Who did the right thing? “Do the right thing” is a 1989 movie written and directed by Spike Lee. The focus of the movie is Sal’s famous pizzeria which is owned by an Italian man named Sal along with his two sons- Pino and Vito- and his employee Mookie. The movie depicts what racial tension between whites and blacks looks like in a black dominated neighborhood. It comprises different characters with the rush to do the right thing. In this essay, I will deeply delve into 4 characters from the movie:
Reema Alfayez Leslie Martin Drama62 11/21/2016 ‘Do the right thing’ Analysis ‘Do the right thing’ is a widely recognized film for bringing out controversial issues facing our society. This film by Spike's Lee's challenges the audience to reflect on societal issues by constantly butting together the conflicting ideologies of violence as self-defence and non-violence. Lee manages to highlight this compelling question without telling the audience which is the better choice. The film successfully portrays
The Loses of Young Man Life Do The Right Thing is a film that is written to demonstrate the racial differences that existed in the society. The setting of the film is a black neighbourhood where a pizzeria is owned by an Italian American man (Sal). Further, the neighborhood has a Korean grocery. Spike Lee makes his thoughts about racial between different cultures to be well known using various characters and he also proves by the end of the movie that the resistance for the ones that have more power
Although Do the Right Thing, directed by Spike Lee, was filmed in 1989, it is still relevant today. Even 29 years later, we experience the hardships they went through back then. Lee makes this movie relevant today by showing acts of racism, police brutality, and rioting. Throughout this movie, Lee presents many cases of racism. It all starts with Sal and his sons in their family owned pizzeria. Sal’s son doesn’t like Mookie because he is African American. Furthermore, Mookie’s friends come into
With the eighties being a powerful time in America that came with music, art, and movies with a meaning. These messages relayed back from the black community topics of racism, sexism, and etc. Spike lee presented that with his 1989 film Do the Right Thing. Lee’s film displayed how people deflect stereotypes in a community of tension and racial oppression. One of Lee’s important characters is Sal, an Italian business owner where his pizzeria enterprise is popular, for the being the only establishment
Do The Right Thing (1989): Extra Credit Assignment Spike Lee’s Do the Right Thing is a 1989 film about the disagreements in an African American community in Brooklyn, New York. The film shows a tragic day in which the weather is unbearably hot. There is extreme racial tension in the film between the African American, Puerto Rican, and White members of the community. There is a fight at the famous Sal’s Pizzeria between a character named Radio Raheem and the owner, Sal. The police come to break up
Jayanth Devarajan Ethnic Studies 122AC 15 July 2014 MIDTERM – DO THE RIGHT THING (1989) ‘Do the Right Thing’ is one of the most effervescent, upbeat tragedies of American cinema. Set in a small neighborhood in the Brooklyn region, the film centers around the story of the motley people that inhabit the block as they try to reside and work under a palpable air of racial tension, which unfolds into a stimulating climax that continues to be debated upon. The protagonist of the movie is Mookie (Spike
still serves as a primary issue which can be shown in the film, Do the Right Thing. Spike Lee, one of Hollywood’s well-known actors and producers, had directed and starred in his own film, Do the Right Thing. The film is an American comedy-drama which was released in 1989. Throughout the movie, Do the Right Thing is famous for its ideologies that is often expressed in various scenes which leaves viewers pondering about what is right and wrong. As it takes place in Brooklyn’s very own, Bedford-Stuyvesant
A wise man by the name of Martin Luther King Junior once said “Violence as a way of achieving racial justice is both impractical and immoral”. Spike Lee’s movie, “Do the Right Thing,” showcases a blistering hot 1989 summer day in an African American neighborhood. The minority in the neighborhood--an Italian-American pizzeria owner and his two sons--received the built up hatred from the blacks. Spike Lee’s work perfectly put Malcolm X and Martin Luther King Jr.’s methods to the test and proved that
Spike Lee's Do The Right Thing is a film made in 1989 depicting racial conflict in Brooklyn New York during the 80's. The plot involves a group of African Americans, Italians and a Korean couple who live in the same block. There are multiple themes that tie in together in the film, one being the animosity and racism the characters feel towards each other throughout the film. The director makes the theme clear in the film by the conflicts that arise between the characters. An example of this is when
