Barnes & Noble

As startling as a trash can shattering a plate-glass window, director Spike Lee's third feature burst into theaters and changed cinematic history. Still widely regarded as Lee's best film, it opened the field to other African-American directors and helped to make such films as Boyz n the Hood possible. Do the Right Thing covers a single, sweltering summer day in Brooklyn's Bedford-Stuyvesant section when racial tensions ignite minor disagreements that finally blaze into a night of violence. All the elements of Lee's provocative film are incendiary, designed to excite the senses. The Crayola color scheme and the jarring, innovative cinematography amplify the constant friction between the different characters and cultures. From the massive boom box lugged by surly Radio Raheem (Bill Nunn), Public Enemy's rancorous anthem "Fight the Power" proclaims the dawn of a new era in America. Hilarious one moment, uncomfortable the next, and graced with great performances by John Turturro, Danny Aiello, and Rosie Perez, Do the Right Thing maintains an in-your-face intensity throughout. Regina Raiford

All Movie Guide

Director Spike Lee dives head-first into a maelstrom of racial and social ills, using as his springboard the hottest day of the year on one block in Brooklyn, NY. Three businesses dominate the block: a storefront radio station, where a smooth-talkin' deejay (Samuel L. Jackson) spins the platters that matter; a convenience store owned by a Korean couple; and Sal's Famous Pizzeria, the only white-operated business in the neighborhood. Sal (Danny Aiello) serves up slices with his two sons, genial Vito (Richard Edson) and angry, racist Pino (John Turturro). Sal has one black employee, Mookie (Spike Lee), who wants to "get paid" but lacks ambition. His sister Jade (Joie Lee, Spike's sister), who has a greater sense of purpose and a "real" job, wants Mookie to start dealing with his responsibilities, most notably his son with girlfriend Tina (Rosie Perez). Two of Mookie's best friends are Radio Raheem (Bill Nunn), a monolith of a man who rarely speaks, preferring to blast Public Enemy's rap song Fight The Power on his massive boom box; and Buggin' Out (Giancarlo Esposito), nicknamed for his coke-bottle glasses and habit of losing his cool. When Buggin' Out notes that Sal's "Wall of Fame," a photo gallery of famous Italian-Americans, includes no people of color, he eventually demands a neighborhood boycott, on a day when tensions are already running high, that incurs tragic consequences. Mark Deming

Product Details

• UPC: 025192008924
• Source: UNIVERSAL STUDIOS
• Region Code: 1
• Presentation: Wide Screen
• Sound: Dolby AC-3 Surround Sound
• Editions: Anniversary Edition, Subtitled, Dubbed
• Time: 2:00:00
• Sales Rank: 24,679

This DVD is also available as part of a box set:

• The Spike Lee Joint Collection

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