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Bamboozled And African Americans In Today's Industry

The movie Bamboozled by Spike Lee is a very interesting movie which brings up a lot of different points. Although Bamboozled did not receive great reviews like some of Lee's other movies, I think it brought up a lot of important questions regarding the media and the way film portrays African Americans on T.V. Lee's movie brings to light the notion that to be black and on television you have to play a certain role or type of character. He makes the point that African Americans are expected to be a particular type of character and that their lives reflect that role. Lee also makes a statement that to be African American and live in the U.S. you have to act a certain way. If you want to be successful you have to entertain or act in a manner reflecting white society's beliefs about what blacks are. Spike Lee's movies force people to think about important racial issues and Bamboozled is no exception.
To understand a Spike Lee Joint you have to understand where Spike Lee comes from. Shelton Jackson Lee was born on March 20, 1957, in Atlanta, Georgia, but grew up in Brooklyn, New York. Lee's mother Jacquelyn was a schoolteacher and Lee's father was an accomplished jazz singer. Lee's mother instilled a great love for African American art and literature in Lee at a young age, and Lee's father taught him the history of black culture and jazz culture. Lee had the foundation to be a very intelligent and influential black figure with a strong sense of who he is and where he came from. Lee got his nickname Spike from his mother because the word suggested toughness. Lee wanted to learn more about his black roots and followed the path of his father and grandfather by attending Morehouse College, an all black college. While attending Morehouse College, Lee's mother died. Lee's friends would try to cheer him up by taking him to the movies. After seeing a lot of movies with his friends, Lee became a huge fan of directors Bernardo Bertolucci, Martin Scorsese, and...