The Film
It has been 20 years since John Singleton's Boyz N the Hood was released, and after all these years the film still offers a compelling look inside a very different American neighborhood. The story in many ways mirrors the characters -- going nowhere slowly -- but that's sort of the point. Tre (Cuba Gooding Jr.) hopes to get out of "the hood," while his friends Doughboy (Ice Cube) passes his days drinking and selling drugs, and other friend Ricky (Morris Chestnut) hopes to use football to obtain a better life. There is no major revelation expected, making some of the later plot twists all the more powerful. It is in essence a coming of age film where violence and uncertainly serve as a backdrop, and where that violence means not everyone will get out of the hood alive.
The Picture
While colors seem accurate with a lot of muted shades and tones to show the bleakness of the situation, the film really deserves better. Visually this one seems stuck in the past, and the 1080p 1:85.1 transfer is downright grainy and soft. While some scenes look vivid and clear, most have noise and other visual distractions that take away from the viewing experience. Additionally, the black levels are muted as well, with nighttime scenes proving difficult to distinguish details. The film was shot on a limited budget and unfortunately it shows.
The Sound
The 5.1 DTS-HD Master Audio soundtrack is a bit better than the picture in terms of overall quality. Dialog comes through clear, but the audio is light on ambient sounds from the hood. It is almost completely silent, sans sounds of cars or the noise of a city, until gunfire erupts. Maybe this was the intention of the director, but even the gunfire lacks the expected punch. Guns tend to be loud, and none of the shots have the intensity that matches the energy on the screen.
The Extras
Sony noted in the press materials that this was the 20th anniversary of the release of the film, but the packaging makes no significant mention of this fact. It even shows in the limited bonus material, much of which seems somewhat recycled. There is a commentary with director Singleton, but it sounds like a rehash from an earlier release. The bonus material, including the Friendly Fire featurette, which is in SD, is dated, while the audition videos and deleted scenes, as well as music video are also nothing new. The one featurette "The Enduring Significance of Boyz N the Hood" is about the most interesting bonus material, but even this seems several years old.
Final Thoughts
John Singleton's film, which was very much a retelling of his own personal experiences, was quite ground-breaking in 1991. 20 years later, given the films that have been made since, Boyz N the Hood has lost some of its power. Still it is hard to imagine how TV series such as The Wire could have ever existed had Singleton not paved the way from the hood.
Product Details
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