so, then why focus on an executive instead of somebody of more proletarian status. Wouldn't a vice-president have some responsibility for his company's shenanigans?[/font] [font=Century Gothic]Hints about personal responsibility abound. The movie certainly disapproves of the whole pregnancy scheme and refers to it as immoral but Armstrong is providing a valuable service for which he is amply compensated. [/font] And the Bible did say,"Be fruitful and multiply, and replenish the earth." Genesis 9:1. And then there is the asinine Mafia subplot... Also, the sperm were funnier in "Everything You Always You Wanted to Know about Sex..." In conclusion, the movie might have worked if it had been simpler, shorter, and much more realistic and down to earth. At the end of the day, I'm not even sure what Spike Lee was trying to say. Note: Ossie Davis also appeared in a few episodes of "The L Word" which had a much more credible pregnant lesbian subplot. His roles in "She Hate Me" and "The L Word" were some of his last roles before he died.
Dimitris S

I will forgive thee Spike. Just don't give me a new version of ambitious-anti-yuppie-elements that includes rivers of tedious blockhead performances and wooden outcomes, oh...and judicial soliloquies. There has to be a slight knowledge in what you're trying to satirize dude,… More
I will forgive thee Spike. Just don't give me a new version of ambitious-anti-yuppie-elements that includes rivers of tedious blockhead performances and wooden outcomes, oh...and judicial soliloquies. There has to be a slight knowledge in what you're trying to satirize dude, that is: corporate misconducts.
Ina S

The second star is for the sexyness and humour of SOME scenes. Nooo, it is for Kerry Washington. Any film with her gets a star just for including her. ;-) Apart from this, I am deeply offended by some of the content (as a queer woman) and miss the subversive, controversial and GOOD… More
The second star is for the sexyness and humour of SOME scenes. Nooo, it is for Kerry Washington. Any film with her gets a star just for including her. ;-) Apart from this, I am deeply offended by some of the content (as a queer woman) and miss the subversive, controversial and GOOD Spike Lee.

Cast

            Anthony Mackie as John Henry "Jack" Armstrong

            Kerry Washington as Fatima Goodrich

            Ellen Barkin as Margo Chadwick

            Monica Bellucci as Simona Bonasera

            Jim Brown as Geronimo Armstrong

            Ossie Davis as Judge Buchanan

            Jamel Debbouze as Doak

            Brian Dennehy as Chairman Church

            Woody Harrelson as Leland Powell

            Ling Bai as Oni

            Lonette McKee as Lottie Armstrong

            Paula Jai Parker as Evelyn

            Q-Tip as Vada Huff

            Dania Ramirez as Alex Guerrero

            John Turturro as Don Angelo Bonasera

            Chiwetel Ejiofor as Frank Willis

            David Bennent as Dr. Herman Schiller

            Isiah Whitlock Jr. as Agent Flood

            Michole Briana White as Nadiyah

            Sarita Choudhury as Song

            Savannah Haske as Rachel

            Joie Lee as Gloria Reid

            Michael Genet as Jamal Armstrong

            Rick Aiello as Rocco Bonasera

            Chris Tardio as Franco Bonasera

            Gerald Anthony as Mr. Jennings

            Laura Jane Goodwin as Norma

            Keith Jochim as Richard Nixon

            Martin Murphy as Officer #1

            Jim Ward as Detective Sholler

            P.J. Brown as Sgt. Leper

            Peter Kybart as German Pastor

            James McCaffrey as Bob

            Murphy Guyer as John Erlichman

            Christopher Wynkoop as Bernard Baker

            Alison Folland as Doris

            Don Harvey as G. Gordon Liddy

            Wass W. Stevens as Frank Sturgis

            Kim Director as Grace

            Gary Evans as H.R. Haldeman

            Charles Santy as Police Officer

            Paul Albe as James Mccord

            Alice Liu as Oni's Girlfriend

            Marion McCorry as Senator Jacobs

            T.V. Carpio as Gail

            Reynaldo Rosales as Jimmy

            Aynsley Lemon as Eugenio Martinez

            Jade Wu as Midwife

            Hal Sherman as Detective Boyd

            Piper Corbett as Norma's Girlfriend

            Rodney "Bear" Jackson as Federal Correction Officer #1

            Bradley C. Williams as Federal Correction Officer #2

            Carlos Leon as Virgilio Gonzalez

            Roslyn Tate as Lucy Armstrong

            Christine Pepe as Gia

            Kym Hampton as Stacey

            Pauline Tautu as Leilani

            Angela Forrest as Ruby

            Martha Williams as Fifi

            Aura Grimolyte as Ticha

            Chris Magna as Nino Bonasera

            Samrat Chakrabarti as Ahmad

            Kandiss Edmundson as Millie

            Kristina Klebe as Ruth Lacey

            Jamilah Rutherford as Terri

            Peter Michael Marino as John Dean

            Brian Simons as Jeb Stuart Magruder

            Jeff Hughes as Oliver North

            Richard Kelly as Klansman

            Wynne Anders as Nurse

            Kendra Day as Karen

            Kisha Batista as Jo

            Sope Phang as Michelle

            Tristan Taormino as Olga

            Muriel Hurtado Herrera as Lorna

            Albert Zihenni as Flood's Partner

            Sandra Endo as NY 1 Field Reporter

            Michael Devine as Officer #2

            Patrick Reale as Bodyguard

            Naja Hill as Nadiyah's Girlfriend

            Shakara Singh as Evelyn's Girlfriend

            Zakiya Williams as Ruby's Girlfriend

            Poorna as Song's Girlfriend

            Sarah Desage as Fifi's Girlfriend

            Neisha Butler as Stacey's Girlfriend

            Catherine Wyn Rogers as Jo's Girlfriend

            Natasha Carabello as Michelle's Girlfriend

            Connie Freestone as Karen's Girlfriend

            Wynn Hall as Doris' Girlfriend

            Shira Bocar as Rachel's Girlfriend

            Tim Miller as Bank President

            Lars Hanson as Detective Barret
See full cast

She Hate Me (2004)

Critic Reviews

Featured Audience Ratings

Tsubaki S

Lanning :

Walter M

Dimitris S

Ina S

Cast

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