I was recently asked who is the better director for Black actors in Hollywood. To be honest I was stuck for an answer to that question. On a personal level I feel that both directors have been given the shaft by Hollywood in the form of being denied an Oscar for one of more of their works.
Spike Lee should have been nominated for Girl 6. Instead the Oscar noms for best picture were English Patient, jerry Maguire, Shine, Secrets & Lies. Trust me from watching Jerry Maguire, Girl 6's exploration into the life of a 1-900 sex workers life had its appeal and great usage of simile and metaphor of what many young women of the day were going through in their attempt to find a suitable lover.
Other Spike Lee films that deserved a shot were Malcolm X, once again a Tom Cruise film A Few Good Men, Unforgiven, Scent of A Woman, The Crying Game, Howard's End. I did not know and still can not explain why Scent of A Woman is on that list. The film Malcolm X did get a nod in the best actors category but no where else even in editing, cinematography nor art direction all of which were done excellently in the eyes of the directors vision.
I do think that DO THE RIGHT THING was done exceptionally well the field for its release year was thick with talent. The film ALWAYS which was worthy of an Oscar nod was snubbed as well feel free to look for yourself http://www.imdb.com/search/title?sort=moviemeter,asc&title_type=feature&year=1989,1989
The shocker of 1990 was even more obvious Goodfellas lost to Dances with Wolves so for Lee's Mo' Better Blues had zero chance.
Now lets turn our attention to Tarantino; Reservoir Dogs 1992 once again why was Scent of A Woman in the hunt in the first place. Let us fast forward to Django Unchained 2012 which did make the Oscar cut. Django lost to a well timed Argo.
Spike and Quentin both have a passion for telling a story. Spike is a far more technical director where Quentin is more organic and allows the film to make itself while relying upon the skill and quality of his actors and associated directors. Spike gets a hit your marks performance from all actors on set and he gets a better crisp production. Quentin is the type of director that knows what he would want to see on the screen as a member of the audience that is why we got an excellent film in Kill Bill (technically a single movie)
Spike Lee claims that he knows what Black people need to see and he tries to deliver it. In the 1960's he would have been a Negro director with integrity. Quentin Tarantino claims to understand Black people and knows what they would like to see and he delivers it. In 1990 he would have been called a Wigga for his efforts and a mockery of his audience and himself.
In 2014 Spike Lee is seen as a sore loser that cant get out of his own way. I as a fan do not believe nor agree with this sentiment. Quentin Tarantino is seen as a goofy, geeky 50 year old that got lucky, again a sentiment I dont agree with. I find both of these directors to be passionate and a constant reminder to small film makers everywhere of every ilk that making quality film is more than the technical aspect of the business. Make an enjoyable and watchable film is not just about being a member of the audience. It of course is a combination of all those things.
I do believe that Tarantino has been more willing to bring White audiences to Black ideas but in doing so he sometimes forgets that he is not Black and takes some liberties of storytelling a little over the top. Where as Lee approaches Black issues as just that, he leaves White audiences staring into the mirror asking themselves "Am I like that?"
Tarantino uses Black actors as window dressing to deliver a point
Lee uses human actions as window dressing to deliver Black actors to the screen. So, thus my analysis states Spike Lee is the better director for Black actors. This is not to say that Tarantino can not get an honest non-Sam Jackson performance out of a Black actor but he has his work cut out for him to get a Denzel performance from a Black actor in one of his movies and no Django was not it.
Christoph Waltz was the star of Django Unchained if you think differently go back and watch the movie again and realize although the story is about the liberation of Django it is Waltz's Dr Schultz that moves the story along.
Thank you for being a member of BSFS and reading its many and varied forums. I also want you to share your thoughts and ideas as well
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