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camera techniques in film
Racial Discrimination in the Movies
films misrepresenting race
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The 1989 film Do the Right Thing displays a story about racial tension in a predominantly African-American neighborhood. Spike Lee not only directed and produced this film but he was also the main character, Mookie. In spite of maintaining these three jobs, Lee incorporated cinematic techniques that allowed his film to unlock controversial ideals for both Caucasian and African-American viewers. Through the use of camera elements Lee was able to display emotions and tone of the scene without using stating it directly. Lee exhibited film methods such as low-angle shots, close ups, slow motion and panning. Do the Right Thing appealed to its audience through the constant utilization of camera direction and slow motion scenes. Throughout many different scenes, Spike Lee chose to angle the camera lower to the ground so that the camera as well as the audience would be looking up at the character. In most scenes, the low-angle shot would be accompanied with the contrasting high-angle shot to show direction and characters emotion. The combination of low and high-angle shots can be used to imply how a character perceives another. The more characters are introduced in the film, the better insight the audience has to the characters relationships with other characters. As the audience see’s Mookie walking down the street to deliver a pizza he is stopped by the Mayor drinking on the side of the street. Lee shot the film using a low-angle shot looking up at Mookie as well as a high-angle shot directed at the Mayor. This implies how Mookie feels about the Mayor. The audience understands through the low-angle shot that Mookie looks down upon the Mayor. Through the use of the high angle shot, the audience is shown the Mayor with a drink in his han... ... middle of paper ... ...raised, each viewer that watches Do the Right Thing will have their own views on the matter. The 1989 film Do the Right Thing explored the conflict of racial tension and unique camera elements. Directed and produced by Spike Lee, Do the Right Thing combined a series of low and high-angle shots while also incorporating close ups and slow motion. Through the use of panning, the audience was able to get a break from the action and reflect on the events of the film. Spike Lee’s collaboration of film components added humor and realistic emotions to the story. While the controversy of whether Mookie “did the right thing” will always be in favor of the viewer. Depending on how an audience member connects with the film will spark a variety of different emotions for that person. Do the Right Thing is a film that reflects both controversial ideals and unique film elements.
Spike Lee does many fascinating things from a directorial standpoint, which makes his film (dare I say, joint), Do the Right Thing so interesting to watch. Writer, director Lee makes much use of the high and low angle shots. He does this to draw clear contrasts between the two elders of the block, Da Mayor and Mother Sister and to make conflict more apparent.
of Sal. It for the most part pawns him off as a racist. On the
It’s here as a reminder for us to respect one another, no matter how difficult it may be. The film’s title”Do the Right Thing” can be studied unto itself. The idea of do what you think is right may differ from person to person, ethnic group to ethnic group. When Mookie throws the trash can into the window of Sal’s Pizzeria making the already now large riot become even more thunderous, is he doing the right thing? We followed this man throughout the film and to see him make a decision like that, we are left to wonder. By the end of the film. This the question is the one that we think the most about. We as a community need to learn to love more and grow together than hate each
“Do the Right Thing” is a film directed by Spike Lee, which was released in 1989. The film takes place in a small predominately African-American neighborhood in Brooklyn, New York. The protagonist of the film named Mookie works in a pizzeria located in his neighborhood named, Sal’s Famous Pizzeria. Throughout the film, we see different characters who visit Sal’s pizzeria, including Buggin ' Out, who is a neighborhood local who feels offended when he sees the lack of diversity on the pizzerias wall; which only displays famous Italian-Americans. The lack of African-American culture in the neighborhood leads to a building up of tensions, which eventually explodes into a fight between the owner of the pizzeria Sal, his two sons and the locals.
Do the Right Thing is a dramatic comedic film that was directed by Spike Lee. The movie was released in 1989. Lee served in three capacities for the film: writer, director and producer of the movie, Ernest Dickenson was the cinematographer and Barry Alexander Brown was the film’s editor. For this film, Lee garnered together some notable actors and actresses, including Ruby Dee and Ossie Davis, Rosie Perez, Samuel L. Jackson, John Tuturro and Martin Lawrence. The setting of the movie is in Bedford-Stuyvesant; which is a neighborhood in Brooklyn, New York. This particular neighborhood is made up of several ethnic groups that include African Americas, Italians, Koreans, and Puerto Ricans. The movie takes place on a particularly hot day during the summer time. The extreme heat causes tensions between the different races in the neighborhood. In this paper, I will attempt to show how mise-en-scène, camera work, editing, and sound are used to convey “explicit” and “implicit” meaning in one scene in Do the Right Thing.
This movie was inspiring and encouraging to anyone who is struggling with something. Overcoming his controversies in life became the main point of the movie. Knowing that this movie was based upon a true story inspires the people even more.
