Do the Right Thing (1989)

I've always kept Spike Lee at a distance. When I was younger, I was always a little intimidated by his politics. Or, rather, what I saw (at the time) as radical racial politics. I've come a long way since then. I've learned a lot since I was young. And I have just recently begun going back to Lee's seminal early works to see what "the big deal was all about."

It turns out that I was very foolish. That I had kept from myself the work of one of America's auteur filmmakers. Give me a slice of humble pie. I'll have it a la mode.

1989's Do the Right Thing is often heralded as Lee's greatest work.

So I watched it.

I. What Is It?

This is the story of the hottest day of the summer in the Bedford-Stuyevsant neighborhood of New York. As the temperature rises, resentments fly, and hidden tensions in the neighborhood reach a boiling point.

II. Art

This is a piece of art, through and through.

Spike Lee's dialogue is lyrical. His characters speak the poetry of the streets.

Ernest R. Dickerson's photography is compelling and dynamic.

Ruth E. Carter's costumes are bold and inform the characters they adorn with keen insight.

Bill Lee's jazzy score accompanies the film's stable of licensed tunes with verve and energy.

The ensemble cast is brilliant: Bill Nunn's Radio Raheem is the film's tough-guy prophet; Danny Aiello's Sal is a man with his heart in the right place, but a tragic naivete; John Turtrurro's Pino is a swirling tempest of rage; Ossie Davis' Da Mayor is a tragic portrait of a man fallen from grace. And that's only a handful. This film has so many great actors giving dedicated, incredible performances. And narrating all of the action from his radio studio is Samuel L. Jackson as DJ Mister Senor Love Daddy.

Spike Lee marshals all of these forces like a circus ringleader. He has a vision, and he executes it with panache and passion.

III. Still Relevant

I think white people need to see this movie. If you think, like I used to, that racial tensions in this country were blown out of proportion, and that "things are better now," you need to watch this movie. This film was released in 1989. But it feels as fresh and relevant today as it must have 31 years ago. There are ideas and themes that Lee explores in this movie that have never felt more vital: Racial tensions and resentments that explode into violence; police brutality against unarmed black men; the way white privilege hides the suffering and inequity from many people's perceptions.

I was sitting on my couch with my jaw on the floor during the film's finale. Without spoiling things for people who have not seen the movie, Lee propels all of his disparate characters into a reckoning that threatens to burn Bed-Stuy to the ground. After the credits rolled, I was conflicted. Mookie (Spike Lee) is told to "always do the right thing." I was left wrestling with that thought. Did he do the right thing? Is there even a "right thing" to do? Ever?

It's been a week or so since I watched the film, and I am still not sure. I've discussed the end of this movie with my friends and I've thought about it in the shower and on long walks by myself. And I still don't know if Mookie did the right thing. I think I know that I can't judge him for it, though.

That is powerful storytelling.

And I want you to experience it. And I want to talk about it with you.

IV. Epic

This movie is peopled by an array of distinct, authentic characters. The neighborhood itself becomes a character: it feels lived in, with history and an identity. For someone who has never been to Bed-Stuy, it feels like I was given a tour of it. A snapshot of what it was in 1989.

All of that makes the movie feel like an epic novel. Multiple characters in multiple stories weave in and out of each other over the course of two hours. That the movie manages to introduce these many specific people in this specific place, telling these specific stories in just 120 minutes is a feat of editing and storytelling genius. Lee's script and direction, paired with editor Barry Alexander Brown's expert work, toe a fine line between restraint and indulgence. We are given a slurry of little scenes that establish character, plot, stakes, and world-building, and the movie never really wastes its time. That group of old timers on the corner, talking shit? They are establishing the under-the-surface tensions of the neighborhood that are beginning to boil over. Mookie's brief visits with his girlfriend and his son? Key character development moments that will contrast with his actions in the film's finale. Radio Raheem's monologue about Love and Hate? A key thesis of the movie.

This movie feels like it was lifted from the pages of an epic American novel. It is surely an argument for the legitimization of film as a unique narrative form.

Why You Should See It

- It is still relevant 31 years after it was released. It is a film that will challenge you and stay with you.
- It feels like an epic American novel.
- The performances of the ensemble are wonderful.
- This is indeed the work of one of America's greatest filmmakers at the height of his powers.

In Conclusion

I loved this movie. I love how difficult, how challenging it was. It is a finely crafted American cinematic epic. Spike Lee deserves his status as one of America's preeminent filmmakers for this one alone. And he's made other films, too!

Watch this movie.

Miscellany

- Lee originally wanted Robert De Niro for the role of Sal, but De Niro turned the part down. Laurence Fishburne was offered the role of Radio Raheem. He also turned it down. James Earl Jones was originally offered the role of Da Mayor. Yeah, he turned it down. Lord.
- The scenes featuring the old men on the corner were all improvised.
- Lee penned the script in only two weeks.
- Radio Raheem's monologue about Love and Hate (and his golden knuckle rings) are a reference to 1955's Night of the Hunter and Robert Mitchum's character in that film. Mitchum's character has "love" and "hate" tattooed across his knuckles.
- Barack and Michelle Obama saw this movie on their first date.