Do the Right Thing

Last updated

Do the Right Thing
Do the Right Thing poster.png
Theatrical release poster
Directed by Spike Lee
Written bySpike Lee
Produced bySpike Lee
Starring
Cinematography Ernest Dickerson
Edited by Barry Alexander Brown
Music by Bill Lee
Production
company
Distributed by Universal Pictures
Release dates
  • May 19, 1989 (1989-05-19)(Cannes)
  • June 30, 1989 (1989-06-30)(United States)
Running time
120 minutes [1]
CountryUnited States
LanguageEnglish
Budget$6.2 million
Box office$37.3 million [2] [3]

Do the Right Thing is a 1989 American comedy-drama film produced, written and directed by Spike Lee. It stars Lee, Danny Aiello, Ossie Davis, Ruby Dee, Richard Edson, Giancarlo Esposito, Bill Nunn, John Turturro and Samuel L. Jackson and is the feature film debut of Martin Lawrence and Rosie Perez. The story explores a Brooklyn neighborhood's simmering racial tension between its African-American residents and the Italian-American owners of a local pizzeria, culminating in tragedy and violence on a hot summer's day.

Contents

A critical and commercial success, the film received accolades, including Academy Award nominations for Best Original Screenplay and Best Supporting Actor (for Aiello's portrayal of Sal, the pizzeria owner). In 1999, it was selected for the National Film Registry by the Library of Congress, citing its preservation as "culturally, historically or aesthetically significant". [4] [5] In 2022, the film was ranked the 24th greatest of all time in Sight and Sound magazine's decennial poll of international critics, programmers, curators, archivists and academics. [6] It has since been featured on many other lists of the greatest films of all time by numerous critics. [7] [8] [9] [10] [11]

Plot

Twenty-five-year-old Mookie lives in Bedford–Stuyvesant with his sister Jade, has a toddler son named Hector with his Latina girlfriend Tina, and works as a delivery man at a pizzeria owned by Italian-American Salvatore "Sal" Frangione. Sal's oldest son, Pino, is a racist who holds contempt for all the neighborhood blacks. Sal's younger son, Vito, is friends with Mookie, which Pino feels undermines their fraternal bond.

Other residents of the neighborhood include friendly drunk Da Mayor; Mother Sister, who observes the block from her brownstone; Radio Raheem, who blasts Public Enemy's "Fight the Power" on his boombox; Buggin' Out, a fast-talking young man who talks about Black civil rights to anyone who'll listen; Smiley, a mentally disabled man who meanders around town with hand-colored pictures of Malcolm X and Martin Luther King Jr.; and local DJ Mister Señor Love Daddy.

At Sal's, Buggin' Out questions Sal about his "Wall of Fame", decorated with photos of famous Italian-Americans, and demands that Sal put up pictures of Black celebrities since the pizzeria is in a Black neighborhood. Sal refuses, feeling he's not required to put anyone but Italians on the wall, and ejects him. Buggin' Out attempts to start boycotting the pizzeria but only Raheem joins him.

During the day, local teenagers open a fire hydrant to beat the heat wave before white police officers Mark Ponte and Gary Long intervene. Mookie confronts Pino about his contempt towards African-Americans. Later, Pino expresses his hatred for African-Americans to Sal, who insists on keeping the business in the majority African-American neighborhood.

Radio Raheem's boombox as seen in "Do the Right Thing". Image courtesy of Smithsonian National Museum of African American History and Culture. Radio Raheem's Boombox.jpg
Radio Raheem's boombox as seen in "Do the Right Thing". Image courtesy of Smithsonian National Museum of African American History and Culture.

That night, Buggin' Out and Raheem march into Sal's and demand that the Wall of Fame include Black celebrities. Sal demands that Raheem turn his boombox off, but he refuses. Buggin' Out badmouths Sal and threatens to shutter the pizzeria for good. Finally, Sal snaps and smashes Raheem's boombox. Enraged, Raheem attacks Sal. A fight ensues that spills out into the street, attracting a crowd. The police arrive, including Long and Ponte, who break up the fight and apprehend Raheem and Buggin' Out. As the officers attempt to restrain Raheem, Long begins choking him with his nightstick. Though Ponte and the onlookers plead for him to stop, Long tightens his choke-hold on Raheem, killing him. Attempting to save face, the duo place his body in the back of a police car and drive off.

The onlookers blame Sal for Raheem's death, but Da Mayor unsuccessfully tries to convince the crowd of Sal's innocence. Suddenly, Mookie grabs a trash can and throws it through the pizzeria's window, sparking the crowd to destroy it. Smiley sets the building ablaze, and Da Mayor pulls Sal, Pino, and Vito away from the mob, which turns towards the Korean market across the street to destroy it too. Sonny, the owner, eventually dissuades the group.

The police return with the fire department and riot patrols to extinguish the fire and disperse the crowd. The firefighters, after several warnings to the crowd, turn their hoses on the mob, enraging them and causing more arrests. The next day, Mookie returns to Sal and demands his weekly pay. After an argument, Sal pays Mookie and the two cautiously reconcile. Mookie leaves to visit Hector as Mister Señor Love Daddy announces that the mayor of New York City has founded a committee to investigate the incident and dedicates a song to Raheem.

