Review of Dope (2015) by Manny C — 30 Jun 2015

Teen punk geeks navigating the mean, dirty streets of Inglewood, California---that's the wild spark that ignites the incendiary Dope, a fever dream of a comic ride from writer-director Rick Famuyiwa (The Wood), whose obsessions (from 90's hip-hop to BMX bikes and skateboards to manga comics and 'other shit white people like') drive and define the film's main player.

That would be Malcolm, played terrifically by Shameik Moore in a smashing, superb breakout performance. Malcolm (rocking the flattop) is frontman for a punk band with his best buds Jib (the amazing Tony Revolori) and Diggy (Kiersey Clemons, wild and excellent) and aspires to make it into Harvard. He's also a major anomaly and throwback in his community and gets a lot of shit for it (I can relate). Hoodrat Dom (A$AP Rocky) asks Malcolm to hook him up with babe Nakia (Zoe Kravitz), but while at a club a shootout takes place and Dom's dope ends up in Malcolm's backpack, along with a gun, forcing these geeks to go gangsta. No fair spoiling what happens next. Just know that Famuyiwa skillfully keeps the action spinning with vibrancy and sensitivity. He takes social expectation and makes sharp comedy out of it. It's an exhilarating gift.