“We’re all tired about white-man this, white-man that. Fuck dat! It’s on us.” —Spike Lee, 1992 Spike Lee is our 2015 Film Person of the Year, and he and I go way back. Not personally, you understand—our interview for this article was the first time we had ever spoken for more than sixty seconds or so. But for many a budding filmmaker of my generation, those in high school and/or college when his first few movies came out, especially those of us especially interested in, or passionate about, African American art and culture, Lee was a revelation, and will always occupy a special place in our hearts. It’s difficult to imagine, but when Lee burst onto the scene, NO black filmmaker was making films for a wide audience. Not one. And he wasn’t just any filmmaker—his films bristled with intelligence, technical audacity, deep thoughtful characters, provocative situations, lush cinematography, gorgeous scores. In 1989, Do the Right Thing, especially, felt like a revolution in filmmaking—and maybe even in society at large. In 2015, the original black auteur has done it again. Not only is Chi-Raq the best film of the year, it’s also the most vital, the most urgent, the most—let’s just say it— important. It’s more than just a modern retelling of Aristophanes’ classic Lysistrata (in which a group of women stop a war by going on a sex strike) in the modern day hood. It’s more than just a tour de force of rhymed couplets that shouldn’t work, but do. It’s more than just a heartbreaking tale of real people trying to make a sense out of the madness surrounding them. It’s more than just a blistering series of broadsides aimed straight at many of the political sacred cows in our culture. It’s a moment when, along with all the other criticisms offered, one of our most gifted filmmakers stands up in the middle of his own people and shouts (as his characters often do), “WAKE UP.” It’s a moment of staggering importance. When Lee and I speak, I figure it’s a good thing to start with some sports talk, given his passion for the Knicks, the Yankees, and our mutual favorite soccer team, Arsenal. And I mention our common Georgia roots, and we talk a bit about the brilliance of actor Walton Goggins. But then I really want to know what he thinks of the importance of this film. We got the power And the knowledge to move ’em And still rock A super song for the cause so… —Public Enemy, “B Side Wins Again”