Boyz n the Hood (1991)

Follows the lives of three young males living in the Crenshaw ghetto of Los Angeles, dissecting questions of race, relationships, violence, and future prospects.

Director:

John Singleton

Writer:

John Singleton

Stars:

Cuba Gooding Jr., Laurence Fishburne, Hudhail Al-Amir

Nominated for 2 Oscars. Another 11 wins & 21 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Hudhail Al-Amir	...	S.A.T. Man
Lloyd Avery II	...	Knucklehead #2
Angela Bassett	...	Reva Styles
Miya McGhee	...	Female Club Member (as Mia Bell)
Lexie Bigham	...	Mad Dog
Kenneth A. Brown	...	Little Chris
Nicole Brown	...	Brandi - Age 10
Ceal	...	Sheryl
Morris Chestnut	...	Ricky Baker
Darneicea Corley	...	Keisha
John Cothran	...	Lewis Crump (as John Cothran Jr.)
Ice Cube	...	Doughboy / Darren
Na'Blonka Durden	...	Trina (as Na' Blonka Durden)
Susan Falcon	...	Mrs. Olaf
Jessie Lawrence Ferguson	...	Officer Coffey (as Jesse Ferguson)

Storyline

Writer and Director John Singleton's portrayal of social problems in inner-city Los Angeles, California takes the form of a tale of three friends growing up together in the "hood". Half-brothers Doughboy (Ice Cube) and Ricky Baker (Morris Chestnut) are foils for each other's personality, presenting very different approaches to the tough lives they face. Ricky is the "All-American" athlete, looking to win a football scholarship to USC and seeks salvation through sports, while Doughboy succumbs to the violence, alcohol, and crime surrounding him in his environment, but maintains a strong sense of pride and code of honor. Between these two is their friend Tre Styles (Cuba Gooding, Jr.), who is lucky to have a father, Furious Styles (Laurence Fishburne), to teach him to have the strength of character to do what is right and to always take responsibility for his actions.

---

Plot Keywords:

gangsta | walking on train tracks | dead body | african american protagonist | violence | 

---

Taglines:

Once upon a time in South Central L.A. ... It ain't no fairy tale.

---

Genres:

Crime | Drama

---

Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated R for language, violence and sensuality

Did You Know?

Trivia

Laurence Fishburne, who played Cuba Gooding, Jr.'s father, is only seven years older than him in real life.

---

Goofs

As the police officer holds his revolver to Trey's head, he refers to his weapon as a Smith & Wesson when it is actually a Colt Python, however seeing how Tre is obviously scared he could obviously just be boasting just to intimidate him probably thinking Tre has no knowledge about guns.

---

Quotes

Tre Styles: [laughing after he breaks down in tears] I never thought I'd be crying in front of a female.
Brandi: You can cry in front of me.

---

Crazy Credits

After the epilogue of what happens to Doughboy and Tre, the words "Boyz n the Hood: Increase the Peace" appears onscreen

---

Alternate Versions

The Criterion Collection laserdisc features two scenes deleted from the theatrical version. They are as follows: Tre and his mother have a telephone conversation about his future with Brandi and college. Doughboy has a confrontation with Furious after Ricky gets shot.

---

Connections

Referenced in Saturday Night Live: Jason Alexander/Peter Gabriel (1993)

---

Soundtracks

Just a Friendly Game of Baseball
Written by Large Professor (as William Paul Mitchell), Kevin McKenzie and Shawn McKenzie
Produced and Performed by Main Source
Courtesy of Wild Pitch Records, Ltd.

User Reviews

Brilliant use of sound, engaging script and wonderful character development makes this film better than you think.

Boyz 'N the hood is a thoroughly fascinating and deeper than you think look at life in Los Angeles around the early 1980s to early 1990s; what the film actually does is look at a life in one of these Los Angeles 'ghettos' and uses it as the backdrop for a wonderful series of filmic events revolving around growing up, relations with family and friends, racism and the constant threat of violence.

The film has a certain aged charm about it; and with actors you'd easily recognise today looking very different in 1991, this adds to the feeling. These actors/celebrities are: Laurence Fishburne, Cuba Gooding Jr, and Ice Cube. I was surprised at how everything in this film just managed to pool together and just work. The film doesn't really adopt a neo-realistic approach but what it does do is tie together an unpredictable and often heart-warming script, great character development and some genuinely entertaining situations that don't let your eyes off the screen.

Some examples of this can be when the main group of characters are out for revenge and stalk a rival group whilst they innocently have their meals on the pavement or when the father of then ten year old Tré (Gooding Jr.) is desperately trying to bring his child up well and teach him the right things he needs to learn whilst we are desperately longing him to listen. The way in which the four main characters in the group also progress; bouncing off one another in life and scraps as they try to find their way is not only compelling viewing but the attention to detail by including unnecessary dialogue and real life conversations in real life situations is remarkable. The life in which these people lead is also put across in a very disturbing and realistic way that makes you glad you're not part of what is going on. This is done thanks to visuals and background noise and sound effects. Often a police car siren will begin to wail; signalling there's probably been another shooting or crime that has happened; there will also be, what I presume, a police helicopter fly overhead every once in a while – forced into keeping an eye on things and events even though everything's probably fine. This feeling of being trapped and constantly in danger whilst being watched most of the time plays on the character's minds and is relayed onto us in an often effective manner.

In terms of visuals, there are constant threats and reminders that danger, literally, lurks around every corner. Tré attempts to take some food from one house and walk it about a hundred yards back to his own for his father but along the way is greeted by a car containing a few 'gang bangers' possessing a sawn off shotgun that is consequently aimed at him. He also manages to save a child that had escaped from its mother from getting run down in the road – it turns out the mother has just too many to deal with and very solemnly shuts the door on Tré without much of a 'thank you'. Not only this but the approaching sound of rap and R&B music as cars get closer when there are multiple unknown characters in a scene is heard; it can feel very threatening – especially if our heroes are out on foot and you do feel like they are in danger.

Boyz 'N the Hood is a fantastic debut film for John Singleton as many have already said. It combines multiple conventions and mixes them in well with one another as we see the lives progress of these four people we would never normally give five seconds of our time to.

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

12 July 1991 (USA)

Also Known As:

Boys in the Hood

Filming Locations:

5918 Cimarron Street, Los Angeles, California, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$6,500,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend USA:

$10,023,462, 14 July 1991

Gross USA:

$57,504,069

Cumulative Worldwide Gross:

$57,529,070

Company Credits

Production Co:

Columbia Pictures

Technical Specs

Runtime:

112 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby Stereo Dolby Atmos Dolby Digital

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1