2012 Cannes Marathon: Do the Right Thing

(Played in Competition for the Palme D’or at the 1989 Cannes Film Festival)

Written, directed, and starring Spike Lee, Do the Right Thing is the story about one hot summer day in a Brooklyn neighborhood as racial tension starts to boil. The film explores an entire day where an Italian pizza owner has to deal with numerous characters including a highly-vocal young man, a big man carrying a boom box, and his new pizza delivery boy who just wants to get paid. Also starring Danny Aiello, John Turturro, Rosie Perez, Giancarlo Esposito, Bill Nunn, Steve Park, Ruby Dee, Ossie Davis, Joie Lee, Roger Guenveur Smith, and Samuel L. Jackson. Do the Right Thing is a provocative yet harrowing drama from Spike Lee.

It’s a hot summer day in Bedford-Stuyvesant in Brooklyn as Mookie (Spike Lee) has to go to work at a pizzeria owned by Sal (Danny Aiello). Working with Sal’s two adult sons in Pino (John Turturro) and Vito (Richard Edson), Mookie’s only concern is to get paid and see his girlfriend Tina (Rosie Perez) and son Hector whom he hasn’t seen in a week. Things get tense as the day goes on where Mookie’s friend Buggin’ Out (Giancarlo Esposito) is eating pizza at Sal’s as he is upset over why Sal’s Wall of Fame features Italians and wants to know if Sal will put some African-Americans on the wall. Instead, Buggin’ Out gets kicked out as he tries to start a boycott on Sal’s Pizza as the day continues to heat up where an old drunk named Da Mayor (Ossie Davis) tries to win the affections of an old woman named Mother Sister (Ruby Dee) who keeps looking out at the neighborhood.

Things continue to intensify as a trio of men (Robin Harris, Frankie Faison, and Paul Benjamin) watch the neighborhood deal with the heat while making complaints about Korean grocery store owner named Sonny (Steve Park) who had taken over the corner across from Sal’s for more than a year. Though Mookie is doing his job, he still has to deal with the prejudiced Pino who is not happy about working at his father’s place and is sick of being in an environment that he feels is filled with animals. Though Sal wants to maintain that his place is here to stay, he has an uneasy encounter with Radio Raheem (Bill Nunn) who likes to blast Public Enemy’s Fight the Power at a loud volume as he later joins Buggin’ Out in the boycott against Sal that would include a mentally-challenged man named Smiley (Roger Guenveur Smith) who meanders around the neighborhood trying to sell a picture of Martin Luther King Jr. and Malcolm X.

With the day turning into night and closing time starts to emerge, the tension between Buggin’ Out and Radio Raheem towards Sal about wanting some African-Americans on the wall leads to a huge fight that culminates in an incident the neighborhood would never forget.

What happens on one hot summer day in a small section of Brooklyn where things become uneasy between an Italian-America pizzeria owner, his two sons, a young pizza delivery man, his friends, some teenagers, a trio of middle-aged men, two elderly people, a Korean grocery store owner, two cops, and a radio DJ that watches everything in his booth? Well, there’s a lot that happens in this film where it all centers around a pizzeria that has been around for 25 years and one guy is upset over the fact that there’s no brothers on Sal’s Wall of Fame filled with famous Italian-Americans. A lot of is from the perspective of a young man named Mookie who is just trying to get through this hot day while he delivers pizza by foot and deal with Sal and Pino for being late or just delivering the pizzas not on time. For Mookie, he could care less except for just getting paid and do what is right for his girlfriend and their young son.

There’s also subplots that is prevalent in the film’s screenplay as it includes this old drunk who wanders around the neighborhood trying to impress this old lady as both of them watch what is going on. Notably as the old man is trying to bring wisdom to a young group of teenagers who dismiss his wisdom while he would end up doing something noble. There’s also brief glimpses of a group of Puerto Ricans trying to get through the hot day where they would have an encounter with Radio Raheem along with a scene where Buggin’ Out gets upset at a guy (John Savage) for accidentally messing up his Air Jordans. It’s all part of what is happening in the course of a very hot day as things are starting to boil where a couple of cops (Rick Aiello and Miguel Sandoval) are looking around.

