Rotten Tomatoes Logo Do you want to see ‘Do the Right Thing’?

Do the Right Thing (1989)

tomatometer

96

Average Rating: 8.8/10
Reviews Counted: 51
Fresh: 49 | Rotten: 2

No consensus yet.

86

Average Rating: 7.9/10
Critic Reviews: 7
Fresh: 6 | Rotten: 1

No consensus yet.

audience

85

liked it
Average Rating: 3.9/5
User Ratings: 68,159

My Rating

Movie Info

Director Spike Lee dives head-first into a maelstrom of racial and social ills, using as his springboard the hottest day of the year on one block in Brooklyn, NY. Three businesses dominate the block: a storefront radio station, where a smooth-talkin' deejay (Samuel L. Jackson) spins the platters that matter; a convenience store owned by a Korean couple; and Sal's Famous Pizzeria, the only white-operated business in the neighborhood. Sal (Danny Aiello) serves up slices with his two sons, genial

R, 2 hr.

Drama, Comedy

Spike Lee

Jun 30, 2009

Universal Pictures

Cast

All Critics (51) | Top Critics (7) | Fresh (58) | Rotten (2) | DVD (28)

Lee cagily provides a litmus test for racial attitudes in 1989, but he does so by destroying the integrity of his characters, black and white.

April 24, 2009 Full Review Source: TIME Magazine | Comments (18)
TIME Magazine
Top Critic IconTop Critic

A powerful and persuasive look at an ethnic community and what makes it tick--funky, entertaining, packed with insight, and political in the best, most responsible sense.

June 26, 2007 Full Review Source: Chicago Reader | Comment (1)
Chicago Reader
Top Critic IconTop Critic

Mr. Lee's movie is anything but minimalist. It is bursting with character, color, incident and music, including a militant rap number performed by Public Enemy.

May 20, 2003 Full Review Source: New York Times | Comment
New York Times
Top Critic IconTop Critic

Spike Lee combines a forceful statement on race relations with solid entertainment values.

February 13, 2001 Full Review Source: Variety | Comment
Variety
Top Critic IconTop Critic

Comes closer to reflecting the current state of race relations in America than any other movie of our time

January 1, 2000 Full Review Source: Chicago Sun-Times | Comment
Chicago Sun-Times
Top Critic IconTop Critic

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

January 1, 2000 Full Review Source: Washington Post | Comment
Washington Post
Top Critic IconTop Critic

The many joys of the film are equaled only by the fiery injustice it bears witness to in the apocalyptic third act.

August 1, 2011 Full Review Source: Projection Booth | Comment
Projection Booth

Sure, the movie opens up the racial problems of everyday life in New York, but it also has a very forgiving tone to what one could label as the oppressed.

September 21, 2010 Full Review Source: 7M Pictures | Comment (1)
7M Pictures

Spike Lee's masterwork of racial unrest; discuss with kids.

December 15, 2009 Full Review Source: Common Sense Media | Comment
Common Sense Media

It's perhaps one of the greatest summer movies of all time. Do the Right Thing is as perfect as a film can get.

August 26, 2009 Full Review Source: BrianOrndorf.com | Comment
BrianOrndorf.com

Lee shows us both sides of the situation, and lets us decide for ourselves. The results are devastating.

July 8, 2009 Full Review Source: Filmcritic.com | Comment
Filmcritic.com

[Spike] Lee doesn't attempt to answer the complicated questions of racism, misunderstanding and simmering anger as much as confront them with a hard clarity.

July 2, 2009 Full Review Source: Seanax.com | Comment
Seanax.com

A riveting drama which remains just as intense as when it debuted in 1989.

June 29, 2009 Full Review Source: NewsBlaze | Comment
NewsBlaze

A riveting drama which remains just as intense as when it debuted in 1989.

June 29, 2009 Full Review Source: Sly Fox | Comment
Sly Fox

A towering achievement in American cinema, Spike Lee's Do the Right Thing takes a hard look at a community in crisis. [Blu-ray]

June 28, 2009 Full Review Source: Groucho Reviews | Comment

As Mister Señor Love Daddy commands, "WAKE UP" to this absolutely essential home video.

