I
love ‘hood classics’ and both Menace II
Society and Boyz n the Hood fit
the bill. If you are unfamiliar with ‘hood
classics,’ see the following: Juice, New
Jack City, Paid in Full, among other great movies. In my opinion, ‘hood classics’ tell important
stories about inner city life in various ghettos across the country. By ghetto, I mean an impoverished, crime
ridden neighborhood. Which movie is
better? I will attempt to solve that
question based on the following: (1) Plot, (2) Acting, and (3) Favorite scene.
Menace II
Society
is a movie about a group of young, inner city friends growing up Los Angeles
during the turbulent, violent 1990’s.
The movie follows the intertwined lives of the friends as they finish
high school. Some of the group members
planned to go to college, while others planned to stay in their neighborhoods. Other members, still, planned to leave California and
start their lives anew elsewhere. Some
were successful in their quests, while others were not so lucky.
Boyz n the Hood is another 1990’s
movie chronicling the lives of a group of teenage friends from South Central,Los
Angeles. The friends had different
perspectives on life and how it should be lived. The one constant fact among the friends seemed to be that each person understood how prevelant discrimination was during the 1990’s. The movie even touches on police brutality
and intra-race discrimination. Again,
some members experienced success, while others were devoured by the mean
streets of South Central, Los Angeles.
The
plots in both movies are really good, but I have to give the edge to Boys n the Hood.
Menace II
Society: 7/10
Boyz n the Hood: 9/10
Of
the two movies, Menace II Society employed the least inexperienced cast. That
said, I think the Menace cast did an
excellent job.. Larenz Tate played O-Dog,
and I think he absolutely owned his performance. He is an underrated actor, but he has yet to
land that breakthrough performance that can catapult his career to the next
level. This role was a long way from his
role in Inkwell, but he managed to
pull it off with flying colors. MC Eight
also did an excellent job portraying his role as A-Wax. Ironically, or maybe not ironically, MC Eight
is a former gang member and an older hip
hop artist. He is an OG in reality, and I
think that authenticity made his performance that much more believable. Tyrin Turner played the role of Caine, who
was a man torn between the street life and a life with beautiful Ronnie, played
by Jada Pinkett. He is another actor who
has not been able to land roles in big time movies. His character in Belly is memorable because of that ridiculous wig he wore. In Menace,
his character represents what happens when people “live by the gun.” This tragic role has been played out on the
big screen in so many movies including: Scarface,
Carlito’s Way, Goodfellas, New Jack City and so many more great
movies. Caine is my favorite character
in the movie.
Boyz n the Hood had the more well known,
polished cast. Cuba Gooding Jr. played
Tre Styles who represented a guy who grew up in ‘the hood,’, but wanted more
for himself than the hood could offer. He
was blessed in the sense that he had a strong father who kept him on the right track. Furious Styles, played by Laurence Fishburne, represented the educated
man who still lives in the hood, not because he has to, but because he believes he can make a difference in his community. He taught Tre how to become a man in an
environment filled with gang violence, police brutality and overt racial discrimination.
Angela Bassett played Reva Styles, who was Tre’s mother who was educated,
sophisticated and loving. She made the
hard decision of allowing Tre move in with Furious as he was becoming a teenager
because she could not “teach him how to be a man.” She is one of my favorite characters as well. Ricky is played by Morris Chestnut and he was
Tre’s best friend and big time high school football star. His character represents a good guy who dies
in the hood because he was in the wrong place at the wrong time. That happens too often (See Trayvon Martin). My favorite character, however, is Doughboy who
was played by Ice Cube. Doughboy represents
that person who lives and breathes the hood.
He is my favorite character because he was also probably the most loyal,
caring person in the movie. As hard as
he was on Ricky, he protected him in his own way and he did what he believed
had to be done to avenge his death.
The
acting in both movies is good, but I give the edge to the Boyz n the Hood cast.
Menace II
Society:
8/10
Boyz n the Hood: 9/10
Both
movies have great scenes, and it was very difficult to choose just one from
each movie. That said, here is my
attempt:
From Menace II Society. This scene symbolizes the point of the movie when Caine's life changed forever.
From Boyz in the Hood. This scene foreshadowed one of the most famous, and saddest scenes in recent history. RICKY!!!!!!!!
Both movies have many great scenes. I think this a tie.
Menace II Society: 9/10
Boyz n the Hood: 9/10
Follow the Gentleman's Report
Peace
What think the crucifix represented in the movie Menace 2 Society?
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