Girl 6

1996's GIRL 6 was the first film Spike Lee directed but did not write.   It's hard not to imagine how differently this would've been had he done so, but not so hard to predict the chorus of disapproval he would've received.   His handling of female characters had thus far run hot and cold, though I always felt it was honest from his particular point of view, for what that's worth.  Playwright/novelist Suzan-Lori Parks scripted this story of a struggling NYC actress who finds an unexpected fulfillment when she takes a job as a phone sex operator.   Such promising material, and such a mixed result.

What's immediately noticeable is how distracted the movie is with its subplots.  Judy (Theresa Randle) repeatedly runs into her unnamed ex (Isiah Washington), an apparent kleptomaniac who still lives with his mother.  This thread never really develops, even after Judy runs her sex phone patter on him at dinner and he is taken aback with this woman he thought he knew.  The possibilities! I was expecting some great follow up conversation at least, but no, the film just sorta moves on.  Then there's Judy's sports memorabilia obsessed cousin/neighbor/friend Jimmy, played by Spike himself.  Their rapport is amusing but similarly never leads anywhere.  Or adds to the story in the slightest.

Worst of all are the recurring TV newscasts Judy watches of a little girl who survived a fall down an elevator shaft.  The metaphor here is clumsy and obvious. 

Judy, who previously had to hold down three thankless jobs just to survive (and lend money to Jimmy), discovers that her phone personas are an ideal outlet for her acting skills, far more so than those humiliating auditions (where she is asked to remove her top) and acting classes.  This particular idea is given some mileage, as is Judy's eventual obsession with the job.  Ms. Parks hints at interesting subtext that should've been allowed to breathe, be visualized.   But Ms. Randle is great in a challenging role.  She knows how to handle this difficult material; I'm not sure Spike ever did.

There are awkward daydream sequences.  Judy at various times imagines herself (in not very imaginative segments) as Pam Grier and Dorothy Dandridge.  Also as a cast member of The Jeffersons in an odd, not particularly funny scene.  More padding for the running time.

And the use of different film stocks to show Girl 6's (mostly) perverted callers? Another interesting idea that doesn't gel.  And what's with Spike's continued fascination with having his actors appear as if they're floating down a walkway, the so-called "double dolly shot"?

GIRL 6 was not well received by critics, particularly for the opening moments as Judy runs lines for a director referred to as QT, played by later Spike Lee nemesis Quentin Tarantino.   Roger Ebert felt it was dishonest for Spike to allow his viewers to see Judy exposed rather than just QT, as if Spike was displaying some grossly inappropriate "cake and eat it too" method.  Ebert also had similar problems with BLUE VELVET, but in both films I think the humiliation suffered by these women is effectively portrayed - sometimes you have to show rather than infer.

Is GIRL 6 an exemplary feminist drama? In moments, but I feel the project was rushed, not well thought out.  A great idea that was stymied before it could ever take flight.  It's quite a messy affair.   Its best quality are the wall to wall songs by Prince, likely the reason this film is nowhere to be found on streaming services (I had to settle for a DVD - not all that easy to find, either).