Directed by:
Spike LeeScreenplay:
Spike LeeCinematography:
Ernest R. DickersonComposer:
Bill LeeCast:
Danny Aiello, Ossie Davis, Ruby Dee, Richard Edson, Giancarlo Esposito, Spike Lee, Bill Nunn, John Turturro, Paul Benjamin, Frankie Faison, Robin Harris (more)VOD (3)
Plots(1)
Set on one block of Brooklyn’s Bed-Stuy Do or Die neighborhood, at the height of summer, this 1989 masterpiece by Spike Lee confirmed him as a writer and filmmaker of peerless vision and passionate social engagement. Over the course of a single day, the easygoing interactions of a cast of unforgettable characters—Da Mayor, Mother Sister, Mister Señor Love Daddy, Tina, Sweet Dick Willie, Buggin Out, Radio Raheem, Sal, Pino, Vito, and Lee’s Mookie among them—give way to heated confrontations as tensions rise along racial fault lines, ultimately exploding into violence. Punctuated by the anthemic refrain of Public Enemy’s “Fight the Power,” Do the Right Thing is a landmark in American cinema, as politically and emotionally charged and as relevant now as when it first hit the big screen. (Criterion)
(more)Awards
- Winner
- Nominations
Academy Awards
- 1990 - Danny Aiello (Best Performance by an Actor in a Supporting Role)
- 1990 - Spike Lee (Best Original Screenplay)
Golden Globes
- 1990 - Best Motion Picture – Drama
- 1990 - Spike Lee (Best Director)
- 1990 - Spike Lee (Best Screenplay)
- 1990 - Danny Aiello (Best Supporting Actor – Motion Picture)
Los Angeles Film Critics Association Awards
- 1989 - Best Film
- 1989 - Spike Lee (Best Director)
- 1989 - Danny Aiello (Best Supporting Actor)
- 1989 - Bill Lee (Best Music Score)
- 1989 - Spike Lee (Best Screenplay)
New York Film Critics Circle Awards
- 1989 - Ernest R. Dickerson (Best Cinematographer)
- 1989 - Best Film
- 1989 - Spike Lee (Best Screenplay)
Cannes Film Festival
- 1989 - Spike Lee (Golden Palm - Official Competition)