member Cube in his acting debut contributed to the film’s credibility and authenticity among young audiences, while also providing enhanced exposure for hip-hop artists who contributed to the films’ soundtracks.Īs gangsta rap went mainstream, it paved the way for the film’s wider acceptance. Vividly portraying the hood as an environment of constant violence where the threat of danger was commonplace, it introduced a narrative paired with visuals that Singleton would affirm in “Boyz.” The casting of N.W.A. released “Straight Outta Compton” as its debut studio album in August 1988. Along with fellow West Coast fathers of gangsta rap, N.W.A., the track helped establish “the hood” as an important term in discourse around the lives of young black men and women across the country.Ī year later, N.W.A. “Boyz” arrived at a time when there was a real hunger for the story it told, and its strong connection to rap and hip-hop culture was integral to its success. Five years prior to the film’s release, late legendary gangsta rapper, Eazy-E recorded “Boyz-n-the-Hood” as his debut single in 1987. And in 1996, the Wayans brothers produced a parody movie, “Don’t Be a Menace to South Central While Drinking Your Juice in the Hood.” However, “Boyz” had already cemented its place in history. In response, Spike Lee would direct a 1995 drama, “Clockers,” that he said he made to put a nail in the coffin on hood films. It effectively gave birth to what came to be known as the “hood film” sub-genre, which went on to include “South Central” (1992), “Menace II Society” (1993), “Juice” (1992), “Sugar Hill,” (1993), “Dead Presidents” (1995), and “Friday” (1995).Īs the sub-genre flooded the market, their target African American audience wearied of them. (He even turned down a $100,000 offer to turn over the script to another director.) Columbia Pictures eventually got behind it and “Boyz” became the first film about L.A.’s “hood strife” with an all-black cast, written and directed by a black filmmaker, and bankrolled by a major Hollywood studio. The trajectory of the film’s lead character, Tre, resembled that of Singleton’s who, as an unruly pre-teen, was sent by his mother to live with his strict disciplinarian father.įrom the start, Singleton insisted that, despite his inexperience, his “Boyz n the Hood” script could be directed by only one person: himself.

It was one of the first instances of a young black filmmaker tackling the challenging issues of his generation, including the disruption of family, gang wars, and addiction. John Singleton, “LA Burning: 25 Years Later”Ī coming-of-age story set in South Central, the film traces the emotional development of three childhood friends: Tre Styles (Cuba Gooding Jr) Doughboy, his gang-member friend (Ice Cube) and Ricky Baker, a budding football star (Morris Chestnut, in his first feature role).

Soldier boyz cast