Boyz n the Hood (1991)

Director:

John Singleton

Writer (WGA):

John Singleton (written by)

Release Date:

12 July 1991 (USA)

Genre:

Crime | Drama

Tagline:

Once upon a time in South Central L.A. ... It ain't no fairy tale

Plot:

Saga of a group of childhood friends growing up in a Los Angeles ghetto.

Plot Keywords:

Friend | Violence | Los Angeles | South Central Los Angeles | Drugs

Awards:

Nominated for 2 Oscars. Another 8 wins & 4 nominations

Cast

Hudhail Al-Amir	...	S.A.T. Man
Lloyd Avery II	...	Knucklehead #2
Angela Bassett	...	Reva Styles
Mia Bell	...	Female Club Member
Lexie Bigham	...	Mad Dog
Kenneth A. Brown	...	Little Chris
Nicole Brown	...	Brandi - Age 10
Ceal	...	Sheryl
Morris Chestnut	...	Ricky Baker
Darneicea Corley	...	Keisha
John Cothran Jr.	...	Lewis Crump
Ice Cube	...	Doughboy
Na'Blonka Durden	...	Trina (as Na' Blonka Durden)
Susan Falcon	...	Mrs. Olaf
Jessie Lawrence Ferguson	...	Officer Coffey (as Jesse Ferguson)
Tyra Ferrell	...	Mrs. Baker
Laurence Fishburne	...	Furious Styles (as Larry Fishburne)
Dedrick D. Gobert	...	Dooky
Cuba Gooding Jr.	...	Tre Styles
Regi Green	...	Chris (as Redge Green)
Kareem J. Grimes	...	Ice Cream Truck Kid
Tammy Hanson	...	Rosa
Valentino D. Harrison	...	Bobby - Age 10 (as Valentino Harrison)
Desi Arnez Hines II	...	Tre - Age 10
Baha Jackson	...	Doughboy - Age 10
Dee Dee Jacobs	...	Renee
Kirk Kinder	...	Officer Graham
Meta King	...	Brandi's Mom
Regina King	...	Shalika
Leanear Lane	...	Gangster #2
Nia Long	...	Brandi
Whitman Mayo	...	The Old Man
Donovan McCrary	...	Ricky - Age 10
Don Nelson	...	Gangster #1
Jimmy Lee Newman	...	Kid
Malcolm Norrington	...	Knucklehead #1
Alysia Rogers	...	Shanice (as Alysia M. Rogers)
Esther Scott	...	Tisha's Grandmother
Leonette Scott	...	Tisha
Vonte Sweet	...	Ric Rock
Baldwin C. Sykes	...	Monster
Raymond D. Turner	...	Ferris
Yolanda Whittaker	...	Yo-Yo
rest of cast listed alphabetically:
John Singleton	...	Mailman (uncredited)
Chris Tucker	...	Gangster #3 (uncredited)

Directed by
John Singleton

Writing credits (WGA)
John Singleton		(written by)

Produced by
Steve Nicolaides	....	producer

Original Music by
Stanley Clarke

Cinematography by
Charles Mills		(director of photography)

Film Editing by
Bruce Cannon

Casting by
Jaki Brown

Art Direction by
Bruce Bellamy

Set Decoration by
Kathryn Peters

Makeup Department
Marietta Carter-Narcisse	....	makeup artist (as Marietta A. Carter)
Sterfon Demings	....	hair stylist

Production Management
Steve Nicolaides	....	unit production manager
Chantal Feghali	....	post-production supervisor (uncredited)

Second Unit Director or Assistant Director
Simone Farber	....	dga trainee
Eric Jones	....	second assistant director
Don Wilkerson	....	first assistant director

Art Department
Shirley Moore	....	assistant property master (as Shirley A. Moore)
Willie J. Thompson	....	property master
Michael D. Costello	....	scenic artist (uncredited)
Elizabeth Flaherty	....	art department coordinator (uncredited)
Amanda J. Flick	....	scenic artist (uncredited)
Johnathon Gallagher	....	painter (uncredited)
Caryn Marcus	....	set dresser (uncredited)

