Ben's+Movie+Choice

=//Do The Right Thing//= (Not always as easy as it sounds)

//The two main characters Sal and Mookie.//

Here we have //Do The Right Thing//, a Spike Lee Joint, produced by John Kilik, Monty Ross, and Spike Lee. Released in 1989, it was a very controversial film. Its critics believed that it would create riots in the cities upon viewing, but this never happened. It takes an insightful look into live in the inner cities, focusing on the Bedford Stuyvesant area of Brooklyn. The film does a great job showing the quality of life the people of their live, compared to those who live just outside of its boundaries. I chose this film as the most important because of it’s overall importance then, and now. It’s messages are the same today and will most likely always be.


 * "Let me tell you the story of "Right Hand, Left Hand." It's a tale of good and evil. Hate: It was with this hand that Cane iced his brother. Love: These five fingers, they go straight to the soul of man. The right hand: the hand of love. The story of life is this: Static. One hand is always fighting the other hand; and the left hand is kicking much ass. I mean, it looks like the right hand, Love, is finished. But, hold on, stop the presses, the right hand is coming back. Yeah, he got the left hand on the ropes, now, that's right. Ooh, it's the devastating right and Hate is hurt, he's down. Left-Hand Hate K.O.ed by Love."**

I think that the above quote is one of the best lines in the movie. It is said by Radio Raheem, the boom box yielding Goliath who throughout the movie blasts "Fight The Power" by Public Enemy. I think that this line speaks volumes about life and also sums up the movie. For me it helped me see that no matter how bad things get, that things have a chance at getting better and that no matter how much hate there is, love will always come back.

//Radio Raheem in the midst of explaining his "Right hand, Left Hand" Philosophy//

One of the most important aspects of this film were the several different shots. The Cinematographer Ernest Dickerson did an amazing job constructing the different shots which added depth to the movie and really added meaning. The one particular scene that really stands out in the way it is shot is the confrontation between Sal and Radio Raheem towards the end of the film. The angle of the shots really create a feeling of unrest and you see that something is going to go down right here and right now. The switch between Sal's perspective of looking up at Raheem to Raheem looking down at him and the slight crookedness of the shots add so much. //This is just what I am talking about right here. It's scary isn't it?//

This movie just would not be the same if it wasn't for the chosen cast members. Casting Director Robi Reed did an amazing job finding the right people for each role. Danny Aiello was the perfect fit for Sal, having the sweaty pizzeria owner look down pat. John Turturro was great in his role as Sal's son Pino, he was so believable. Rosie Perez did a wonderful job as Mookie's girlfriend Tina. The dance at the beginning did a lot for the movie, setting the mood and well, Rosie Perez is just a great looking latina. And who can forget Radio Raheem, played by Bill Nunn. Upon looking, he was actually 36 when the movie came out, but man he looks a lot younger. By the way, Samuel L. Jackson finds his way into every movie, he was great as usual as Senor Love Daddy.

//Tina and Mookie played by Rosie Perez and Spike Lee//

The thing I really liked about //Do The Right Thing// was that it is a movie with a real message. People see the ending and get confused by the conflicting Malcolm X and Martin Luther King Jr. quotes, but what I think that Spike Lee is trying to say is that there is no one right thing to do, it's our choice to figure out what doing the right thing means. The point is to stop this advancement towards nothing and take action for some cause. In my opinion this movie still is as meaningful today as it was in 1989, and I think that people all over need to see it and get whatever they can get out of it, because I know everyone takes a little something unique out of it.