Do the Right Thing

Simply incredible. Everyone involved gives excellent performances, with Giancarlo Esposito, Danny Aiello, and Spike Lee himself as standouts. Such an entertaining and overall joyous film celebrating African American culture until everything boils over. It’s unfortunate that this film is still relevant and most likely always will be in America. “Fight the Power” is an incredible anthem, and I loved the usage of quotes by both Martin Luther King Jr. and Malcolm X with their differing opinions on the use of violence to achieve racial justice.  I’ve seen many reviews calling the ending ambiguous. I think it is anything but that. I don’t think anyone involved in the climatic ending was supposed to truly be an absolute hero or villain. The story does have an ending, even if the paths for certain characters may be uncertain. Everyone here is flawed, which is what makes this story interesting and what makes it invite discussion, not a sense of ambiguity. An incredible film that I am glad I finally got around to watching. This was my first Spike Lee joint and I will definitely be watching more of his work.