Spike Lee speaks to packed audience on race, state of America

Spike Lee upheld his reputation as no stranger to controversy last night by proudly displaying his New York Yankees jersey and hat. The acclaimed director proceeded to list every World Series title the team has won, despite a mix of boos and cheers from the audience.

In his lecture titled "An Evening with Spike Lee," presented by the Tufts Lecture Series, Lee gave his opinions on everything from baseball to Martha Stewart.

At the beginning of his speech, Lee emphasized the need for self-reliance and motivation. "Brooklyn Gas Company turned off my gas, the electricity company shut that off, and my phone was dead. I was forced to 'get off my rusty butt' as my mom would say."

To make "She's Gotta Have It" -- Lee's first movie -- "we scraped together penny by penny, nickel by nickel".

For much of the lecture Lee spoke about modern race relations and depictions of African Americans. "African Americans are still ghettoized today, stereotypes are either hip-hop shoot-em up, romantic comedies, or broad, broad, broad comedy," he said.

He knocked films like the upcoming 'Soul Plane' about an African-American airline. "They're serving 'tato salad, collards, and Snoop Doggs in the cockpit smoking herb." He could not hold back a laugh before deemed the movie "buffoonish and pathetic."

He also critiqued movies by young African-American directors and writers that support negative stereotypes, particularly "Barbershop."

"One of the most vile things [about this movie] were jokes about Dr. King and Rosa Parks. I don't see anything funny about that."

Lee especially criticized the role of Cedric the Entertainer who was supposed to be the wise old man. "I expected him to drop knowledge but he said some of the most ignorant things."

Hollywood, he said, is controlled by the "elite" and "until we are the gatekeepers, nothing will change."

For that reason, Lee had a good deal of praise for Mel Gibson and his film 'The Passion of the Christ.'

"He shows how if there is an audience you can circumvent Hollywood." He said of Gibson, "That man is smart. He put up $30 million of his own money. He said 'F-You' to the studios."

Lee was disgusted by the Academy Award winning 'Cold Mountain' for its inability to portray slavery in a Civil War setting. He likened it to making a love story movie in Nazi Germany and forgetting certain things. "I'm gonna leave out Hitler, Goebbels, and the concentration camps. There's no need to be messy."

"I would be thrown out [of a studio] on my head if I tried to pitch that," he said.

After offering his opinions on other films, Lee also touted his own upcoming movie entitled "She Hate Me."

"It's about the moral and ethical decline of America from the boardroom to the bedroom," Lee said.

The film is based on the ImClone scandal and about how a man set to take the blame reduces himself to selling his semen. "In the course of a month he impregnates 19 women, and that's in the first ten minutes!" Lee jibed.

His disdain for President Bush was clear throughout the evening. He called the 2000 election proceedings in Florida "shenanigans."

After he spoke of the war in Iraq, he plainly stated "I'm not voting for that guy."

He also lambasted Bush for cozying up to large media conglomerates. "Bush did a lot of deregulation when he came to office, particularly with the FCC. The guy that benefited was the Clear Channel head, who happens to be a big supporter of Bush."

Lee encouraged everyone in the audience to get out and vote in the next presidential election. "We all need to understand the importance of one vote, especially after what happened last election," he said.

Following his speech over a dozen students filtered down the aisles to pose questions to the director.

Questions ranged from critical to humorous. One student asked what the most important issue for the United States was at the time that has not been portrayed in film. Lee immediately responded, "Education. I read in The New York Times today that New York private schools are starting to cost $26,000. What is going to happen to the people that can't afford that?"

He continued to describe the plight that faces young African-American men today "They have three options: play ball, be a rapper, or sell drugs, and guess which is the easiest one?"

On a lighter note, he exchanged retorts with a student from Chicago over the Knicks-Bulls rivalry. "It feels good to be a Knicks fan!" He then asked the student if he also supported other Chicago landmarks like R. Kelly.

Though he started the night with a mixture of applause and jeers, Lee exited to a standing ovation.