Sound: Do the Right Thing (Spike Lee, 1989)

After today’s section we will be able to… Describe and apply the main types and functions of sound discuss sound in relation to issues of narrative and style Analyze the use of sound in Do the Right Thing as it contributes to film’s ideological themes and message Discuss the essay prompt about the film’s ideological message in relation to sound as a form of support

Review 3 types of sound 3 functions of sound Spoken dialogue (primary) Creates unity (i.e. “sound bridge” Music - emotional response - parallel vs. contrapuntal (Eisenstein) - motifs Guides our attention Noise/sound effects (foley artists) Contributes to sense of realism (i.e. “atmosphere”)

Scene analyses What are other salient elements at play? Looking at the racist rant montage, and the cacophonous last scene in Sal’s pizzeria Note the types (dialogue/music/noise-sound effects) and functions (creates unity? guides our attention?contributes to realism?) of sound operating here What are other salient elements at play? Mise-en-scene? Cinematography? Framing? Movement?

“Radio Raheem”, Michael Stewart and Eric Garner “Before Eric Garner, There was Michael Stewart: The Tragic Story of the Real-life Radio Raheem,” Daily Beast, 12/4/2014 1983: Stewart was a 25 year old art student caught spraying graffiti, who went into a coma in police custody His controversial case sparked debate about police brutality http://www.thedailybeast.com/articles/2014/12/04/the-heartbreaking-saga-of-michael-stewart-the-inspiration-for-do-the-right-thing-s-radio-raheem.html

Tarantino and Lee SHOW TARANTINO ON MURDER Both directors make films that serve as catalysts for discussions of race, but they themselves disagree on the politics of representation… In what ways do their use of narrative and sound in Pulp Fiction and Do the Right Thing speak to ideological issues, like violence and race relations in America?

Do the Right Thing, today On the grand jury’s decision not to indict police Daniel Pantaleo in Staten Island, NY for the homicide of Garner (from Anderson Cooper 360, 12/14): “I keep hoping and it doesn’t look like hope has been a part of the grand jury in the last nine days in Ferguson and Staten Island … There’s a 14 minute tape by Eric Garner’s friend, who spent a lot of that day with him. And I don’t know what the grand jury was looking at that they cannot bring a charge and the guy walks.” SHOW LEE MASHUP

Essay prompt Critics have accused Spike Lee of endorsing racial violence in Do the Right Thing. Do you agree with this assessment? What is the film telling us about race, poverty, and violence in America? Does Mookie do the right thing? Does the film identify the right thing? - Who is the audience addressed to? How does sound play into this address? - Does the film depart from the invisible style? How does sound contribute to your assessment?