Sound Department
Pamela Bentkowski	....	special effects editor (as Pam Bentkowski)
Ruth Bird	....	assistant adr editor
Veda Campbell	....	sound mixer
Lucy Coldsnow-Smith	....	dialogue editor (as Lucy Coldsnow)
Don Digirolamo	....	sound re-recording mixer
Dean Drabin	....	adr mixer
Patrick Drummond	....	supervising sound editor
Robert Glass	....	sound re-recording mixer (as Bob Glass)
Wayne Griffin	....	dialogue editor
Paul Massey	....	sound re-recording mixer
Karen Minahan	....	assistant special effects editor
Bob Newlan	....	sound effects editor
Dan O'Connell	....	foley artist
Michael A. Patillo	....	boom operator (as Michael Anthony Patillo)
Brenda Sowa	....	assistant special effects editor
Alicia Stevenson	....	foley artist
Renee Tondelli	....	adr editor
Tim Song Jones	....	sound transferer (uncredited)
Greg Orloff	....	foley mixer (uncredited)
Randy Singer	....	foley recordist (uncredited)

Special Effects by
David Domeyer	....	special effects coordinator (uncredited)
Thomas M. Ficke	....	special effects coordinator (uncredited)

Stunts
Ousaun Elam	....	utility stunts
Bob Minor	....	stunt coordinator
Gerard G. Williams	....	utility stunts (as Gerard Williams)

Camera and Electrical Department
Judson S. Brown	....	second assistant camera
Tony Brown	....	dolly grip (as Tony A. Brown)
Sherman Fulton	....	assistant chief lighting technician
Anthony Gaudioz	....	camera operator (as Tony Gaudioz)
Elisha Harris	....	chief lighting technician (as Eli Harris)
D. Stevens	....	still photographer
Robert A. Torres	....	first assistant camera
Chuck Wells	....	key grip
Derek Wells	....	best boy grip (as Derek E. Wells)
Kenneth Estes	....	video playback operator (uncredited)
Chuck Sorensen	....	electrician (uncredited)
Bobby Thomas	....	grip (uncredited)

Casting Department
Darin D. Brown	....	casting assistant (uncredited)

Costume and Wardrobe Department
Darryle Johnson	....	wardrobe: men
Sharlene Williams	....	wardrobe: women (as Shirlene Williams)

Editorial Department
Gary Burritt	....	negative cutter
Lisa Cholodenko	....	post-production assistant
David Giammarco	....	assistant film editor
Margaret Guinee	....	assistant film editor

Music Department
Jamie Forester	....	music editor (as Jamie Gelb)
Raoul Roach	....	music supervisor
Jeff Marsh	....	orchestrator (uncredited)

Transportation Department
James R. Brown	....	transportation coordinator (as James Brown)
Joseph E. Knott	....	transportation captain

Other crew
Gregory Allain	....	production assistant
Judith Alonso	....	assistant: Mr. Nicolaides
Gabrielle D. Buford	....	production assistant
Wendy Renskowski Dale	....	assistant accountant (as Wendy Renskowski)
Jeanie Daniels	....	payroll accountant
Therese J. Davis	....	unit publicist
Doris Nomathande Dixon	....	production assistant
Joseph Doughrity	....	production assistant
Linda Folsom	....	production coordinator (as Linda Allan-Folsom)
Dawn Gilliam	....	script supervisor
Katha Jones	....	production accountant
Steven D. Levine	....	production assistant
Kojo Lewis	....	location manager (as Ernest Kojo Lewis)
Melissa Maxwell	....	assistant: Mr. Singleton
Melody Phillips	....	craft service
DJ Pooh	....	drive-by sequence and beats
Brent Rollins	....	logo artwork
Alex S. Samuel	....	production assistant
Dion B. Vines	....	production assistant (as Dion Vines)
Kendrick Wallace	....	production associate (as Kendrick J. Wallace)
Earl West	....	key assistant location manager (uncredited)

