Do the Right Thing

SPOILER ALERT! The plot will be discussed.

Spike Lee’s Do the Right Thing was released in 1989 but it would be difficult to find a movie more relevant to what is happening in 2020. The film is not a lecture, but instead has many voices that weigh in on the racial divide in America. It suggests that what is the right thing to do may not always be an easy choice, and may vary depending on the circumstances.

The story takes place during one Saturday in a congested, pressure-cooker area of Brooklyn in the summer, which reflects and contributes to the confrontations that occur. The movie’s technique runs from stylized to realistic as it accentuates the moods of the characters with bright colors and depicts stark anger at injustice. The movie begins with Rosie Perez dancing to the Public Enemy song “Fight the Power,” which has the line “We got to fight the powers that be” repeated. As the credits roll her movements appear as a fighter shadowboxing. The shots alternate between her in a dress and then in shorts and boxing gloves. Thus, the theme of conflict is established immediately. 

Many characters have symbolic names. The morning begins with DJ Mister Senor Love Daddy (Samuel L. Jackson) broadcasting on WE LOVE radio. (As we discover, the movie stresses the battle within people between love and hate). He starts out by urging listeners to, “Wake up!” He is both a literal and a consciousness-raising alarm clock. He indulges in some witty slang wordplay, but he is not just interested in presenting himself as slick since he also issues public service announcements. His words create a bridge to introduce other characters as his show is heard around the neighborhood. 

The first person who hears the DJ is Da Mayor, (Ossie Davis), a grumpy older African American who does not seem to want to face this hot day. The mentally challenged Smiley, (Roger Guenveur Smith) who doesn’t smile, is shot upward to stress the importance of his protest against apartheid. He stands in front of a Baptist church to add gravity to his words. But he stutters, possibly showing the damage due to the prejudice he has sustained and which could suggest that the messages of Martin Luther King, Jr. and Malcolm X, whose photo depicting the two together that he holds and tries to sell like a religious item, have not been heard clearly in the battle against racial injustice. (Although united in their cause, the conflicting techniques of the two civil rights leaders is referenced in the movie). Lee plays Mookie who wears a shirt with Jackie Robinson’s name and number on it, which shows his respect for black athletes who became heroes. He lives with his sister, Jade (Joie Lee, Spike’s real sister), who he tries to wake up to begin what turns out to be a long day. 

Sal (Danny Aiello) arrives to open his pizzeria with his sons, Pino (John Turturro) and Vito (Richard Edson). They are white, but being of Italian descent, they do not represent Anglo-Saxon heritage, and those of their background have experienced stereotyping and bigotry. It seems illogical that Pino and Sal should demonstrate prejudicial attitudes toward others given their own people’s experiences. But racism defies logic. Pino slanders the residents at the same time his family’s eatery depends upon the black neighborhood to patronize the restaurant. Sal points out the fear between races when he says that the obviously white air conditioner repairman won’t visit the pizza joint “without a police escort.” Sal has been in business for many years and has stayed in the predominantly black area which shows he must hold affection for the community. Pino says he hates going to the area because “I detest this place like a sickness,” However, Sal shows pride in the fact that he runs a business there, and challenges Pino to be able to do better.

Mookie walks past the home of Mother Sister (Ruby Dee, who was married to Ossie Davis), whose name combines familial and religious components. She shows motherly concern, warning Mookie not to work too hard in the heat. She says she “always watches,” which stresses her caring for her flock. Mookie works at Sal’s and as soon as he enters, Pino references a racial stereotype when he says Mookie is late because his Cadillac broke down. Da Mayor arrives looking for some chores and Sal lets him sweep the sidewalk (a chore Pino was supposed to do), and gives him some money. Pino, again employing a stereotype, asks his father if he was going to continue to give out “welfare.” The lazy Pino, who delegates his chores to his brother, ironically questions Mookie’s work ethic, but Mookie challenges him to carry the same number of pizzas that he delivers. Sal says Mookie is a “good man,” and, as the other three men squabble, he plays referee, which shows he can be a man who seeks peace. 

