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Mo' Better Blues
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==Reception== ===Critical response=== ''Mo' Better Blues'' received mixed to positive reviews from critics, as the film holds a 72% rating on [[Rotten Tomatoes]] based on 36 reviews. The consensus states: "''Mo' Better Blues'' is rich with vibrant hues and Denzel Washington's impassioned performance, although its straightforward telling lacks the political punch fans expect from a Spike Lee joint." ===Controversies=== For his portrayal of Jewish nightclub owners Moe and Josh Flatbush, Lee drew the ire of the [[Anti-Defamation League]] (ADL), [[B'nai B'rith]], and other such Jewish organizations. The ADL claimed that the characterizations of the nightclub owners "dredge up an age-old and highly dangerous form of [[Antisemitism|anti-Semitic]] stereotyping", and the ADL was "disappointed that Spike Lee – whose success is largely due to his efforts to break down racial stereotypes and prejudice – has employed the same kind of tactics that he supposedly deplores."<ref>{{cite news|date=1990-08-16 |title=Spike Lee's Jews and the Passage From Benign Cliche into Bigotry|work=[[The New York Times]] |first=Caryn |last=James|url=https://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.html?res=9C0CE2D6113DF935A2575BC0A966958260}}</ref> Lee eventually responded in an editorial in ''[[The New York Times]]'',<ref>{{cite journal |date=2006-08-13 |title=The Angriest Auteur|journal=[[New York (magazine)|New York]] |author-link=Ariel Levy (writer) |first=Ariel |last=Levy|url=http://nymag.com/movies/profiles/19144/}}</ref> alleging "a double standard at work in the accusations of anti-Semitism" given the long history of negative portrayals of African-Americans in film: "Not every black person is a pimp, murderer, prostitute, convict, rapist or drug addict, but that hasn't stopped [[Cinema of the United States|Hollywood]] from writing these roles for African-Americans". Lee argues that even if the Flatbush brothers are stereotyped figures, their "10 minutes of screen time" is insignificant when compared to "100 years of Hollywood cinema... [and] a slew of really racist, anti-Semitic filmmakers". According to Lee, his status as a successful African-American artist has led to hostility and unfair treatment: "Don't hold me to a higher moral standard than the rest of my filmmaking colleagues... Now that young black filmmakers have arisen in the film industry, all of a sudden stereotypes are a big issue... I think it's reaching the point where ''I'm'' getting reviewed, not my films." Lee refused to apologize for his portrayal of the Flatbush brothers: "I stand behind all my work, including my characters, Moe and Josh Flatbush... if critics are telling me that to avoid charges of anti-Semitism, all Jewish characters I write have to be model citizens, and not one can be a villain, cheat or a crook, and that no Jewish people have ever exploited black artists in the history of the entertainment industry, that's unrealistic and unfair."<ref>{{cite news|date=1990-08-22 |title=I Am Not an Anti-Semite|work=The New York Times |author=Spike Lee|page=A25|url=http://partners.nytimes.com/library/film/082290lee-editorial.html}}</ref> Cynda Williams complained about the behavior of some of the actors on the set. "Many of the men were method actors. A couple of them had spent time together on previous Spike films, and their characters in ''Mo’ Better Blues'' were kind of chauvinistic. So being method, they were kind of chauvinistic all the time on set," said Williams. "Some actors feel they have to stay in character to help play their roles.” Spike Lee responded, “I didn’t know about any chauvinistic behavior…” <ref>[https://www.indiewire.com/2020/09/mo-better-blues-at-30-cynda-williams-joie-lee-1234580482/ IndieWire. "‘Mo’ Better Blues’ at 30: Spike Lee’s Fourth Joint, as Told by Female Leads Cynda Williams and Joie Lee" by Tambay Obenson. September 24, 2020.]</ref>
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