Before the credits roll are two quotations that demonstrate the dichotomy of the film's theme: The first, from Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., who argues that violence is never justified. The second, from Malcolm X, argues that violence is not violence, but "intelligence" when it is used in self-defense. The film ends with dedications to six Black people, five—Eleanor Bumpurs, Arthur Miller Jr., Edmund Perry, Yvonne Smallwood, and Michael Stewart—killed by police officers and one—Michael Griffith—killed by a white mob, before fading to black. [13]

Radio Raheem

Radio Raheem
Do the Right Thing character
Radio Raheem Do The Right Thing.jpeg
Bill Nunn as Radio Raheem in Do the Right Thing (1989)
First appearanceDo the Right Thing
Created bySpike Lee
Portrayed by Bill Nunn
In-universe information
GenderMale
NationalityAmerican

Radio Raheem is a fictional character in the 1989 Spike Lee film Do the Right Thing, played by Bill Nunn. Radio Raheem's name is a reference to the boombox that he carries wherever he goes. Raheem's death leads to the film's climax, in which tensions between the Brooklyn neighborhood's local Black community and the Italian American owners of a local pizzeria peak. [14] According to Lee, Raheem's death scene was inspired by the Howard Beach racial incident of 1986. [14]

In the film, Radio Raheem recites a soliloquy on love and hate. In this scene, he is wearing a brass knuckle ring that says “hate” on his left hand and one that says “love” on his right. Lee shoots this scene by having the camera replace the position of Mookie, opposite Raheem. Radio Raheem thus breaks the fourth wall and is speaking directly to the camera and therefore the audience. This deliberate cinematography frames Raheem's monologue as a moment of sincerity and importance. This has the effect of Raheem commenting on black history and the struggle against racism in the real world, on the other side of the camera. [15] Raheem poetically articulates the allure of both love and hate and the constant fluctuation that occurs between these two opposing forces. His monologue can be seen to reveal that the solution to such a nuanced historical issue as racism lies in the combined effort and fluctuation of both forces. This “love/hate” speech is an ode to a similar monologue in the thriller film The Night of the Hunter . In this film, a serial killer preacher speaks of love and hate as an internal struggle within oneself. Raheem's performance of the same topic, however, is portrayed as an external struggle against the outside world. [16]

Critic Ted Kulczycky comments on Spike Lee's use of direct address in Radio Raheem's soliloquy on love and hate as a "break from realism", thus creating an "atypical effect". [17] Kulczycky cites the influence of Jean-Luc Godard's film Weekend . Kulczycky describes Raheem's direct address as having the dual effect of reminding viewers of the constructed nature of the film, but also "fueling their involvement".

The boombox prop used in the film is on display in the A Changing America: 1968 and Beyond exhibit at the National Museum of African American History and Culture. [18]

Cast

Production

Development

Writer, director, and actor Spike Lee conceived the idea for Do the Right Thing after discussing a 1986 incident at Howard Beach, Queens, with actor Robert De Niro. This incident involved an attack on African-American men in a predominantly Italian-American neighborhood, resulting in one victim being struck by a car and killed. [19] Lee was also influenced by the Alfred Hitchcock Presents episode "Shopping for Death," in which the main characters discuss their theory that hot weather increases violent tendencies, and the killing of Eleanor Bumpurs by police. [20] He wrote the screenplay in two weeks. [21]

The "love/hate" speech given by Radio Raheem is an ode to a similar monologue in the thriller film The Night of the Hunter . [22]

The original script of Do the Right Thing ended with a stronger reconciliation between Mookie and Sal than Lee used in the film. [23] In this version, Sal's comments to Mookie are similar to Da Mayor's earlier comments in the film and hint at some common ground and perhaps Sal's understanding of why Mookie tried to destroy his restaurant. Lee has not explicitly explained why he changed the ending but his contemporaneous notes compiled in the film's companion book indicate Lisa Jones expressed Sal's reaction as "too nice" as originally written. [24]

Casting

Initially considering De Niro for the role of "Sal," Lee eventually cast Danny Aiello at De Niro's suggestion. [19] Aiello's son Rick played Gary Long, the police officer who kills Radio Raheem. Roger Guenveur Smith, who was pestering Lee for a role in the film, created the character of Smiley, who was not in the original script. [25] Four of the cast members were stand-up comedians: Martin Lawrence, Steve Park, Steve White and Robin Harris. Samuel L. Jackson was chosen for the role of Mister Señor Love Daddy. Jackson later revealed that he spent much of his time on set sleeping as he has no scenes outside. [20] Lee originally wanted Bill Nunn to play the role of Mister Señor Love Daddy but later recast him as Radio Raheem. The acting couple Ossie Davis and Ruby Dee, who were friends of Lee's father Bill, were cast as Da Mayor and Mother Sister. [20] Perez was cast as Mookie's love interest Tina after Lee saw her dancing at a Los Angeles dance club. Perez decided to take the part because her sister lived four blocks from the set. She had never been in a film before and became upset during the filming of Radio Raheem's death scene. [20]

Filming

Principal photography commenced on July 18, 1988, on a single block in Brooklyn, New York. The film crew transformed the dilapidated Stuyvesant Avenue, between Quincy Street and Lexington Avenue in the Bedford–Stuyvesant neighborhood, creating new structures such as the Korean grocery store, a functional pizza parlor representing Sal's Famous Pizzeria, and a radio station replacing a burnt-out building. Some characters' residences were set in a former crack house shut down by the production, and the brownstone serving as the home of the only white resident, "Clifton," was a vacant building before filming. Lee organized a block party before principal photography to foster a positive relationship between the neighborhood residents and the filmmakers. Production designer Wynn Thomas altered the street's color scheme, using a great deal of red and orange paint to convey the sense of a heatwave. During filming, the neighborhood's crack dealers threatened the film crew for disturbing their business, leading Lee to hire Fruit of Islam members to provide security. [20] Filming wrapped on September 14, 1988, with a budget of $6.2 million. [19]

