While both ‘Ali: Fear Eats the Soul’, directed by Rainer Fassbinder, and ‘Do the Right Thing’, directed by Spike Lee, criticize the divisive nature of dominant ideology within their respective stories, Fassbinder and Lee use differing cinematic techniques to address these racial hierarchies and tensions between minorities and dominant groups. The two films challenge dominant ideology through telling the story of an interracial couple in Germany in a time when this type of relation was not accepted, and the story of a community that demands representation in a local restaurant. The use of framing, wide shots, negative space, and long takes in ‘Ali: Fear Eats the Soul’, is employed to emphasize the ostracism and pressure Emmi and Ali are under due to their interracial relationship. The film depicts Emmi’s transition from a firm stance of defiance against dominant ideology to becoming an active participant in the racism her husband Ali receives. Spike Lee employs montage, Dutch angles, and panning shots to depict the rising racial tension in Mookie’s community, and Mookie’s final choice between Sal, the pizzeria owner, and his own community. While both films examine how social tensions in both race and class can be a key dividing influence, Fassbinder and Lee employ different cinematic techniques to emphasize these racial hierarchies and their dividing natures.
In ‘Ali: Fear Eats the Soul’, in a scene that shows Emmi and Ali celebrating their marriage in a restaurant that Hitler used to frequent, Fassbinder utilizes framing and wide-angle shots to clearly depict the claustrophobic isolation that Emmi and Ali now face, due to their taboo relationship. The couple is framed within a doorway sitting side by side in the empty restaurant, causing them to appear cramped and restricted inside the large space. A wide-angle shot is paired with this framing to show the entirely empty restaurant and the disdainful look from their waiter as he watches the couple from a distance outside the door frame. This framing is a type of Brechtian device used to distance the audience from the characters. The shot is “symmetrical in composition...self-reflexively pointing up its status as a cinematic representation”, which urges the audience to think instead of attempting to empathize with the characters’ emotions (Chaudhuri, 700). This type of Brechtian cinema aims to have the viewer critically analyze what is taking place in a scene, rather than to immerse themselves within the film and simply feel. The film itself can be viewed as a vision of society or of human nature, but at the same time, it cannot be defined as vision of society or of human nature (Espinosa). The film recognizes itself as a means to aesthetically please the audience, but it also encourages the audience to analyze the conflict presented to them. Furthermore, these formal techniques are meant to depict the extreme reactions and ostracism Emmi and Ali receive from society due to the controversial nature of their relationship. The framing of the couple within the doorway is claustrophobic, and makes the audience aware that the only reprieve from the hostility of others can be found with each other. Emmi and Ali are pushed further together as the outside world continues to pressure the two with their criticism and disapproval. By placing the couple within the door frame, and placing the waiter on the outside, it shows a clear divide between the two parties. Dominant ideology in Germany has deemed their marriage to be unfavorable, as it directly challenges the racial hierarchy within Germany at the time. Emmi is a German citizen, while Ali is a gastarbeiter and thus, in German society’s eyes, Ali will never be able to truly assimilate to German culture. This belief not only reinforces the notion that their relationship is shameful, but labels both Emmi and Ali as outsiders in Germany.
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Fassbinder also uses negative space and long takes to emphasize the ostracism Emmi and Ali experience from their peers due to their taboo relationship. One such scene, is when Emmi and Ali sit in a cafe surrounded by empty yellow chairs and tables, while the waiters and customers look on from a distance in disgust and disapproval. The emptiness of Emmi and Ali’s surroundings highlights how alone and isolated from society the two characters are. Emmi, in anger and disappointment, yells out at the onlookers shaming them for their oppressive gazes. The isolation has begun to physically and emotionally weigh Emmi down and, despite Ali’s attempts at comforting her, she sobs surrounded by an empty cafe. The use of a long shot in this scene emphasizes how massive the empty space around them is and how the radius of their isolation is not small, but far reaching and deeply felt. Whereas before, Fassbinder used Brechtian devices to distance the audience from the characters, in this scene, he directs the camera to push in on the two characters, and allows the audience to feel “Hollywood emotions and reflect on them at the same time” (Chaudhuri, 700). Ali understands isolation and the feeling of loneliness due to his emigration from Morocco, but Emmi is not accustomed to this isolation and thus is greatly affected by it. Emmi still lives in the country she was born in, raised in, lived in, and raised her own children in and thus, has difficulty accepting the alienation she is experiencing. She yearns to be accepted by her children, coworkers, and neighbors, but her relationship with Ali prohibits that. Germany’s dominant ideology has driven Emmi out of her place in German society, and rendered her powerless in this established racial hierarchy.