Thanks
Spike Lee	....	thanks
Danny Singleton	....	thanks
Sheila Ward	....	thanks (as Sheila L. Ward)
Fred Williams	....	thanks

Production Companies

• Columbia Pictures Corporation

Distributors

• Columbia Pictures (1991) (USA) (theatrical)
• Columbia Broadcasting System (CBS) (1995) (USA) (TV)
• Columbia TriStar Films AB (1991) (Sweden) (theatrical)
• Columbia TriStar Films (1991) (France) (theatrical)
• Svenska Filminstitutet (SFI) (1994) (Sweden) (theatrical)
• Columbia TriStar Film Distributors International (Argentina)
• Columbia TriStar Home Entertainment (2004) (UK) (DVD)
• Criterion Collection, The (USA) (laserdisc)
• Filmayer (Spain)
• LK-TEL Vídeo (Brazil) (VHS)
• LK-TEL (Argentina) (video)

Special Effects

• Special Effects Unlimited

Other Companies

• Cherokee Studios  music recorded and mixed at
• Cinema Research  titles and opticals
• Clairmont Camera  thanks
• Larry Larson's Continental Catering  catering
• Qwest Records  soundtrack
• The Lench Mob  thanks
• The Nation of Islam  thanks
• USC Film & Writing Program  thanks
• Woodworth Elementary School  thanks

Also Known As:

Boys in the Hood (USA) (alternative spelling)

Runtime:

112 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color (DeLuxe)

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

Dolby

Certification:

Canada:13+ (Quebec) | Canada:14A | South Korea:18 | Philippines:R-18 | Brazil:14 | Argentina:16 | Australia:M | Chile:18 | Finland:K-16 | France:-12 | Germany:16 | Norway:15 | Spain:13 | Sweden:15 | UK:15 | USA:R | Iceland:16

Filming Locations:

Crenshaw Boulevard, Los Angeles, California, USA

Company:

Columbia Pictures Corporation

Trivia:

Columbia wanted to make the picture, but at first wanted someone else to direct it. Singleton believed only he could do it saying, "They asked me if I would consider anybody else directing it?" Singleton replied, "Hell, no, I'm not gonna let somebody from Idaho or Encino direct a movie about living in south-central Los Angeles. They can't come in here and cast it and go through the rewrites and know exactly what aesthetics are unique to this film."

Goofs:

Crew or equipment visible: When Trey and Ricky are on their way to school in the morning, the camera rig is visible on the driver's side of the car.

Quotes:

[Tre answers the phone]
Tre Styles: Who dis?
Reva Deveraux: Boy, what are you talking about, "Who dis?" I know you been raised better than that! Now put your father on the phone.
Furious Styles: Who dis?

Movie Connections:

Referenced in Beef (2003)

Soundtrack:

Sucker M.C.'s

Place for Race

Most movies about life in the hoods of LosAngeles, New York City, and other urban areas of the U.S. are discounted as novelty entertainment for audiences seeking sex and violence. Out of an era of gangster rap came a nationwide exposure of the issues within the Black and Latino communities, and directors like John Singleton and the Hughes Brothers follow in the footsteps of the great Spike Lee. The film Boyz n the Hood is an intricate examination of the archetypes and stereotypes of the hood, as well as an introduction to the survivors, both trapped in the violence and escaping the cycle. The film concentrates on a Black community without the interactions between communities shown in Do the Right Thing, another epic race commentary. The direction of the film is fluid and natural, the acting heartfelt and strong, the affect extraordinary. The message of the movie is deeper than White or Italian based gangland movies, because the human aspect and the characters are more solid and approachable, and rooted in highly intellectual and applicable theories on race and violence. This film is a showcase of the radical and moderate themes expressed by Black activists, with Laurence Fishburne's character as the leader and role model of the film. A careful examination of the film reveals a strong message and a strong film. Don't underestimate the power of this film.