Radio Raheem (Bill Nunn) appears, and in a big way. Lee has the large young man fill the screen as he carries a huge boombox that blares out music. The local young people say Raheem moves “very large” to the point he “even walks in stereo.” Their descriptions not only fit Raheem’s stature and love of music, but the “stereo” reference points to the scope of the words voiced by all the characters, as well as their multifaceted personalities. 

We already saw how Da Mayor scrounges for money. He wears a sports jacket that implies a desire for respectability but which is undercut by how filthy it appears. He is also a drunk, and Mother Sister scolds him for drinking in front of her place (Lee points the camera down at Da Mayor and up at Mother Sister to physically and figuratively place the audience in the different views of the characters, and at this point Mother Sister sees Da Mayor as someone of low esteem). He says that she will eventually be “nice” to him, or at least “civil.” It turns out to be an accurate prediction. Da Mayor tells Sister Mother that there is no cause to complain about him since he only wishes love for everyone, which is what the person of Love Daddy represents. However, he does not practice what he preaches when he shows anger toward the Korean grocery store owners for their lack of stocking his favorite beer. 

Also in contrast to Da Mayor’s words of love and the symbolism of the names of Love Daddy and that of the radio station is the yelling between Tina (Perez) and her mother over the amount of time needed to take care of Tina’s young boy. Alone with her son, she says not only her mother makes her sick, but “Your father makes me sick, too. Everybody makes me sick.” Mookie turns out to be the father. The film lays the groundwork as it progresses to show an accumulation of stress and anger that builds to an explosive ending. 

Continuing with the theme of love versus hate, three older black men sit at a table under an umbrella and show a combination of camaraderie and opposition as they argue over various subjects. ML (Paul Benjamin) says that the intense heat will melt polar caps and they will be submerged in water. His statement sounds like a prophecy about the arrival of another biblical world-ending flood, and adds to the movie’s heading toward some type of terrible climax. The others comically assault him, saying he couldn’t escape because he can’t afford a boat, having only “thirty cents short of a quarter,” and is so poor he only can “eat the holes out of donuts.” (IMDb says that the three older men improvised much of their dialogue, which is street witty).

Back at Sal’s, Buggin Out (Giancarlo Esposito, that’s right, Gus Fring from Breaking Bad) argues about the price of his slice of pizza and notices that only the pictures of white entertainers, like Frank Sinatra, Al Pacino, and Robert De Niro are hung on the restaurant’s “wall of fame.” Since Sal is making his living in a black neighborhood, Buggin Out wants to know why there are “no brothers up on the wall.” Sal responds, “You want brothers on the wall? Get your own place.” But as Roger Ebert points out, that is the crux of the problem. The inhabitants of this part of Brooklyn can’t afford their own places, which breeds contempt on the part of some of the patrons, which, in turn, stokes an angry response on the part of those running the businesses. Sal considers Buggin Out a “troublemaker,” and approaches him with a baseball bat (foreshadowing), as hostility mounts. The argumentative Pino, showing some good judgment here, is the one who stops his father from resorting to violence. Sal tells Mookie to remove his friend while Buggin Out urges others to “boycott” the establishment. Outside, Mookie tells his pal that he’s going to cause him to lose his job if he tells others to not eat there. So, the black guy is dependent on the white man’s employment, which keeps him in a subservient position, at least at this socio-economic level. Because of Mookie’s precarious position, Buggin Out reminds him to try to “stay black,” and not compromise himself too much. Mookie is no Uncle Tom, and speaks up for himself as a black man in the movie, but the question becomes how far will he go when a stand must be taken?

After Mookie tells Sal that he can’t control Buggin Out because he’s free to do what he wants, Sal dispels notions of freedom, saying he is the “boss” and what he says goes. One can’t help but think about when black people were enslaved, they would have to call the white master “boss.” On his way to delivering a pizza, Da Mayor pulls Mookie over and tells him to, “always do the right thing.” It’s a simple, and obvious, bit of advice. But, as we see, another cliché comes to mind, which is “that’s easier said than done,” and that what is “right” may depend on the situation. (According to IMDb, the title of the film comes from a Malcolm X quote which was, “You’ve got to do the right thing.”).

