The Movie: Do the Right Thing (1989)
What Is It?: On
the hottest day of the year, racial tensions in Bed-Stuy boil through the
thermostat. Spike Lee bravely refuses to offer pat answers to serious questions
about the right thing to do in the face of gross injustice and he never
flinches from showing the ugly face behind the mask of “racial tolerance.” He’s
also great as our hero Mookie, but the most uncomfortably convincing
performance comes from Danny Aiello, who has admitted to being more like his character
than you might want to believe.
Why Today?: According
to the New York Times, this was the
hottest day of 1989 to date.
