Classic Movie Pick: ‘Boyz N The Hood’ Offers Authentic Vision Of ’90s Los Angeles

This week’s classic takes us back to 1991 and the city of Los Angeles. The film is “Boyz N The Hood,” which follows the lives of Trey Styles and his friends as they navigate adolescence on the violent streets of LA’s South Central.

The film launched the career of its young leading man Cuba Gooding Jr., who plays Tre, a good student who is shuffled back and forth between his divorced parents before finally landing with his father Furious Styles, played by Lawrence Fishburne. Furious is a no-nonsense disciplinarian doing his best to help his son become a man.

Ice Cube and Morris Chestnut play brothers, Doughboy and Ricky. Ricky is the good-looking, likable star football player and Trey’s best friend. Doughboy is also part of the crew but walks on the wild side.

As part of the movie, Furious does his best to be the father figure to all the boys in the neighborhood, constantly preaching about race, responsibility and self-respect for young men in the Crenshaw neighborhood they all call home. 

The film starts with a 10-year-old Tre learning lessons from his father as Doughboy is hauled off to prison for shoplifting. The story fast forwards seven years later with a backyard barbecue celebrating Doughboy’s release from prison. Always a good student, Trey prepares to head off to college and everything seems on track until he gets dragged into a beef with a neighborhood gang and a horrible tragedy occurs.

Viewers quickly learn how difficult it is to handle any tragedy anywhere, much less one without the guidance of a strong parental figure in one’s life.  

Also part of this talented cast are Regina King, Mia Long and Hollywood legend Angela Bassett, who plays Tre’s mom.

Gooding has had controversy follow him in recent years, but his acting abilities are unquestioned. He took home an Oscar for his role in “Jerry Maguire.”

Director John Singleton learned how to write screenplays while at the University of Southern California and impressed so much that he landed representation with Creative Artists Agency when he was just a sophomore. “Boyz N The Hood” made him an Oscar nominee for Best Screenplay and Best Director. At just 24-years-old, Singleton became the youngest director ever nominated for Best Director and was the first ever black director nominated in the category.

“Boyz N The Hood” not only launched Singleton’s impressive career as a writer-director, but it still stands today as one of the best movies from the ’90s and provides an authentic, real look at what life is like in South Central Los Angeles for people from both sides of the tracks.

Editor’s note: For more movie and entertainment talk, join Pete Schwaba weeknights from 6 p.m. to 8 p .m. for “Nite Lite” on the Civic Media radio network.