Everybody tries to keep cool, either by dunking one’s head in ice water, drinking cold beer, or opening a fire hydrant. The universality of these scenes is evident as it reminds me of how my family and neighbors kept cool in my old neighborhood when I was young. A white guy in a Cadillac convertible with the top down (see, white people like Cadillacs, too) stops, says his car is an “antique,” and tells one of the young men getting wet, whose name is Cee (a very young Martin Lawrence), to not splash his car. Cee tells him deceptively not to worry, as one of the residents says the white man has no business being there. Legally he does, but his wealth is an affront to the poverty of the area. As he passes, the young black men use hollowed out food cans to channel the water and drench the vehicle. The owner stops a police car and the man is arrogant toward the cops, who don’t have any suspects since they ran away. The police shut off the water (which they did in our neighborhood, too, to conserve the water). When the man first gets the attention of the police, the expectation is that the cops will start to bully the locals. But, the surprise is that they don’t want an escalation of tension at this time, and tell the guy to move on. Lee throws us off here, thinking that the cops will take the side of the white fellow. 

Although Sal has affection for Mookie, he has a business to run, and he does harass Mookie about the length of his delivery times, which, along with the treatment of Buggin Out, starts to grate on Mookie. He is accompanied by Vito to deliver food to Love Daddy. Mookie advises Vito that he has to fight back at how Pino constantly harasses and bosses Vito around. Mookie is telling Vito what the earlier song says about fighting the “powers that be,” and his urging foreshadows what is to come. 

Latino youths sit on a stoop and kid around with salsa music playing from their boombox. Raheem comes by still blasting “Fight the Power,” his anthem. The young men yell at him for drowning out their music, and what follows is a musical duel between the two stereos. Raheem wins as Stevie (Luis Antonio Ramos) says, “You got it, bro.” It is an interesting scene, since the Latino boys have a right to their cultural sounds, but they aim some ethnic slurring at Raheem, which shows how even those that are the victims of prejudice can be guilty of the same infringement. Is Raheem wrong to force his tune on these men even if the song has an inclusive message for the oppressed? The other young men don’t want any alliance and shout derisive comments at the exiting Raheem.

Even rivalry over sports figures exhibits racial conflict. Mookie says African American pitcher Dwight Gooden is the best baseball pitcher at that time, but Vito insists it’s the white Roger Clemens. But the relationship between these two is not personally adversarial, so that when Buggin Out asks Mookie whey he’s with the white guy, Mookie says that “Vito’s down.” (Authentic, poetic dialogue shines in this film, as Buggin Out, when asked by Mookie how he’s doing, says, “I’m just a struggling black man trying to keep my dick hard in a cruel and harsh world.” It is an affirmation of virility in the face of emasculation, but it also shows how Buggin Out does not know how to relax and enjoy himself since he is always looking for a fight. Another good use of dialogue is shown in the scene where Jade talks with Mother Sister as Jade styles the other’s hair. She asks Jade, who is pulling on her locks, if she is “tender-headed” like Mother Sister, who says it runs in her family.

The ethnic interaction that follows is heated between Buggin Out and Clifton (John Savage), a white young man on a bike who wears a Boston Celtics shirt with “Bird” written on it, referring to the Celtics white basketball player. Clifton bumps into Buggin Out and smears his new Air Jordan sneakers. Buggin Out fumes, especially in this heat, and chases after Clifton, demanding an apology. Other locals join Buggin Out as they yell at Clifton, who does not take the onslaught well, and doesn’t offer to replace the ruined footwear. Buggin Out wants to know why the white boy is in the black neighborhood. Clifton says he owns the house he stands in front of and says it’s a free country so he can live wherever he wants, which, again, is legally true. Buggin Out and the others make it clear he and his “gentrification” are not welcome. When they tell him to return to Massachusetts, Clifton says he’s from Brooklyn, and the others view his Celtics preference as a betrayal. The black response here is hostile, and similar to the one displayed toward the man in the Cadillac, which suggests they believe that white people shouldn’t venture into their neighborhood because African Americans have not been allowed the freedom to go and live wherever they want. 

