In this vintage footage from 1990, film critic Armond White sounds off on the mainstream coverage of Do the Right Thing, dissecting how American racial angst affected the film's critical reception.
Arguably the country's most famous black film critic, Armond White has served as staff film critic at the New York Press since 1994. He currently serves as chairman of the New York Film Critics Circle, and is well known for the glee with which he goes after Hollywood heavyweights such as Woody Allen, Paul Thomas Andrson, and yes, at times, Spike Lee.
“Do The Write Thing” was produced by Paper Tiger Television, a collective of New York filmmakers dedicated to deconstructing the biases of mainstream media. Visit them at http://www.papertiger.org
—Adda Birnir
To read more of The Root’s Do the Right Thing @20 coverage, PLAY Raheem's Radio.
Natalie Hopkinson: Why Mookie did the wrong thing.
Dayo Olopade: First Couple’s First Flick
Mark Anthony Neal: The music in Spike’s message.
Kai Wright: Still do or die in Bed-Stuy.
DOWNLOAD The Root’s Official DTRT@20 Party Kit