Straight Outta Compton

Straight Outta Compton

This movie is the story of the hip hop group N.W.A. and is named after one of their albums.   The original N.W.A. was made up of a group of young black men from Compton, California in the late 80’s and early 90’s.  This was a time when racial tension was high and black men were often assaulted and disrespected by the police for no apparent reason.  The young men were Dr. Dre, Easy E, Ice Cube, DJ Yella, and MC Ren. 

Ice Cube’s son, O’Shea Jackson Jr., fittingly plays him in the movie.  Dr. Dre is played by Corey Hawkins; Easy E is played by Jason Mitchell; DJ Yella is played by Neil Brown; and MC Ren is played by Aldis Hodge.  Paul Giamatti stars as N.W.A.’s manager, Jerry Heller.    The movie tells the story of how the group was formed and their struggles with the police, the world they lived in, and each other. 

Straight Outta Compton is rated R for good reason.  The language is not for young ears and there is nudity.  The acting in this movie was fantastic by all the young men and Paul Giamatti. I especially enjoyed O’Shea Jackson Jr.   Fans of this music genre will enjoy the songs. 

This movie comes out at a time when racism is again at the forefront in our news today.  Hopefully when you watch this movie it will strike a cord and make you realize that racism in any form is bad.   The movie will get mixed reviews from some but does a good job of representing the world as it appeared through the eyes of the African American people during that time. 

I loved everything about this movie and the storyline was strong.  Adults should go and watch this movie.  I gave it 3 ½ out of 4 stars.