In ‘Ali: Fear Eats the Soul’, Fassbinder uses framing to convey how dominant ideology functions to divide people who challenge it. Originally Emmi was resistant to the hatred she and Ali received for her marriage, going as far as to lose her privilege to shop in her local market when she defended him against the shop owners, mistreatment of him. However, as Emmi has increasingly become desperate to rejoin German society, she has become an active participant in the racism and prejudice directed toward Ali. Once Emmi and Ali have returned from their trip away from Germany, it is evident that Emmi is ready to be accepted back into German society. She is tired of her alienation and decides that for Ali to fully assimilate to German culture and society is the only way for their relationship to be accepted. When Emmi is preparing dinner one night, Ali requests that she make him couscous, but she refuses, scolding him that he lives in Germany and should grow to like German food. In this scene, Emmi is within the kitchen, and Ali is outside by the doorframe. The framing signifies how the two have grown distant and isolated from each other, as Emmi no longer wishes to face ostracism from German society despite her love for Ali. In the previous wedding dinner scene, the two face the prejudice and hostility of the outside world together, but when the two characters are alone in this shot, there is a physical distance between them, demonstrating how the external pressure on their relationship has effectively disrupted it internally as well. Ali is accustomed to feeling isolated in Germany, as he has already left his home in Morocco, whereas Emmi is still living within German society and she desperately wants to reestablish her place in it. Emmi fails to understand Ali’s own feelings of homesickness and isolation, thus driving a wedge in their relationship. Emmi is so resolute in her decision to be accepted by German society, she has decided the only way for this to happen, is for herself and Ali to adhere to the dominant ideology’s expectations of them. Previously, the two were equals, but now, Emmi has taken an authoritative and superior position above Ali, through delegating tasks to him and criticizing his desire for foreign food and music. Their relationship now contains the same racial hierarchy they originally challenged with their marriage.
Despite both ‘Ali: Fear Eats the Soul’ and ‘Do the Right Thing’ addressing the division dominant ideology creates among groups of people, Spike Lee employs different cinematic techniques to elucidate his message. Spike Lee employs montage to show the extreme racism and prejudice different groups in the community have for one another. This sequence shows various characters from different ethnic backgrounds doling out racial insults toward one another, while the camera zooms in closer on their angry faces. This use of montage depicts what the characters in the community truly think of one another and the head on shots enables the audience to clearly witness the hate and disdain on the characters’ faces. Furthermore, the camera continues to zoom in close on the characters’ faces, highlighting the volatile nature of their feelings. Each ethnicity in the montage believes that their race is superior to others, as they yell insults and slurs at the camera. The community has been fragmented because of each groups’ insistence of maintaining the beliefs that they are part of the racially superior group. Each character sees flaws in another’s success or lack of success economically, and socially. Sal and his sons, as well as the Korean store owners, represent economic superiority over the other members on the block, as they are a part of an economically higher class. Like ‘Ali: Fear Eats the Soul’, the film ‘Do the Right Thing’ deals with individual racism in society. Emmi’s family, coworkers, and neighbors’ belief that they are the superior race in comparison to ‘Ali: Fear Eats the Soul’, is reflected in how the Italian Americans, African Americans, Hispanic Americans, and the Korean shop owners, all hold the belief of their own racial superiority over each other. Despite the two films taking place in separate countries and in different decades, Fassbinder and Lee make it clear that every society has a deeply embedded racial hierarchy within that sustains judgement and misconceptions.
