Do the Right Thing was Lee's third film (following She's Gotta Have It and School Daze), his best film by far and the film that is still painfully relevant to the current cultural moment.
The film confronts racism head-on, story is told clearly with unflinching attitude that is rarely seen in modern American cinema. Lee does not pander to political correctness, nor does he preach or take sides. He introduces a group of characters, sets up the story, then allows events to play out.
The story takes place over a 24-hour period on the hottest day of the summer in the Bedford-Stuyvesant area of Brooklyn. We are introduced to a number of the locals, and follow their activities throughout the day. There's Sal (Danny Aiello), the owner of Sal's Famous Pizzeria, a community establishment for 25 years. Sal built the business with his own hands, and has served two generations of customers.
His sons, the hot-tempered Pino (John Turturro) and the more easy-going Vito (Richard Edson), work with him. Pino is an unabashed racist who spends as much time spewing profanities about the mostly-black clientele as making pizzas. Vito, on the other hand, is color-blind.
Mookie (Spike Lee himself) is a young man who works as Sal's pizza delivery boy. His girlfriend, Tina (Rosie Perez), cares for his toddler son.
One of Mookie's friends, Buggin' Out (Giancarlo Esposito), is on a political crusade to force Sal to put pictures of black men on his "American Italian Wall."
Another, Radio Raheem (Bill Nunn), spends the day wandering around the neighborhood playing a boom box at maximum volume.
"I have been given only a few filmgoing experiences in my life to equal the first time I saw “Do the Right Thing.” Most movies remain up there on the screen. Only a few penetrate your soul. In May of 1989 I walked out of the screening at the Cannes Film Festival with tears in my eyes. Spike Lee had done an almost impossible thing. He'd made a movie about race in America that empathized with all the participants. He didn't draw lines or take sides but simply looked with sadness at one racial flashpoint that stood for many others"
There
are really no heroes or villains in the film. There is even a
responsible cop, who screams “that's enough!” as another cop chokes
Radio with his nightstick. And perhaps the other cop is terrified
because he is surrounded by a mob and the pizzeria is on fire. On and
on, around and around, black and white, fear and suspicion breed and
grow. Because we know all of the people and have spent all day on the
street, we feel as much grief as anger. Radio Raheem is dead. And Sal,
who has watched the neighborhood's kids grow up for 25 years and fed
them with his pizza, stands in the ruins of his store.
Overview and Plot
Set on the hottest day of the summer in the Bedford-Stuyvesant neighborhood of Brooklyn, Do the Right Thing explores simmering racial tensions that eventually reach a boiling point. The story centers on Sal’s Famous Pizzeria, an Italian-American business that has been in the predominantly Black neighborhood for 25 years.
The Conflict
The central conflict is sparked by Buggin' Out, a local resident who becomes upset that Sal's "Wall of Fame" features only Italian-Americans (like Frank Sinatra and Al Pacino) despite the pizzeria’s clientele being almost entirely Black. He demands that Sal put up "some brothers on the wall." Sal refuses, asserting his right as the owner to decorate his establishment as he pleases.
The Climax
As the heat rises, minor frustrations escalate. Radio Raheem, who carries a massive boombox blasting Public Enemy’s "Fight the Power," joins Buggin' Out’s boycott. Late that night, a confrontation inside the pizzeria leads to Sal smashing Raheem’s radio with a baseball bat. A fight spills into the street, and the police arrive. In the struggle, an officer kills Radio Raheem via a chokehold.
In the aftermath, the protagonist Mookie (Sal's delivery man, played by Spike Lee) throws a trash can through the window of the pizzeria, inciting the crowd to riot and burn the building to the ground.
Critical Reception and Controversy
Upon its release, some white critics (most notably Joe Klein) feared the film would incite actual riots in American cities. Conversely, Roger Ebert championed the film, noting that it was "one of the best-directed, best-made films of our time" and criticized those who were more upset about the destruction of a pizzeria than the death of a human being.
Historical Context
The film was inspired by real-life tragedies, including the 1986 Howard Beach incident (where a Black man was chased onto a highway by a white mob and killed) and the death of Michael Stewart in police custody. Because police brutality remains a central issue in American discourse, the film's climax—and the image of Radio Raheem—remains tragically relevant today.
The "Mookie" Question
For decades, audiences have debated: Did Mookie "do the right thing"?
One Perspective: Mookie’s action was a betrayal of Sal, who had given him a job and generally treated him with a level of respect (despite their differences).
Spike Lee's Perspective: Lee has famously noted that only white viewers ask if Mookie did the right thing; Black viewers rarely ask that because they understand that Mookie may have been saving Sal’s life by redirecting the crowd’s anger toward the building rather than toward Sal and his sons.
Supporting Characters
The film is an ensemble piece where the "extras" represent the conscience and history of the neighborhood:
The Corner Men (Sweet Dick Willie, ML, and Coconut Sid): Sitting under an umbrella against a bright red wall, these three act as a "Greek Chorus." Their banter provides comic relief but also highlights the frustrations of unemployment and the changing demographics of the neighborhood (specifically their resentment toward the success of the Korean grocery store across the street).
Da Mayor and Mother Sister: Played by real-life couple Ossie Davis and Ruby Dee, these characters represent the older generation. Da Mayor is the neighborhood "drunk" who seeks redemption through small acts of kindness, while Mother Sister is the watchful "eye" of the block. Their relationship provides a grounded, soulful counterpoint to the volatility of the younger characters.
Mister Señor Love Daddy: As the local radio DJ, his voice acts as the connective tissue of the neighborhood, literally telling the residents to "wake up" and "cool down."
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