An Excellent Film!

Rating: Null/10 (13 August 2015)

Making a biopic is no easy accomplishment. There are always going to be yells that certain people, places, things were left out or shown in a bad light,etc. There's no guarantee that the filmmakers will have the blessing from the actual living persons or estate. There is the chance that the person or persons cast won't be able to convince the audience. And of course, can the filmmakers pull the whole thing off? In the particular case of Straight Outta Compton, there's no need to worry from the audience or the cast and crew. It's phenomenal. With only one known entity, albeit an amazing one, director F. Gary Gray (Law Abiding Citizen, Be Cool), screenwriters Jonathan Herman, Andrea Berloff and the entire filmmaking team used almost all unknown actors and zeroed in on a group, time, and place that unfortunately and uncannily is still relevant to this day.
Straight Outta Compton is the story of the groundbreaking rap group known as N.W.A. The group started in the mid-80′s with the hardscrabble life of growing up with gang violence, drugs, and police brutality as their backdrop. Using their street knowledge, talent for writing, sound mixing, rapping, and some capital courtesy of one of the members, N.W.A. set themselves apart from other groups and styles of the time. Dr. Dre, MC Ren, DJ Yella, Ice Cube and Easy E combined infectious beats with incendiary rhymes to give a voice to a generation of urban youth who were waiting for someone to tell it like it is.
From the opening scene, the die is cast that Straight Outta Compton is going to be an intense, detailed slice of life. A police tank equipped with a battering ram knocks down the whole front of a house and knocks a woman all the way across the room. It's not overseas, it's in the 'hood. It's a powerful scene and amazingly done. Counter that with Dr. Dre (Corey Hawkins) laying on his back, headphones on, amongst albums strewn across the floor. He's listening to a Roy Ayers classic, deep in thought, then his mom turns off the record player killing his vibe. The movie is rife with these kinds of details, including Jheri curls and activator.
This being a film about a musical group, it would be remiss if there was no mention about the score and soundtrack. Straight Outta Compton not only has N.W.A.'s music, it also has R&B, soul, jazz, and some disco. The music is there and it sounds really good from a quality perspective. Kudos to the music and sound people.
The film is rich with characters. Each member of the group gets his due and others that were on the periphery get a nod. Props to Cindy Tolan for the casting choices because to mention everyone in this review would be difficult and to single out certain performances is almost impossible. This is especially true for viewers who might not be familiar with who is who. For instance, N.W.A.'s encounter and dealings with Marion "Suge Knight. R. Marcos Taylor not only looks like the imposing, maniacal, mountain of a man, his performance is menacingly spot on. However, because Straight Outta Compton centers for the most part on Easy E, Dr. Dre, Ice Cube, and their manager Jerry Heller, the spotlight is on them. Making these characters come to life and leaving an indelible impression on you is the work of Jason Mitchell, the aforementioned Corey Hawkins, O'Shea Jackson Jr., and Paul Giamatti, respectively. It was a stroke of near genius and enormous confidence to shoot a 2 1/2 hr film about rappers with unknowns and then ask Giamatti (John Adams!) to sign on. The scenes involving these actors are funny, poignant, and intense. None more so than when the group is outside the recording studio and get harassed by the police, or finally getting Easy E to step into the sound booth. All four of these actors deserve recognition but especially Mitchell and Giamatti.
For those who might not like rap or to be more specific "gangsta" rap, the film is more than that. From start to finish Straight Outta Compton is an amazing film. Timing is everything and with what is going on right now in society, makes it that much more profound.