Menace II Society

MENACE II SOCIETY (18)

D: Allen Hughes & Albert Hughes

New Line (Darin Scott)

US 1993

97 mins

Drama/Crime

W: Tyger Williams

DP: Lisa Rinzler

Ed: Christopher Koefoed

Mus: QDIII

Tyrin Turner (Kaydee 'Caine' Lawson), Jada Pinkett (Ronnie), Larenz Tate (Kevin 'O Dog' Odum), Samuel L. Jackson (Tat Lawson), Glenn Plummer (James 'Pernell' Richards)

A gloomier, grittier cousin to Boyz N The Hood, set on the rough streets of Los Angeles as rival gangs settle scores against each other while one member tries to better his life and get out of the crime-ridden neighbourhood.

A far more depressing movie than John Singleton's aforementioned 1991 breakthrough, this film presents a harsh reality which it doesn't shy away from with its warts-and-all approach from The Hughes Brothers, who made their own breakthrough with this.

Not an easy watch, but some might say it's an important one. Personally, I think Boyz N The Hood had a more uplifting message, whereas this is more forceful with its approach, as though the filmmakers wanted to subject the viewers to an attack to make them take notice of how tough life in the L.A. ghettos can be.

7/10