Sal adds to the tension again when he criticizes Mookie’s work performance by saying that he should send Vito with him more often to shorten Mookie’s delivery time. Vito tries to stand up to Pino, who sees that it is Mookie who has urged him to defy his brother. Pino tells Vito his last name is not “Muhammed,” and makes it clear to Mookie that he should stay out of the family situation. All of these interchanges continue to build toward racial confrontation, which is emphasized by the next shot of cops arriving in the area. Officer Ponte (Miguel Sandoval) and Officer Long (Rick Aiello) slowly drive by the older black men as the two camps eye each other, the cops looking intimidating and the African American gentlemen exhibiting contempt and suspicion. One policeman and one of the black men say the same thing: “What a waste,” which shows the assessment of each side on the other’s occupants. (The men sit in front of a red brick wall, the vivid color reflecting the hot temperature and the hostility of the characters. There is also a sign on the wall that reads, “No ball playing,” which symbolizes how the people here are placed under restrictive rules). 

One of the older men, ML, exhibits his own racism as he complains about the Koreans who have opened a successful food market in the black neighborhood. He echoes those before him in the story who don’t want the black neighborhood invaded by outsiders. But he undermines his own argument because he notes that the building the Koreans took over was boarded up for years until the newcomers dared to claim it. Would it have been better if it remained derelict? However, again, the implication is that African Americans in lower-class neighborhoods don't have the financial means to start a business. ML says he will be the first one to open a black store there. But he is old and his fellow companion, Sweet Dick Willie (Robin Harris), says ML is all talk, and Sweet Dick is willing to spend his money at the Korean store. He responds to the negative comments of Coconut Sid (Frankie Faison) that he just got “off the boat” not that long ago, reminding Sid that America is a country of immigrants. (The negativity of earlier arrivals to the United States toward more recent ones is similar to the illogical prejudice shown by Daniel Day Lewis’s character in The Gangs of New York). However, even Sweet Dick Willie shows his bigotry by calling the Korean man “Kung Fu,” which elicits a negative response from the market owner. More tension.

There is also generational confrontation when young black youths harass Da Mayor with their own form of disrespectful belligerence by asking why he should have his mayoral designation. He says they don’t know anything about him to judge his life. He informs them that he was so poor he couldn’t look his wife in the eye because he couldn’t feed their children. He says they don’t understand, “my pain, my hurt, my feelings.” But one of the young men, Ahmad (Steve White), isn’t buying the old man’s self-pity. He says he should have worked to feed his family but instead became a drunk. The youth says, “I respect those who respect themselves,” suggesting he does not concede admiration just because of age but instead argues one should take responsibility for one’s actions. Here, the film continues to show the many sides of arguments.

After Mookie talks on the phone with his girlfriend, Tina, Pino complains that he’s stopping customers from calling in orders. After Pino uses the “n” word, Mookie, instead of immediately lashing out, tries to diffuse Pino’s bigotry with reason. He gets Pino to admit his favorite basketball player is Magic Johnson, his favorite movie star is Eddie Murphy, and that he is a Prince fan. Pino says it’s different with famous people because they are “more than black.” Mookie says that Pino may secretly want to be black, that Pino’s curly hair is not typically Anglo-Saxon, and is “kinkier” than Mookie’s. Pino makes fun of African American leaders, which then causes an escalation of animosity as Mookie curses Pino and Italian Americans, like Frank Sinatra. The movie shows how animosity breeds animosity.

