Scarlet Masque Theatre Journal New Beginnings and Fond Farewells Vol. 1 | Page 69

Maloney 6
Critical Reception and Discussion
Before examining the characters or the specific plot points of ​ Do the Right Thing ​ , it is
worth taking a close look at the way critics reacted to Spike Lee’s portrayal of New York City
itself. From the aesthetic he chose to show to audiences to the themes he chose to leave out, it
is clear from the beginning that this film does not portray the Bed-Stuy critics expected.
The first aspect of the New York in ​ Do the Right Thing ​ critics found problematic was the
brightness and relative peace of the block in Bed-Stuy. Richard Corliss from ​ Time ​ Magazine
wrote his review of the film in the weeks that followed its release. He describes the aesthetic in
the following manner:
All we know for certain is that Do the Right Thing is not naturalistic. Golden sunset hues
swathe the street at 10 in the morning. The color scheme is chicly coordinated, as if
Jerome Robbins' Sharks and Jets were about to dance onscreen; the picture could be
called Bed-Stuy Story, full of Officer Krupkes and kindly store owners (Corliss, 1989)
Corliss in this passage does not accept the romanticized version of Bed-Stuy that Spike
Lee is impressing on the audience. It seems ingenuous, as if Lee is cheating the neighborhood of
its legitimate grittiness. There is a level of realism that is lost in the way he illustrates this
setting, and it makes the film more difficult to take seriously. James S. Kunen of ​ People
Magazine ​ , in his review of ​ Do the Right Thing ​ , had a similar outlook on this representation:
[Lee] He hired residents as workmen and extras, installed windows in the block’s five
abandoned buildings, planted shrubs and flowers to give the movie it's incongruous
Mister Rogers’ Neighborhood look. But now all the windows are broken, and many of