I Heard From A Friend Today and She Said You Were In Town...

I was thinking how many movies in the 90s were a little raw and less like how slick the movies look now- its not a huge difference but it is slightly noticeable. Or maybe it was me. Maybe I liked the raw movies that portrayed angst because thats how I felt at the time (mid-90s anyway).

I was watching Poetic Justice the other day (yes, again) and it brought back so many memories. Interestingly enough, this movie was made in 1992- in 1992 I was only 11. I think I saw it (when I was at least 14 or 15) at my dad's house because he had cable- which is very exciting for someone who wasn't allowed to watch MTV (well at leat I wasn't supposed to- which of course made me the music video queen that I am today). Like most John Singleton movies- Poetic Justice takes place in South Central LA- and at the time the LA riots had just happened. So there was some tension around that time but it only made the movie more real. I can't exactly explain why I love this movie other than it gave me hope. Hope that even if everyone you had ever loved was taken from you- you could still find love. Believe me- I hate love stories and mushiness- but Poetic Justice has none of the filler that sappy love stories have. I enjoy the real humor and the messiness of the characters lives and the overall performances of the cast.

If you haven't seen a John Singleton movie, I suggest you watch his first three films as I think they are the best ones- Boyz n the Hood, Poetic Justice, and Higher Learning. I think the thing that intrigues me about his movies are that he treats every character with a respect that most people in bad neighborhoods rarely receive in Hollywood. Usually urban people are treated as ghetto riff-raff or as sub-class humans, but in Singleton movies they are real people with good and bad points and highs and lows- they are who they are- everyone can relate to that.