She's Gotta Have It (1986)

Independence in love can unsettle the men who want to claim you as much as it inspires. Spike Lee made a big splash in the independent film world with his debut feature, "She's Gotta Have It," an inventive, low-budget romance shot in black-and-white on the streets of Brooklyn and centered on a strong-willed heroine. Nola Darling (Tracy Camilla Johns) can't choose among her three boyfriends: earnest, sweet-natured Jamie (Tommy Redmond Hicks), vain, self-absorbed Greer (John Canada Terrell) and goofy, wisecracking bike messenger Mars Blackmon (Lee himself). Within this loose storyline, Lee crafts a rich character study of Nola and offers a slice of Black urban life rarely seen on screen at the time. According to Lee's published journal, he interviewed dozens of women and sought feedback on the script from female friends, and it shows. Nola is unapologetic and sexually independent, resisting every attempt by the men in her life to reshape her to suit them, and the film's terrific final twist thumbs its nose at romantic conventions and gives her the last word. Lee blends direct-to-camera interviews and documentary techniques with a simple, often elegant storytelling style to create a layered portrait of Nola and her men, challenging assumptions about sex, sexuality and modern relationships. It may look a bit rough next to his later, more polished work, but it announced Lee as a fresh, bold voice and a creative force to be reckoned with. Mars Blackmon became so popular that Lee later revived him in a famous series of Nike ads with Michael Jordan.