As far as movies go, I’m not usually attracted to the black urban dramas that feature gang members killing each other. But there is one that I have recommended over and over to people since its original theatrical release in 1991. “Boyz N The Hood”, was Director John Singleton’s feature film debut, and it had an emotional impact unheard of in a film of its type. “Boyz N The Hood” told the story of three friends growing up on South Central Los Angeles, and how life on these dangerous streets affected each of their lives. There was Dougboy (Ice Cube), and unambitious drug dealer, his brother Ricky (Morris Chestnut), a college bound teenage father, and best friend Tre (Cuba Gooding Jr.), who is looking forward to a bright future outside of the ‘Hood.’

They live in a world where your life could end at any moment in a senseless act of violence, and when Tre faces one of the most difficult decisions of his life he only has the strength of his father (Laurence Fishburne) to turn to.

Movies about the ‘Hood’ up until that time, and for the most part ever since have generally been nothing but glorifications of the violent lifestyle that many young people live nowadays. And even if they are meant to downplay that lifestyle, the characters are rarely as fully developed as they were in “Boyz N The Hood.”

The movie featured, not only an extremely well written script, but also strong performances from all of the actors involved. The film was able to create powerful emotional attachments to characters that could have been easily disregarded in a lesser movie. The film earned Singleton many accolades and firmly planted him as a ‘director on the rise.’ Unfortunately, he has yet to direct a film anywhere near as good as this one.

The one travesty surrounding “Boyz N The Hood” was it recognition by the Academy Awards after its release. Singleton received and Oscar nomination as Best Director, yet that was the only nomination the film received. The problem I had with this, first of all, was that the film certainly deserved more than just that nomination. Though it may not have won, at the very least a Best Picture or Best Screenplay nomination should have been forthcoming. This lack of recognition further tarnished the existing nomination by making it seem as though it was only given because Singleton was a young African-American Director. Think about it, it’s like the movie wasn’t good enough to nominate for anything, yet he is given a Best Director nomination. Never made sense to me.

The new Anniversary DVD release of “Boyz N The Hood” more than stands as a testament of what a great film it was, and still is. Sony Columbia Tristar is releasing it as a 2-disc affair complete with a commentary by Singleton. The commentary is pretty good, but a lot of what you hear can be found on the 2nd disc documentary. This documentary runs about 45 minutes and covers ever aspect of the evolution of the film. There are a lot of new interviews with cast and crew, and is very well produced. This disc also has a couple of deleted scenes, and two music videos.

I had ranked “Boyz N The Hood” amongst the best films of the 90’s, and it still holds up as a powerfully emotional look at street life. The senseless violence that pervades our society has unfortunately only gotten worse, and one would hope that films like this would wake up just enough people to try and stop it.

Directed by: John Singleton
Starring: Cuba Gooding, Jr., Ice Cube, Morris Chestnut, Nia Long, Angela Bassett, Larry Fishburne
Extras: Director’s Commentary, “Friendly Fire: Making of an Urban Legend, Deleted Scenes, Music Videos, Director and Cast Filmographies, Theatrical Trailers
Specifications: Fullscreen, Widescreen (1.85:1) Enhanced for 16x9 Televisions, Dolby Surround
Studio: Sony / Columbia Tristar
Release Date: 9/2/2003
Region 1
MPAA Rating: R (For Violence and Language)
Website

We'll give Boyz N The Hood an A.