John Singleton’s Boyz N the Hood. Short Review

One of the most socially relevant stories in today's society is that of “Boyz N the Hood” by John Singleton. Despite the fact that the film was made fifteen years ago, many of the themes that are depicted are still relevant in modern society given the nature of current sociological issues and the relevance of problems such as racism and the systemic disenfranchisement of the African-American population in the United States. “Boyz N the Hood” follows the story of several young black men in South Central, Los Angeles, during the tumultuous period of the 1990s.

(Barboza, 22) While it can be said that many individuals in this era and in the modern era face the effects of racism, it is often the case that their stories and the overarching nature of the problem as a whole go undocumented or poorly recognized. One of the most powerful aspects of “Boyz N the Hood” is the authentic portrayal of life in urban America that the black community must experience.

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(Barboza, 24) Director John Singleton chooses to expose the various causes and ramifications of racism and impoverished, urban life by depicting the lives of the boys in “Boyz N the Hood.” (Barboza, 27)

The story follows three characters: Doughboy, Tre and Ricky, as they experience various scenarios of life in the “hood.” As Singleton illustrates, one of the most important aspects of the development of children, especially boys, is the presence of a father. (Sackett, 14) This is a thematic element that Singleton integrates in many regards, to show the implications of the ghetto atmosphere and the consequences of life in the urban setting of Los Angeles.

Tre is sent to live with his father in South Central as a result of getting in trouble in school, but when he moves there, he finds that his focus is on surviving, and not just learning. (Barboza, 29) Despite this, the presence of his father juxtaposes the lack of a father figure for Doughboy and Ricky.

Singleton uses these types of juxtapositions to illustrate the chaotic nature of life in the urban ghetto, and as a result, the thematic approach that he incorporates is largely centered around the dissolution of the traditional family structure that black families experience, due to the issues that are associated with impoverished life. (Sackett, 22) Doughboy's violent tendencies occur while he is a young child still, and without a positive role model, he is quickly exposed to and must rely on gang violence and selling drugs to survive. (Sackett, 12) As a result of these behaviors, he has already been forced to serve time in a jail by the time that he reaches age seventeen. Ricky becomes the embodiment of the teenage pregnancy epidemic among young African-Americans, in the sense that he becomes a father while still in high school. (Barboza, 31) Singleton paints a troubling, but realistic picture of how dismal life is for many children in these environments through Ricky, who's only viable option to leave the ghetto comes in the form of a football scholarship.

There is a cycle that Singleton illustrates in the desertion of children by their fathers. The embodiment of the cultural and social issues surrounding these environments is manifested through the psychological and economic reasons that many of these fathers abandon their children. This in itself comprises how Singleton discusses the issues that many African-Americans experience, and why he addresses these issues in the film. It is often the case that these types of stories go undocumented or overlooked and they involve a large portion of citizens across the United States. Many of the issues that affect impoverished African-Americans in urban areas such as Los Angeles involve drugs, gang violence, assault, rape and robbery, and these crimes occur largely due to desperate acts of survival because of the conditions that people must experience in these environments.