To give you a little background on this film
.. it was written and directed by a virtual unknown, Rick Famuyiwa, who apparently is a close acquaintance of the producer, Forest Whitaker. I'm not really sure how Pharrell Williams got involved as executive producer, but that's neither here nor there. I am just glad that more minorities are giving new and upcoming filmmakers a chance to show their craft. This film was nominated at the Cannes and Seattle film festival and actually won the award for editing at the Sundance film festival. I have to agree that the editing on this film was brilliantly done. When this film first started I was a little confused as to what decade I was in. There sat Malcolm (Shameik Moore) with a high-top fade sitting at the kitchen table. Then I spotted the cell phone (which is what confused me). The time period is cleared up rather quickly, so I was relieved by that. This story really is about a nerdy kid, Malcolm and his friends Jib (Tony Revolori) and Diggy (Kiersey Clemons) who find themselves in unfamiliar territory and have to adjust their way of thinking in order deal with the situations that arises. There are many issue that are addressed in this film and there was even one scene that kind of paid homage to The Breakfast Club (which they actually mentioned in the film). There was also a little flavor of Boyz in the Hood and Cooley High (I know I'm dating myself, but oh well). Along the way, Malcolm finds himself head over heels for Nakia (Zoe Kravitz) who is affiliated with a somewhat shady guy (okay, really shady guy) named Dom (Rakim Mayers). This is where the whole mess gets started. One of the main points of the film (there were many) is the kind of expectations that people have of individuals that come out of the hood. As someone who grew up in the hood and "across the tracks" I can attest to that. It was fortunate that I grew up in a military family and was not afraid to leave. Most of the folks I grew up with are either dead, in jail or still live there. I did not think that I would like this film as much as I did. I think that they wrapped it up nicely and with a bit of a twist. I highly recommend this film.