During the final confrontation between Aiello's "Sal" and Giancarlo Esposito's character, "Buggin Out," Lee allowed the actors to improvise racist remarks. Esposito, who was of half-Italian and half-African-American descent, found the scene cathartic. [19]

Reception

Critical reception

At the time of the film's release, both Gene Siskel and Roger Ebert ranked the film as the best of 1989, and later each ranked it as one of the top 10 films of the decade (No. 6 for Siskel and No. 4 for Ebert). [26] Siskel described the film as "a spiritual documentary that shows racial joy, hatred and confusion at every turn", [27] while Ebert lauded it for coming "closer to reflecting the current state of race relations in America than any other movie of our time." [28] Ebert later added the film to his list of The Great Movies . [29] In a retrospective review in 2019, Kambole Campbell of the British magazine Little White Lies noted the film's lasting relevance and called it "a bold expression of love and frustration and care and anger that is so vivid and expressive it feels like it exists in the here and now." [30] New York Times film critic Wesley Morris has called Do the Right Thing his favorite film. [31]

Some critics were less favorable in their reviews. Dave Kehr of the Chicago Tribune gave the film two stars out of four; while calling the film "amiable", he resented it for employing white guilt and "seeing violence as a liberating symbol rather than a debasing reality." [32] Ralph Novak, writing for People , panned the film as incoherent and having an unclear message and no likable characters: "If Lee is saying that racism is profoundly painful, frustrating and confusing, no one will argue. But this film states the case without offering any insight." [33]

On Rotten Tomatoes, the film has a rating of 92%, based on 110 reviews, with an average rating of 9.2/10. The site's critical consensus reads, "Smart, vibrant and urgent without being didactic, Do the Right Thing is one of Spike Lee's most fully realized efforts – and one of the most important films of the 1980s." [34] On Metacritic, the film has a score of 93 out of 100, based on 26 critics, indicating "universal acclaim", and placing it as the 68th-highest film of all-time on the site. [35] According to online film resource They Shoot Pictures, Don't They?, Do the Right Thing is the most acclaimed film of 1989. [36]

Controversies

After release, many reviewers protested its content. Some columnists opined that the film could incite Black audiences to riot. [37] Lee criticized White reviewers in turn for suggesting that Black audiences were incapable of restraining themselves while watching a fictional motion picture. [38] In a 2014 interview, Lee said, "That still bugs the shit out of me", calling the remarks "outrageous, egregious and, I think, racist." He said, "I don't remember people saying people were going to come out of theaters killing people after they watched Arnold Schwarzenegger films." [39]

An open question near the end of the film is whether Mookie "does the right thing" by throwing the garbage can through the window, inciting the riot that destroys Sal's pizzeria. Some critics have interpreted Mookie's action as one that saves Sal's life by redirecting the crowd's anger away from Sal to his property, while others say that it was an "irresponsible encouragement to enact violence". [40] The quotations by two major Black leaders used at the end of the film provide no answers: one advocates nonviolence, the other advocates armed self-defense in response to oppression. [40]

Lee has remarked that only White viewers ask him if Mookie did the right thing; Black viewers do not ask him the question. [41] Lee believes the key point is that Mookie was angry at the wrongful death of Radio Raheem, stating that viewers who question the riot are explicitly failing to see the difference between property damage and the death of a Black man. [38]

Lee has been criticized for his treatment of women in his films. bell hooks said that he wrote Black women in the same objectifying way that White male filmmakers write the characters of White women. [42] Rosie Perez, who made her acting debut as Tina in the film, later said that she was very uncomfortable with doing the nude scene in the film:

My first experience [with doing nude scenes] was Do the Right Thing. And I had a big problem with it, mainly because I was afraid of what my family would think—that's what was really bothering me. It wasn't really about taking off my clothes. But I also didn't feel good about it because the atmosphere wasn't correct. And when Spike Lee puts ice cubes on my nipples, the reason you don't see my head is because I'm crying. I was like, I don't want to do this. [43]

Subsequently, Perez stated that Lee had offered an apology, and the two remained friends. [44]

In June 2006, Entertainment Weekly placed Do the Right Thing at No. 22 on its list of The 25 Most Controversial Movies Ever. [45]

In the 2021 Cannes Film Festival award ceremony, Chaz Ebert, the wife of the late film critic Roger Ebert, noted that her husband had been appalled that the film had not received any awards from the Cannes jury in 1989, and had even threatened to boycott the festival as a result. [46] Lee noted that the U.S. press at the time thought the film "would start race riots all across America". Drawing a loud applause from attending press, he pointed to the continued relevance of the film's story, more than three decades on, saying: "You would think and hope that 30-something motherfucking years later that Black people would have stopped being hunted down like animals." [47]