In the climax of the film, Lee employs Dutch angles to emphasize the extreme racial tension and conflict that has finally come to a head. Radio Raheem and Buggin Out enter the pizzeria shown at a radically tilted camera angle. When Sal, Radio Raheem, and Buggin Out begin their argument, Radio Raheem and Buggin Out are shown from an extremely low-tilted angle, and Sal is shown at a high-tilted angle. The Dutch angle is destabilizing and heightens the tension between the characters as they argue over the wall of fame. The argument escalates and the “characters emerge on opposing diagonals...visually inscribing hostility or opposition” between the groups (Sharon Willis, 835). There is a clear division between the groups within the altercation, defined through these oppositely canted angles. They are opposing forces, with no means of compromise or understanding. The use of Dutch angles in the scene further illuminates how the racial power struggle between Sal and his customers has gotten out of hand, and the tension has risen beyond the level of peaceful resolution. Sal’s adamance that only Italian-Americans are to be placed on his wall of fame, embodies the main power struggle of the film. Despite the African-American members of the community providing Sal business and remaining loyal customers throughout the years, he remains unyielding in his decision. When Buggin Out and Radio Raheem demand that he acknowledge their voices, they are challenging the dominant ideology that Sal has established in his pizzeria. However, Sal’s decision to maintain his original position, that his wall of fame will only show Italian-Americans, enforces his image of injustice and inequality, ultimately resulting in a violent altercation as neither party is willing to concede or compromise. Unlike in ‘Ali: Fear Eats the Soul’, the climax of ‘Do the Right Thing’ is violent and messy. Where in ‘Ali: Fear Eats the Soul’ there is now an emotional distance between Emmi and Ali, physical animosity and violence has erupted between the characters of ‘Do the Right Thing’. In both films, the dominant ideology has led to a seemingly unsolvable conflict between characters.
After Radio Raheem is killed by the police following the dispute within Sal’s Pizzeria, Lee uses a pan shot to reveal how each member of the community feels in regards to Radio Raheem’s untimely and unjust death. The pan shot allows each member of the community’s voice to be heard. The community is outraged and saddened, believing that Radio Raheem did not deserve to die. The camera then moves to show Mookie standing in line with Sal, Pino, and Vito in front of the pizzeria. In this moment, Mookie steps away from Sal and joins the angry members of his block. As the crowd stares up at Sal, Pino, and Vito from a low-angle shot, it is clear that the Italian American family is a symbol of inequality and represents the injustice committed against their community. Mookie in his frustration throws a trash can into the pizzeria, and the rest of the crowd storms the building, attempting to regain some power of the situation. Sal is forced to watch as his business goes up in flames, but the destruction of his property is nowhere near as devastating as Radio Raheem's death at the hands of the police. The crowd’s feelings of powerlessness in the face of police brutality are directed towards Sal and destroying the symbol of inequality on the block: the pizzeria. Despite the blocks individual racism for each other, there is a clear division between the minorities and Sal’s family. Sal represents dominant ideology’s oppression that all the characters feel, and Mookie can no longer justify standing by Sal’s side. Mookie sides with his own community, and makes the decision to start the riot, effectively ending his familial relationship with Sal. Much like in ‘Ali: Fear Eats the Soul’, Mookie and Sal have been divided just like Emmi and Ali. With the passage of time and in the face of conflict, both parties lack an understanding and feeling of empathy for one another, which results in their estrangement.
Dominant ideology holds great power of people and communities. ‘Ali: Fear Eats the Soul’ and ‘Do the Right Thing’, provide illustrations of how drastically dominant ideology is interwoven into society. Racism in all its forms aims to control individuals and their perceptions of people surrounding them. Dominant ideology functions to control and manipulate when individuals fail to look beyond surface level interpretations of the world and those who inhabit it. Those who speak out against social and racial hierarchies receive significant backlash from many individuals who agree with the status quo. As depicted in both of these movies, when one challenges dominant ideology, they either succumb to its will or remain strong in their fight against it. There is constant struggle between thinking critically versus giving in and allowing oneself to be easily swayed by the ideology of the masses due to a desire to be accepted. It is clear, however, that when dominant ideology begins to harm individuals, one must look past what is easy and has to instead analyze what is ‘right’ in certain situations. It is uncomplicated to be complacent and justify certain behaviors, but at some point, taking a stand is the only course of action left in a situation. There is a peaceful and quiet struggle against dominant ideology, and there is an outspoken and volatile struggle. When a feeling of powerlessness takes over, extreme and sometimes violent action can and will be taken. Both films argue the divisiveness of racial hierarchies as they function only to fuel feelings of hate and misunderstanding of one another, and force the audience to confront these dominant ideologies that still hold weight in today’s modern society.
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