One of Spike Lee’s gifts as a storyteller is the way he creates characters who are truly interesting but also flawed. Notably individuals like Pino and Buggin’ Out who are both quite extreme in their views of the world. Pino can be called a racist since he often spouts racial slurs and is not enthused about working in a predominantly African-American area. In a conversation with Mookie, it is revealed that is favorite basketball star is Magic Johnson, his favorite movie star is Eddie Murphy, and his favorite musician is Prince. That revelation is quite strange as Pino tries to explain to Mookie that these guys he loves aren’t black or whatever. They’re just men as he tries to explain but it adds to the complications of who he is though Mookie doesn’t think he’s a total jerk.

Buggin’ Out is another character that is quite extreme though his intentions about having brothers on the Wall of Fame is noble. It’s just that his approach rubs people the wrong way as he’s often dismissed or has to get some lesson from people about what he should do. Still, Buggin’ Out is on a mission to boycott Sal where he ends up gaining the very intimidating Radio Raheem in the boycott and things eventually goes out of control. Especially when it finally makes this very old-school yet kind man like Sal get even more angrier where his own hatred is unveiled in an intense scene that is followed by violence and chaos. All of this is in the eyes of a DJ named Mister Senor Daddy Love (Samuel L. Jackson) who, along with the three men in the corner, would comment everything that is going on in his neighborhood.

Lee’s direction is definitely stylish in terms of the compositions he creates as well as the mood he sets for these very simple yet tense dramatic scenes. Shot on location in Bedford-Stuyvesant in Brooklyn, Lee wanted to show a world that is vibrant and quite diverse but also a bit uneasy due to the heat wave that is happening. Scenes such as Mookie and Tina’s love scene with an ice cube along with some interior shots show the sweat and weariness of these characters. It would add to the boiling tension that occurs as Lee would always frame the actors a certain way to play up the drama.

Notably as there’s some montages such as a scene where characters spew out racial insults at someone to the camera only for Mister Senor Daddy Love to stop the montage so that everyone should just chill out. There’s a lot of intimate yet more simpler moments where Sal is flirting with Mookie’s sister Jade (Joie Lee) where there’s a camera panning to express the different feelings of both Mookie and Pino who feel uneasy about this relationship. There’s also some striking close-ups that add to the dramatic tension including shots where Lee takes advantage of using the crane to capture the neighborhood and the characters in this neighborhood.

For the film’s climatic moment where the tension boils in this pizzeria between Sal and Radio Raheem, Lee’s camera is always presented in a slanted composition where he’s waiting for the moment for things to finally just go out of control. There’s people in this crowd that is saying names of those who had died in these awful situations where its aftermath is one that will be frustrating because it ends up raising more questions than answers over what had happened. Did anyone in that film do the right thing? It’s not that easy to answer. Yet, Lee chooses to end the film with two very different quotes from Martin Luther King Jr. and Malcolm X that each has different viewpoints about using violence as it is followed by the picture of the two that Smiley had been holding throughout the entirety of the film. Overall, Lee creates a truly mesmerizing yet very confrontational film that doesn’t take the easy road into exploring race relations nor does he want to imply something with an overbearing message.

Cinematographer Ernest Dickerson does an extraordinary job with the film‘s vibrant and colorful cinematography from the daytime exteriors to play up the heat to the interiors where the heat intensify where Dickerson creates some gorgeous lighting schemes to play up the tension. Editor Barry Alexander Brown does a brilliant job with the editing to play up the rhythm of the conversations to the racial-spewing montage that is wonderfully cut along with other stylish elements to help keep the film at a leisured pace. Production designer Wynn Thomas and set decorator Steve Rosse do excellent work with the set pieces such as Sal‘s pizzeria with its old-school Italian setting and its Wall of Fame along with the red wall that the old men in the corner sit at including other parts of the Bedford-Stuyvesant location.

