Straight Outta Compton

Starring: O'Shea Jackson Jr., Corey Hawkins, Jason Mitchell, Neil Brown Jr., Aldis Hodge, Marlon Yates Jr., R. Marcos Taylor, Alexandra Shipp, Paul Giamatti, Keith Stanfield
Directed by: F. Gary Gray
Rating: R
Genre: Drama
2015

Times Seen:
Tim: 1

Summary: Follows the founding of landmark group N.W.A. as they set the music world on fire.

Review:

Tim: I have to admit, I never expected to discuss an NWA biopic as one of the films of the year. Straight Outta Compton subverts all expectations as it tells a fascinating, informative, entertaining story. I love that the movie was telling a story very much set in the 1980s and 1990s, but it touched on elements of race, class, education, honor, and innovative- all things that are still relevant today. F. Gary Gray was able to tell a story that takes place decades ago but felt fresh and contemporary. This is a great movie.

I knew a little about NWA, Ice Cube, Dr. Dre, and Eazy E, but I never really knew the whole story. This movie was so helpful to give an inside look at how the group was founded and how they controversially changed the music landscape forever. The story is incredibly interesting, as you get to see all these interpersonal dynamics from individuals with big personalities. Part of this film's great success is that while it's informative, it is done in a purely entertaining, enjoyable way. This movie might have been too long at 2.5 hours, but it never feels too long. Truly, when the movie ended, I wanted to see what happened next. That's a rarer and rarer occurrence these days. It speaks volumes about the story told and the ability of the film to endear and connect the audiences to the characters.

The cast is good. O'Shea Jackson Jr. gives a great performance as his dad, Ice Cube. It was brilliant casting because he looks so much like him, but he's also able to give an effective performance. I worried a little that it was a bit of stunt casting, but it ended up being absolutely the right choice. I really enjoyed Jackson Jr.'s performance.Corey Hawkins was okay as Dre, although I didn't love him. He seemed to be able to capture some of the essence of the character, but I wanted more out of him. Jason Mitchell was very strong as Eazy-E and really added to the film. I liked seeing Paul Giamatti, but I just watched him as a corrupt music executive in Love & Mercy, so it was odd seeing him play the same kind of role in two films in the same year. The cast as a whole was very strong and I enjoyed seeing so many famous characters pop up in the film. It was great to see how the characters interacted with Tupac or Snoop Dogg, for example.

At the heart of this film is a story about friendship. That friendship is severely tested due to fame, fortune, glitz and glamour. It's always fascinating to see when a musical group forms, especially when the bonds of friendship are so tight. It made for incredible drama to watch those friendships splinter and shatter, and then get to watch what happened in the aftermath. This movie also spent a lot of time considering race in America, which is still (unfortunately) an incredibly timely issue. Exploring police corruption and violence against the police also (sadly) hit directly home in today's world. It's kind of incredible that this film set in the 1980s came out when so many thees are still so relevant today.

Like many great movies, Straight Outta Compton tells an entertaining story about real people that also reflects the society in which they lived. It's about rappers and that lifestyle, but there's so much to be learned and mined about this time period and what their music meant. I left this movie both thoroughly entertained and enlightened about a remarkable, interesting period in music. I didn't expect this movie to be among the year's best, but it absolutely is.

Rating 1-10
Tim's Rating: 8



If You Enjoyed This Movie, We Recommend: Ray, Walk the Line, Notorious (2009)