Culture

---

10 Spike Lee Movies You Need To Watch .

---

She’s Gotta Have It (1986) – Lee’s first feature-length film set the tone for a whole wave of independent filmmakers in the 1980s, and brought a different kind of portrayal to American cinema. At a time when many depictions of black characters on film were stereotypical or derogatory, Lee tells the story of a young Brooklyn woman (Tracy Camilla Johns) who is torn between three boyfriends. Talking about the careers, relationships and aspirations of the young cast, it’s an unflinching dive into the complications of romance. The film has its flaws, but it showcases the raw potential of a future great. Lee would later adapt the movie into a hit TV series for Netflix.

Culture

---

10 Spike Lee Movies You Need To Watch .

---

Do the Right Thing (1989) – In our opinion, Lee’s breakthrough movie is one of his finest moments. Racial tensions escalate during a heatwave in a Brooklyn neighbourhood, with various irate parties connected by pizza delivery man Mookie (played by Lee himself). The advice he receives early on, to “always do the right thing”, becomes harder to ignore as hostilities build. Delving deep into complex interactions in close-knit communities, it’s a terrific allegory for racism in America which also creates some of the most memorable characters committed to film. A box-office hit, and the film that got the director his first Oscar nomination, it’s a story anyone can learn from, even 30 years on.

Culture

---

10 Spike Lee Movies You Need To Watch .

---

Jungle Fever (1991) – The subject of interracial relationships is at the forefront of this romantic drama. Wesley Snipes plays a married architect who falls for his white secretary (Annabella Sciorra), causing issues in their respective families and communities. Making an affair about much more than infidelity, Jungle Fever offers an interesting debate about societial assumptions and workplace discrimination, while also offering a different kind of role for star Snipes, who up to that point was famous for starring in crime dramas. The film was also the career turning point for Samuel L. Jackson, who gives a heartbreaking performance as Snipes’s troubled older brother.

Culture

---

10 Spike Lee Movies You Need To Watch .

---

Malcolm X (1992) – The first of three collaborations between Lee and Denzel Washington, with the two actors becoming synonymous with each other’s careers over the course of 30 years and four movies. Beginning with 1990’s Mo’ Better Blues, the pair reunited on this important biopic of civil rights leader Malcolm X. It’s a towering and nuanced film, led by Washington’s excellent performance and Lee’s understanding of his subject. It’s made all the more impressive by the knowledge that Lee fought the studio in order to direct the film, and to obtain the budget necessary to do the project justice. The movie grabs you from the beginning, with genuine footage of the 1991 police beating of Rodney King, to remind ‘90s cinema-goers this is as much about the present as it is the past.

Culture

---

10 Spike Lee Movies You Need To Watch .

---

Crooklyn (1994) – Lee draws on his home neighbourhood and life experiences as he returns to Brooklyn for the story of a family muddling through their various trials in the 1970s, primarily seen through the eyes of youngest daughter Troy (Zelda Harris). Co-written with his siblings Cinqué and Joie, it may not be as focused as the director’s other work, but it is a deeply personal and authentic snapshot of family life – and set to an unforgettable soundtrack. Considering that this was the film that followed Malcolm X, Crooklyn shows us a director flexing a different set of artistic muscles.

Culture

---

10 Spike Lee Movies You Need To Watch .

---

Get on the Bus (1996) – Eighteen men board a bus from Los Angeles to Washington, DC, all with different backgrounds and personal challenges. They become united in their common goal, however: to attend the historic Million Man March. This fictional story, set against the backdrop of the real-life march, features an incredible selection of character actors including Andre Braugher (Brooklyn Nine-Nine, Homicide: Life on the Streets), Wendell Pierce (The Wire) and frequent Lee collaborator Ossie Davis. Restrained and poetic, Lee lets his cast tell the story, filled with insight into a significant moment in history, and how it can affect us all differently.

Culture

---

10 Spike Lee Movies You Need To Watch .

---

He Got Game (1998) – Washington and Lee continue to coax brilliance from each other in this sports-themed drama. Prisoner Jake (Washington) must convince his son, a promising basketball player, to play for the governor’s alma mater in order to receive a reduced sentence after making a deal. Real-life NBA star Ray Allen features as Jake’s son Jesus, in a movie that combines Lee’s two great loves: cinema and basketball (the director has been a New York Knicks season ticket holder for nearly 30 years). A 134-minute running time means there’s a lot going on, but the thoughtfulness of the storytelling is part of the allure.

Culture

---

10 Spike Lee Movies You Need To Watch .

---

Inside Man (2006) – An example of the versatility of the filmmaker, Inside Man is a big-budget crime movie viewed through Spike Lee’s lens. Denzel Washington and Chiwetel Ejiofor play detectives negotiating with a criminal (Clive Owen) who has held up a bank using a meticulously detailed plan. With supporting performances from Jodie Foster, Willem Dafoe and Christopher Plummer, it’s a slick crime caper that keeps you guessing until the end. The movie shows the variety of stories Lee is capable of telling, as well as his ability to draw different kinds of performances from even the most seasoned actors.

Culture

---

10 Spike Lee Movies You Need To Watch .

---

Chi-Raq (2015) – Showcasing yet another side to Lee’s repertoire is this modern adaptation of the ancient Greek comedy Lysistrata. Narrated by Samuel L. Jackson’s Dolemedes, Tayonah Parris stars as a concerned citizen of Chicago’s Southside, who comes up with a novel idea to curb gang violence in the area – to have all the region’s women deny men sex until they agree to cease hostilities (adopting a slogan of “No Peace, No…” well, you can probably work out the rest). A lavish use of classic storytelling to address modern issues, the film features the likes of Nick Cannon, Jennifer Hudson, Wesley Snipes and John Cusack in supporting roles, although it’s Parris who steals the show.

Culture

---

10 Spike Lee Movies You Need To Watch .

---

BlacKkKlansman (2018) – The director’s most recent hit, which earned him a long-overdue first Oscar for Best Adapted Screenplay. It’s a unique premise – an African-American Detective (John David Washington) infiltrates the Ku Klux Klan by changing his voice over the phone and pretending to be interested in joining. When the organisation invites him in, he enlists a white detective (Adam Driver) to serve as his ‘in-person’ equivalent. A darkly comic farce based on true events, Lee uses the past to illustrate the lack of progress we have made, with footage of the 2017 murder of Heather Heyer at a demonstration in Charlottesville playing during the credits.

Culture

---

10 Spike Lee Movies You Need To Watch .

---

Honourable Mention: Bamboozled (2000) – Modern satire Bamboozled was not a critical success, and in fact lost money at the box office. However, it has since gained cult appreciation for its bold approach to the topic of how African Americans are portrayed in American culture. An early example of digital filmmaking, Marlon Wayans plays a TV executive who tries to get fired by pitching a modern minstrel show, which to his disbelief becomes a huge success. This is Lee at his most caustic, and it can be an uncomfortable watch at times. However, it’s hard to argue with the point he’s making, particularly when a montage of real-life 20th-century portrayals plays at the end.

#staysafe #stayathome #selfisolation #selfisolationactivities #quarantine #lockdown #homesanctuary