Cinematic Analysis: Do the Right Thing

Seamus Swyers
Do the Right Thing is a story of racial tension in an urban community and how the people face
with it react to this tension. This film takes place over a 24 hour period in a mostly black neighborhood
in Brooklyn. It follows the character Mookie, a pizza delivery boy and father as he struggles with racial
intolerance and at the same time tries to get his life together. This film portrays the struggle between
loves vs. hate, and peace vs. violence. Do the Right Thing asks the viewer which of these paths is the
right thing. At the end of the film two quotes are presented to the viewer. One by Martin Luther King
Jr., states that violence is never the answer no matter what the circumstance. The other quote by
Malcolm X says that in certain cases violence is the intelligent and correct path. The Theme of this movie
is that the right thing is a matter of perspective. To different people in different situations the right
thing could mean peace or violence, love or hate.
The first example of anger and hate is in the opening credits where we see a woman dressed as
a boxer, dancing aggressively to Public Enemys fight the power. Throughout the film this song can be
heard blasting through the Boombox of Radio Raheem, a character who represents the angry black
youth who are tired of racial intolerance. Raheem is angered by Sal, the owner of the local pizzeria, who
tells Radio Raheem to turn off his Jungle Music. Raheem, fed up with Sals intolerance chooses the
side of violence and when Sal smashes his stereo he attacks Sal, choking him on the ground.
Buggin out is another character who chooses anger and violence. He is also upset with Sal
because the owner of the Pizzeria has no African-Americans on his Wall of Fame. When Sal tells
Buggin out that only Italian Americans have a place on his wall, Buggin Is offended and begins shouting
inside the pizza place. He Tells Sal that hed better get some brothers on the Wall. Later Buggin out
returns with Radio Raheem and confronts Sal. This confrontation and choice to follow the path of
violence ultimately ends in tragedy when a white police officer, fueled by racism kills Radio Raheem. At
another part of the film, a white man named Clifton steps on Buggin Outs new air Jordans. Buggin Out
feels that he has been disrespected and confronts Clifton angrily. To Buggin Out, the right thing to do
is for him to stand up for himself even if that means being aggressive or hateful.
The Path of Anger and violence is also taken by Sal. When Buggin out is angry about the wall of
fame, Sal Threatens to break in his skull with his baseball bat. Although in this scene, Sals sons are able
to calm him down, He does use his bat later in the movie. In the Climax when Buggin Out and Radio
Raheem enter into Sals Pizzeria, radio blaring on full sound, and begin screaming and angrily demanding
that Sal Puts black people on the Wall of fame, Sal Smashes Radios Boombox into pieces. Sal Chooses
violence and anger to try and end his problems, but after the riot which is incited after Police Kill Radio
Raheem when breaking up the fight between Him and Sal, He ends up with his shop being destroyed.
This event supports the MLK Jr. and Gandhi belief that an eye for an eye makes the whole world blind.
When two forces both filled with hate clash the results are likely to be disastrous for both parties.
The local radio host in the neighborhood goes by the name of Mr. Seor Love Daddy. He acts as
a voice of reason and love in this film. When tensions have risen to a near breaking point, we see
different characters spewing racial slurs into the Camera. M.S.L.D. comes in to try and cools everybody
down. Time Out, he yells into his microphone. Yall need to chill. Mister Senor Love Daddy believes
that the right thing to do is to peacefully ease the racial tension with love and music.
Another voice of peace and reason is Da Mayor, a down and out old man whom most consider a
drunk. In an exchange between Him and Mookie, Da Mayor tells Mookie, always do the right thing.
For Da Mayor, the right thing is always peace. Even after Radio Raheem has been killed, Da Mayor tries
to protect Sal and his sons. He tells the angry crowd that it was the police that were responsible for
Raheems death. He warns the crowd not to do anything that they will regret. In this scene the battle
between love and hate is visible. The angry crowd of Black youth on one side vs the peaceful man, Da
Mayor, who is trying to resolve things peacefully.
Throughout Do the Right Thing, Mookie chooses both peace and aggression when confronted
with different situations. For Him the right thing changes with the circumstances. He is the only
character in this film that is dynamic as far as Love vs. hate and Peace vs. aggression is concerned. At
times he attempts to peacefully resolve conflicts that occur because of racial tension. When Buggin out
is first angered after realizing that no people of color hang on the wall of fame, Mookie tries to calm
down both Sal and Buggin out and he is successful in ending the conflict. In certain situations however,
Mookie feels that violence is not only justified but right. Sals two sons have conflicting ideas concerning
other races. Pino is a bigot who uses racial slurs and displays prejudice against blacks. Vito on the other
hand respects and gets along with people of different races. Pino often smacks his brother around for
being soft on African Americans. Mookie tells Vito that the solution to this would be to fight his brother.
