Jungle Fever

It's weird to see Spike Lee's 1991 joint "Jungle Fever" described as an interracial love story, as the central romance may be the dullest part of the movie. But I feel like Spike knew that, which is why you can see this powerful and supercharged drama take off a bunch of different directions, as if the love story was the perfect platform for the master filmmaker to throw in his unique brand of social commentary and provocation. And with a terrific high-definition video transfer on the new Blu-ray from Kino Lorber and their Studio Classics label, this gem feels as urgent as ever. Even though there aren't any supplementary features on the disc, this release still stands as the definitive way to watch this film at home.

Flipper Purify (Wesley Snipes) is a talented, motivated and successful black man and architect who is happily married. Angie Tucci (Anabella Sciorra) is the beautiful and charming Italian woman who was just hired to be Flipper's secretary. As Flipper and Angie start spending late nights at the office, they grow close together and end up having sex. That encounter begins a tumultuous relationship that threatens to not only upend their lives but the lives of people around them.

If we take the central romance of "Jungle Fever" as a Spike Lee's own rendition of "Romeo and Juliet," then the love story makes so much more sense. This revelation was noted to me by fellow critic Jake Mulligan. Flipper and Angie represent two separate houses. For Flipper, he loves his kid and wife but is eager for more. For Angie, she's emotionally and physically battered by her abusive father. No wonder the two ended up together. But alas, their love wasn't meant to be. Part of the thrill of watching the film unfold is knowing that it's not going to end well and still being engaged every step of the way. That's part of Lee's greatest strengths. He could take us through a story that has a very simple point-A to point-B structure and go off in a bunch of tangents that are equally or more interesting.

Take Gator's (Samuel L. Jackson) arc for instance. He's a degenerate addict who has been cast out his Baptist home by his father, The Good Reverend Doctor Purify (Ossie Davis). The Good Reverend was ousted from the church for unknown reasons, but based upon his demeanor and vitriol spewing, we can ascertain that his own ignorance was his downfall. Gator's addiction to crack is far from some surface-level showcase of the drug epidemic in Harlem. Rather, Gator had taken the forbidden fruit and paid the price for it dearly. Flipper did the same by entering into a relationship with Angie. No matter what they do, there is no world in which their love can work.

"Not today, sweetheart. Maybe in the future." Flipper says to his daughter as she asks him when he's going to move back home. She responds, "When's the future." An aching bit of dialogue that continues to echo with the same apprehension almost 20 years later. Special features include:

� Theatrical trailer

"Jungle Fever"
Kino Lorber Blu-ray
$29.95
https://www.klstudioclassics.com/product/view/id/6639