Head of State: It's Not A Joke Anymore

I have to admit that I wasn't a big fan of this one when it came out in 2003. Actually it seems like it came out before 2003. That's just how much it flew under my radar. But now that we are a month into the first term of the country's first Black president, this movie deserves a little recognition.
So basically the whole movie is centered around a Black D.C. alderman who gets the Democratic presidential vote. Based on the Republican pick, the Democrats feel like they are going to lose one way or another so they pick lovable and easy to relate to Mays Gilliam to boost their image for the next presidential election. New century or not, of course the running joke is that this Black man could never make it all the way to the White House. About 5 years later, clearly the joke is on the doubters.
Phill Boogie mentioned that he is a fan of Chris Rock's stand-up comedy. I have never really been a fan of his comic style so his movies (Pootie Tang, Down to Earth) just haven't stuck with me. To me, Chris Rock always seems to be shoving the joke at me rather than letting it flow. Unfortunately, this movie fell right in line. It just all seemed so exaggerated and a bit coon-ish to me. I felt like at the time, when people were not entirely sure a Black man could become president, the subject matter was taken a little too lightly for my taste.
Now guys I know you said you liked it because of the closeness that developed to the Obama campaign (the catch phrase), the implications, etc. I'm just not sure that's enough for me to start giving this movie credit. I will admit that it is a great tool for illustrating that anything is possible. However, this movie just did not do it for me.

Looking Back on "Boyz n the Hood"

Once again the Illprofessors have hit me with a film a little bit before my time. However, that is the beauty of movies some times. The good ones live on in infamy, bringing understanding to generations that follow its release. And the bad ones? Well we'll save that one for another post lol.
I've seen this film numerous times but when I watched it again a few nights ago I ended up getting a different look at it. Recently in my film class, the issue of images of Black females in movies has come up. The one thing I noticed in "Boyz n the Hood" was the under representation and/or misrepresentation of Black women. Granted I under it's called "BOYZ" and not "Girlz n the Hood" but the moments where women stand out are not always the best. The main image I picked up on was of Tre's (Cuba Gooding, Jr.) mother, Reva (Angela Bassett). She was a strong woman, raising her son while going back to school for her Master's. She maintained a civil relationship with Tre's father, Furious (Laurence Fishburne), and encouraged a relationship between the two of them. She even made the sound and responsible decision to have Tre move in with Furious once he began to act out in school. She realized that he had reached a point in his life where he needed to learn how to be a man and he could not learn that from his mother. All of that is perfect. It sets a great premise for Tre's story. However, there is a short scene when Tre is on the phone with Brandi (Nia Long) and his mother calls. When the scene changes to her setting, she is in a much better apartment than what she had several years before. I felt that this small portion of the movie sent a message that for a woman to truly succeed, she has to give up certain responsibilities (in this case, raising her son). The scene continues to an argument between Furious and Reva as she expresses her desire for Tre to move back in with her now that she is settled. Furious makes comments about her not being able to just uproot him and how he's a man now and so on.
I do not think that John Singleton purposely painted Reva this way (or at least I hope not). Maybe he meant for viewers to interpret her as they saw fit. I saw a woman being shut out of the process. Once Tre moved in with his father, there were no more references to the work that she put in when it came to providing a foundation for him. It is almost as if the film alludes to that fact that being a man means ignoring any female influence in your life. Maybe I'm being a little sensitive to the issue but it definitely caught my eye. The portrayl of Reva sent a powerful hidden message to me.
Overall, I love "Boyz n the Hood". It's by far a classic in the Black community and it achieved waht it set out to do. I know I'll be watching this with my nephew and my nieces and some day in the not so near future my kids.