Film Review: Do the Right Thing

Director: Spike Lee

Spike Lee is renowned for making films examining race relations between the black community and the rest of America especially with regards to urban poverty and crime. Do the Right Thing is seen as one of his best works which combines the intense heat of a summers day in Brooklyn with the loud street music from the local community. Many well known comedians and actors played roles in the film like Martin Lawrence, Samuel L. Jackson and Steve Park. The film, released in 1989, was nominated at the Oscars for Best Screenplay and Best Supporting Actor in Danny Aiello but neither won.

Mookie (Spike Lee) and Sal (Danny Aiello)

Mookie (Spike Lee) who lives with his sister who wants him to move out and show some ambition in his life is a pizza delivery boy for Sal (Danny Aiello), a local Italian pizzeria owner. The local neighbourhood in Brooklyn is full of different characters like Radio Raheem (Bill Nunn) who walks round with a ghetto-blaster constantly playing "Fight the Power" by Public Enemy, Smiley (Roger Guenveur Smith) who is a mentally impaired man who tries to sell pictures of Malcolm X and Martin Luther King and Buggin' Out (Giancarlo Esposito) whose protests to put black people on Sal's wall of fame starts the chain of events off. The race relations between the black community and the other locals reaches boiling point on the hottest day in years which sees things get even more heated.

Films of the late eighties and early nineties seem to have a certain quality that makes them look extremely dated, even more so than there predecessors which is strange. This aside it is a deeply intriguing political piece about the treatment of black people at the time which still has the power to make you laugh and enjoy what is happening at times. It was a highly controversial film at the time as many felt it was inciting black people to riot at their predicament especially in big cities. Many have tried to criticize the film and its message but you cannot deny that it a strong message about the race relations in America at the time and even now.

Radio Raheem (Bill Nunn)

The name of the film relates to Mookie's action near the end and asks us whether he did the right thing, Lee stated that he is only ever asked by non-blacks as to whether he did infact do the right thing. The song "Fight the Power" was written at the request of Spike Lee and is the perfect soundtrack to much of the film. The ensemble cast make the whole film more believable with a real diverse community feel rather than just a few central characters whilst the screenplay gives very little away as the film develops so you are genuinely surprised as it all unfolds.

3/4 Enjoyable yet politically heated film