Just fuck your brother up one time and itll be over with, Mookie tells Vito. In this case, Mookie
actually believes that violence would solve Vitos problems. The last example of Mookie supporting
violence is after Radio Raheem has been killed. Mookie is so enraged that he throws a trash can through
Sals window and incites a riot. This is his way of dealing with Raheems unfair death and at this point,
Mookie decides that violence is the right choice. When the black community is facing an unfair system
that will get no justice for Radio Raheem, they decide to take their own justice. The next day Raheem is
dead Sals life is in ruins. The people feel that they have gotten their justice, but when it was all over,
Raheem is still dead. It could be argued that in this conclusion Spike Lee is taking a side against violence
and anger. When everyone resorts to violence it only ends with one man dead and another mans life in
ruins.
Do the right thing was released during a time of racial tension in cities and urban communities.
Police in these communities were often racist and many police officers that were guilty of police
brutality were never brought to justice This movie preceded the Crown heights race riot, a three day
long riot, which took place in Brooklyn, 1991. The next year in Los Angeles riots erupted after a case of
police brutality against a man named Rodney King. In Many ways this movie predicted these riots.
African Americans were tired of the racist society in which they lived that set them up to fail. This film
gave a very accurate depiction of the racial tension in communities like ones in Brooklyn and LA. The
environments in these neighborhoods were explosive. Tensions were high and people could be set off
easily. Another historical topic touched upon briefly was gentrification. This is something that occurs
when property values are lowered in a certain urban communities and outsiders begin buying the
property cheaply and then developing the neighborhood. While this may be good for housing values, it
often forces the residents to move elsewhere because they can no longer afford to live there. Usually
this happens in black neighborhoods and the people buying the property and developing it are white.
Gentrification is supposed to be neighborhood improvement Gentrification in many ways is the
remaking of working-class space to serve the needs of middle- and upper-class people (Gentrification
NHI). It must be asked why outsiders werent interested in improving the neighborhood for the people
that were already there, and they only cared after more affluent whites moved in. Often the rich cultural
backgrounds of these communities are lost when gentrification occurs. It has been seen recently in
Brooklyn where this movie takes place. In this borough affluent whites are moving in and others are
being forced out. When Buggin Out learns that a White man has bought a brownstone on his block he
gives a response that represents the feelings of many blacks in that time who lived in neighborhoods
where this was occurring. Motherfuck gentrification. As someone who grew up in Brooklyn and
experienced these circumstances it must have been difficult for Director Spike Lee to be objective.
Despite this he presents a relatively unbiased depiction of this neighborhood.
There are several examples of metaphors, imagery, and symbolism in Do The Right Thing. One of
the most prominent examples is with the Love and Hate rings worn by Radio Raheem. Each of these
rings represents the opposing sides between love and hate, aggression vs peace. The heat is an
extremely significant aspect of this film. The entire movie the viewer is constantly reminded of the
sweltering heat with close ups of sweaty faces. This heat is a metaphor for the racial tension and
explosive atmosphere of the movie, and it reminds us that at any moment things could detonate. A final
example of metaphor is the song fight the power which is constantly streaming from Raheems radio.
This song represents the feelings of anger among people like Buggin out, Radio Raheem, and at the end
of the movie even Mookie. In the battle between Love and Hate this song shows the side of anger and
aggression.
The two quotes by MLK jr and Malcolm X which are shown before the credits show us the battle
between aggression and peace that are portrayed in this film. Spike lee tells the viewer a story of racial
tension and presents the viewer with two opposing sides. It is up to the viewer to choose one of these
sides.







Works cited
"Gentrification and Resistance in New York City." NHI.org. National Housing Institute, n.d.
Web. 12 May 2014. <http://www.nhi.org/online/issues/142/gentrification.html>.
"NEW YORK RACE TENSION IS RISING DESPITE GAINS." New York Times. The New
York Times Company, n.d. Web. 12 May 2014.
<http://www.nytimes.com/1987/03/29/nyregion/new-york-race-tension-is-rising-despite-
gains.html>.
"20 years after Crown Heights riots, Brooklyn neighborhood's racial divisions slowly healing
Read more: http://www.nydailynews.com/new-york/20-years-crown-heights-riots-
brooklyn-neighborhood-racial-divisions-slowly-healing-article-
1.945007#ixzz31Yklmd5C." Ny Daily News. NYDailyNews.com, n.d. Web. 12 May
2014. <http://www.nydailynews.com/new-york/20-years-crown-heights-riots-brooklyn-
neighborhood-racial-divisions-slowly-healing-article-1.945007>.