HBO's NYC Epicenters: 9/11→2021½ solidifies Spike Lee's greatness as a documentarian

The Hollywood Reporter

"If anything could be said to be underrated about heftily praised filmmaker Spike Lee, it’s his skill as a documentarian (a classification I’d expand to include Lee’s status as perhaps our preeminent capturer of live stage performances)," says Daniel Fienberg. "Take Do the Right Thing out of the conversation and I would argue that Lee’s defining credit perhaps should be the HBO pairing of When the Levees Broke and If God Is Willing and da Creek Don’t Rise." Fienberg adds of NYC Epicenters: 9/11→2021½ "I don’t think Lee has ever made an unscripted project that felt so much like the experience of rattling around in Spike Lee’s brain, a cumulative representation of 20-plus years of New York City’s joy and tragedy and outrage interspersed with commentary on the Knicks, hip-hop, historically Black colleges and universities, classic musicals and, of course, the works of Spike Lee. When you’re caroming around in Spike Lee’s head, some excesses are to be expected, especially in a documentary that could come equipped with a dozen trigger warnings. Viewers disturbed by footage of George Floyd’s murder, the Jan. 6 right-wing insurrection, the haunting early days of COVID-19, anything related to Donald Trump or footage from 9/11 should expect a visceral and occasionally unpleasant charge from NYC Epicenters. And be further warned, as if the identity of the director weren’t indication enough, that NYC Epicenters is often graceful and deft, but it’s never light on its feet around tragedy. So be prepared for Darnella Frazier’s footage of the Floyd murder, and for many shots of people jumping from the burning World Trade Center. As visceral as your reactions to the documentary are likely to be, Lee’s reactions to the events are at least as visceral. His horror, his incredulity, his admiration and occasionally his amusement steer the project to such an extent that, through the three installments sent to critics, he is increasingly an onscreen presence." ALSO: Lee is a real character as an interviewer: "You can hear his excitement, his disbelief and his admiration bellowing from offscreen."