Do the Right Thing by Spike Lee : Analysis? Symbolism Essay

What is ever the right thing to do? The ikon Do the chastise matter by Spike leeward is a hard-hitting drama that deals with violence and racism in todays society. lee(prenominal)s contract conveys two contradictorily ideas of two herculean civil rights leaders Malcolm X and Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. The main themes of the film are violence, racial intolerance, and police barbarism. Its themes of racial intolerance and the ways in which our society, particularly those who are op constringeed and marginalized, chooses to deal with it. Filmmakers used stiff techniques comparable cinematography and music, to drive that message home.As a film, Do the Right Thing is a study in how cinematography locoweed efficaciously add to the plot and character development. Small details within the film, such(prenominal) as the hot, sticky, suffocating heating plant of a summer day, are opthalmicly stunning aiding to the main idea of the film. Since weather plays, a significant comp mave nnt part in the film from start to finish it is important for it to continue to rise up through forbidden the plot. The summer heat stokes racial conflicts to the surface, driving the film to its sad and violent climax.The cinematographers use of light and color increases its opthalmic power and strength throughout the film. Spike lee knew that the emphasis of heat was important to the films credibility. He and cinematographer, Ernest Dickerson, a longtime cooperator of Lees, worked to get the right effect for the film, making sure that the consultation was aware of the heat in every shot. The use of television camera angles, such as oblique angles and extreme close-ups, also play up the tensions brought out by the heat in the film. One example in which camera angles heighten those tensions is the confrontation between Buggin come in and Clifton the white bicyclist who go on and ruins Buggin Outs new pair of Air Jordans. At the start of the scene, when Buggin Out and the ne ighborhood hoodlums confront Clifton at his brownstone.Dickerson who is the film visual director shoots from below when the POV focuses on Buggin Outs visible gestures and facial nerve expressions. In Do the Right Thing, music has a huge encounter on the storyline. The song that plays immediately throughout the film is unrestricted enemys aggressive song Fight the Power. With its driving, high tempo beat, and its regnant lyrics knocking down Americas favorite cultural heroes, olibanum putting an Afrocentric stamp on the American culture. Public Enemy which is a political rap group, had been sparking controversies with their defiant, pro- opaque rap lyrics long before Spike Lee asked them to record a song specifically for the film. Both Lee and Public Enemy were unyielding in their views and comments, particularly in the mainstream white press (Lou Frederick).The groups participation in the project was apparent because of the floor ideas shared by both. The song itself is pla yed only when the character piano tuner Raheem appears. The song is a signature statement for Black male pride, independence, and hardy strength, which is what Raheem, imperialized. It is loud, in your face, fearless, and demanding of respect in the same way Radio Raheem is seen non only by himself but by others in the neighborhood, for that matter.. One can say that all the male characters in Do the Right Thing are constantly testing their manhood, whether it is Radio Raheem, whose boombox, with its size and volume, is a mesomorphic symbol or Buggin Out who uses his calm words as a way to secure his manhood.Which show the two different ideas of Malcolm X and Dr. King, whether physical or verbal retaliation is needed. Buggin Out is a unexampled socially aware Black man who is nonetheless misdirected in his activism, while the young people on the block are the apathetic. Radio Raheem provides another enter of Black men, that of in-your-face, self-defensive, posturing that mask layers of vulnerability. In one scene, after Buggin Out threatens a boycott against Sals Pizzeria for refusing to put up pictures of Black people on his Wall of Fame, Buggin Out tells Mookie to stay Black, a cite Mookie treats dismissively. It is interesting, then, that Mookie is the one who throws the trash can into the pizzeria. Getting us to wonder is Lee suggesting that Mookies response of self-defense against police brutality was a liable act, thus redeeming the character.Truly, questioning if he did the right thing This is one of the reasons why Do the Right Thing is still such a powerful film. The questions it raises, while still potent, also still elude us, specially in the wake of the Rodney King riots, and other acts of police brutality and racial unrest in America. The film itself is dedicated to such victims of police brutality as Eleanor Bumpers and Michael Stewart who give this film life because their personal stories are cosmos told through the big screen. Althoug h a dramatic story the filmmakers, used powerful techniques like cinematography and music, to drive that message home truly aiding Lee to convey a historic message.