To begin, I will give brief answers
to questions you raised after viewing School Daze (1988) , Do the Right Thing (1989), Malcolm X (1992) and Bamboozled
(2000) in Spring 2016 and then follow-up with brief commentary on the first
three films and a longer lecture on Bamboozled. The purpose is to position us for a
conversation about one of America's most controversial filmmakers and how his
early productions stimulate inquiry and scholarship regarding film and African
American cultures.
QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS
1.
Is the racial problem in America
still as tense as depicted in the films by Spike Lee? Yes.
In fact, we have to speak not of a single problem but of a range of
problems. The most intense problem, of
course, is the division and distrust occasioned by the killing of unarmed black
males and females by police officers and individual citizens.
2. Which part of America sees the tensest relation between black and white? Small and large American cities, areas that
have histories of obvious as well as hidden (or underreported) discord between
and among ethnic groups.
3.
In the film Do the Right Thing, what do you think is the most significant cause
of the tragedy? The hot weather, dirty words, or the racial discrimination? The primary cause is a combination of
climate, language, and instances of racist behaviors. Trying to identify a "most significant
cause" is a reductive gesture, which fails to deal with the complexity of
cause and effect.
4. In the film School Daze, do
you think Jane should be responsible for her own tragedy? Yes.
Jane is a victim of male aggression and exploitation to be sure, but she
is not bereft of the ability to make choices;
she makes a poor choice that leads to disgrace and tragic outcomes.
5. Do you believe America will be able to solve the racial problem in the
near future? No. The racial problem
is complicated by the always changing demographics of the United States.
6. What exactly is the main purpose of Spike Lee's making so many films
about race? I suspect the main
purpose to expose the multiple facets of the concept of "race" as a
national problem. There are many subtle
ways in which American films depict racial issues. In the films of Spike Lee, we see the
depiction and exposure more plainly than in films, especially some science
fiction films, that seem not to deal with race as a central topic.
7.
Do you advocate Martin Luther
King's belief that violence is not a way to solve discrimination, or Malcolm
X's that violence is intelligence when used in self-defense? While I believe King's advocating non-violent
resistance in the face of social injustice was admirable, I believe that Malcolm X's championing of
self-defense is the better course of action.
We must make choices between non-violence and violence on the basis of
individual situations.
8. What can we do to stop being
racist and being discriminated upon when we come to the United States? This Chinese question has two unequal,
dissimilar parts. First, I will not presume
that Chinese people are racist (until you provide proof that they are) and in
need of eradicating their racist behaviors. Second, it is not possible to avoid
being discriminated against in some form, whether one is a citizen or a foreign
visitor. The social dynamics of the
United States may minimize discrimination against visitors, but our day-to-day
politics cannot guarantee the absence of discrimination.
9. In seeing the movie about Malcolm X, I have a question about the
authenticity of the Malcolm in the movie and whether it is the "real"
representation of the real person Malcolm, especially his conflict with the
leader of the Nation of Islam. There
are a few elements of authenticity in the film, but as a totality the film
deals much more Malcolm X as an American icon, as a projection of what Spike
Lee thought was the way to make a film about an iconic, very controversial
person. Thus, we do not have an
absolutely "real" representation.
We have an adjusted representation.
We need to examine how Malcolm's conflict with the Honorable Elijah Muhammed
was first "represented" in The Autobiography of Malcolm X (and account for Alex Haley's agency in
adjusting Malcolm's autobiographical narrative); when we view the portrayal of the conflict in
Lee's film, we have to recall that distortion is an element of film as a medium
and that even minimally edited documentaries will provide us with
distortions. Lee's film is a biopic not
a documentary.
10.
And I was confused in seeing the
movie Do the Right Thing. I'm just wondering what is the right thing to
do? The right thing to do is to
continue to ask the question what is the right thing to do. This is the most
straightforward response I can make to the question, because all decisions
about right actions are most often determined by the specifics of a given
situation.
