#JUST THE WAY YOU ARE 2015 FILM MOVIE#

And with my scruples, I cannot be vocal only when the trigger is pulled by a white finger. Going back to School Daze, IвЂ™ve been criticized for airing dirty laundry. And in my opinion, itвЂ™s not doing anyone any good if we remain silent about the ills that are confronting our community. I wasnвЂ™t standing up against the black community IвЂ™m standing with them. Because you are who you are, you can carry that message. I think it took a black man of your stature to stand up and say, вЂњWe shouldnвЂ™t be killing each other.вЂќ ItвЂ™s kind of that вЂњNixon goes to ChinaвЂќ moment.

#JUST THE WAY YOU ARE 2015 FILM MOVIE#

But to me, one of the bravest parts of the movie is that you, as an African American, included and even emphasized in your list of things that were wrong, black on black violence. Paste: You have a lot on your mind in this movie thereвЂ™s a lot of issues you tackle. Public Enemy, вЂњWelcome to the TerrordomeвЂќ ItвЂ™s weak to speak and blame somebody else And I saw Chi-Raq, and it changed my lifeline.вЂќ I believe that. And I firmly believe that in the future, young brothers are going to tell me, вЂњSpike, I was going down that path. I never knew there was such a thing as a black college.вЂќ IвЂ™ve heard that directly from people. You know, I went to Morehouse, and in 1988 when my film School Daze came out, people have come up to me and said, вЂњBefore that film I had never thought about going to college. IвЂ™ve had so many people come up to me and say my films have changed their lives already. Lee: IвЂ™ve always been a firm believer that great art can change lives.

Things like this happen because of cultural change, and a movie can accomplish that. Paste: And thatвЂ™s possible through film, I think. Whether it was going to win Best Picture or whatever, that was no oneвЂ™s concern. But the goal that my co-writer Kenneth Willmott and I had in mind was that we wanted to save lives with this film. Lee: We knew it was going to be an important film.

Obviously you were trying to make a good movie, but were you intentionally trying to make an important movie too? Which was pre-eminent in your mind? Paste: I think Richard Brody and I are the two that have said that, so thatвЂ™s good company to be in. YouвЂ™re one of the few that feel that way, so thank you very much. Paste:ItвЂ™s not every year that the most important movie and the best movie are the same, but this year Chi-Raq is both. In 1989, Do the Right Thing, especially, felt like a revolution in filmmaking-and maybe even in society at large. And he wasnвЂ™t just any filmmaker-his films bristled with intelligence, technical audacity, deep thoughtful characters, provocative situations, lush cinematography, gorgeous scores. ItвЂ™s difficult to imagine, but when Lee burst onto the scene, NO black filmmaker was making films for a wide audience. But for many a budding filmmaker of my generation, those in high school and/or college when his first few movies came out, especially those of us especially interested in, or passionate about, African American art and culture, Lee was a revelation, and will always occupy a special place in our hearts. Not personally, you understand-our interview for this article was the first time we had ever spoken for more than sixty seconds or so. Spike Lee is our 2015 Film Person of the Year, and he and I go way back. вЂњWeвЂ™re all tired about white-man this, white-man that.

Just the way you are 2015 film