The movie then breaks the fourth wall as Mookie, Pino, and the Korean grocer spew racial slurs and stereotypes concerning blacks, Italian Americans, and Jews at the camera, and, supposedly, at the various ethnic members of the audience. The effect is disturbing, but is also done to reveal the bigotry that many feel but hide. Love Daddy, living up to his name, yells that everyone has to cool down (despite the literal and figurative heat) following the inflammatory rhetoric. (Later, the LOVE radio station DJ reads an epic catalog of black musicians that illustrates the contribution of performers of color to American culture, refuting the perception of those negative, reductive stereotypes).

After another disagreement about Sal not willing to pay Mookie before the end of the day, Mookie encounters Raheem, who has brass rings that spell out “LOVE” on the right hand and “HATE” on the left. He says he will tell the story of good and evil, as he looks right at the camera, and thus directly addresses the audience. (Of course, this is an homage to Robert Mitchum’s character in The Night of the Hunter, who had the words tattooed on his fingers). Raheem keeps his left hand in a fist and punches (like Perez over the opening credits) and says that hate killed Cain, which implies that negative emotion hurts other humans. He opens the fingers of the right hand in a show of peace because “these five fingers, they go straight to the soul of a man,” to steer it away from a person’s evil side. He says that life is a battle between the two emotions, and he shows his optimism by saying that love will win out. He then declares his love for Mookie. 

But the clash between the two forces will produce casualties before the war can be won. Raheem’s love for others is tested as he enters Sal’s while blasting his song. Sal wants the music to stop inside, but he doesn’t ask politely. He demands that Raheem shut it off, which Raheem reluctantly does. Instead of letting it go at that, Sal piles on how no music is allowed. Raheem, as Buggin Out before, is not happy about the amount of cheese on the pizza. Sal charges $2.00 for extra cheese on top of the sparsely sprinkled amount. It is a symbolic act of exploitation. 

Mookie goes home to take a shower, and his sister, Jade, validates Sal’s complaints about Mookie’s long breaks, although he sees his not adhering to a strict work schedule as a defiance of being treated like a slave. But Jade also accuses her brother of not meeting his “responsibilities,” so all the main characters here are flawed. There is no mention of their parents, and it appears that Jade has been the one taking care of Mookie. That fact points to Mookie’s immaturity, and perhaps why he may see Sal as a father figure.

Pino tells his father they should sell the restaurant and open a shop in their own neighborhood. Sal has been there for twenty-five years, and there are too many pizzerias where they live for him to start to compete for survival there. His argument may be capitalistic, but he also wonders why his son has so much anger as Pino continues to use racial slurs. Pino’s response that all his friends make fun of him for feeding African Americans shows how racism perpetuates itself through peer pressure, which is then dispensed through the generations as a false belief of the inferiority of others. Sal’s comment is a wise one untarnished by bigotry when he says that if they were his true friends they wouldn’t ridicule Pino. He adds that he saw the kids there grow up on his food, so the suggestion is that he sees himself as a nurturing presence providing for his expanded family. He says Sal’s Pizzeria is “here to stay.” (It is an ironic statement considering what occurs later). Smiley walks by the outside of the restaurant trying to sell his photographs of the civil rights leaders. Sal is friendly, but Pino is deaf when it comes to his father’s words, and bangs on the store window, cursing and yelling at Smiley to go away. Smiley bangs back, and again we have anger displayed, with the glass storefront symbolic of the racial divide. Pino goes outside and continues to scream at Smiley, while Sal offers the now angry Smiley some money, which again stresses the difference, at least at this point, between father and son.

Buggin Out, still upset about the earlier verbal altercation with Sal, tries to recruit others in the neighborhood to boycott Sal’s. He has no support, since most of the residents echo Sal’s words that the people there like his shop and young folks grew up on his pizza. Buggin Out then throws down the gauntlet of anger in front of Sal, threatening the boycott. Sal is angry, but this time he restrains Pino because Sal is afraid his son will use more than words to fight back. Buggin Out sees Mookie and Jade, and tells her not to eat at Sal’s because of his photo policy. Mookie, despite his protestations about not wanting to be exploited and urging Vito to stand up for himself, is not willing to make trouble for fatherly Sal. Jade is intelligent, and criticizes Buggin Out, urging him to channel his energies toward constructive actions to improve the community. Despite the argument, their conversation concludes with them declaring love for each other, affirming at least in a small way Raheem’s prediction that love will win in the end.

