16 essential Spike Lee movies everyone should see

For over four decades, Spike Lee has made some of the most influential movies in the modern era of filmmaking.

From the socially conscious “Do The Right Thing” to the powerful “Malcolm X,” Lee has used the medium to shed light on some of the most important and often ignored issues of our time. In 2019, he was finally recognized by Hollywood with an Oscar win for the screenplay of his movie “BlacKkKlansman” (he also received an honorary Oscar in 2016).

Since then, Lee has continued to tell stories that check the establishment and bring hope to those struggling to be heard. His new movie, “Highest 2 Lowest” (in theaters now and available on Apple TV+ on September 5), is a reimagining of the classic Akira Kurosawa movie “High and Low.” Lee’s version stars Denzel Washington as a music mogul dealing with a ransom.

Here are 16 essential Spike Lee movies everyone should watch.

‘4 Little Girls’ (1997)

Lee’s Oscar- and Emmy-nominated documentary delves into one of the most horrific moments during the Civil Rights Movement: the murder of four African-American girls in the 16th Street Baptist Church bombing in Birmingham, Alabama, in 1963.

’25th Hour’ (2002)

Based on the David Benioff novel, “25th Hour” follows the last 24 hours of a New York drug dealer (Edward Norton) before he goes to prison. It looks at race, friendship, and family in a post-9/11 New York City.

‘Bamboozled’ (2000)

Filmed on mini DV cameras and featuring an ensemble cast including Damon Wayans, tap dance legend Savion Glover, Jada Pinkett Smith, Tommy Davidson, Mos Def, and Michael Rappaport, this is perhaps Lee’s most underappreciated work.

In “Bamboozled,” the director explores the hypocrisy in the entertainment business via a Black TV writer (Wayans) who, in frustration, pitches a minstrel show where black people wear blackface and play into racial stereotypes. Much to his chagrin, the show becomes a sensation. 

‘BlacKkKlansman’ (2018)

Lee received a best screenwriting Oscar for his look at Colorado Springs police officer Ron Stallworth (John David Washington), who successfully infiltrated the local branch of the Ku Klux Klan in the early 1970s.

‘Crooklyn’ (1994)

Lee uses many aspects of his childhood to tell the story of a Brooklyn family in the early 1970s. Delroy Lindo and Alfre Woodard give impressive performances as the parents.

‘Da 5 Bloods’ (2020)

Four Vietnam veterans (Delroy Lindo, Clarke Peters, Isiah Washington Jr., and Norm Lewis) return to the country to find gold they buried during the war and bring home the remains of their fallen squad leader (Chadwick Boseman).

But things get complicated when greed within the group begins to spread, leading to a predicament on the level of the John Huston classic, “The Treasure of the Sierra Madre.”

Through it all, Delroy Lindo gives a chilling performance as a man who gets gold fever and is also keeping a troubling secret from the group.

‘Do the Right Thing’ (1989)

It’s the movie that made Lee famous. The director’s examination of the Bedford-Stuyvesant section of Brooklyn on one of the hottest days of the year came at a time when race and police relations were at a boiling point, not just in New York City, but across the country.

‘He Got Game’ (1998)

Lee uses his love for basketball to weave a complex story about a Coney Island high school star (played by pro player Ray Allen) who is trying to decide whether to go straight to the pros or to college.

Things get more complicated when his father (Denzel Washington) is deliberately released from prison to convince his son to go to a specific school.

“Jungle Fever” (1991)

Lee examined an interracial relationship at a time when that was never explored in movies or TV.

Wesley Snipes and Annabella Sciorra play the couple, who are in a heated affair despite their friends’ objections. The movie also features Samuel L. Jackson as Snipes’ drug-addict brother, a role that would change the trajectory of his career.

‘Malcolm X’ (1992)

Lee’s most ambitious undertaking is this epic biopic on the 1960s activist.

Starring Denzel Washington in one of his best performances, the film follows Malcolm’s journey to becoming a pivotal figure in the Civil Rights Movement before his assassination in 1965.

‘Michael Jackson’s Journey from Motown to Off the Wall’ (2016)

Having done multiple projects on Michael Jackson, Lee was the perfect person to examine the moment when Jackson truly became the King of Pop. This documentary chronicles Jackson’s growth out of his role as leader of The Jackson 5 and his preparation for his first solo album.

‘The Original Kings of Comedy’ (2000)

You would think doing a stand-up special would be beneath someone like Lee, but what he captures are funny sets from some of the best Black comics of the time — Steve Harvey, D.L. Hughley, Cedric the Entertainer, and Bernie Mac.

The Bernie Mac set is a highlight of the movie.

‘Red Hook Summer’ (2012)

Lee shot this story about a 13-year-old Atlanta boy’s summer vacation in Brooklyn with his grandfather on the cheap, but some stories just have to be told. Led by a superb performance from Clarke Peters, this work from Lee harkens back to his early days as a scrappy filmmaker.

‘School Daze’ (1988)

Delving into the world of pledging a fraternity at a historically Black college, “School Daze” looks at how far people will go to be accepted and how women are used to appease those with perceived power. The movie has a memorable ending, with Laurence Fishburne screaming, “WAKE UP!”

‘She’s Gotta Have It’ (1986)

Lee’s second feature film helped launch his career as a director. He also later immortalized his Mars Blackmon character in Michael Jordan’s Nike commercials, which he also directed.

This dramedy about a woman and her three lovers is a landmark movie in Black cinema.

‘When the Levees Broke: A Requiem in Four Acts’ (2006)

The aftermath of Hurricane Katrina in New Orleans is showcased in Lee’s powerful two-part HBO documentary that explores how the people of the Big Easy rebounded from one of the worst natural disasters in recent memory. 

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