Do the Right Thing is a brilliant cinematic depiction of what life is like in Brooklyn, New York in a neighborhood flooded with pluralism. As tensions and temperatures rise we see an unraveling of events which spiral into a tragedy. This film has without a doubt withstood the test of time; hence, remaining significant and relevant to our culture today. The movie opens with Mookie, a young African American, who works at Sal’s Famous Pizzeria. Sal’s pizzeria is owned by Sal and his two sons Vito
In Spike Lee’s movie Do The Right Thing, the ideas of Martin Luther King, Jr., and Malcolm X are presented throughout the movie. The constant presence of the character Smiley with a photo of the leaders portrays the importance that these two figures’ ideas have in the movie. The “Letter from a Birmingham Jail,” by Martin Luther King, Jr., and the speech “The Ballot or the Bullet,” by Malcolm X, help us elucidate the events that happen during a hot day in the neighborhood of Bedford-Stuyvesant, Brooklyn
The film Do the Right Thing (1989), director Spike Lee, tells the story of a mostly black community in Brooklyn. The plot follows 25-year-old pizza delivery man Mookie (played by Spike Lee) trough the hottest day of the year. Mookie has a sister and a son with his girlfriend. He knows he’s not gona work at the pizzeria for the rest of his life and that’s why he lacks the ambition. In an infamous neighbourhood in Brooklyn, where the story is playing out there are a few distinctive characters - Da
Known for it’s provocative message, Spike Lee’s film Do the Right Thing (1989) direct’s the audiences attention toward police racism and violence. Spike Lee adds a dramatic flare to the movie through intense, colorful lighting and dialog. Characters in the movie fight for and against racial justice. The biggest argument of the movie is when a patron of a local pizza shop, Buggin Out (Giancarlo Esposito), believes that the pizza shop should have photos of African Americans along with the Italian Americans
The film “Do the Right Thing” directed by Spike Lee, is an eye-opening film that discusses race inequality, stereotypes, and police brutality. Spike Lee uses a linear structure within the film to reveal the different themes that focus on emotional effect and the mood, anger, develop characters, reveal symbols, and show the audience the message behind the story. The exposition of the movie is shot in red lighting with the song Fight the Power as non-diegetic sound in front of an apartment building
Do the Right Thing is a social commentary on the slow boil of racial tensions in a neighborhood of New York. These racial tensions come to a head when characters Sal, Radio Rahim and Buggin’ out barge into Sal’s pizzeria blaring music. Sal demands they turn off their music and in turn they demand black people have equal representation on his wall of fame. This argument quickly escalates into a full out chaotic screaming match. This scene is ultimately the antithesis before the climax in which Radio
Do the Right Thing is a film produced, directed, and written by Spike Lee in 1989. It is a comedic drama focusing on the injustice of racial inequality. Not only this, but this film touches on ageism and classism, all things that are still relevant in today’s society, even if we, ourselves, may not see it. With worried thoughts, funding was difficult to find. Eventually, Universal signed with Lee giving him quite the budget- $6.5 million (MentalFloss). It is good that Universal did so. After the
Spike Lee’s commercially and critically successful 1989 film Do the Right Thing is a notable film in our modern day society in terms of racism, ethics, and prejudice. The film was even marked as “culturally, historically, and aesthetically significant” by the Library of Congress in 1999. The films prominent themes are distinctly racism, morality, and “fighting the power”. Racism plays a big role as many people see the film as a white versus black type of movie, due to the owner of the movie’s main
The film Do The Right Thing, directed by Spike Lee, uses various elements of settings, costumes, props and lighting to help convey the film’s overall tone and highlight the complicated issue of racial tension in the early 90’s which is still relevant today. For instance warm red, orange, and yellow lighting is used to show anger and tension which is especially evident in the film’s intro where Tina is dancing in front of a red cityscape. The lighting and costume colors are purposeful in setting the
Short Paper #2: Visual Dynamics in Do The Right Thing By Kedisha Dallas One of the most significant themes found in Do The Right Thing is tension. In this film, tension is at the surface represented by the hot temperature. Spike Lee emphasizes this tension by placing it on the relationships between the different minority groups within the community. This tension becomes intense in the scene where Buggin Out argues about the Italian photos Sal has on the wall of his Pizzeria. The tension becomes