It seems I have to give Spike Lee more credit than I have been because "Do the Right Thing" looks very much like an adapted version of "Street Scene," which means Spike did some cinematic research. You don't see it? Watch the two again.
"Do the Right Thing" was about a hot day in Brooklyn in which most of the filming was done in a small area. The movie chronicled one New York day, it was a multi-ethnic cast of characters who were all bothered by the heat, there was some racist language bandied about, and a big commotion involving the police occurred near the end.
As for "Street Scene," it took place on one sweltering day in one of the New York burroughs. The entire movie took place on the stoop of an apartment building full of working class folks. The building had immigrants from different countries and it was a clash of cultures at times.
The main attraction was Anna Maurrant (Estelle Taylor) and her affair with Steve Sankey (Russell Hopton), the collector for milk money. Their affair was a poorly kept secret that everyone but Anna's husband, Frank (David Landau), knew about. It was just the sort of gossip that kept women like Emma Jones (Beulah Bondi) busy bumping her gums.
"Street Scene" was an engaging view of one day in the life of working class people in a multi-ethnic setting. It almost looked like a social science experiment to see if different ethnicities could coexist in one tight location. There were some cultural clashes-- one which was heated--but none of them compared to good ol' fashioned anger from a jealous husband--which is a trait that cuts across all races and ethnicities.
Free on Plex and Tubi.
"Do the Right Thing" was about a hot day in Brooklyn in which most of the filming was done in a small area. The movie chronicled one New York day, it was a multi-ethnic cast of characters who were all bothered by the heat, there was some racist language bandied about, and a big commotion involving the police occurred near the end.
As for "Street Scene," it took place on one sweltering day in one of the New York burroughs. The entire movie took place on the stoop of an apartment building full of working class folks. The building had immigrants from different countries and it was a clash of cultures at times.
The main attraction was Anna Maurrant (Estelle Taylor) and her affair with Steve Sankey (Russell Hopton), the collector for milk money. Their affair was a poorly kept secret that everyone but Anna's husband, Frank (David Landau), knew about. It was just the sort of gossip that kept women like Emma Jones (Beulah Bondi) busy bumping her gums.
"Street Scene" was an engaging view of one day in the life of working class people in a multi-ethnic setting. It almost looked like a social science experiment to see if different ethnicities could coexist in one tight location. There were some cultural clashes-- one which was heated--but none of them compared to good ol' fashioned anger from a jealous husband--which is a trait that cuts across all races and ethnicities.
Free on Plex and Tubi.