Do the Right Thing
Over one brutally hot Brooklyn Sunday, a pizzeria dispute exposes the racial fractures, loyalties, and simmering anger of an entire neighborhood.
Overview
A powerful exploration of community and conflict on a sweltering summer day.
Ember's analysis
- Pacing
- Measured
- Intensity
- Extreme
- Complexity
- Layered
- Violence
- Moderate
- urgent
- vibrant
- angry
- socially conscious movie night
- film study
What critics said
Critics broadly regard Spike Lee's vivid, urgent, politically charged neighborhood drama as a landmark examination of race relations and one of the defining American films of the 1980s.
What sets it apart
May contain story progression spoilers
The sweltering summer day and oppressive temperatures mirror the neighborhood's escalating racial frustration.
Sal, Mookie, Buggin Out, Pino, and other residents hold conflicting claims about belonging, representation, and neighborhood ownership.
Bold color, expressive framing, and long close-ups turn everyday Brooklyn interactions into charged visual encounters.
The pizzeria dispute expands through overlapping interactions among residents, workers, elders, youths, and police over one summer day.
Films like Do the Right Thing, and why
Boyz n the Hood
shared urban ensemble drama, racial tension, community conflict, and urgent social realism
La Haine
shared politically charged urban drama, police brutality, racial conflict, and volatile community dynamics
Clockers
shared neighborhood ensemble storytelling, black urban life, social pressure, and vibrant street-level energy
Fruitvale Station
shared american racial conflict, moral ambiguity, and escalating violence within a tightly observed community
Movie Details
- Director
- Spike Lee
- Release Date
- 1989-06-14
- Runtime
- 120 min
- Rating
- 7.8 / 10 (2089)
Cast
- Danny Aiello
- Ossie Davis
- Ruby Dee
- Richard Edson
- Giancarlo Esposito
- Spike Lee
- Bill Nunn
- John Turturro
- Paul Benjamin
- Frankie Faison
Where to watch in United States
- Streaming
- ALLBLK Apple TV channel, ALLBLK Amazon channel
- Rent
- Amazon Video, Apple TV Store, Google Play Movies, YouTube, Fandango At Home
- Buy
- Amazon Video, Apple TV Store, Google Play Movies, YouTube, Fandango At Home
Streaming options come from TMDB and change over time.
Common questions
- What is Do the Right Thing about?
- Over one brutally hot Brooklyn Sunday, a pizzeria dispute exposes the racial fractures, loyalties, and simmering anger of an entire neighborhood.
- What is Do the Right Thing like to watch?
- Ember's analysis rates the pacing of Do the Right Thing as measured, its intensity as extreme and its storytelling as layered.
- Is Do the Right Thing violent?
- Somewhat. Ember rates the violence in Do the Right Thing as moderate.
- What did critics think of Do the Right Thing?
- Critics broadly regard Spike Lee's vivid, urgent, politically charged neighborhood drama as a landmark examination of race relations and one of the defining American films of the 1980s.
- Which films are like Do the Right Thing?
- Films with a similar feel include Boyz n the Hood, La Haine, Clockers, and Fruitvale Station.
- How long is Do the Right Thing?
- Do the Right Thing runs 120 minutes.
- Where can I watch Do the Right Thing?
- In United States, Do the Right Thing streams on ALLBLK Apple TV channel, ALLBLK Amazon channel .
