Review of Boyz n the Hood (1991) by Sharod J — 28 Feb 2009

John Singleton's first major picture, and major success. Ice Cube and Cuba Gooding Jnr's major breakthrough, with Laurence Fishburne and Angela Bassett supporting.

Few words can describe the ultimate ghetto movie. back then, its wake up call to the world to become aware of the problems of lack teens and LA with gangs and violence beginning to prevail in the streets. Take a look at the lives of three best friends, one, an athlete with the world at his feet, another a gangbanger and the third, a young man stuck between both worlds and in between ideals while also struggling with the problems of love.

In the spectrum, we have Angela Basset, a mother on the welfare raising her two sons and her grandchild, and on the other, we have single dad Furious Styles (Fishburne) also raising his son through discipline and morals. Around them is South Central LA, consisting of the Crips, the Bloods and Crenshaw Boulevard.

Nitty, gritty, violent and truthful, it protrays hope, despair, hate and love and does bring around the message that there is always and exit to the life of violence many fall into, there is always a way out...

Excellent performances and very authentic, this good easily be a story ripped out from the ghetto itself... thousands face the same problems these three face everyday and no other movie tells it better.