Do the Right ThingMovie Reviews

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Must Go!
Avg. Critic Score: 91 out of 100 Universal acclaim Metascore® based on all critic reviews
Information for Parents:
16 Iffy for 16+
Read Common Sense Media review

Critic scores range from 0 to 100, with higher scores indicating more favorable reviews.

  • 100
    San Francisco Chronicle |

    Has more originality, nitty-gritty humor, spirit and spunk than all the summer blockbuster retreads combined. Underneath the jousting and jiving, there's a sharp, uncompromising look at the anatomy of a race riot in the movie. [30 June 1989, Daily Notebook, p.E3] Read full review

  • 100
    Mr. Showbiz |

    Witty portrait of a troubled community. Read full review

  • 100
    Chicago Tribune | Gene Siskel

    This is a sumptuous work, from its unconventional title sequence of a woman dancing hard in the streets to its provocative ending with conflicting quotes from Malcolm X and Martin Luther King Jr .[30 June 1989, Friday, p.A] Read full review

  • 100
    Washington Post | Desson Thomson

    There's no doubt about the film's sheer power and taut originality. Read full review

  • 100
    USA Today | Mike Clark

    This is a fascinating movie experience. [30 June 1989, Life, p.1D] Read full review

  • 100
    Chicago Sun-Times | Roger Ebert

    It comes closer to reflecting the current state of race relations in America than any other movie of our time. Read full review

  • 100
    Los Angeles Times | Sheila Benson

    Stirred up impassioned debate everywhere; it would seem the greatest compliment that could be paid a stunning entertainment. [30 June 1989, Calendar, p.6-1] Read full review

  • 100
    The New York Times | Vincent Canby

    A remarkable piece of work. [30 June 1989] Read full review

  • 90
    Washington Post |

    A movie made by filmmaker working in sync with his times -- an exciting, disturbing, provocative film. Read full review

  • 80
    Variety |

    Combines a forceful statement on race relations with solid entertainment values. Read full review

View more reviews for Do the Right Thing on Metacritic

Information for Parents
Common Sense Media says Iffy for 16+ Spike Lee's masterwork of racial unrest; discuss with kids.
What Parents Need to Know Parents need to know that this Spike Lee film is an intense study of racism as it existed in an urban U.S. neighborhood during the late 1980s. There are many angry racial confrontations using provocative, coarse language and highly-charged racial taunts, including constant use of "n----r."  Violence realistically depicted includes: a riot, fistfights, a crowd setting fire to a restaurant, a man being choked by police using a baton. One sexual scene shows a couple during foreplay and uses extreme close-ups of a woman's body parts: her legs, her breasts, her neck. A leading character drinks beer continuously.
  • Families can talk about how Spike Lee shaped his unique vision. Why does the story take place over one day? Why do you think Lee made the weather such an important part of the story?
  • Some scenes have characters talking directly into the camera... how does that help tell the story?
  • Take a look at the different characters' relationships with music: Sal's Italian heroes, Radio Raheem's obsession with hip-hop. How does the music represent the characters' view of the world?
  • Since this movie was made (1989), do you think there's more or less racial prejudice in the U.S.? What has changed? What hasn't changed? Are there new and/or different groups facing such bigotry?
The good stuff
  • message true-1 Positive messages: Blame and anger lie just below the surface of civility in humankind. That blame and anger often take the form of racial prejudice and, no matter what previous relationships have been formed, decency and morality disappear when basic, crueler instincts are set free.
  • rolemodels true-1 Positive role models: There are no heroes in this film. Every character is flawed to some degree.  People cope with life in myriad ways: withdrawal, alcohol abuse, overt anger, disappearance into music or history, or exhibiting a persistent, self-destructive urge for confrontation. When pushed to the brink, the universal response for these characters is to strike out, to fight, and to destroy.
What to watch for
  • violence false3 Violence: A fire hydrant sends gushing water into a crowd, nearly causing a riot when police and fire fighters turn their high-pressure hoses on those who've gathered. Several tense scenes are played when groups of angry Brooklyn residents confront and threaten each other. Finally, the entire neighborhood erupts as barely-controlled, intensifying fury sets blacks against whites. The street is ablaze with violence: a man is killed when police put him in a choke hold; rioters set fire to a business; vicious fist fights take place, as well as an attack with a baseball bat.
  • sex false3 Sex: One seduction scene in which a couple engages in repeated kisses, followed by extreme close-ups as the man begins to undress his female partner and then seductively runs ice over her bare breasts, legs, and thighs.
  • language false5 Language: From beginning to end, the harsh and offensive language is non-stop. The f-word in various forms is heard literally hundreds of times. Also constant use of "motherf----r," "s--t," "ass," "hell."  Racial slurs are frequent with taunts and insults to Italians, Jews, Puerto Ricans, and above all, African-Americans. The "n" word is heard persistently. 
  • consumerism false-1 Consumerism: Miller Hi Life Beer.
  • drugsalcoholtobacco false2 Drinking, drugs and smoking: Beer drinking in various scenes. A leading character begins drinking beer very early in the morning and is intoxicated throughout the film.
An independent nonprofit dedicated to providing families the information they need to help kids thrive in a world of media and technology. © Common Sense Media Inc. 2010. All rights reserved.

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