Awards and nominations

List of awards and nominations
AwardDate of ceremonyCategoryRecipients and nomineesResult
Academy Awards March 26, 1990 [48] Best Supporting Actor Danny Aiello Nominated
Best Original Screenplay Spike Lee
Belgian Syndicate of Cinema Critics 1990 Grand Prix
Boston Society of Film Critics 1990 Best Supporting Actor Danny AielloWon
Cannes Film Festival [49] May 23, 1989 Palme d'Or Spike LeeNominated
Chicago Film Critics Association 1990 Best Picture Won
Best Director Spike Lee
Best Supporting Actor Danny Aiello
Golden Globe Awards January 20, 1990 Best Motion Picture – Drama Nominated
Best Supporting Actor – Motion Picture Danny Aiello
Best Director – Motion Picture Spike Lee
Best Screenplay – Motion Picture
Los Angeles Film Critics Association December 16, 1989 Best Film Won
Best Supporting Actor Danny Aiello
Best Director Spike Lee
Best Screenplay 2nd place
Best Music Bill Lee Won
MTV Movie Awards June 6, 2006 Silver Bucket of Excellence
NAACP Image Awards December 11, 1989 Outstanding Actress Ruby Dee
Outstanding Supporting Actor Ossie Davis
National Society of Film Critics Awards January 8, 1990 Best Director Spike Lee3rd place
New York Film Critics Circle January 14, 1990 Best Film 5th place
Best Screenplay Spike Lee4th place
Best Cinematography Ernest Dickerson Won
The 20/20 Awards2010Best PictureNominated
Best DirectorSpike LeeWon
Best Supporting ActorDanny AielloNominated
John Turturro
Best Original ScreenplaySpike Lee
Best Film Editing Barry Alexander Brown Won
Best Original Song"Fight the Power"
Music and Lyrics by Chuck D, Hank Shocklee,
Eric Sadler, and Keith Shocklee

American Film Institute lists

Home media

Do the Right Thing was released on VHS after its theatrical run, and on DVD by The Criterion Collection on February 20, 2001. [50] It was released on Blu-ray on June 30, 2009, for the 20th anniversary. A special edition Blu-ray with a 4K restoration of the film was released by The Criterion Collection on July 23, 2019, for the film's 30th anniversary. [51]

Soundtrack

The film's score (composed and partially performed by jazz musician Bill Lee, father of Spike Lee) was released in early July 1989 while the soundtrack was released in late June 1989 on Columbia Records and Motown Records, respectively. The soundtrack was successful, reaching the number eleven spot on the Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums chart, and peaking at sixty-eight on the Billboard 200. [52]

On the Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Singles & Tracks chart, the Perri track "Feel So Good" reached the fifty-first spot, while Public Enemy's "Fight the Power" reached number twenty, and Guy's "My Fantasy" went all the way to the top spot. "My Fantasy" also reached number six on the Hot Dance Music/Maxi-Singles Sales chart, and sixty-two on the Billboard Hot 100. "Fight the Power" also charted high on the Hot Dance Music chart, peaking at number three, and topped the Hot Rap Singles chart. [53] [54]

Do the Right Thing: Original Motion Picture Score
Film score by
Bill Lee
Released1989
RecordedDecember 12, 1988 – December 16, 1988
Genre Film score
Length35:36
Label Columbia
Producer Spike Lee (exec.)

Track listing

Do the Right Thing: Original Motion Picture Soundtrack
Soundtrack album by
Various artists
ReleasedJune 23, 1989 [55]
Genre Soundtrack
Length53:14
Label Motown Records
Producer Gregory "Sugar Bear" Elliott (exec.), Ted Hopkins (exec.), Mark Kibble (exec.), Spike Lee (exec.), Johnny Mercer (exec.)
Singles from Do the Right Thing: Original Motion Picture Soundtrack
  1. "Fight the Power"
    Released: July 4, 1989 [55]
No.TitleMusicProducer(s)Length
1."Fight the Power" Public Enemy Hank Shocklee, Carl Ryder, Eric Sadler 5:23
2."My Fantasy" Teddy Riley, Guy Teddy Riley, Gene Griffin4:57
3."Party Hearty" E.U. Kent Wood, JuJu House4:43
4."Can't Stand It" Steel Pulse David R. Hinds, Sidney Mills 5:06
5."Why Don't We Try?"Keith JohnVincent Edward Morris, Raymond Jones, Larry DeCarmine3:35
6."Feel So Good"PerriPaul Laurence, Jones5:39
7."Don't Shoot Me" Take 6 Mervyn E. Warren 4:08
8."Hard to Say"Lori Perry, Gerald Alston Laurence3:21
9."Prove to Me"PerriJones, Sami McKinney5:24
10."Never Explain Love" Al Jarreau Jones5:58
11."Tu y Yo/We Love [Jingle]" Rubén Blades Blades5:12

In 1990, the film was parodied in a sketch on In Living Color . [56] Many television series have parodied the trash can scene, including The Critic , The Boondocks , and Bob's Burgers . [57]

The scene where Buggin' Out confronts the white Celtics fan about scuffing his Air Jordans is parodied in the music video for the 2008 Nelly song "Stepped on My J'z". [58]

In 2016, Air Jordan released a special Radio Raheem sneaker. [59]

In 2014, the film's 25th anniversary, Barack and Michelle Obama praised the film, and said they went to see it together on their first date. [60] [61] [62] This was later referenced in the 2016 film Southside with You where Barack discusses Mookie's motives with a white colleague after seeing the film.

Do The Right Thing Way

The section of Stuyvesant Avenue between Quincy Street and Lexington Avenue in the Bedford–Stuyvesant neighborhood of Brooklyn, where the entire film was shot, was renamed Do The Right Thing Way in 2015. The renaming came from a push by Bed-Stuy's city council representative Robert Cornegy Jr. [63] and was included as part of a bill to honor important figures from New York City's history. [64] The renaming was meant to occur in 2014, but was delayed through the city's legislature. The street is the only street in New York City named after a work of fiction, and one of the only streets named after a work of fiction in the world. [65] Lee was reportedly “excited” by the renaming, and has also begun selling faux street signs for the street on his website. [66]

Officers Gary Long and Mark Ponte return in Jungle Fever (1991). In Lee's 2006 film, Inside Man , the police provide Sal's pizza to the hostages. [67]

Mookie makes another appearance in the 2012 film Red Hook Summer , where he is shown delivering pizzas. According to Lee, Sal took the insurance money from his burned pizzeria and reopened the restaurant in Red Hook. He then rehired Mookie, agreeing to include Black celebrities on his Wall of Fame. [68]

In the second season of Netflix series She's Gotta Have It , based on the film of the same name, Rosie Perez returns to portray Tina once more and it is revealed that not only is she the mother of Mars Blackmon (Anthony Ramos), but that Mookie is Blackmon's biological father.

