Response to Opening Credits

In the movie “Do The Right Thing” directed by Spike Lee, the opening credits begin with the harmonious saxophone playing the song “Lift Every Voice and Sing” and is harshly interrupted by Public Enemy’s song titled “Fight the Power.” Alongside the song “Fight the Power,” a reel of snapshots with Rosie Perez in different stances is played, which show her in defensive poses as well as flexing her arms, legs, etc. Each stance is very important because it helps to portray the theme of self-defense and strength in the movie. Once the snapshots have finished, Rosie Perez is captured in a medium shot dancing in a red dress with very stiff and strong movements. The medium shot then is zoomed in to a close-up of her face which is filled with intensity and anger that may represent her frustration that she faces throughout the movie. Other factors that also help to emphasize her facial expressions and body movements include the costumes and lighting.

The lighting is very effective in the sense that it conforms to the attitude that Rosie Perez is trying to convey. With Perez’s constant expression of frustration come the shades of orange and red. These colors are consistently used for the portrayal of anger and heat; in this case, I feel that the movie uses these colors in order to represent both. By putting the lighting in sync with the characters personal emotions, it helps to highlight her presence within the scene. These colors also help to convey the atmosphere that she lives in. For example, these colors may represent the hassles of going about her daily struggles in New York amidst a heat wave. Along with the orange and red lighting, there are some scenes where red light clashes with white/gray lighting. The two colors go up against one another as if challenging the other for the dominance in the scene. This is most evident when Rosie Perez is in her boxer wear.

Her constant costume changes also make her stand out because they represent a different aspect of her character. In a sense, the red dress is used to symbolize her sexuality while the boxing outfit may be used to represent her ability to defend herself by fighting against the oppression she faces. Although the blue bodysuit does not represent an exact message of character, it accentuates her toned body, which may help to show the audience that this is her in her purest form and nothing can be hidden because the outfit is skin tight.

Whether or not these elements are used to portray Perez’s character, they all are utilized in the aspect that they capture the attention of the viewers. Essentially, these tools all were used in an effective manner because they uniformly made an impression amongst the viewers and left them wanting to see more.