Synopses & Reviews
The extraordinary life story filled with fresh, firsthand accounts of one of America's most provocative filmmakers.
This new biography tells the cinematic story of the preeminent director whose pioneering films from Do the Right Thing and Jungle Fever to Malcolm X helped transform the face of late twentieth-century America. Since bursting onto the scene in 1986 with the sexually provocative She's Gotta Have It, Lee has been one of America's most visionary and controversial cinematic figures. Film critic Kaleem Aftab chronicles Lee's explosive rise to stardom, exploring such important issues as Black Nationalism, Hollywood stereotyping, and the rise of a powerful black middle class. With Lee family interviews and the candid revelations of stars like Halle Berry, Denzel Washington, Samuel L. Jackson, Laurence Fishburne, Edward Norton, John Turturro, Rosie Perez, and Wesley Snipes, this book is the story of a visionary life in the cinema, telling us as much about Lee as it does about the past two decades of American social history. 40 photographs.
Review
"[A]lthough the book has Lee's imprimatur, Aftab is not afraid to take issue with Lee....[A]n invigorating look back at the work of one of our least predictable, most important filmmakers." Booklist
Review
"Kaleem Aftab...doesn't pull many punches in this sometimes laudatory, often blunt...assessment....Lee's yen for hot-button movie topics, his ability and eagerness to attract headlines and his early triumphs are all recounted in this brief summation of his storied career." Orlando Sentinel
Synopsis
This new biography tells the cinematic story of the preeminent director whose pioneering films from Do the Right Thing and Jungle Fever to Malcolm X helped transform the face of late 20th-century America.
About the Author
Spike Lee's films have won honors worldwide.
Do The Right Thing,
Malcolm X, and
4 Little Girls have received Academy Award nominations. He lives in New York City.
Kaleem Aftab is the director of the TV and film production house lafamiglia and writes for the Independent, BBC Collective, and V magazine. He resides in London.