See also

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Spike Lee</span> American filmmaker (born 1957)

Shelton Jackson "Spike" Lee is an American film director, producer, screenwriter, actor, and author. His work has continually explored race relations, issues within the black community, the role of media in contemporary life, urban crime and poverty, and other political issues. Lee has won numerous accolades for his work, including an Academy Award, two Primetime Emmy Awards, a BAFTA Award, and two Peabody Awards. He has also been honored with an Honorary BAFTA Award in 2002, an Honorary César in 2003, and the Academy Honorary Award in 2015.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Roger Ebert</span> American film critic and author (1942–2013)

Roger Joseph Ebert was an American film critic, film historian, journalist, essayist, screenwriter and author. He was the film critic for the Chicago Sun-Times from 1967 until his death in 2013. Ebert was known for his intimate, Midwestern writing style and critical views informed by values of populism and humanism. Writing in a prose style intended to be entertaining and direct, he made sophisticated cinematic and analytical ideas more accessible to non-specialist audiences. Ebert endorsed foreign and independent films he believed would be appreciated by mainstream viewers, championing filmmakers like Werner Herzog, Errol Morris and Spike Lee, as well as Martin Scorsese, whose first published review he wrote. In 1975, Ebert became the first film critic to win the Pulitzer Prize for Criticism. Neil Steinberg of the Chicago Sun-Times said Ebert "was without question the nation's most prominent and influential film critic," and Kenneth Turan of the Los Angeles Times called him "the best-known film critic in America." Per The New York Times, "The force and grace of his opinions propelled film criticism into the mainstream of American culture. Not only did he advise moviegoers about what to see, but also how to think about what they saw."

<i>Driving Miss Daisy</i> 1989 drama film by Bruce Beresford

Driving Miss Daisy is a 1989 American comedy drama film directed by Bruce Beresford and written by Alfred Uhry, based on his 1987 play. The film stars Jessica Tandy, Morgan Freeman, and Dan Aykroyd. Freeman reprised his role from the original Off-Broadway production.

<i>Jungle Fever</i> 1991 film by Spike Lee

Jungle Fever is a 1991 American romantic drama film written, produced and directed by Spike Lee. Starring Lee, Wesley Snipes, Annabella Sciorra, Ossie Davis, Ruby Dee, Samuel L. Jackson, Lonette McKee, John Turturro, Frank Vincent, Tim Robbins, Brad Dourif, Giancarlo Esposito, Debi Mazar, Michael Imperioli, Anthony Quinn, and Halle Berry and Queen Latifah in their film debuts, Jungle Fever explores the beginning and end of an extramarital interracial relationship against the urban backdrop of the streets of New York City in the early 1990s. The film received positive reviews, with particular praise for Samuel L. Jackson's performance, and was also commercially successful.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Boombox</span> Portable music player with tape recorders and radio with a carrying handle

A boombox is a transistorized portable music player featuring one or two cassette tape players/recorders and AM/FM radio, generally with a carrying handle. Beginning in the mid-1990s, a CD player was often included. Sound is delivered through an amplifier and two or more integrated loudspeakers. A boombox is a device typically capable of receiving radio stations and playing recorded music. Many models are also capable of recording onto cassette tapes from radio and other sources. In the 1990s, some boomboxes were available with MiniDisc recorders and players. Designed for portability, boomboxes can be powered by batteries as well as by line current. The boombox was introduced to the American market during the late 1970s. The desire for louder and heavier bass led to bigger and heavier boxes; by the 1980s, some boomboxes had reached the size of a suitcase. Some larger boomboxes even contained vertically mounted record turntables. Most boomboxes were battery-operated, leading to extremely heavy, bulky boxes.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Danny Aiello</span> American actor (1933–2019)

Daniel Louis Aiello Jr. was an American actor. He appeared in numerous motion pictures, including The Godfather Part II (1974), The Front (1976), Once Upon a Time in America (1984), Hide in Plain Sight (1984), The Purple Rose of Cairo (1985), Moonstruck (1987), Harlem Nights (1989), Do the Right Thing (1989), Jacob's Ladder (1990), Hudson Hawk (1991), Ruby (1992), Léon: The Professional (1994), 2 Days in the Valley (1996), Dinner Rush (2000), and Lucky Number Slevin (2006). He played Don Domenico Clericuzio in the miniseries The Last Don (1997).

The Magical Negro is a trope in American cinema, television, and literature. In the cinema of the United States, the Magical Negro is a supporting stock character who comes to the aid of the protagonists in a film. Magical Negro characters, often possessing special insight or mystical powers, have long been a tradition in American fiction. The old-fashioned word "Negro" is used to imply that a "magical black character" who devotes himself to selflessly helping whites is a throwback to racist stereotypes such as the "Sambo" or "noble savage".

<i>2 Days in the Valley</i> 1996 film by John Herzfeld

2 Days in the Valley is a 1996 American neo noir crime black comedy film written and directed by John Herzfeld. The film stars Teri Hatcher, Danny Aiello, Greg Cruttwell, Jeff Daniels, Glenne Headly, Peter Horton, Marsha Mason, Paul Mazursky, James Spader, Eric Stoltz, and Charlize Theron. Marketed in the UK as Two Days in the Valley.

