Spike Lee, Essay Example

For this assignment I will be analyzing a scene from Spike Lee’s film “ Do The Right Thing “. ( Do The Right Thing – Spike Lee – June 30 1989 – Film ). I selected the scene where Sals Pizzeria is burned down. The scene occurs 1:30:00 into the film. I selected the scene because it is dramatic and emotionally effective and is the climax of the rising racial tensions that have been building up throughout the film. I am going to analyze the filming techniques, sound and editing used in this scene and I will also explore the genre and context of the film.

I will begin by analyzing the use of sound in the scene. The scene uses no background music and relies entirely on the voices of the characters and the sound of the flames as the restaurant burns and eventually the police sirens. This is effective because it adds gritty realism to the scene and makes it feel more realistic. The scene is dramatic on its own without the need for music.

Next I will talk about the editing techniques used in this scene. The scene uses fast choppy editing cutting quickly from clip to clip to give the scene a fast and exiting pace. There is also a little point of view editing towards the end of the scene when the mob spares the Korean shop owner and turns back towards Sals, when this happens we can see the burning pizzeria and the remaining people in the same way that they can.

There are several filming techniques used in this scene. One particular technique used is a camera pan where the camera pans slowly across each persons face in the crowd allowing the audience to see their emotions. The scene is a mixture of mid shots and close ups. This adds to the crowded and claustrophobic feel of the scene.

I will now discuss the genre of the film. The film begins as a comedy but as the racial tensions in the community builds it becomes a drama as it leads up to its explosive conclusion.

The context of the film is racial tensions within a small American community on the hottest day of the year. Spike Lee himself is one of the first African American Directors and his films are all themed around racial discrimination, urban identity and politics. In this film he displays the points of view of characters on both sides of the race line without taking sides. He simply lays out what is happening on both sides as the tension builds. In the scene I have chosen a young black man has been murdered by the police and the angry crowd responds by looting and torching a pizzeria at the heart of their community because they believe the owner Sal to be a racist because he will not hang pictures of famous black people on the wall of fame in his restaurant. A quotation from a website called the suntimes.com by Roger Ebert describes Spike Lees fair portrayal of all sides perfectly. “ None of these people is perfect but Lee makes it possible for us to understand their feelings, his empathy is crucial to the film because if you cant understand the feelings of others you are trapped inside the box of yourself “ ( Do The Right Thing (1989) – Roger Ebert -suntimes.com- May 27 2001 – Website article )

Overall the techniques of filming and editing used in this scene create a fast paced and emotional scene which outlines perfectly the racial tensions that have been building to this dramatic conclusion.

Citations

Do The Right Thing – Roger Ebert – suntimes.com – May 27 2001 – Website Article

Do The Right Thing – Spike Lee – June 30 1989 – Film