Costume designer Ruth Carter does wonderful work with the costumes from the Brooklyn Dodgers shirt that Mookie wears in the film‘s first half to the more colorful clothing many of the characters wear. Sound designer Skip Lievsay does fantastic work with the film‘s sound from the way Radio Raheem‘s boom box blares Public Enemy‘s Fight the Power to varying degrees of volume to the chaos that occurs in the film‘s climatic moment. The film’s score by Bill Lee is superb for its mix of orchestral flourishes that features a soothing saxophone by Branford Marsalis and a trumpet from Terence Blanchard to play out the chaos and drama that occurs in the film. The film’s soundtrack a wonderful mix of music ranging from Ruben Blades’ salsa to the reggae of Steel Pulse. Yet, a lot of the film’s music is dominated by R&B and hip-hop from acts like Teddy Riley, Take 6, E.U., and Public Enemy.

The casting by Robi Reed-Humes is outstanding for the ensemble that is created as it includes notable appearances from John Savages as a man who accidentally runs over Buggin’ Out’s Air Jordans, Frank Vincent as a man with a vintage car, Richard Parnell Habersham as a kid named Eddie, Ginny Yang as the Korean store owner’s wife, Joie Lee as Mookie’s younger yet more responsible sister Jade, Steve Parks as the Korean grocery owner Sonny, and Luis Antonio Ramos as a Puerto Rican who battles Radio Raheem over who has the louder boom box. Other noteworthy small yet memorable performances include Frankie Faison, Robin Harris, and Paul Benjamin as the three men in the corner commenting about everything while Martin Lawrence, Steve White, Leonard L. Thomas, and Christa Rivers are very good as the four young people who play around at the neighborhood. Miguel Sandoval and Rick Aiello are also good as the two cops who try to maintain order despite the treatment they receive from the neighborhood.

In her film debut, Rosie Perez is superb as Mookie’s profanity-spouting girlfriend Tina who bitches about Mookie not being there while Perez has a great moment dancing to Public Enemy in the film’s opening title sequence. Roger Guenveur Smith is terrific as the mentally-challenged Smiley while Bill Nunn is excellent as the intimidating Radio Raheem who sports two different rings that says “love” on the right and “hate” on the left. Richard Edson is pretty good as Sal’s much friendlier son Vito who is good friends with Mookie while John Turturro is amazing as the very prejudiced Pino who often spouts racial slurs while feeling embarrassed about where he’s working at. Giancarlo Esposito is incredible as the very outspoken Buggin’ Out who is trying to boycott Sal’s pizzeria in order to just to have some brothers on the wall.

Ossie Davis and Ruby Dee are wonderful in their respective roles of Da Mayor and Mother Sister as the two elderly individuals each provide insight into the surroundings around them with Davis trying to be the man of good despite wanting a beer. Samuel L. Jackson is great in a small role as Mister Senor Daddy Love who comments about everything that is happening as he even breaks the fourth wall by letting everyone chill. Spike Lee is great as the immature but determined Mookie who is keen on wanting to get paid while having to deal with some of the things in his life as he becomes more concerned for his family whom he hadn’t seen lately. Finally, there’s Danny Aiello in a phenomenal performance as Sal who is just trying to run his pizzeria in a hot day while dealing with Mookie’s attitude, Pino’s prejudice, and the tension that is happening as he finally loses it.

Do the Right Thing is a remarkable yet powerful film from Spike Lee. Featuring an ensemble cast that includes Lee, Danny Aiello, John Turturro, Giancarlo Esposito, Ruby Dee, the late Ossie Davis, Samuel L. Jackson, Rosie Perez, and Bill Nunn. It’s a film that is truly engrossing to watch for the way it plays out a lot of racial tension on one hot summer day. For those new to Spike Lee, this film is pretty much the best thing he did as well as a true landmark film for the way African-American life is depicted without playing down to stereotypes or with a message. In the end, Do the Right Thing is a magnificent film from Spike Lee.

