Spike Lee is one of the most important filmmakers of all time. Not only has Lee spotlighted Black storytelling in an uncompromising way, but he’s celebrated different styles of filmmaking such as documentaries, concerts, and limited television series. Lee’s work continues to be heralded as revelatory and insightful, and he certainly not been quiet when it comes to speaking about current events; Lee notoriously noted the injustice of Green Book winning Best Picture, and has helped to promote emerging Black artists like Jordan Peele.
There aren’t many filmmakers who have continued to make relevant, interesting, and high quality projects for nearly their entire career; while the early films of John Carpenter and Francis Ford Coppola rank among the greatest of all time, their output towards the end of their career was definitely not as strong or impactful. Perhaps Steven Spielberg, Ridley Scott, and Martin Scorsese could claim to have the same impact over a long period of time like Lee, but nonetheless it’s a fairly elite club to be in. Lee has always been a part of the cultural conversation, and though he’s certainly made some flawed films, his creative failures are interesting enough in their own right. Here are the best Spike Lee movies of every decade.
Do the Right Thing (1989)
While Lee’s directorial debut was 1986’s She’s Gotta Have It, a classic in its own right, it was 1989’s Do the Right Thing that changed the film industry forever. Do the Right Thing announced Lee as one of the most truthful storytellers of his generation, and opened audiences up to having difficult conversations about race relations and systemic violence. While many films of the same era have not aged well in retrospect, Do the Right Thing remains just as timely as it always has been. Nothing about the film goes down easy; it does not idealize anything about how hatred is ingrained within society.
What’s remarkable about Do the Right Thing is that on top of being an important political achievement, it’s simply a highly entertaining film. Lee’s energetic filmmaking style makes even the most realistic moments enjoyable, and his signature dialogue often incorporates a fair amount of humor in places that are appropriate.
Do the Right Thing also has an important place in award season history; despite being lauded instantly as a modern American masterpiece, Do the Right Thing was snubbed of a Best Picture nomination at the Academy Awards, which named the “white savior” film Driving Miss Daisy as the best of the year. It served as a further sign that the Oscars were more interested in crowd pleasing, pleasant films than anything that spoke in a more truthful way.
Malcolm X (1992)
Lee ditched original stories for a brief moment in order to tell the previously untold story of the legendary civil rights leader of the same name with 1992’s Malcolm X. Considering his history of working on documentaries that focus on important moments and figures within Black history, it’s unsurprising that Lee was interested in spotlighting a controversial activist and writing some of the wrongs that American society had about the man. Unfortunately, Malcolm X was often seen as a violent radical, which is not true. Denzel Washington’s performance is perhaps the best of his entire career, a statement that is not made lightly.
Even though Malcolm X is over three hours long, it’s a highly engaging experience that manages to pull off the task of being both an important historical document and an entertaining “rise of a hero” narrative. Everything from the dancing to the public demonstrations is richly detailed, but it still comes to life in Lee’s hands. Malcolm X is a film that merits rewatches to this day, and would serve as a great educational tool for students studying both the history of the civil rights movement and filmmakers learning about the auteur theory and how it applies to biographical filmmaking.
25th Hour (2002)
Lee’s output in the first decade of the 21st Century is much more fruitful than it’s given credit for; Bamboozled certainly deserves a second look after it was dismissed by critics at the time, and Inside Man is an electrifying heist thriller. However, 2002’s 25th Hour is the film that best personifies Lee’s love of New York City. Released in the backdrop of the September 11, 2001 tragedy, it served as a moving tribute to a city rich with culture that had weathered by tragedy. Edward Norton gives one of his best performances as Monty Brogan, a drug dealer who wants to spend his last night of freedom bonding with his best friends before he begins a seven-year prison sentence.
BlacKkKlansman (2018)
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BlacKkKlansman showed that Lee could find ways to connect current events to previously untold moments from history; based on the nonfiction novel of the same name, BlacKkKlansman tells the incredible story of Ron Stallworth (John David Washington), a Black police officer who manages to get in contact with the Klu Klux Klan leader David Duke (Topher Grace). Stallworth and his partner Flip Zimmerman (Adam Driver) launch an undercover operation in order to prevent the white supremacists from leading a surprise terrorist attack.
While the events of the film take place in the 1970s, Lee shows their relevance by incorporating real footage of recent hate marches within the era of Donald Trump. The film exposes how society’s willingness to ignore racism has only resulted in organizations like the KKK becoming more powerful. It is also the film that gave Lee his first Oscar win for Best Adapted Screenplay, and also earned him nominations for Best Picture and Best Director.
Da 5 Bloods (2020)
Da 5 Bloods was Lee’s version of a 1970s Vietnam movie like Apocalypse Now or The Deer Hunter, as it reflects upon the soldiers who were forced to fight an unjust war and earn both physical and emotional damage as a result. Delroy Lindo, Clarke Peters, Norm Lewis, and Isiah Whitlock Jr. deliver phenomenal performances as soldiers returning to Vietnam in search of buried treasure, but it’s the late great Chadwick Boseman’s performance as their fallen comrade that earned a whole new meaning after his tragic passing in real life.
This story originally appeared on Movieweb
