Sunday, August 16, 2015

ML's Worth a Watch: Straight Outta Compton




The weekend after I got back from my vacation, we wanted to go to see the Minions movie, but unfortunately it was only playing in 3D. I’ve seen one movie in 3D (Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles) and almost had to leave because I felt so nauseous. I had to keep alternating between wearing the 3D glasses and taking them off, just to get through the show. Going to the movies is expensive enough without the added cost for the enhanced screens, so not being able to enjoy it was quite disappointing. Now I either opt to watch movies in regular format or just wait until they come out on DVD. Needless to say we didn’t end up seeing the Minions that night and last weekend was too busy to try again. Friday night however we finally got our date night and saw Straight Outta Compton. 


Title: Straight Outta Compton
Director: F. Gary Gray
Genre: Drama, Biography, Music
Released: August 14 2015
Rating: R
Staring:  O’Shea Jackson Jr., Corey Hawkins, Jason Mitchell, Paul Giamatti
Synopsis from IMDB:
 The group NWA emerges from the streets of Compton, California in the mid-1980s and revolutionizes Hip Hop culture with their music and tales about life in the hood.

My Thoughts:
It turns out we saw this on opening weekend, which would explain why the theater was packed and we were left sitting in the very front row breaking our necks. We thought of leaving, but in the end we were glad we stayed because this movie was great. Sure I knew who N.W.A was and I am quite familiar with the more current careers of Dr. Dre and Ice Cube, but I can’t say that I knew much about them or how they got their start. Starting in the mid-80’s, Straight Outta Compton chronicles how they rose from the dangerous streets of California, to fame and hardships ending with the death of Eazy-E. When I heard that this movie was going to be released, I knew that I wanted to see it. I am glad that I read Ice-T’s book Ice: A Memoir of Gangster Life and Redemption.. earlier this year because it touched on many of the same struggles the guys in N.W.A faced including; police brutality in L.A. and just how much of an impact their music had on the culture. This is a story that needed to be told again and again, especially to an audience who were too young (or not even born) during the formative years of their careers. Another point worth mentioning about Straight Outta Compton, is that the actor who played the role of Ice Cube, is in fact the son of the rapper turned actor himself. Can’t get any closer to the man than that eh?
My Rating: 4/5.
Recommended For: Mature audiences and fans of musical biographies. 


1 comment:

  1. With RentalCars you can discover the most affordable car rental at over 49000 locations globally.

    ReplyDelete