<i>Crooklyn</i> 1994 film directed by Spike Lee

Crooklyn is a 1994 American semi-autobiographical film produced and directed by Spike Lee, who wrote it with his siblings Joie and Cinqué. Taking place in the Bedford–Stuyvesant neighborhood of Brooklyn, New York, during the summer of 1973, the film primarily centers on a young girl named Troy Carmichael, and her family. Troy learns life lessons through her rowdy brothers Clinton, Wendell, Nate, and Joseph; her loving but strict mother Carolyn, and her naive, struggling father Woody.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bill Nunn</span> American actor (1953–2016)

William Goldwyn Nunn III was an American actor known for his roles as Radio Raheem in Spike Lee's film Do the Right Thing, Robbie Robertson in the Sam Raimi Spider-Man film trilogy and as Terrence "Pip" Phillips on The Job (2001–02).

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Fight the Power (Public Enemy song)</span> 1989 single by Public Enemy

"Fight the Power" is a song by American hip hop group Public Enemy, released as a single in the summer of 1989 on Motown Records. It was conceived at the request of film director Spike Lee, who sought a musical theme for his 1989 film Do the Right Thing. First issued on the film's 1989 soundtrack, the extended version was featured on Public Enemy's third studio album Fear of a Black Planet (1990).

<i>Juice</i> (1992 film) 1992 American crime drama film directed by Ernest Dickerson

Juice is a 1992 American crime drama thriller film directed by Ernest R. Dickerson, and written by Dickerson and Gerard Brown. It stars Omar Epps, Tupac Shakur, Jermaine Hopkins and Khalil Kain. The film touches on the lives of four black youths growing up in Harlem, following their day-to-day activities, their struggles with police harassment, rival neighborhood gangs and their families.

<i>She Hate Me</i> 2004 film by Spike Lee

She Hate Me is a 2004 American independent comedy-drama film directed by Spike Lee. The film stars Anthony Mackie, Kerry Washington, Ellen Barkin, Monica Bellucci, Brian Dennehy, Woody Harrelson, Bai Ling, and John Turturro. The film touches on a variety of themes such as corporate greed, race, sexuality, and politics. As with many of Lee's films, the film garnered controversy. Unlike many prior works, Spike Lee does not have an acting credit in this film.

Whiteness theory is a field within whiteness studies concerned with what white identity means in terms of social, political, racial, economic, culture, etc. Whiteness theory posits that if some Western societies make whiteness central to their respective national and cultural identities, their white populations may become blind to the privilege associated with White identity. The theory examines how that blindness may exclude, otherize and perhaps harm non-white individuals and segments of the population.

The 15th Los Angeles Film Critics Association Awards were announced on 16 December 1989 and given on 16 January 1990.

Michael Griffith was a 23-year-old black man who was killed on December 20, 1986, in Howard Beach, in Queens, New York City, in a racially motivated attack. Griffith and two other black men were set upon by a group of white youths outside a pizza parlor. Two of the victims, including Griffith, were severely beaten. Griffith fled onto a highway where he was fatally struck by a passing motorist.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Spike Lee filmography</span>

Spike Lee is an American film director, producer, writer, and actor, known for films that deal with controversial social and political issues. Each of Lee's films is typically referred to as "A Spike Lee Joint" and the closing credits always end with the phrases "By Any Means Necessary," "Ya Dig," and "Sho Nuff."

<i>Red Hook Summer</i> 2012 film directed by Spike Lee

Red Hook Summer is a 2012 American film co-written and directed by Spike Lee. It is Lee's sixth film in his "Chronicles of Brooklyn" series following She's Gotta Have It, Do the Right Thing, Crooklyn, Clockers, and He Got Game.

The 2nd Chicago Film Critics Association Awards were announced on March 8, 1990 at an awards ceremony held in The Pump Room. They honor achievements in 1989 filmmaking. Twenty-seven of the CFCA members voted for the awards. Do the Right Thing earned three accolades, including Best Film, and its director Spike Lee commented that the awards made up for the lack of nominations at that year's Academy Awards. Actress Laura San Giacomo received two awards for her role as Cynthia Patrice Bishop in Sex, Lies, and Videotape.

Richard Aiello was an American film and television actor. He was known for playing Officer Long in the Spike Lee films Do the Right Thing and Jungle Fever.

