Spike Lee and New York

           

            

Born in Atlanta, Georgia and raised in Brooklyn, New York the critically acclaimed director Spike Lee often incorporated New York, and its culture into his movies. Many of his films, also known as “A Spike Lee Joint” took place in New York City, more specially the projects of Brooklyn, and they tackled such issues as race relations, crime, and poverty. Through his films he wanted the rest of the world to know and truly understand the problems that plagued neighborhoods throughout America. In 1989, he got the nation’s attention with his award winning film Do the Right Thing which exposed the race relations and hostility between whites and blacks in Bedford Stuyvesant, Brooklyn and people started taking notice that this a serious issue that plagued the country. He also represented life in New York in such films as She’s Gotta Have (1986), Mo’ Better Blues (1990), Jungle Fever (1991), Crooklyn (1994), Clockers (1995), and Summer of Sam (1999). Spike Lee stayed true to lifestyle and the people of New York, as he would shoot his movies in the specific New York neighborhood the film took place in. He would develop characters in the film based on different types of people that lived in New York because he wanted his movies to authentically represent New York, its people, and its issues. As a graduate of the Tisch School of Arts at New York University, Spike Lee was a talented director out of college and as an admirer and resident of New York he made it the subject of many of his films, which helped expose important issues to the masses.

Spike Lee Growing up in New York