Spike Lee Films: (She’s Gotta Have It) - (School Daze) - Mo' Better Blues - Jungle Fever - (Malcolm X) - Crooklyn - (Clockers) - (Girl 6) - (Get on the Bus) - 4 Little Girls - (He Got Game) - Freak - Summer of Sam - (The Original Kings of Comedy) - (Bamboozled) - (A Huey P. Newton Story) - (Jim Brown: All-American) - 25th Hour - (She Hate Me) - (Inside Man) - (When the Levees Broke: A Requiem in Four Acts) - (Miracle at St. Anna) - (Kobe Doin’ Work) - (Passing Strange) - (If God is Willing and the Creek Don’t Rise) - (Red Hook Summer) - Bad 25 - Mike Tyson: Undisputed Truth - (Oldboy (2013 film)) - (Da Blood of Jesus) - (Chi Raq) - Michael Jackson's Journey from Motown to Off the Wall - BlacKkKlansman - Da 5 Bloods - (American Utopia)

© thevoid99 2012

Ellen Foster (TV movie)

Based on Kaye Gibbons’ novel, Ellen Foster is the story of a young girl who is shifted from one home to another due to the death of her mother and the abuse she suffers from her father. Directed by John Erman and teleplay by Maria Nation and William Hanley, the TV movie revolves around a girl trying to find a home and someone to care for her as Jena Malone plays the titular character. Also starring Julie Harris, Ted Levine, Glynnis O’Connor, Zeljko Ivanek, Bill Nunn, Amanda Peet, and Timothy Olyphant. Ellen Foster is a harrowing yet heartfelt melodrama from John Erman.

Ellen is a young 10-year old child living in the South during the 1970s as she lives poorly with an alcoholic father Bill Hammond (Ted Levine) and her ailing mother Charlotte (Glynnis O’Connor), who is suffering from rheumatic flu. After Charlotte’s death, Ellen remains at home living by the money she gets from her uncle to pay bills and food that she can get. Though she was invited to stay at the holiday at the home of her friend Starletta (Allison Jones) and her parents (Bill Nunn and Lynne Moody), they couldn’t adopt her. While her father remains gone for days and her well-meaning aunts looking after her, she remains alone as her father eventually returns to beat her as her art teacher Julia Hobbs (Amanda Peet) notices.

Living temporarily with Julia and her husband Roy (Timothy Olyphant) before the court figures out what to do, Ellen seems to enjoy her new family life until her father arrives outside her school leading to a court case on who would get custody. Though the judge was sympathetic to Ellen’s plight, Ellen is forced to live with her grandmother Lenora Nelson (Julie Harris) whom Ellen never really liked. Despite being cared for by Lenora’s maid and dealing with her grandmother, Ellen was able to have a home until Lenora suffers a stroke. Ellen is once again shifted to another home as she’s given to the care of her aunt Nadine (Debra Monk). Ellen, once again, feels unloved as she’s forced to deal with her bratty cousin Dora (Kimberly J. Brown). Realizing that her only salvation could be in a woman (Kate Burton) that is a foster parent, Ellen wonders if she will ever be taken by a family who loves her.

The TV movie is about a young girl whose broken family life has her shifted from one home to another where she finds herself lost and seeking for someone to care for her. While there’s a few people in young Hobbs couple, an African-American family, and an ideal foster mother that cares for this young girl. This young girl is forced to be shifted to homes to people in her family that don’t really care about her while others might consider her to be a burden which includes her flighty aunt Betsy (Barbara Garrick). Throughout this journey in trying to find some home and family that will take care of her, she eventually change her last name from Hammond to Foster to exemplify what she had just gone through.

