Do The Right Thing Directed By Spike Lee

The film “Do the Right Thing” directed by Spike Lee, is an eye-opening film that discusses race inequality, stereotypes, and police brutality. Spike Lee uses a linear structure within the film to reveal the different themes that focus on emotional effect and the mood, anger, develop characters, reveal symbols, and show the audience the message behind the story.

The exposition of the movie is shot in red lighting with the song Fight the Power as non-diegetic sound in front of an apartment building in what seems to be Brooklyn, New York City. A woman of color is shown wearing a red dress or a boxing uniform. Her dance moves resemble the aggressive and uniform moves of a boxer. Spike Lee used this scene as the exposition of the film to set the

It first appears when Sal says “There is no freedom, I am the boss” after Mookie states that Buggin Out is free to do whatever he wants. Sal is figuratively depicted in this moment as a generalized white man in America, since they are at the top of the social hierarchy and gives the most freedom within society. Buggin Out is figuratively depicted as black men in society since they are given little rights and are seen at the bottom of the social hierarchy. Another instance the theme of freedom is revealed is the scene where the white man who stepped on Buggin Out shoe answers Buggin Out‘s question on why he would want to live in a predominately black neighborhood that “the last time he checked this is a free county”. This is scene was ended with the white man at the top of the stairs looking at Buggin Out and the crowd around him at a low angle and Buggin Out and the crowd looking at him at a high angle. This reinforces the theme that a white man has more freedom than a black man and is seen at the top of the social hierarchy. This theme is important to the plot because it to the message of the movie to treat each race equally and to not believe that one race is better than the other and to end the social hierarchy of races. This message is seen candidly when each character from each race was stating racial stereotypes facing the camera as though they are looking at the audience and at the end of the scene

The minor conflict is between the neighborhood and Sal after Radio Raheem dies. The director uses a dutch tilt, low lighting, having too many people in one shot, and overlapping dialogue to set the tone of chaos. The dutch tilt and having too many people in the shot, and overlapping dialogue emphasizes the dramatic tension and anger between the characters, heightened the sense of disarray within the scene and made the audience feel a sense of uneasiness. The editors also made the diegetic sound “Fight the Power” a song played by radio Raheem’s radio really loud to add to the chaos. When Sal breaks the radio and the music suddenly stops the tension between the characters is at its peak and the audience is reeled into the scene as they also feel the tension of the situation as the climax unfolds. During the climax of the movie when Sal and Radio Raheem were fighting the editor transitioned from the fight to a picture of a white man punching an African American man on Sal’s wall of fame. This is ironic because Sal does in fact have an African American on his wall of fame even though the African American man is depicted as being beaten up by a white man. The climax, it is reveals that when Sal’s peace is threatened, he sinks down to racist ideals and comments. The climax reveals Radio Raheem as a static character who stays consistently wanting to fight the power and ultimately fights the power to his