Because so many of you have been asking: Is Chi-Raq, Spike Lee’s update of Aristophones’ Greek comedy Lysistrata in which a South Chicago woman organizes a sex strike to combat violence in her neighborhood,  playing locally? No, it is not. Will it play here? Probably not, but if it does it will likely be snuck in at the last minute with little or no advance notice. It’s been a long time since one of Spike’s films has received a wide theatrical release, though given the amount of national publicity done for Chi-Raq you’d be forgiven for assuming it was booked in theaters everywhere. The film was produced by Amazon, with a limited theatrical release intended to raise awareness of the movie before it is made available on Amazon Prime. Given the amount of attention, strong reviews and controversy the movie has generated, it’s possible that the theatrical release might be expanded, but as we’re into the holiday season most theaters are solidly booked, especially the independent theaters that would be most likely to show it.

CHI-RAQ Trailer from 40 Acres and a Mule Filmworks on Vimeo.