Watching a film like this is a little odd; one gets a double view, seeing it both as an original movie (the dialog has been redone, which I think is appropriate) but also through a filter of the half-remembered play from high school English class.
Much of the translation is very clever; casting the solider Othello as a private school basketball hero is an intelligent mapping. The names are well translated, Iago becomes "Hugo", Desdemona is "Desi". There are certain bends in the plot that strain credulity, things that would work onstage but seem jarring in a realistic setting, but the overall concept is very sound, and in the end the emotions ring true.
The story is the tale of Odin, the only black student at a preppie boarding
school, recruited for his tremendous basketball skills. Hugo, the coach's
son, is overcome by jealousy over the attention "O" is receiving as
well as for being passed over by Odin for sharing an MVP award. He
begins a scheme to exact his revenge on both Odin and Michael (the co-MVP)
using Michael as an tool to come between Odin and his girlfriend Desi.
The film brings in a lot of concepts, from the politics of interracial romance, to bullying, to date rape. It also has some tremendously well done basketball action shots (I wouldn't have noticed, but one of the DVD special features is an analysis of those scenes.)
In terms of romance, the relationship aspects take a backseat to the sinister manipulations of Hugo (extremely well played by Josh Hartnett), but it captured the insane intensity of love at that age, young adults learning how to come into their own feelings, including the over-extension that is so integral to the experience.
In total, this is an excellent film. It makes a tremendous tragic plot more real and accessible than a more traditional reading would have. The recently released DVD is a 2-DVD set, including a remastered version of the silent version of Othello from 1922; probably more of a novelty for most viewers, but still a nice touch.
