plot : odin is a great high school basketball player . 
he's dating a hot girl and the coach loves his ass . 
in fact , the coach even admits to having fatherly feelings towards him . 
unfortunately , the coach's real son , hugo , isn't too pleased to hear that . 
in fact , he doesn't like hearing about any of odin's triumphs , as they generally supersede his own . 
so what does he set out to do ? 
well , let's just say that he starts to mess with people's heads and one thing leads to another thing which leads to . . . well , 
you'll see . 
critique : a very powerful , thoroughly depressing , well-acted " non-teen " movie starring a bunch of teens . 
credit director tim blake nelson for creating a modern day version of this shakespearian classic , set in a realistic high school environment , with the basketball championships as the backdrop and an impending sense of doom as it core . 
you also have to give it up to all of the actors in this film , who turn over some very convincing performances , taking you through all of their characters' ups and downs . 
hartnett especially should be applauded for taking on such a despicable character , a dude who you just want to grab by the throat and beat the shit out of ( sign of a good actor , if you ask me ) . 
phifer also comes to play in this movie , with a nice blend of charisma , fear , love and anger spread over his character . 
i was always on this guy's side and definitely felt sorry for him as things moved along . 
julia stiles was also good , but her character wasn't much different from others that she's played recently . 
i was however very surprised with martin sheen's showing , since i hadn't taken him too seriously as an actor over the past few years . 
his character is definitely over-the-top in this film , but i appreciated his fervor , his rage , his ultimate and blind desire to win above all . 
a great example of a workaholic man who cannot see the trees from the forest . 
i did have a few reservations about the movie though . 
first of all , what was with all of the gangsta hip-hop music used in pretty much every other scene transition ? 
it was cute at first , but became a little too obvious and annoying after a few times . 
the film was also edited pretty choppily . . . like 
some scenes were cut out and no one " cleaned it up " afterwards . 
i also didn't like the fact that hartnett's character , the man behind much of the nastiness that goes down in this film , was infallible . 
in other words , pretty much everything he says or asks of someone , happens automatically and without any goofups . 
i mean , i know the guy is smart and all , but i would have appreciated a little more " realism " under some of the circumstances . 
but overall , the movie will devastate you . 
it's not a " fun date movie " . 
it's not a movie about the high school basketball team and how its black star falls for the white girl from the other side of the tracks . 
it's about jealousy , love , envy , fury , passion , revenge and pretty much any other negative thought that's ever passed through your head . 
is it worth seeing ? 
oh , most definitely ! 
 ( pun intended ) it's a moving picture with great performances , no shakespearian speak ( thank you , god ! ) and an outstanding directorial job by nelson . 
the final scene alone is enough to send a massive chill down your spine , and i was especially impressed with the director's choice of music near the end . 
in fact , the whole sequence was quite reminiscent of the final showdown scene from taxi driver , and i guess that's saying something right there . 
where's joblo coming from ? 
10 things i hate about you ( 7/10 ) - election ( 7/10 ) - hamlet ( 6/10 ) - love's labor's lost ( 8/10 ) - natural born killers ( 9/10 ) - save the last dance ( 7/10 ) - shakespeare in love ( 5/10 )