He is known for his movies – Malcom X, The 25th Day and the most recent – The Insider. (loved it! – nice little mystery. Such an abundance of talent, all at the top of their games and so obviously enjoying it all.)
Mr. Lee makes good movies and sometimes great ones, but he also makes documentaries. He will occasionally veer from the fictional format that he’s conquered, to much acclaim, ever since his first film, DoThe Right Thing. When he tackles real events, the results are supreme.
His most recent non fiction work – When the Levee Breaks, originally HBO and now in DVD – was moving to watch because he let the people of New Orleans tell their stories about what happened in September 2005 when water and wind ravaged their city. Not out to ridicule or embarrass (like some recent “documentariesâ€), no need to fictionalize the tragedy- it is raw, angry, direct, sad.
Like an earlier documentary – 4 Girls, about the church bombing in Birmingham, Alabama in the 60’s and the little girls that died in the blast– he allows rage and grief to be expressed in a straight forward way.
Spike’s films are often terrific. His documentaries are terrific and powerful, always.