References

  1. ↑ "Do the Right Thing (15)". British Board of Film Classification. Archived from the original on March 5, 2016. Retrieved January 19, 2015.
  2. ↑ "Do the Right Thing (1989) - Financial Information". The Numbers . Archived from the original on April 19, 2019. Retrieved April 24, 2012.
  3. ↑ "Do the Right Thing (1989)". Box Office Mojo . Archived from the original on March 31, 2018. Retrieved October 25, 2008.
  4. ↑ "Preserving the Silver Screen (December 1999) - Library of Congress Information Bulletin". www.loc.gov. Archived from the original on April 14, 2021. Retrieved April 27, 2020.
  5. ↑ "Complete National Film Registry Listing". Library of Congress. Archived from the original on May 7, 2016. Retrieved June 8, 2020.
  6. ↑ "The Greatest Films of All Time". Sight and Sound . London: British Film Institute. December 1, 2022. Archived from the original on December 1, 2022. Retrieved August 21, 2023.
  7. ↑ "AFI's 100 Years... 100 Movies (10th Anniversary Edition)" Archived June 4, 2012, at archive.today . American Film Institute. Retrieved December 1, 2010.
  8. ↑ Thompson, Anne. "Lists: 50 Best Movies of All Time, Again". Variety . Internet Archive. Archived from the original on September 15, 2010. Retrieved October 23, 2010.
  9. ↑ "100 Essential Films by the National Society of Film Critics". National Society of Film Critics . Published by AMC FilmSite.org. Archived from the original on August 16, 2017. Retrieved January 14, 2011.
  10. ↑ The Best 1,000 Movies Ever Made The New York Times via Internet Archive. Published April 29, 2003. Retrieved March 16, 2023.
  11. ↑ "The 500 Greatest Movies of All Time, Feature | Movies - Empire". Archived from the original on August 22, 2016. Retrieved December 11, 2016.
  12. ↑ "Boombox carried by Radio Raheem in the film Do the Right Thing". National Museum of African American History and Culture. Retrieved August 31, 2024.
  13. ↑ Brody, Richard (June 28, 2019). "The Enduring Urgency of Spike Lee's "Do the Right Thing" at Thirty" . The New Yorker. Retrieved January 25, 2024.
  14. 1 2 Izadi, Elahi. "What inspired 'Do the Right Thing' character Radio Raheem, and why he's still relevant today". The Washington Post. Retrieved January 20, 2019.
  15. ↑ Palis, Eleni (Winter 2018). "The Economics and Politics of Auteurism: Spike Lee and Do The Right Thing". Cinema Journal. 2 (57): 18.
  16. ↑ Palis, Eleni (Winter 2018). "The Economics and Politics of Auteurism: Spike Lee and Do The Right Thing". Cinema Journal. 2 (57): 20.
  17. ↑ Kulczycky, Ted (May 1996). "By Any Means Necessary: Conflict and Its Resolution in Do the Right Thing". CineAction. 40.
  18. ↑ "Boombox carried by Radio Raheem in the film Do the Right Thing". National Museum of African American History and Culture. Retrieved August 31, 2024.
  19. 1 2 3 4 "Do the Right Thing". American Film Institute . Retrieved January 15, 2024.
  20. 1 2 3 4 5 Staskiewicz, Keith (October 25, 2013). "Do the Right Thing: 1989". Entertainment Weekly. No. 1282/1283. p. 42.
  21. ↑ Gavin Edwards (June 20, 2014). "Fight the Power: Spike Lee on 'Do the Right Thing'". Rolling Stone . Archived from the original on August 22, 2017. Retrieved April 29, 2015.
  22. ↑ Beggs, Scott (July 21, 2020). "10 Facts About Do the Right Thing". Mental Floss . Retrieved February 26, 2024.
  23. ↑ "'Do the Right Thing' Script (Archived)". Script-O-Rama. April 28, 2007. Archived from the original on April 28, 2007. Retrieved April 29, 2015.
  24. ↑ Lee, Spike; Jones, Lisa (1989). Lee, Spike; Jones, Lisa. Do The Right Thing: A Spike Lee Joint, p. 71. Simon and Schuster. ISBN   9780671682651 . Retrieved August 24, 2020.
  25. ↑ Do The Right Thing DVD Audio Commentary
  26. ↑ "10 Best Films of the 1980s (1989) - Siskel and Ebert Movie Reviews". Archived from the original on May 23, 2022. Retrieved May 14, 2022.
  27. ↑ Siskel, Gene (June 30, 1989). "A Serious 'Right Thing' For a Frivolous Summer". Chicago Tribune. Archived from the original on October 31, 2020. Retrieved October 19, 2020.
  28. ↑ Ebert, Roger (June 30, 1989). "Do the Right Thing". rogerebert.com. Archived from the original on October 19, 2020. Retrieved October 19, 2020.
  29. ↑ Roger Ebert. "The Great Movies". rogerebert.com. Archived from the original on June 9, 2023. Retrieved April 29, 2015.
  30. ↑ Campbell, Kabole (July 30, 2019). "Do the Right Thing (1989)". Little White Lies. Archived from the original on October 19, 2020. Retrieved October 19, 2020.
  31. ↑ Fennessey, Sean (August 27, 2019). "'Do The Right Thing' With Sean Fennessey and Wesley Morris". The Ringer. Archived from the original on December 2, 2019. Retrieved April 2, 2020.
  32. ↑ Kehr, Dave (June 30, 1989). "'Do the Right Thing' at Least Takes a Stab at Complexity". Chicago Tribune. Archived from the original on September 7, 2020. Retrieved October 19, 2020.
  33. ↑ Novak, Ralph (July 3, 1989). "Picks and Pans Review: Do the Right Thing". People. Archived from the original on October 19, 2020. Retrieved October 19, 2020.
  34. ↑ "Rotten Tomatoes 'Do the Right Thing' profile". Rotten Tomatoes. Archived from the original on September 22, 2022. Retrieved August 31, 2022.
  35. ↑ "'Do the Right Thing' Metacritic profile". Metacritic. Archived from the original on March 16, 2015. Retrieved April 29, 2015.