Sex, love, depression, guilt, trust, all are topics presented in this remarkably well written and performed drama. The Flick, a 2014 Pulitzer Prize winning drama by Annie Baker, serves to provide a social commentary which will leave the audience deep in thought well after the curtain closes. Emporia State Universities Production of this masterpiece was a masterpiece in itself, from the stunningly genuine portrayal of the characters of Avery and Rose, to the realism found within the set, every aspect of the production was superb.
Shelton Jackson Lee was born in Atlanta, Georgia March 20, 1957. Born to teacher Jacqueline Carroll and jazz musician William James Edward Lee, Shelton grew up in Brooklyn, New York where he was provided with a rich cultural upbringing that included plays, movies, and music (Gale 1). At a young age, Lee was nicknamed “Spike” by his mother who noticed his rough nature and the nickname stuck well into his adult life. He attended Morehouse College in Atlanta, Georgia where he gained an interest in film and then graduated with a Bachelors degree in Mass Communication. Lee went on to attend New York University’s Tisch School of the Arts where he created his first student film and graduated in 1982 with a Master of Fine Arts in Film and Television. Being one of the few black students to attend Tisch School of the Arts, the aspiring filmmaker’s first year at New York University was a particularly difficult one. Lee’s experiences, race, and upbringing have all led him to create controversial films to provide audiences with an insight into racial issues.
Do The Right Thing was Spike Lee’s first landmark film. Do The Right Thing is a movie that brings awareness to the racial tensions when people in a Brooklyn neighborhood of different racial and cultural backgrounds coexist, which ends in a tragedy. The film was a great success receiving many of awards and earned two Academy Award nominations for Best Original Screenplay and Best Supporti...
The weather is sizzling hot and tensions are slowly coming to a boil in this Bedford-Stuyvesant Brooklyn neighborhood. Slowly but surely we see the heat melt away the barriers that were keeping anger from rising to the surface. The Blacks and the Hispanics own the streets the Koreans own the corner store and of course the Italians own the pizzeria, the Cops who happen to be all Caucasian, prowl the streets inside out, looking for anyone to harass. Toes are then stepped on and apologies are not made. Spike Lee creates the perfect set-up for a modern day in Bed-Stuyvesant. Without fail Spike Lee is transformed into an anthropologist. Spike Lee’s goal is to allow viewers to glimpse into the lives of real people and into a neighborhood they call home. After all this isn’t just some flight into an imaginary ghetto. It’s a journey into real life, real people and of course real circumstances. In the words of the local DJ Mr. Señor Love Daddy its time to, “ Waaaaake up!" and see what real life is really about.
Do the Right Thing is a movie produced and directed by Spike Lee. The movie tells a story about the Bedford community located in Brooklyn. The action takes place in a local pizzeria which is operated by an italian family of three people: Sal, the owner
Director and actor Spike Lee presents his "truth" about race relations in his movie Do the Right Thing. The film exhibits the spectacle of black discrimination and racial altercations. Through serious, angry, and loud sounds, Lee stays true to the ethnicity of his characters, all of which reflect their own individualism. Lee uses insulting diction and intense scenes to show how severe racism can lead to violence. The biases reflected through Do the Right Thing model those of today which has kept society in a constant feud for so long. In Oprah Winfrey's dynamic episode, "The Color of Fear", Mr. Mun Wah projects his strong opinion when he states, " . . . that racism is still going on today, that we've got to stop to hear the anguish and the pain that goes with that and then we'll survive." (3) People do not realize the severity of their own words. In the scenes of the movie that emphasize the shocking reality of failed interracial communication, racial stereotyping, trust or lack of trust, and acrimonious violence mirror the current concerns about race in America as reflected in "The Color Of Fear."
Racial tension; it’s the problem that never seems to sleep within our country. What is truly unique about this dilemma is the simple fact of how long it has been happening. Even with the push for civil liberties in the 1960’s, minority groups still face the never-ending problem of racial tension. This tension is highlighted masterfully in the movie “Do the Right Thing”, which is based around a street in Brooklyn that is predominantly inhabited by African Americans. As racial tensions between the African American population and the white owner of a local pizza shop rise, violence ensues. “Do the Right Thing” shows just how out of control the issues of race in our country are, as the tension escalated to the point of violence. The sad part in
This demonstrates to us that no matter how much your legal or moral laws are violated, what matters is how you as an individual react to the situation, justly or unjustly. This movie is centered around the notion that if you are a person of ethnic background, that alone is reason for others to forsake your rights, although in the long run justice will prevail
also be precise sources of meaning in film." Kubrick did a great job in this scene driving home