Boyz N The Hood

[StevePulaski]

Ice Cube in Boyz N The Hood.

Rating: ★★★★

The men in Boyz N The Hood are reaching that awkward point where you're not a boy, but not quite a man. Dealing with this is hard, but I can't begin to imagine how hard it is when you live in the hood with constant fear of violence, racism, and gang trouble becoming deadly. I live in a small suburban town, almost nothing happens where I live and I'm thankful. It is almost strictly a white town. Racial segregation is common in most neighborhoods, and actor Laurence Fishburne speaks about that in the middle of the film.

The movie begins by showing us ten year old Tré Styles who gets in trouble at school, resulting in a suspension. Tré and his other Reva (Bassett) made an agreement that if he got in any more trouble he would be sent to live with his stern father Jason, nicknamed Furious (Fishburne).

After half an hour of seeing the young life of the boy, the film fast forwards seven years later. Tré (Gooding Jr.), now seventeen, is trying to pressure his girlfriend into marriage, at the same time juggling school and keeping up with his hoodlum pal Darren, nicknamed Doughboy (Cube) and his football playing brother Ricky (Chestnut). All three boys struggle to live their own lives in a town filled with hatred and gang violence.

The main thing the film wants to show is that a strong father figure is very important in a young black man's life. Woman can raise them, but a everybody needs a man for a sense of direction and guidance in difficult times. The character that has the best family is Tré, and it shows that it really has an affect on him. At the end of the film, Furious guides him away from possible danger that very well could've saved his life. The audience always asks "What would've happen if Doughboy had Tré's father? Would the outcome change?" The answer is most definitely.

Director John Singleton has made a film that not only depicts realism of gangs without glorifying it in any way, but has a way of treating his characters like true human beings with hopes and dreams. The color of their skin doesn't matter. Just like in Baby Boy, his film that concluded his hood trilogy ten years after this one, he has made a film showcasing blacks outside of their racial stereotype.

Besides excellent camerawork and writing, we see the roles that lead Cuba Gooding Jr. and Ice Cube to have many more movie roles. Cuba is at his best in this, and Ice Cube does very well with the drama based script. Seeing him in Barbershop and Friday, I was skeptical if he would play a drama role with goofiness or true sincerity. The outcome was more than I had ever expected, and leads me to question why Cube doesn't spend more time in the drama field of film.

Boyz N The Hood is truly a masterpiece in the world of film. Scene after scene is breathtaking and emotional. It is so well acted and so well filmed it almost comes off as a documentary. And above all, everything in the film, every character, moment, line, and event is all crafted so well it's like reality. The scary part is, it's someone's.

Starring: Cuba Gooding Jr., Ice Cube, Morris Chestnut, and Laurence Fishburne. Directed by: John Singleton.