Straight Outta Compton (2024)

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Critic Reviews for Straight Outta Compton

Audience Reviews for Straight Outta Compton

• Jul 06, 2017

  Wow, Great, impressive film. I found it riveting, relentless and and at times edgy. Maybe it's bias on my part because I followed the group and the artists that are portrayedin the film, but "Straight out of Compton " impressed me such as easily being one of the best films I've seen this year. Straight Outta Compton tells of the controversial group NWA that emerges from the rough urban streets of Compton in Los Angeles, Californiain the mid-1980s and who created, developed, and revolutionize Hip Hop culture with their very controversial music in the form of 'gangsta' rapand also presenting the tales of life in the 'hood.' Compton' was already very intriguing to me because I followed the group and a couple of the artists who later became very popular in the hip hopworld and eventually Hollywood movies, I was already clued in how the group was created and formed,.. how it was decided what would be their format,approach and style, how they would come to form their identity, who would be the lead singers, what they had to endure from FCC, and tales of their ownbrutal encounter with corrupted local law enforcement, I thought about the irony timing to which controversial law enforcement seems frequentlyin the news nowadays. The movie pretty much displays some of their true to life details of how the group tried to stay together when outside (and inside) forces attempt to corrupt and break apart the group. Egos, contract disputes, How they were being pursued and forced to have their music lyrics censored.How they help heightened and bring along an entirely new brand style of rap (gangsta rap) when at the time the lesser "fun" toned hip-hop rap (ala "kid n' play", Kool Mo Dee, Fresh Prince Wil Smith, etc.) were still on the scene. It told of how Ice cube ended up parting on bad terms with 'Ruthless' productions (Dre, Eazy E) they even brought up historic moments suchas Rodney King, and major LA city riot crisis. Then there's introduction of legendary hip hop rappers Tupac Shakar, (played by Marc Rose) Snoop Dog ( played by Keith Stanfield) , the horror stories of the Scandals and corruption of Death Row Productions - and how Row's ruthless executive producer Shug Knight (who is currently on trial for murder) tried to manipulate Dre, Ice Cube and threaten Easy E and his managers, etc. Knight was brilliantly portrayed by R.Marcos Taylor. And of course, eventual fateful, sad demise and end of star Eric Wright (Aka Eazy E.) I was so impressed with how the film was constantly going and rolling, never really seem to have a slow-drag moment, I liked the way the actors/group memberswas introduced in the beginning credits, I like how a particular rap song was broken down to define/explain the lyrical wording. Great pace, great intrigue, great characters that either had you laughing with humor or captivated with their emotional moments towhere I was hype with anxiousness to see what was going to happen from one scene to the next..From being to end it kept me the viewing audience totally engaged. It made little mention of how the group decided on wearing the color black andsports related paraphilia the recording sessions scenes are not in the league of " Hustle & Flow " and it's edited down to give you a brief tease of the songsSuch that it stayed with me, and had me thinking about it a lot even after I left the theater, and flat out gave me the desire to so very much see it again to see it again immediately. Overall such a brilliant combination of direction, script write, cinematography and very solid acting performances that turned this film into a masterpiece:I thought it was excellent direction by Felix Gary Gray, terrific acting performances by front running stars of the cast crew,- especially by Jason Mitchell (as Easy E.) Corey Hawkins as Dr. Dre, ...O'Shea Jackson Jr.- who portrays his real live father Ice Cube's- and who draws such an astounding looking resemblance to his father 'til it's ridiculously scary. and Paul Giamatti as manager Jerry Heller. Mitchell brought energy and charismatic presence, both as inspiring leader and emotional tragedy, his role and performance blew me awaythe further the movie and dramatics grew. The connection between he and his manager Jerry was a big noteworthy element to the film. Maybe this type of film is not going to be for everyone's interest, but for me, and how it was presented, kept rolling and was so very well scriptedand well performed, it was sheer delight. I can't think of a biopic made film about a musical group that made any better than this.This film will really stay with you after you've seen it. On a scale of 1 to 10 , I'd give it an 9.0

  Super Reviewer

• Jun 26, 2016

  Having no interest in hip-hop or rap music, Straight Outta Compton is a biopic about the hip-hop group N.W.A and how their upbringing was translated into their music and how their songs influenced the world. Going into this film, I knew absolutely nothing about the N.W.A so was very apprehensive...but whoa, I did not see this coming! This was a great biopic, such confidence direction from Gray and absolutely fantastic performances from the main cast. I was invested in each member's backstory and heck, I even enjoyed the music! An excellent story on how you should pursue your aspirations and the importance of the freedom of speech. At 147 minutes, it is a long film and re-watchability is limited but its definitely worth watching. Also want to mention the end credits sequence and showing what the members have done with their lives since, it was a nice touch.

  Super Reviewer

• Apr 28, 2016

  It's exhaustive, so the bigger the fan you are, the more you'll get out of it.

  Super Reviewer

• Mar 12, 2016

  Straight Outta Compton is a powerful film about the rise of the music group NWA and gangster rap. It begins in the mid-80s in Compton, California, with Easy-E and Dr. Dre forming NWA with Ice Cube, MC Ren and DJ Yella, and follows the group as they tour and draw from their life experience to create their music; but before long conflicting egos and arguments over money breaks up the group. The performances are really good and the director does a great job at keeping the film moving and balancing the focus between the various subplots. Additionally, the music is used quite effectively; covering the major hits of NWA and the various musical styles of its members. An extraordinarily well-made film, Straight Outta Compton delivers an inside look into one of the most influential groups in defining rap music of the '80s & '90s.

  Super Reviewer