  36. ↑ "The 1,000 Greatest Films (Full List)". They Shoot Pictures, Don't They?. Archived from the original on January 16, 2016. Retrieved April 23, 2016.
  37. ↑ Klein, Joe. "Spiked?", New York, June 26, 1989: 14–15.
  38. 1 2 "Spike Lee's Last Word", special feature on the Criterion Collection DVD (2000)
  39. ↑ Edwards, Gavin (June 20, 2014). "Fight the Power: Spike Lee on 'Do the Right Thing'". Rolling Stone. Archived from the original on August 22, 2017. Retrieved April 4, 2017.
  40. 1 2 Mark A. Reid (1997). Spike Lee's Do the right thing . Cambridge University Press. pp.  43–. ISBN   978-0-521-55954-6 . Retrieved September 25, 2010.
  41. ↑ Do The Right Thing DVD, Director's commentary
  42. ↑ hooks, bell (October 10, 2014). Black Looks. doi:10.4324/9781315743226. ISBN   9781315743226.
  43. ↑ Udovitch, Mim (June 25, 2000). "The Pressure To Take It Off". The New York Times. ISSN   0362-4331. Archived from the original on May 10, 2019. Retrieved May 10, 2019.
  44. ↑ "Rosie Perez on Making Peace with Spike Lee, Bombing Her 'Matrix' Audition and Why Hollywood's Latino Representation Still 'Sucks'". March 29, 2023. Archived from the original on March 31, 2023. Retrieved November 30, 2023.
  45. ↑ "The 25 Most Controversial Movies Ever", Entertainment Weekly (Retrieved 9 Apr 2016).
  46. ↑ Raftery, Brian (August 17, 2021). "Gene and Roger: 6. The Human Condition". The Big Picture (Podcast). The Ringer. Archived from the original on June 23, 2023. Retrieved July 8, 2022– via Podboy.
  47. ↑ "Spike Lee Reflects On 'Do The Right Thing' 32 Years Later; Says Black People Are Still "Being Hunted Down Like Animals" – Cannes". Deadline. July 6, 2021. Archived from the original on July 6, 2021. Retrieved July 18, 2021.
  48. ↑ "1990|Oscars.org". Archived from the original on October 1, 2014. Retrieved May 14, 2022.
  49. ↑ "Festival de Cannes: Do the Right Thing". festival-cannes.com. Archived from the original on September 16, 2011. Retrieved August 1, 2009.
  50. ↑ Do the Right Thing - Criterion Collection Archived August 4, 2020, at the Wayback Machine . DVDTalk.
  51. ↑ Spike Lee’s ‘Do The Right Thing’ Returning To Theaters For 30th Anniversary With 4K Restoration Via Universal Archived June 9, 2019, at the Wayback Machine . Deadline. 7 June 2019.
  52. ↑ "Do the Right Thing (Soundtrack): Billboard Albums". Allmusic. Retrieved May 13, 2009.
  53. ↑ "Do the Right Thing (Soundtrack): Billboard Singles". Allmusic. Retrieved May 13, 2009.
  54. ↑ "Fear of a Black Planet: Billboard Singles". Allmusic. Retrieved May 13, 2009.
  55. 1 2 "In the Summer of 1989 "Fight the Power" Saved Public Enemy & Almost Sank 'Do the Right Thing'". Okayplayer. July 11, 2019. Archived from the original on December 3, 2019. Retrieved November 29, 2019.
  56. ↑ Hastings, Deborah (April 15, 1990). "Fox's 'In Living Color' is Way, Way Out There". Deseret News. Archived from the original on May 30, 2018. Retrieved May 29, 2018.
  57. ↑ Steve, Kandell (May 23, 2012). "Pleased to Meat Me: 'Bob's Burgers' Creators on the Finale and Season Two's High Points". Spin. Archived from the original on June 29, 2018. Retrieved May 29, 2018.
  58. ↑ "Stepped on My J'z music video". Youtube. December 19, 2009. Archived from the original on November 17, 2021. Retrieved June 12, 2020.
  59. ↑ Johnson, Patrick (January 8, 2016). "Do The Right Thing And Cop The Air Jordan 2 "Radio Raheem" Tomorrow". Sneaker News. Archived from the original on May 30, 2018. Retrieved May 29, 2018.
  60. ↑ "Obamas Reflect on Their First 1989 Date in Adorable Video". June 30, 2014. Archived from the original on January 15, 2019. Retrieved January 15, 2019.
  61. ↑ White, Caitlin. "'Do The Right Thing' Helped President Obama Impress Michelle On Their First Date". MTV News. Archived from the original on January 15, 2019. Retrieved January 15, 2019.
  62. ↑ "Michelle & Barack Obama about Spike Lee | 2018 Montreal Black Film Festival Sept 26..." September 19, 2018. Archived from the original on November 17, 2021 – via www.youtube.com.
  63. ↑ Wilson, Simone. “Bed-Stuy Street Renamed ‘Do The Right Thing Way’ to Honor Spike Lee Classic”. Archived March 2, 2023, at the Wayback Machine Patch. Published July 24th, 2015. Accessed March 2nd, 2023.
  64. ↑ New York City Law Number 2015/076. Archived March 2, 2023, at the Wayback Machine Enacted August 10th, 2015.
  65. ↑ Blum, Sam. “DO THE RIGHT THING: STREET IN BED-STUY OFFICIALLY NAMED AFTER SPIKE LEE MOVIE” Archived March 2, 2023, at the Wayback Machine . Brooklyn. Published August 11th, 2015. Accessed March 2nd, 2023.
  66. ↑ ”Do The Right Thing Street Sign” Archived March 2, 2023, at the Wayback Machine . Spike’s Joint. Accessed March 2nd, 2023.
  67. ↑ "R/MovieDetails - in Spike Lee's 'Inside Man' (2006) when the robbers demand food for the hostages the police bring Sal's Pizza, a reference to Sal's Pizzeria in Spike Lee's (1998) classic 'Do the Right Thing'". February 8, 2018. Archived from the original on June 10, 2023. Retrieved January 31, 2019.
  68. ↑ Lyttelton, Oliver (August 9, 2012). "Exclusive: Spike Lee Explains What Happened To Mookie & Sal After The End Of 'Do The Right Thing'". IndieWire. Archived from the original on May 28, 2018. Retrieved May 29, 2018.

Bibliography

This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.