Menace II Society (1993)

Featured Audience Ratings

• Coxxie M

  
  "yea, ima git a double burger... and some fries.." "ay, ay, nigga what da fuck i say? wit cheese, mutha fucka, wit cheese!"

• danny d

  
  just short of boyz in the hood as an urban drama with real chops, the film is a bit more reliant on entertaiment than reality than boyz in the hood is. overall however, the film also boasts great performances from nobody's and sells its message better than almost any film of… More
  just short of boyz in the hood as an urban drama with real chops, the film is a bit more reliant on entertaiment than reality than boyz in the hood is. overall however, the film also boasts great performances from nobody's and sells its message better than almost any film of this genre. worthwhile for any film fan but excellent for fans of the genre.

• Aaron N

  
  Grocery Store Man: I feel sorry for your mother. O-Dog: What'd you say about my mama? A ghetto drama about a young hustler who was equipped to have a better life if he was raised in a different environment. Instead, with the friends and role models available to him, the life… More
  Grocery Store Man: I feel sorry for your mother. O-Dog: What'd you say about my mama? A ghetto drama about a young hustler who was equipped to have a better life if he was raised in a different environment. Instead, with the friends and role models available to him, the life of crime pays its tolls on him. The darker side of a coin that would have Boyz in the Hood on the other side. Some energetic performances and authentic dialog mixed with the very well handled visual style by the Hughes Brothers make this a very watchable film about unfortunate characters. Tyrin Turner stars as Caine, the protagonist of the film. He is not much of a hero, though likable in a way. He spends his days as a young drug dealer, mostly going around the hood with his best friend O-Dog, played really well by Larenz Tate, who tends to lose his temper at nearly any situation. While not completely plot less, the film more or less lets us spend a few months with Caine, as he participates in some stupid crimes, learns a bit from the various mentors in his life, and essentially tries to come to terms with what he thinks it is to be a man. Despite how vulgar and very heavy on the use of two particular words the film was, the way the characters living in Watts speak always rings true. Nothing in the way the characters act ever feels false. Its certainly a good way for the film to keep its tone together, as well as providing for bother very real and sometimes very humorous exchanges. This is especially the case for the dynamic between other characters and Sharif, the one character opting away from crime life, being educated, despite hanging with the rest of these people. Sharif: What's up, black man? Caine: Coolin'. Man, why you got that goddamn hood on your head, lookin' like the Grim Reaper? Sharif: It's cold out here, my brother. You know us black folks not used to this cold air. We a tropical people, you understand? Let them Europeans deal with this madness. Caine: Then why your tropical ass sittin' on the goddamn cooler? Sharif: To keep you fools from drinking this poison. That's why. Caine: Man, you better get your Shelenkem-Shilom ass up off this box and pass me a motherfuckin' brew. Most impressive in this film was the direction by the Hughes Brothers. Twins who had come off of music videos at the time, they were only 21 when they finished making this film, and their work here is very impressive. The use of color schemes, camera movement, editing, and other visual tricks to keep up a certain momentum and hold together this film was interesting and intriguing throughout. Its wandering story and overall depressing factors certainly don't make it a film I need to revisit anytime soon, but its made and acted very well, which certainly warrants it a good rating. ...Oh, and watch out for Sam Jackson's brief appearance with his Afro. [Caine Lawson reflecting after being shot] Caine: After stomping on Ilena's cousin like that, I knew I was gonna have to deal with that fool someday. Damn! I never thought he'd come back like this, blasting. Like I said, it was funny like that in the hood sometimes. I mean you never knew what was gonna happen or when. I've done too much to turn back, and I've done too much to go on. I guess in the end it all catches up with you. My grandpa asked me one time if I care whether I live or die. Yeah, I do. Now it's too late.

• Anthony L

  
  Better than Boyz in da hood, this is gritty and real. There is not one hint of Hollywood or Disney, it?s a long hard look at the true nature of the Hood.

• xGary X

  
  Tyrin Turner stars as Caine, son of a drug dealer and junkie, raised by his grandparents in the projects and typical product of the 'hood. The Hughes brothers' film of life on the LA streets is one of the many released after the burgeoning mainstream popularity of hip hop in… More
  Tyrin Turner stars as Caine, son of a drug dealer and junkie, raised by his grandparents in the projects and typical product of the 'hood. The Hughes brothers' film of life on the LA streets is one of the many released after the burgeoning mainstream popularity of hip hop in the early 1990s. It is a film with a message, namely that the same cycle of crime and violence is repeated through the mistakes of each generation and a youth without hope inevitably turns to crime as an "easy" way to escape poverty. The film is inevitably a little dated and there is a certain level of glamorization, the love scene in particular coming across as a chart R'n B video. The main flaw is in the fact that the characters are so self centred and obnoxious that it's difficult to care about them, but I guess that's also part of the message; take away a man's respect for himself and others and you take away his reason to live. It certainly has some good moments and it's well intentioned but the dialogue is a stream of cliched ghetto speak and the ending very contrived. Well worth a look, but Dead Presidents' more mature and involved approach makes it far superior film.

• Lady D

  
  I was really into these type of films in the 90's when I was in my early teens, it really does seem quite dated now. An enjoyable nostalgic watch, but nowhere near as good as I remembered it.

• EightThirty .

  
  Brace yourself when U watch this!

• Dean !

  
  A very good if extremely violent crime film. Similar to Boyz N the hood it charts the life of a young man in the LA hood. Great performances and very dramatic.

• Michael S

  
  Powerful.

• Michael G

  
  I only saw it once but I remember loving it. Anybody want a cheeseburger?

• Fascade F

  
  A classic urban tale of teenage life in the 'hood of urban L.A....deep, meaningful, and realistically tragically true in some areas. good and gritty to watch.

• Greg A

  
  The main character Cain made me think to myself "so this is what it would be like if Boyz N The Hood's main character was Doughboy instead of Tre Styles."

• Marcus W

  
  I have huge respect for the Hughes Brothers as skilled directors, and this is evident here, so the two are stars are for them. Sadly, the film as a whole doesn't go anywhere you don't imagine it will, and rightfully stands in the shadow of the superior Boyz N The Hood.

• Brian R

  
  Awesome film. Menace II Society plays in very much the same with the 1990 movie Goodfellas. Laurenz Tate steals the show in this picture who draws in comparison to Joe Peschi. The Hughes Brothers this is a major achievement in filmmaking I could feel they were in such command with the… More
  Awesome film. Menace II Society plays in very much the same with the 1990 movie Goodfellas. Laurenz Tate steals the show in this picture who draws in comparison to Joe Peschi. The Hughes Brothers this is a major achievement in filmmaking I could feel they were in such command with the camera work with voice narration, music soundtracks, and tough life lessons. This is a great film.

• Lee K

  
  good in the hood type movie, that shows how scary it would be to live in south central

• Christopher B

  
  It seems that this film has been largely forgotten, but this is really a great film by 2 really talented filmmakers. When this came out I remember it being thought of as the nastier version of Boys 'N the Hood.

• Miriam K

  
  incredibly gritty indy film...Larenz Tate "before he was famous".

Read all 17 featured audience ratings