Spike Lee - Hyperallergic

Interview

Spike Lee on His Collection of WWII Propaganda Posters

The film director and New York icon discusses the trials and triumphs behind the posters featured in his Brooklyn Museum exhibition.

Film

20 Years After the September 11th Attacks, What Does “Never Forget” Mean?

Much of what the media deems important coverage of the attacks is in fact retraumatizing gawking or empty nationalism.

Film

How Do the Right Thing Recreated Greek Tragedy in Bed-Stuy

Spike Lee’s landmark film is often remembered for its still-relevant social commentary, but its formal brilliance should not go overlooked.

Film

David Byrne and Spike Lee Consider the Oxymoron of "American Utopia"

American Utopia, Lee's film of the stage show, recontextualizes some of Byrne's greatest hits as musings on modern life.

Film

Our Top Picks for the 2020 Toronto International Film Festival

Highlights to catch at its first virtual edition include Spike Lee’s David Byrne documentary, a strong slate of Indigenous-led films, and a look at the FBI’s efforts to defame Martin Luther King Jr.

Film

Spike Lee’s Latest Is a Thorny Portrait of Black Masculinity and Generational Trauma

While Da 5 Bloods has its weaknesses, it hits the nail on the head with its portrayal of the complicated nature of Blackness and brotherhood.

Art

The Hammer Museum Examines the Legacy of the LA Uprising

A series of panels, talks, and screenings — including Spike Lee's latest and the documentary Do Not Resist — marks the 25th anniversary of the uprising that followed the acquittal of four LAPD officers who beat Rodney King.

Opinion

Seven New York City Streets That Should Be Renamed After Artworks

Today New York's City Council voted on a proposal to co-name the block of Stuyvesant Avenue between Lexington Avenue and Quincy Street in Brooklyn "Do the Right Thing Way" after the Spike Lee joint that was filmed there in 1989.

Opinion

Spike Lee Draws Out the Parallels Between Art and Life (and Death)

Does art imitate life, or is it the other way around?

Art

Debuts Distinguish BAMcinemaFest 2014

Opening tonight with the New York premiere of Boyhood, Richard Linklater's highly anticipated coming-of-age tale, the sixth incarnation of BAMcinemaFest finds the festival itself approaching maturity.

News

Spike Lee Doesn't Do the Right Thing [UPDATED]

When famed film director Spike Lee launched a Kickstarter project for "The Newest Hottest Spike Lee Joint" this past summer, we rolled our eyes. But when Spike Lee hires unpaid interns and steals a designer's work — well, then we feel compelled to say something.