Directed by Spike Lee | United States | 120 min
“Well, gentlemen, the way I see it, if this hot weather continues, it’s going to melt the polar caps and the whole wide world.”
An early scene of summer levity in Do the Right Thing is scored by a Steel Pulse song. The groovy rhythm matches what we are seeing on screen, but the lyrics heed a warning of what is to come — you can’t stand the heat.
Spike Lee’s masterpiece captures the hottest day of the summer turning “everyday” class and racial tensions into a political pressure cooker that is still as relevant in 2025 as it was in 1989. The camera moves, and the performers shine with a vibrancy that other filmmakers have been chasing for over thirty years, to no avail.
Under-heralded at the Academy Awards (two nominations, zero wins), this movie’s reputation has only grown with age. The 2022 BFI Sight and Sound Poll placed this film at #24 on its list of the Greatest Films of All Time. The film is passionate, vibrant, insightful, tragic, and authentic. Don’t miss your chance to see Do the Right Thing on the big screen!
Written by Kyle Hodge
Part of our Summer of Heat Series.
In the spirit of respect, reciprocity and truth, we honour and acknowledge that this screening takes place on Moh’kinsstis and the traditional Treaty 7 territory, as well as the oral practices of the Blackfoot confederacy: Siksika, Kainai, Piikani as well as the Îyâxe Nakoda and Tsuut’ina nations. We acknowledge that this territory is home to the Otipemisiwak Métis Government of the Métis Nation within Alberta District 6. Finally, we acknowledge all Nations, Indigenous and non, who live, work and play, as well as help steward this land, honour and celebrate this territory.