June 16, 2009 Full Review Source: Slant Magazine | Comment
Slant Magazine

Like Rear Window to Alfred Hitchcock, like Nashville to Robert Altman, like Playtime to Jacques Tati, Lee's Do the Right Thing is an undiluted representation of its creator's artistic command.

June 16, 2009 Full Review Source: Slant Magazine | Comment
Slant Magazine

A pulsating homage to life on New York's streets, achieved thanks to Lee's sleepless eye, but a passionate-yet-dignified study of racism, too.

March 12, 2008 Full Review Source: Empire Magazine | Comment
Empire Magazine

The fact that a filmmaker as gifted as Lee has yet to top the movie says a lot about its power.

March 12, 2008 Full Review Source: Film4 | Comment

Maybe Mookie does the wrong thing. But he does it for the right reason.

August 22, 2006 Full Review Source: Cinemania | Comment
More Critic Reviews

Audience Reviews for Do the Right Thing

Spike Lee displays racism in the most brutal way possible, creating an atmosphere that will make you laugh, cry, and wish you could get in on the commotion. As life in the 80's, in the streets of Brooklyn, racial groups roamed the town, trying to find any way they can annoy another ethnic group. Although the characters

October 19, 2011
KJ Proulx

Super Reviewer

The hottest day of the year on a block in Brooklyn, NY, this masterpiece from Spike Lee is an amazing look at race relations. Also filled with vibrant colors, a beautiful score and many standout performances. One of my favorite scenes is the tale of love and hate delivered by Radio Raheem which is an homage to another

October 30, 2011
Graham Jones

Super Reviewer

    1. Buggin Out: Sal! We gonna boycott your fat pasta ass!
    – Submitted by Nathaniel B (2 months ago)
    1. Ahmad: What? I ain't boycotting jack you string cheese head mother fucker! I'm about to go get a slice right now!
    – Submitted by Nathaniel B (2 months ago)
    1. Mookie: Pino, fuck you, fuck your fuckin' pizza, and fuck Frank Sinatra.
    2. Pino: Yeah? Well fuck you, too, and fuck Michael Jackson.
    – Submitted by Chris P (9 months ago)
    1. Buggin Out: Yo, Mookie.
    2. Mookie: What?
    3. Buggin Out: Stay Black.
    – Submitted by Chris P (9 months ago)
    1. Da Mayor: Always do the right thing.
    2. Mookie: That's it?
    3. Da Mayor: That's it.
    4. Mookie: I got it, I'm gone.
    – Submitted by Chris P (9 months ago)

Latest News for Do the Right Thing

March 19, 2008:
Total Recall: Directors Who Paved the Way for Tyler Perry
This week, the prolific Tyler Perry reels off Meet the Browns, his latest examination of African...

September 7, 2007:
Spike Lee Helps Launch Online Film Festival
Attention, independent filmmakers: Spike Lee's got your back.

What's Hot On RT

Luis Guzman
Luis Guzman

What are his 10 best movies ever?

<em>Amazing Spider-Man</em>
Amazing Spider-Man

See the all-new action-packed trailer!

The Avengers!
The Avengers!

Five new Marvelous pictures

Total Recall
Total Recall

Unconventional Superheroes

Top Movie Quizzes

LEGO Mania: 2011 Best Picture Nominees
by natalie - 18,541 taken
created 12 months ago
How Much Do You Know About Leonardo DiCaprio?
by natalie - 44,369 taken
created 15 months ago
Pixar Movies!
by jdikwlzviv - 27,117 taken
created 15 months ago
The Wizards of Harry Potter
by jdikwlzviv - 27,622 taken
created 15 months ago

Foreign Titles

  • Haz lo que debas (ES)
Help | About | Jobs | Newsletter | Critics Submission | API | Licensing | Blog | Developers | Mobile