In 1989, Director Spike Lee released one of the best films that dealt with race in America: "Do The Right Thing." It's set in a block radius in Bedford-Stuyvesant, New York City on a record-breaking hot day. Just as the temperature significantly rises to insane heights, the tensions from all communities living on that block start heating up as well. Mookie, a young delivery-man for Sal, the owner of a pizzeria that is the center of all the chaos, continuously has to pick between two parts of his identity.
The movie serves as an allegory for the entrenched structural racism that still exists in today's society. Although this movie only spans over a day, so much happens that is relevant and can be connected to a real-life race-related crime.
The first time I watched "Do The Right Thing," I was a young high schooler that didn't catch all the symbolism that Lee has meticulously placed into the film. I didn't get the full meaning of the movie; I just remember the feeling of shock I felt after the credits ended. After watching the same movie in a film class in college, I got to analyze the motifs even deeper. For example, there are the many times that the photograph of Martin Luther King Jr. and Malcolm X show up—two very relevant civil rights activists. Then, there is the song "Fight The Power," which is played multiple times throughout the film—either diegetically with Radio Raheem's boombox or non-diegetically through a soundtrack.
Everyone should watch "Do The Right Thing." It's chilling, it's still relevant, and it definitely will leave a long-lasting impact.
