Oh, boy. Dem be fightin’ words!
At this year’s Cannes Film Festival, Spike Lee challenged reporters to ask Clint Eastwood why there were no black actors in either of his films about the Battle of Iwo Jima. “That was his version. The Negro version did not exist,” said Spike.
And Clint has finally fought back, arguing that his film Flags of Our Fathers was historically accurate because the black troops were not involved in raising the flag at Iwo Jima.
“If I go ahead and put an African American actor in there, they’d say ‘this guy’s lost his mind,’” he said. Clint also referenced his upcoming movie, Changeling, which was set in Los Angeles before the city had a large group of African-Americans. “What are you going to do, you going to tell a f*ckin’ story about that?” he said. “Make it look like a commercial for an equal opportunity player? I’m not in that game. I’m playing it the way I read it historically, and that’s the way it is. . . When I do a picture and it’s 90% black, like Bird, I use 90% black people,” said Clint, referring to his 1998 film about jazz musician Charlie “Bird” Parker. “[Spike] was complaining when I did Bird. Why would a white guy be doing that? I was the only guy who made it, that’s why. He could have gone ahead and made it. Instead he was making something else.” Referring to Spike, he added: “A guy like him should shut his face.”
Go ahead, Spike, make his day…
i kinda like clint eastwood here.
June 6th, 2008 at 11:08 amhe’s a prickly old bastard, who actually made a valid point.
Fiesty! Me likey.
June 6th, 2008 at 12:07 pmSpike’s gotta f**ck with somebody, why not Clint? He can take it.
June 6th, 2008 at 12:28 pmCage match!
June 6th, 2008 at 1:07 pmSpike thinks he has a point to make . . . but goes about it all wrong.
Also - don’t mess with Clint
“You feeling lucky, punk?”
June 6th, 2008 at 2:45 pmYou Go, Clint !!! Tell that no talent Spike Lee where to go ! Big Loser.
June 7th, 2008 at 9:51 amHmmm. I think Spike has a point. I think there should have been African American troops included in the film, if not for the flag scene then elsewhere. The significant contribution made to the US armed forces by black people has at times been overlooked. Regrettably, by continually whining and raising a non-issue e.g. Bird in the past Spike has damaged his credibility with this new, more valid criticism.
June 7th, 2008 at 7:32 pm