The group’s interactions with the police are the best parts, and unironically, the most timely. Instead of condensing, this builds condensation, watering down the intermittently powerful scenes to chewy wafers with no crisp texture and no defining qualities. Condense the story, grab whichever angle best conveys your theme, and run wild with it. Which is disconcerting, because with this length, with this many storylines, Straight Outta Compton might as well have been a HBO miniseries (and I’ll bet a damn good one at that.) Politics, gangs, squabbles, partying, money problems, disloyal management. They sought a sort of uprising through peaceful anarchy. This is a group that had a clear goal in mind. It’s also undeniable how stupidly and puzzlingly long this film is. N.W.A’s influence and power, then and now, is undeniable. Their reality rap, their art, took hold of the youth in an era of forgettable slow jams. One scene in particular stands out, showing the racial profiling and mistreatment by law enforcement officers that led to the recording of the infamous track “F*** the Police” is key. Watching the creative process, the Behind the Music of these three young leads gives depth and background to songs we’ve heard and sung along with. MC Ren and DJ Yella linger about, but are never integral to the plot. Dre ( Corey Hawkins) and Eazy-E ( Jason Mitchell). Plenty are involved in their emergence, with three playing the most pivotal roles. Straight Outta Compton’s first half is a wonder and a delight, watching these three young men find a voice not only for themselves, but for their community. How can you love a movie that ducks, darts, and does everything in its power to escape you? Straight Outta Compton is overwrought with ideas and amorphous in its execution.Īs I’m sure you already know, the story covers the rise and the fall of rap supergroup N.W.A. Some films can be broad while sustaining context others must walk the straight and narrow path. But this biopic lacks the power to transport, has no specificity in what it wants to share or to convey. And while I personally cannot attest to its truthfulness, it still feels incredibly honest. If you walked the streets of Compton, protested in the Rodney King riots, or witnessed the unlawful acts and injustices against minorities, then this movie is for you. You know who will love this film? The people who were present in the depicted time. Straight Outta Comptonis a good bad movie, an attempted thinkpiece that would prefer if you just close your mind off altogether. “Speak a little truth and people lose their minds.”
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