Spike Lee demonstrates his filmmaking prowess in his 1989 film Do the Right Thing. As with most of Lee's work, race relations are central to the story. With Do the Right Thing, Lee presents a bleak view of the nature and future of cross-cultural relationships in urban America. Mookie (played by Spike Lee) is a twenty-something African-American pizza delivery man. He works for Sal's Pizzeria, an establishment in the Bedford-Stuyvesant area of Brooklyn, which is a predominantly black neighborhood. Mookie and Sal, despite their differences, reveal a remarkably similar worldview as the film progresses, and especially in their inability to resolve the racial tension that emerges in the film. Mookie and Sal develop a decent professional relationship, yet both retain lingering feelings of resentment toward the "other." Spike Lee does a remarkable job portraying mutual feelings of "otherness" in Do the Right Thing. The writer/director/actor shows that racism exists on both sides of the fence.
Significant symbols accompany Lee's themes. The "Wall of Fame" is more than just a wall full of pictures. As a poor representative of Sal's patrons, the wall symbolizes the barrier between cultures depicted in Do the Right Thing, especially between blacks and Italian-Americans. The wall, to Buggin' Out, represents racism; it is a physical reminder of segregation and bigotry. Sal's refusal to acknowledge Buggin' Out's feelings as valid is a source of much of the ensuing violence.
Pino exhibits an extreme version of his father's more subtle racism. Pino's resentment of the African-American community fuels the violent climax of the film; like Sal's wall, he won't budge. Thus, the wall between the Italian-American (white) community and the African-American (black) community grows stronger. The only...
Movie Critique: The Pursuit of Happyness When it comes to film making, the subject of rags to riches tales have been one of the most common subject for many filmmakers. Most film viewers have watched a number of movies that revolve around a financially broken protagonist making it big. However, in the post Y2k era, it is a common perception among many that a movie has to be high on graphics,
Gotham is a dark place, which manifests evil in the character of the Joker (Jack Nicholson). Bruce Wayne, Batman, is the force with which evil must reckon. Batman, however, has his own dark side, which is manifest in his costume, his gothic style mansion, and the technology he employs to combat the Joker and other criminal elements. In this film, Burton needed only a few big name and talented actors
Rob Reiner's 1987 film The Princess Bride enjoyed only moderate box office revenues, but developed popular underground appeal and has become a cult classic. The enduring respect for Reiner's quirky romantic comedy is immediately apparent: it is far from formulaic, and does not truly fit in either to the "rom com" designation or that of a fantasy. The Princess Bride also includes a cast filled with luminaries like Peter Falk,
Movies on Adolescent Development View Two Movies Focusing On Adolescent Development Adolescence is a stage of physical and psychological development that occurs between puberty and adulthood. It is usually the time of the teenage years although it has physical, psychological and cultural expressions that begin earlier or can end later Jaffe, 1998. Adolescence is also a time for cognitive development which takes place rapidly. Piaget in his cognitive development theory defines adolescence at
As Baigent and Leigh point out, von Stauffenberg's co-conspirators were "aristocratic" men who despised what they now knew to be a murderous regime (26). However, it was Stauffenberg who was "the most active leader in the conspiracy against Hitler," which is exactly how Operation Valkyrie is portrayed (Hoffman xiv). The close relationship between Nina Stauffenberg and her husband is rendered thinly but at least accurately in the film, based
Even if it successfully brings back to life a story forgotten by the public and distinguishes itself from today's typical films, Disturbia is no match for Rear Window. It is not certain if Disturbia is homage or a remake to Rear Window, since the two movies are not exactly the same, but they are not very different either. While some might consider Disturbia to be a rip-off to Rear Window
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