There are close-ups of Sal and Mookie, which shows Sal’s annoyance about Mookie’s long absence. Mookie’s face shows seething, again reflecting the climate. When Jade enters the pizzeria, Sal’s attraction for Mookie’s sister is evident as he fawns over her, saying how he hoped she would be visiting soon, and wants to make something special for her to eat. When she asks how Mookie is doing, Sal says he’s a good guy as he tries to gain favor with her. Pino calls that a lie and a close-up of his face shows how his realization of Sal’s affection for Jade disgusts him.

Despite his message of love winning out, Raheem has the battle with hate inside himself. When his boombox’s batteries need replacements, he goes to the Korean store and is impatient with their lack of English skills. He curses them and tells them to learn English, not taking into account that all non-English speaking American ancestors that helped build the country had to struggle to learn a new language. Da Mayor enters the store to buy flowers from the Koreans to give to Mother Sister, who is still sitting at her open window. The location suggests a throne and she appears like a queen observing her kingdom. She offers no thanks and looks scornful at his gift and words. The intense heat does not melt her chilly demeanor. 

With his depiction of summer clothes, sweat, and the use of fans and showers, Lee makes the audience feel the scorching temperature. People seek out cold drinks, water ice, and ice cream. When one young boy, Eddie (Richard Habersham) runs after a Mr. Softie truck, Da Mayor rushes into the street and saves the youngster from getting hit by a car, which possibly shows him redeeming himself for his confessed inability to care for his own children. 

Sal is complimenting Jade’s eyes, sitting with her in her booth, when Mookie pulls her out and plays traditional big brother, saying he demands that she no longer come into the pizzeria anymore because of Sal’s lustful intentions. She again is the adult, and says she is a grown woman who can make her own decisions, and reminds him that her income is the one supporting him. Mookie initiates another of the movie’s confrontations as he tells Sal to stay away from Jade. Sal is incensed by Mookie’s warning, says he should kick his “ass,” but doesn’t act violently, and mitigates his anger by instead sending Mookie on another delivery. 

As the sun goes down, and things start to cool off a little, so does Mother Sister’s attitude toward Da Mayor. She says he was foolish running to save Eddie, but he was also brave. Never a person for brevity, Da Mayor goes on a bit about how he is old but summoned the speed without thinking, comparing himself to when he played baseball when he was young. He interrupts himself when he sees he should shut up. Mother Sister doesn’t want him to get any ideas about romance between the two of them, but she thanks him for his courage. Her face thaws a bit as she shows a tight smile as he walks away, but then she displays a sad look, as if revealing that she hasn’t experienced intimacy for a long time.

Mookie asked Sal if the address was right on the next delivery because it is where his girlfriend, Tina, lives. They kiss when he arrives, but she complains that she hasn't seen him in a week and Mookie knows that is why she ordered the pizza. He wants to have sex, but Tina says it’s too hot, plus he’ll just take off and she won’t see him for a while again. She is sarcastic about his neglect for their son, Hector, who is in the kitchen with Tina’s mother, which reminds us of what Jade was saying about how he needs to tend to his responsibilities. While Love Daddy is on the radio and continues to urge people to chill out, Mookie gets ice from the freezer and takes the DJ’s advice, rubbing cubes all over Tina’s naked body, as she warms to Mookie as he cools her down and tends to her needs. They joke as he gives thanks for the various parts of her body, and the affection between them is sweet.

When Mookie returns to the pizzeria, he and Sal are not so argumentative, and actually joke around a bit. Pino doesn’t like that Vito is so friendly with Mookie, and tells Vito there should be no personal connections between whites and blacks. Vito tries to resist Pino, saying that Mookie “listens” to him, whereas Pino doesn’t, and as we have seen Pino just passes off his chores onto his brother. Pino may feel threatened that Vito sees Mookie as more of a brother than he does Pino. On top of his father’s affection for Jade, Pino’s hostility may spring from his fear that he is losing his family to those he himself has been bullied into hating. 