While the teleplay does dwell into heavy melodrama because of the girl’s plight along with a few characters that are essentially stereotypes due to its 1970s Southern setting. The script does succeed in exploring the plight of what this young girl through as it’s told largely in her perspective with some voice-over narration that reflects what she’s going through. Yet, Ellen is a child that just wants to be loved and earn her keep as she is forced to contend with superficial aunts and a very spiteful grandmother. Even worse is the law that complicates things as she wants to be with the people that will care for her who aren’t able to due to the law or to their own circumstances.

John Erman’s direction definitely has a few stylistic flairs though he keeps things very straightforward to what is expected in a TV melodrama. Erman does know how to shoot intimate moments or to set a mood while having his camera focused on Ellen in the situations she’s dealing with. While the melodrama is expected to be very sentimental and at times, heavy-handed, it some how manages to go way into that due to what the protagonist is going through. Overall, Erman’s work is stellar as he does create a very engaging drama.

Cinematographer Brian West does a nice job with the photography from the darker world of Ellen‘s original home to more low-key yet colorful shots for the homes that she goes into to exemplify the different homes she encounters. Editor Bill Blunden does a very good job with the editing to maintain a leisured pace with a few dissolves and straight cuts to keep the film going.

Production designer Fred Harpman and set decorator Lin MacDonald do some excellent work to create the look for the different homes that Ellen encounters from the posh home of her grandmother to the more natural yet carefree environment of the Hobbs. Costume designer Linda Matheson does a wonderful job with the costumes to help develop the batch of clothes that Ellen wears in her journey from casual, dirty clothes to more cleaner and fuller dresses late in the film. Sound editor Joseph Melody does a fine job with the sound work to capture some of the intimate moments as well as some of the livelier moments involving multiple characters. The music by John Morris is pretty good for some of the orchestral arrangements though at times, it gets a bit sappy and saccharine with the addition of the harmonica in the score.

The casting by Stuart Aikins, Olivia Harris, and Phyllis Huffman is brilliant as the ensemble cast that is created definitely gives the TV movie more than what is expected in the genre. Performances from Zeljko Ivanek as a school doctor, Kate Burton as the kindly foster mother Abigail, Bill Nunn and Lynne Moody as Starletta’s very caring parents, Allison Jones as Ellen’s best friend Starletta, Kimberly J. Brown as Ellen’s bratty cousin Dora, and Glynnis O’Connor as Ellen’s ailing yet loving mother are all really good. Other roles include Ted Levine as Ellen’s abusive father along with Debra Monk and Barbara Garrick as Ellen’s superficial though caring aunts are notable standouts along with some very lively yet fun performances from Timothy Olyphant and Amanda Peet as a young couple who temporarily take Ellen in.

Julie Harris is excellent as Ellen’s grandmother Lenora who is very spiteful towards her as she believes that her daughter’s death is due to the environment she chose and for bringing Ellen into the world. Finally, there’s Jena Malone in a truly outstanding performance as the titular character. Malone’s performance is definitely the heart and soul of the film as she has to endure a lot of anguish and torment for what she’s going through as her character just wants someone to care for her. It’s a performance that truly exemplifies why Malone was so revered in her early years as a child star as she continues to be one of the most interesting actresses working today.

Ellen Foster is a very good TV movie by John Erman that features a remarkable performance from Jena Malone. While it’s a film that does play by the rules of what is expected in a TV melodrama, there are elements that does give the movie something more to exemplify what this young girl goes through. In the end, Ellen Foster is an engaging TV movie that brings a very compelling tale of child abuse and abandonment.

© thevoid99 2011

Mo' Better Blues

Originally Written and Posted at Epinions.com on 2/12/07.

Following Spike Lee's widely acclaimed masterpiece Do the Right Thing in 1989, Lee chose to take a break from his socially-conscious films for an exploration in jazz. 1990's Mo' Better Blues is the story of a jazz musician who tries to juggle his professional career and personal life through a series of bad decisions. Written and directed by Spike Lee, the film marked Lee's first collaboration with Denzel Washington who plays the fictional jazz trumpeter Bleek Gilliam. Also starring Lee and his regulars John Turturro, Giancarlo Esposito, Wesley Snipes, Joie Lee, Bill Nunn, and Samuel L. Jackson plus Cynda Williams, Robin Harris, and Charlie Murphy. Mo' Better Blues is a brilliant, passionate love letter to jazz and music in all of its chaos.

