He wrote, directed, and edited the feature - which has since gotten a modern-day Netflix revival - which follows a young woman in search of the perfect man. Lee’s first feature-length film, She’s Gotta Have It was filmed on a shoestring budget and launched him straight to success.
It’s one of Spike Lee’s most commercially successful film, but he still manages to get his point across. The film is just as much a commentary on rap music, violent crime, and even desensitization to graphic video games. At the same time, though, Inside Man is very much a Spike Lee Joint. This 2006 thriller is something of a departure from Lee’s usual work: it’s an exciting and suspenseful heist film starring Denzel Washington and Jodie Foster. It’s one of Lee’s most emotional and dramatic films, hitting on all kinds of controversial topics as Edward Norton’s character tries to find redemption at the lowest point in his life. 25th Hourīased on the novel by David Benioff, the same guy responsible for the film’s screenplay as well as the television adaptation of Game of Thrones and an upcoming Star Wars trilogy, Spike Lee’s 25th Hour tells the story of a man’s last day before he goes off to prison for nearly a decade. Lee’s voice is the perfect one to tell the story of this horrendous hate crime. Four young girls were killed, all attending Sunday School at the time, shocking the nation and drawing global attention. Not a narrative, but actually a documentary, Lee’s documentary 4 Little Girls tells the story of the bombing of a black church in Birmingham, Alabama in 1963. Malcolm X is an essential part of the 20th century, and Malcolm X is an essential part of Lee’s filmography. Denzel Washington does the role justice, transforming himself into the historical figure and giving one of his most powerful performances to date. One of Lee’s most well-received passion projects is a biographical picture following the life of black rights activist Malcolm X.
Tensions rise as hidden bigotry is revealed, resonating far beyond the film’s runtime. Taking place in the Bedford-Stuyvesant section of Brooklyn - one of the largest black communities in the United States - over the course of the hottest day of the year, Lee’s film plays out like a pot of boiling water on the stove. Spike Lee’s third feature film hits so close to home for so many Americans that it still feels relevant to this day. Regardless of scale, these Spike Lee films are the best the director has to offer. Movies like Red Hook Summer and Bamboozled are some recent examples of Spike Lee films that, while they aren’t filmed on the same scale as one of his larger studio projects, embrace more daring ideas on a much smaller budget. Part of what’s most interesting about Spike Lee is his willingness to embrace passion projects - even if he has to film it with a small budget, a small cast, and less-than-ideal equipment, he’s going to film whatever he sees fit to film. Whether he’s covering the life and mission of Malcolm X or the hate and bigotry that exists within some of America’s most historically diverse cities. No other director has been able to confront the racial and societal differences between black and white people like Lee. What many couldn't appreciate at the time was Lee's fundamental understanding behind the hows and whys behind protest violence - the way his own Blackness informed what would later be considered one of the best and most informed films of all time, before and after George Floyd.Unafraid of confronting all kinds of controversial social divides within different aspects of American culture, filmmaker Spike Lee established himself as an essential voice in the late 80s and remains one of modern cinema’s most valuable assets. "Do the Right Thing," after all, was immediately met with resistance by an assortment of critics, with some even going as far as to fault the film for instigating instances of protest and social unrest. With a legendary cast of characters (Danny Aiello, Ossie Davis, Ruby Dee, Giancarlo Esposito, John Turturro, and Rosie Perez to name a few), Lee exposes how quickly this normality can turn tragic when Black bodies, misunderstandings, and police officers intermingle.Īmerica - wait for the understatement - was rocking with a different grade of social awareness in 1989.
Every signifier of Lee's Brooklyn summer minutiae is here: stoop-sitting, blasting fire hydrants, and lawn chair squabbles.
Featuring director Lee himself as the protagonist Mookie, a pizza delivery man working at Sal's Famous Pizzeria - the only white-owned establishment in his Bedford-Stuyvesant neighborhood - "Do the Right Thing" takes place during the course of one hot day, both physically and figuratively.
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