Buggin Out continues to ask others to force Sal to honor African American celebrities by placing their photos on his wall. Raheem again shows his left-handed angry side and enlists, as does Smiley, spurred on by neighbors who don’t like Raheem’s constant loud playing of Public Enemy’s song (which even Buggin Out admits is too repetitive). Back at the restaurant, in what turns out to be an ironic statement, Sal says they had a “great, great day,” financially, and that there’s nothing like a family working together in a business. He says he will rename the place Sal and Sons Famous Pizzeria since the boys will eventually take it over. Pino’s look is one of disappointment considering how he has told his father about his hatred of the neighborhood. Sal even tells Mookie, “there will always be a place” for him there, going so far as to say that he considered Mookie to be like a son. That statement must really upset Pino. Of course Sal’s optimistic words contrast with the animosity between Pino and Vito, and Mookie’s look shows dread about having to continue to work there. 

Although there are some who are angry with Sal’s business practices, there are others that bang on the door wanting pizza even after the place closes. Sal opens the pizzeria up for a few slices for the kids who “love” his pizza. But that “love” turns quickly to “hate” as Buggin Out arrives with Raheem and his deafening boombox. Buggin Out shouts that they want African American pictures on the wall. Sal is racist when he yells he wants them to turn off that “jungle music.” He screams as he tells them to leave. Of course racism leads to racism, as Buggin Out now uses Italian slurs. The three young men and one young girl who came in for pizza act as a Greek chorus, as they alternately echo both sides of the fight. When Buggin Out threatens to shut down the place, Sal gets his baseball bat and uses the “n” word. When things are going his way he is friendly and paternal. But there is a condescension there, and bigotry under the surface when he is resisted. Mookie is caught in the middle as he tries to diffuse the anger, and he is torn apart as he is pulled to both sides. Sal smashes the boombox, symbolically representing the “powers that be” in the song as he attempts to silence any resistance to his rule. Sal says, “I killed your radio.” It is an interesting choice of words. He doesn’t say he broke or destroyed the boombox. The “killed” word makes it sound like murdering a human being, and the fact that Raheem is known as “Radio,” suggests that there is the death of a person involved. 

The heat and tensions of the day boil over as Raheem grabs Sal and then a brawl breaks out between Sal and his boys and the black youths. The fighting spills into the street as Raheem begins to choke Sal. Da Mayor arrives trying to stop the fighting because he knows that once the police get involved the danger will increase. Sure enough, Officers Ponte and Long drive up. They get Raheem off of Sal. That would be enough, and they would have done their job. But they only handcuff Raheem, the black man, and Long places his nightstick under Raheem’s throat and squeezes from the behind. The crowd warns that they are killing Raheem. Long keeps applying the pressure until Raheem can’t breathe and he dies. (Of course the parallels to George Floyd and other African American men being killed by policemen make the film relevant today). The police try to cover it up, dragging Raheem’s body into the police car and then driving away. Even the Korean grocery store owner bangs on the cop car because he sees how injustice threatens everyone. The other cops on the scene handcuff Buggin Out and take him away, but his shout of “You can’t kill us all!” is like a rallying cry for others to fight injustice.

Smiley cries out loud as he expresses the sorrowful pain of the neighborhood. The disparate voices of the day turn into a united expression against the violence that blacks experience at the hands of the authorities. Mookie stands in front of the pizzeria with Sal and his boys, who were not even questioned or considered as participating in the conflict. He looks at the black faces of his neighbors. He walks away as the black men of the area shout and appear to be ready to attack Sal and his boys. Da Mayor again tries to thwart any further violence by saying Sal didn’t kill Raheem and he most likely realizes the residents may suffer the consequences from the police if anyone is harmed. Mookie grabs a trash can (symbolic of the decay of the hope for equality and justice?) and hurls it at the restaurant, breaking the store window, as he yells, “hate.” He may be expressing his hatred for what has happened, or he could be fighting back at the hate that racism creates. Mookie is also making his own declaration of independence, breaking away from his reliance on a man who was not the right father figure for him.

