Stars: Spike Lee (Mookie), Danny Aiello (Sal), Ossie Davis (Da Mayor), Giancarlo Esposito (Buggin' Out), John Turturro (Pino), Samuel L. Jackson (Señor Love Daddy), Rosie Perez (Tina), Martin Lawerence (Cee)
Director: Spike Lee
Awards / Honors
Awards / Honors
- 2 Oscar Nominations -- Best Supporting Actor (Danny Aiello), Best Wrting (Orginal Screenplay -- Spike Lee)
- #96 on AFI's 100 Years... 100 Movies list (2007)
- In 1999, Do The Right Thing was selected for preservation in the United States National Film Registry by the Library of Congress as being "culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant".
Running Time: 2 hours
Format: DVD, Blu-ray
Odyssey Rating: 4 Stars (John - 4 Stars, Beth - 4 Stars)
John's Take
This movie is really good. Over the years I have seen the whole movie in bits and pieces on cable – first 40 minutes in one sitting, the last 40 minutes in another sitting, etc., so while I had seen the whole movie, I had, up to this point, not watch the entire movie all at once. That was a mistake on my part. Seeing it piecemeal, I had always thought it was fairly good movie – but I was doing it an injustice. This movie is really a great movie.
I have read lots of interpretations of this movie over the years. Do the Right Thing is generally lumped into the category of “message movie”, and while Spike Lee certainly took an opportunity to say some things in the movie (‘Tawana told the truth’ sprayed prominently on a wall in one scene, chants of “Howard Beach” from the rioters, etc.). I am not so sure that that isn’t more of a “question movie” than it is a “message movie”.
As I was getting to ready to write this, I was trying to go back through all of the characters and whether I thought they in fact did the right thing or not – I thought it would make for an interesting ‘angle’ to write. However, upon reflection, I realized that every character in the film thinks they are doing the ‘right thing’. Buggin', Smiley, and Raheem, all think they are doing the right thing when they storm Sal’s. Pino thinks he is doing the right thing by trying to keep his brother from having interracial friendships. The policemen think they are doing the right thing by forcibly restraining Raheem. Every single character in the movie doesn’t do anything they don’t think is right or justified. The question, however, is anything that anyone is doing ‘the right thing’?
The fact that they all think they are doing the right thing, doesn’t necessarily justify what they are doing or make all of the characters correct in their thinking. Pino and the policemen are racists – but they don’t see themselves as such. Buggin’ spends his time tilting at windmills and making mountains out of molehills – but he thinks he is speaking out on great social injustice. Da Mayor has wisdom to provide – but undermines his own creditability by being the neighborhood drunk. Vito just want everyone to get along – but is too naïve to understand why they don’t. Every character’s preconceptions effect what they believe the ‘right thing’ to do is.
In the final confrontation, I don’t think either Sal or Mookie have a choice. They must do what they believe is the right thing, because their very natures won’t let them do otherwise. Sal tries to defend his pizzeria. Mookie elects to purposely to start the riot. Does Sal deserve what happens to him? No, but then Raheem doesn’t deserve to die either.
It has been said that the ending of the movie is ambiguous. Personally I don’t find it so. It ends with two quotations. The first, from Dr. King, stating that violence is never justified under any circumstances. The second quote is from Malcolm X, and states that violence is justified when it is used in self-defense. Like I said earlier, for me, that ending simply sums up the question that I believe the movie is asking. What actually is the ‘right thing’?
So I end this post as I started it… this is a really good movie. It isn’t perfect, but it is really very good. If Guess Who’s Coming to Dinner was the fairy-tale of what race relations could be like, then Do the Right Thing is a more realistic look on how things actually are – the good and the bad. I give this movie a strong 4 Stars
John
I have read lots of interpretations of this movie over the years. Do the Right Thing is generally lumped into the category of “message movie”, and while Spike Lee certainly took an opportunity to say some things in the movie (‘Tawana told the truth’ sprayed prominently on a wall in one scene, chants of “Howard Beach” from the rioters, etc.). I am not so sure that that isn’t more of a “question movie” than it is a “message movie”.
As I was getting to ready to write this, I was trying to go back through all of the characters and whether I thought they in fact did the right thing or not – I thought it would make for an interesting ‘angle’ to write. However, upon reflection, I realized that every character in the film thinks they are doing the ‘right thing’. Buggin', Smiley, and Raheem, all think they are doing the right thing when they storm Sal’s. Pino thinks he is doing the right thing by trying to keep his brother from having interracial friendships. The policemen think they are doing the right thing by forcibly restraining Raheem. Every single character in the movie doesn’t do anything they don’t think is right or justified. The question, however, is anything that anyone is doing ‘the right thing’?
The fact that they all think they are doing the right thing, doesn’t necessarily justify what they are doing or make all of the characters correct in their thinking. Pino and the policemen are racists – but they don’t see themselves as such. Buggin’ spends his time tilting at windmills and making mountains out of molehills – but he thinks he is speaking out on great social injustice. Da Mayor has wisdom to provide – but undermines his own creditability by being the neighborhood drunk. Vito just want everyone to get along – but is too naïve to understand why they don’t. Every character’s preconceptions effect what they believe the ‘right thing’ to do is.
In the final confrontation, I don’t think either Sal or Mookie have a choice. They must do what they believe is the right thing, because their very natures won’t let them do otherwise. Sal tries to defend his pizzeria. Mookie elects to purposely to start the riot. Does Sal deserve what happens to him? No, but then Raheem doesn’t deserve to die either.
It has been said that the ending of the movie is ambiguous. Personally I don’t find it so. It ends with two quotations. The first, from Dr. King, stating that violence is never justified under any circumstances. The second quote is from Malcolm X, and states that violence is justified when it is used in self-defense. Like I said earlier, for me, that ending simply sums up the question that I believe the movie is asking. What actually is the ‘right thing’?
So I end this post as I started it… this is a really good movie. It isn’t perfect, but it is really very good. If Guess Who’s Coming to Dinner was the fairy-tale of what race relations could be like, then Do the Right Thing is a more realistic look on how things actually are – the good and the bad. I give this movie a strong 4 Stars
John
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