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Initial Thought: I didn't know much about N.W.A. to be honest. I only knew about the three main members. I didn't even know who MC Ren or DJ Yella were. All I know is the trailer was awesome and the I was familiar with a few songs of theirs. So when it came to my theater I set out for it immediately.
Characters/Acting: Sure it would have been cool to have all the next generation of these rappers play their fathers, but honestly that wouldn't have been all that logical. Not everybody has that acting charm that can pull off a movie like this. O'Shea Jackson Jr. was just an exception because of how brilliantly he performed. It was as if he was Ice Cube himself. It's quite haunting. I could have sworn that cloning was truly discovered and this guy is none other than Ice Cube's very own clone. He had the facial reactions, the rapping, the personality, the voice, and was just overall the perfect match to pull off the role. Corey Hawkins played Dr. Dre so well also. Every time he was onscreen he mastered the performance. His demeanor was spot on for a young Dre. Jason Mitchell shines bright as Eazy-E. Who knew that he had struggled through so much in life. His performance here is definitely that worthy of an Oscar nomination. You see the way his life changed so drastically and he didn't realize the repercussions of the decisions he was making. The scenes dealing with his AIDS were heartbreaking. I wish we had the chance to get more of a feeling for MC Ren and DJ Yella, but they both did get a few moments that added to the story. Man Suge Knight was a monster! I mean if that stuff happened the way it's portrayed here that man has serious issues. Paul Giamatti as the manager Jerry was excellent. We will never know the exact truth of what went down. Or maybe we do seeing as the real manager hates the way he is depicted here, but refuses to share his end of the story. Even the bit parts here were great like Tomica, Snoop Dogg, Tyree, and Kim. Only thing I would have liked to be added was a young Eminem!
Story: The group NWA emerges from the streets of Compton, California in the mid-1980s and revolutionizes pop culture with their music and tales about life in the hood. It's crazy that they decided to come out with this at this time. We see that times haven't changed all that much to be honest. The Rodney King incident is very much pertinent with what is going on with several cases these days. It seems America hasn't learned a damn thing since the late 80s and early 90s that this film takes place in. I loved the way each member is introduced. The music was of course on point. It was interesting to see how everything started and ended. We got to see Death Row Records, Lynch Mob, Aftermath, and of course Ruthless. I loved seeing the moment where Ice Cube is writing the script for Friday! Also the "Bye Felicia" reference was perfect. There were moments that were just so heartbreaking. I didn't expect this to have much in the way of light-hearted moments, but when it did it was great. It was truly interesting to see how everything went down between each other, the law, and just within their lives. The ending was really powerful and well done. The perfect end for a movie I really wish didn't have to end. This made me laugh, cry, bob my head with the rhythm of the music, and for the most part brought my attention to the times.
Directing/Writing: F. Gary Gray who worked with Ice Cube on Friday directs Cube's son as his father. To me that is pretty awesome. Most of his movies I have liked quite a bit. Be Cool was probably my only disappointment as of yet. He needs to keep making films like this though. The fact that he had the help of producers Ice Cube, Dr. Dre., and Eazy E's wife Tomika helped a bit. In the end though it's his direction that really stands out. So the story was created by S. Leigh Savidge and Alan Wenkus. Both of them haven't really done much. Savidge directed a movie and that's all from him. Wenkus' only other film was written thirty years ago. The script was written by first timer Jonathan Herman and Andrea Berloff of World Trade Center. For basically being unknown the script department was amazing. The jokes, the heartbreak, and pop culture references were all well thought out.
Final Thought: That was fucking amazing. Pardon my French, but that's justifiable for this film. For a film with mostly unknowns/small timers behind and on-screen it was magnificent. If I didn't work at the theater I would have paid the price for this ten fold. It was incredible from start to finish. It's two and a half hours, but I would have sat another two and a half if they decided to tell more. If you haven't seen this one yet I highly recommend giving this your attention.
