With a career spanning over more than three decades, Spike Lee remains a formidable voice in American cinema, shining a spotlight on racial injustice and examining the national political conscience. Almost 30 years ago, Radio Raheem in Do the Right Thing begged to be released out of a police officer’s choke-hold, and last month, George Floyd was killed in police custody. Floyd's last words ‘I can’t breath’ have been resounding through American towns ever since. Spike Lee, who has spent his entire career meditatively going over the root of the racial violence again and again, is more relevant than ever.
His latest film Da 5 Bloods was released on June 12. Here are his top ten films in no particular order:
Do the Right Thing (1989)
On the hottest day of the year on a street in the Bedford-Stuyvesant section of Brooklyn, everyone's hate and bigotry smolders and builds until it explodes into violence.
25th Hour (2002)
Cornered by the DEA, convicted New York drug dealer Montgomery Brogan reevaluates his life in the 24 remaining hours before facing a seven-year jail term.
Da 5 Bloods (2020)
Four African American vets battle the forces of man and nature when they return to Vietnam seeking the remains of their fallen squad leader and the gold fortune he helped them hide.
Malcolm X (1992)
Biographical epic of the controversial and influential Black Nationalist leader, from his early life and career as a small-time gangster, to his ministry as a member of the Nation of Islam.
She's Gotta Have It (1986)
Nola Darling can't decide what kind of man she wants to date, so she decides to date three at the same time.
BlacKkKlansman (2018)
Ron Stallworth, an African American police officer from Colorado Springs, CO, successfully manages to infiltrate the local Ku Klux Klan branch with the help of a Jewish surrogate who eventually becomes its leader. Based on actual events.
4 Little Girls (1997)
A documentary of the notorious racial terrorist bombing of an African American church during the Civil Rights Movement.
Inside Man (2006)
A police detective, a bank robber, and a high-power broker enter high-stakes negotiations after the criminal's brilliant heist spirals into a hostage situation.
Jungle Fever (1991)
Friends and family of a married black architect react in different ways to his affair with an Italian secretary.
Clockers (1995)
Young drug pushers in the projects of Brooklyn live hard dangerous lives, trapped between their drug bosses and the detectives out to stop them.