It's 1969 as a young Bleek Gilliam (Zakee Howze) is practicing his trumpet in front of his mother Lillian (Abbey Lincoln) while his father (Dick Anthony Williams) insists that he should go out and play with his friends. 20 years later, Bleek is an accomplished trumpet player leading a jazz quintet that included saxophonist Shadow (Wesley Snipes), pianist Left Hand Lacey (Giancarlo Esposito), bassist Bottom Hammer (Bill Nunn), and drummer Rhythm Jones (Jeff "Tain" Watts). Managing Bleek and his band is Bleek's childhood friend Giant (Spike Lee) where the band has always been selling out the same club they've been playing for years. While the group has been successful, tension has started to rise where Shadow wants more money and have more say in the band yet it remains Bleek’s band while his band mates insist that Giant is a bad manager.

While Bleek seems comfortable in his professional life, he also has a loving relationship with his accountant girlfriend Indigo (Joie Lee) while playing catch with his father. Giant meanwhile, continues to gamble with a bookie named Petey (Ruben Blades) that only brings more troubles to his gambling debts. While rehearsing, Bleek gets a visit from his mistress Clarke (Cynda Williams) who wants to become a singer. Still, tension between Bleek and his band over money and management has increased while Bleek and Shadow often have problems with Left Hand's lateness, some of it due to his French girlfriend Jeanne (Linda Hawkins). Giant's financial troubles worsen when he's confronted by the club' financial managers the Flatbush brothers (John and Nicholas Turturro), bouncers Eggy (Charlie Murphy) and Rod (Leonard L. Thomas), and Petey over money.

With Bleek continuing to work on his music, Shadow is making plans to break on his own where he tries to surround himself with Clarke. Then one night at the club where it's packed, Bleek plays a new number to discuss the roots of jazz while another night, he professes his troubling love affairs and passions in a song called Mo' Better Blues. After a night in which both Clarke and Indigo wore the same red dress, Bleek's love affairs finally comes to ahead and takes it toll. After talking to Giant, he begins to wonder about Giant's own gambling problems. Giant's problems finally caught up with him as he is injured by a bookie named Madlock (Samuel L. Jackson). With Bleek and Giant's problems increasing along with the bad decisions, Bleek decides to help Giant out but the tension between him and Shadow have finally come to ahead where Bleek and Giant are forced to confront everything including themselves.

While this film is a wonderful mediation on the love for jazz. It's really a movie about a man whose ego and passion for music and women get the best of him while his inexcusable trust for his manager lead to his own personal downfall. The subplot of Giant and his problems does make an interesting story that contributes to the film’s plot. Although it also makes the film a bit uneven in the stories of these two men. Lee also exposes the really dark world of the music business as well as the world of jazz that shows its evolvement. Particularly in how purists have problems with the idea of mainstream success where there's a brief mention of Kenny G, who is known to be loathed by jazz purists. Lee's script and his observant, stylized direction really gives the film a feeling that is entertaining and paying tribute to the world of jazz and the blues. The film also serves a character study of ego and passion through the character like Bleek Gilliam.

Lee's longtime cinematographer Ernest Dickerson brings a wonderful presentation with his use of colors and light to emphasize the emotions and passion of the music and the character of Bleek. The interior settings, notably the club with shots of red, blue, orange, and green reveal the richness of the atmosphere as it's some of the best cinematography captured on film. Production designer Wynn Thomas and set decorator Ted Glass add to the authenticity to the intimate, wooden-look of the club that Bleek and his band play to the homegrown world of Brooklyn along with the posh-like look of a jazz club near the end of the film. Costume designer Ruth E. Carter adds to the colorful style with the suits that the men wear along with the Giants shirts that Bleek wears in a scene where he plays catch with his father to the different dresses that Cynda Williams and Joie Lee wears. Editor Samuel D. Pollard brings a stylized touch to the editing with jump cuts, perspective shots, and everything to add rhythm to the film. Sound designer Skip Lievsay also brings a nice atmosphere to the film's club sequences with the noise of people and music blaring.

