Director Tim Blake Nelson sets Shakespeare's "Othello" in a modern-day private high school and the result is a dark, sombre teen tragedy. Mekhi Phifer (8 Mile) stars as Odin James, an African-American star basketball player at the otherwise all-white school. The coach of the team (Martin Sheen) loves Odin like a son, which causes his real son Hugo (Josh Hartnett) to squirm with jealousy and plan an elaborate revenge. Julia Stiles (a modern-dress Shakespeare regular, having also co-starred in Hamlet and Ten Things I Hate About You) is Desi, the virginal daughter of the dean, with whom Odin is in love. The ensuing outburst of tragic teen violence is a shocking denouement that elevates the already dangerous mood of the film to fully fledged terror. Shakespeare's original dialogue is abandoned in favour of hip-hop-flavoured modern language, exploring themes of class, race, and all-consuming jealousy.