The Treasure of the Sierra Madre (1948)

Spike Lee inserts his trademark style in Da 5 Bloods: a slideshow of images, monologues straight to camera, the double dolly shot, educating the audience on overlooked African-American history and referencing old Hollywood movies (The Treasure of Sierra Madre's “I don’t have to show you any stinking badges!” and famed movie actress Hedy Lamarr). This film empowers Black voices while also humanizing the enemy, which in this case is the Việt Cộng. The enemy becomes a political construct and the soldiers from both sides realize they’re all the same in the end; both experiencing fear, emotions, engaging in relationships, and thinking they are fighting the good fight. And in this humanization, we see the absurdity of war. Especially for the Black GI’s who were dying for a country that treats them as second-class citizens.

So what better way to echo the tragedy and absurdity of the Vietnam war than the powerful backdrop of Marvin Gaye songs?

I can count on my hand the movies that use music as well as this. The soundtrack complemented the themes of absurdity, brutality, and the never-ending cycle of war, but also brotherhood, love, and compassion. The haunting soundtrack of Marvin Gaye’s voice — himself a symbol of peace who met a tragic death — amplified the messages of the movie.