Then there's the music with a wonderful, orchestral score work from Lee's father Bill to add the flair of blues and classical to convey the sense of drama. Longtime composer Terence Blanchard along with Branford Marsalis create some of the jazz compositions performed in the film that rings true to the music while the rest of the soundtrack features a lot of jazz cuts including one famous one from John Coltrane.

The fil's cast is wonderfully assembled with cameos from Bill Lee, Flava Flav in the opening credits, and the late comedian Robin Harris as the club's top comedian. Other noted small performances from Charlie Murphy, Linda Hawkins, Zakee Howze, Leonard L. Thomas, and Abbey Lincoln are memorable while Samuel L. Jackson and Ruben Blades are excellent as the bookies with Jackson also playing the voice of Senor Love Daddy from Do the Right Thing. Lee regular John Turturro and brother Nicholas bring humor as the fast-talking accountants bring some needed humor to the film. Dick Anthony Williams is great as the Bleek's caring father while Bill Nunn and Jeff "Tain" Watts are excellent in their brief roles as the rhythm section of Bleek's band. Cynda Williams is excellent as the seductive, hungry Clarke whose lack of attention leads her to having an affair with another man. Joie Lee is wonderful as the more mature, down-to-earth Indigo who seems like the only woman who can ground and confront Bleek and his ego.

Giancarlo Esposito is great as the suave, artistic Left Hand who always shows up late and acts more different than his band mates playing the Euro-man of the group. Wesley Snipes is great as Bleek's rival saxophonist whose idea of jazz and success serves as the right antagonism for Bleek where Snipes truly stands out in his performance. Spike Lee gives an excellent performance as the socially-awkward, problematic Giant with his charmed behavior and bad habits that makes him a wonderful, memorable character. Lee does great work in bringing some humor to a very flawed character. Finally, there's Denzel in a fantastic performance as Bleek Gilliam. Denzel proves his versatility as a performer doing a bit of rapping and singing while giving Bleek a full-on complexity to a man that's flawed by his ego and his passion for music. It's a tour-de-force performance from Denzel Washington.

While Mo' Better Blues might not be a masterpiece like Do The Right Thing or Malcolm X, it’s still one of Spike Lee's finer films. Fans of jazz music will appreciate the touch and authenticity that Lee adds to the film while it also marks as a great collaboration between him and Denzel Washington. The film is also entertaining with style along with some substance. It also has a lot of memorable scenes and performances from its cast. In the end, for anyone wanting to watch something cool with a bit of jazz and lots of Denzel, watch Mo' Better Blues.

Spike Lee Films:  (She's Gotta Have It) - (School Daze) - Do the Right Thing - Jungle Fever - (Malcolm X) - Crooklyn - (Clockers) - (Girl 6) - (Get on the Bus) - 4 Little Girls - (He Got Game) - Freak - Summer of Sam - (The Original Kings of Comedy) - (Bamboozled) - (A Huey P. Newton Story) - 25th Hour - (Jim Brown: All-American) - (She Hate Me) - (Inside Man) - (When the Levees Broke:  A Requiem in Four Acts) - (Miracle at St. Anna) - (Kobe Doin' Work) - (Passing Strange) - (If God is Willing and Da Creek Don't Rise) - (Red Hook Summer) - Bad 25 - Mike Tyson: Undisputed Truth - (Oldboy (2013 film)) - (Da Blood of Jesus) - (Chi Raq) - Michael Jackson's Journey from Motown to Off the Wall - BlacKkKlansman - Da 5 Bloods - (American Utopia)

© thevoid99 2011