The other black men rush the pizzeria and destroy the place, while also taking some money from the cash register. The similarity to what is happening now in America is obvious, with the destruction an immediate response by the poor people to the brutality they have witnessed. Smiley sets fire to the joint, and even Mother Sister yells out for the pizzeria to burn, as if labeling the restaurant as a place of racial intolerance. Da Mayor ushers Sal and his sons away to protect them, as Sal looks at his legacy going up in flames. In a strange way, Mookie channeled the neighborhood’s aggression toward a building so that people were spared from getting hurt. When the three older black men start to lead the crowd toward the Korean market, the owner says he is also “black,” not in color, but because he, too, is the target of racism. Sweet Dick Willie gets what the man is saying and calls off any further assaults.

The police and firemen arrive, and the latter use their hoses to extinguish the fire in the building and metaphorically the heat coming from the residents at the end of a sizzling day. Mookie and Jade sit on a street curb as the chaos swirls around them, like they are in the eye of a hurricane. As Da Mayor goes to hold her, Mother Sister keeps shouting in agony, “No!” which could be a plea that all of the hatred should stop. Smiley goes into the smoldering pizzeria and places the picture of Martin Luther King, Jr. and Malcolm X on the wall to finally honor the two slain civil rights leaders. With this act, Smiley finally lives up to his name.

The next day Love Daddy, in the studio behind the radio station’s LOVE sign (countering the prior evening’s hate display), asks the unanswerable question about when will people be able to live together? The forecast again is “hot,” which makes one wonder if anything will change. Mookie did go back to be with Tina and his son, showing he is trying to grow up and meet responsibilities. He leaves to demand his wages from Sal despite what has happened. Da Mayor stayed at Mother Sister’s place, but she said she couldn’t sleep. He asks if the neighborhood is still standing, but she realizes something more important, and says, “We’re still standing,” which means they are survivors and ready to put themselves in harm’s way again if need be to continue the struggle against the enemy.

Ironically wearing a Sal’s pizzeria shirt, Mookie heads toward the destroyed restaurant where Sal sits dejected at the entrance. Mookie wants his pay for the last week, and Sal rightly says that his wages wouldn’t even cover the cost of the window he broke. Mookie says Sal will get insurance money. Sal yells that he built the place himself and mourns its loss, suggesting it was like his own child. Sal throws five one-hundred-dollar bills at Mookie who throws two back and says he owes Sal fifty dollars. Mookie doesn’t want a handout, only what he earned. Sal is subdued now and asks what Mookie will do. He quietly says he has to go back to be with his son. Is Mookie going to start to live up to his parental duties? Perhaps he had to go through a painful rebirth to leave his pseudo father so he could be with his real family.

The story ends the way it began with Love Daddy talking like a DJ god, providing the big picture. He says that the Mayor of New York will investigate the prior night’s events, but insists that the city “will not let property be destroyed by anyone.” Love Daddy urges everyone to vote, suggesting a peaceful alternative to voice the protest against injustice. He says, “The election is coming up. There’s no end in sight from this heat wave.” Seeing this movie now, one just has to look at the news and see parts of the film playing out on the TV.

The film concludes with quotes from Martin Luther King, Jr. and Malcolm X. King’s words deplore any violence which humiliates another instead of convincing the opponent of the error of his ways, turning a “Dialogue into a monologue.” Malcolm X’s quote accepts that some people are just bad, and using violence for self-defense is just using one’s “intelligence.” The last image is the picture of the two men together on the “wall of fame,” The movie implies that they tried to bring justice to their people, but used different tools. What is the right thing to do? The movie suggests we should know what’s right, but how to act depends on what is happening.

The next film is Silkwood.