Racial Tension In Do The Right Thing By Spike Lee

The film Do The Right Thing, directed by Spike Lee, uses various elements of settings, costumes, props and lighting to help convey the film’s overall tone and highlight the complicated issue of racial tension in the early 90’s which is still relevant today. For instance warm red, orange, and yellow lighting is used to show anger and tension which is especially evident in the film’s intro where Tina is dancing in front of a red cityscape. The lighting and costume colors are purposeful in setting the mood in this film. Also, Radio Raheem’s rings, which read “love” and “hate”, are carefully displayed at certain points throughout the film. When confronting Sal in the pizzeria by blasting “Fight the Power” on his boombox, light appears to gleam

However, in Senior Love-daddy’s case, his changing hats highlights his character as someone who can change perspectives and has an open mind, as he is the voice of reason and peace in the film. We see him deescalate the racial tension building when the characters break the fourth wall and shout racial slurs at the camera after Mookie and Pino argue. Along with costumes, Chapter 2 also talked about McGuffins or a prop that moves the plot forward but has little importance in the end. The “Wall of Fame” in Sal’s pizzeria could be considered a McGuffin because it ultimately ignites a conflict between Buggin’ Out and Sal that escalates into a much larger problem that becomes the central plot of the film. The film is a good example of realism because it uses this trivialized argument as a social commentary on race relations in the United States. It shows the reality of racial conflict by presenting an everyday scenario which quickly spreads dissent throughout a community. The simple argument over the ethnicity of people on Sal’s wall turns into a brawl which sprawls out into the street where Radio Raheem is strangled to death by police officers. This is then responded with riots which eventually destroy Sal’s pizzeria. The realism in this film is reinforced with the use of different camera angles in the film show each characters social