By TUREKA TURK
Mlohlq n Cltlan
Three years ago, filmmaker
Spike Lee expressed concern over
the recent trend of young filmmak­
ers doing the young violent theme.
H worried that the various stories
within the Black community as a
whole, would not be touched and
the trend would play itself out,
with audiences, with the industry,
and, finally, cause the movi in­
dustry to withdraw from doing
"Black stories".
The sam worry ran across my
mind when I saw the trailer for the
Hughes Brothers' Menace II Soci­
ety. I figured after Boyz N the
Hoodand South Central, the Black
audience had its share of everyday
reality (slightly watered down in
both films). Give me something
else, I thought.
Menace II Society exploded
onto the screen with me and a thea­
tre full of other curious moviego­
ers anticipating Boyz N the Hood
II. But we weren't even close.
No matter how rough, how raw,
and how real Black life is, we
never remember until we re re-
THE' FILM IS a visual esca­
pade of hardcore griot rap. Its a
narrative of a world far way from
$200 presidential haircuts.
Your homey dies right in front
of you while you've got a bullet
making its way in your own sys­
tem. You can't cry as you watch
his twitching body ooze out blood
and life. You can't shout to him as
he rushes to emergency, his life
wasting away. -All you can do is
think about who did it and what
you're gonna do to them.
It's all real.
Menace chronicles a major
piece of a young Black man's life
in South Central.
While Caine is cursed with a
conscious, he is surrounded by
many who aren't.
Old Dog is his boy, his life long
nig-well, - you get the picture.
Old Dog would die tomorrow if he
had to and wouldn't think another
second about it. He's faced with it
everyday. His goal when he
wakes up in the morning is to keep
his pride intact and to shoot first,
everything else doesn'tmatter.
CAINE I A universal Black
man. In and out of homes since the
beginning of his adolescence, he
has no central base. The defini­
tions of right and wrong occasion':
ally creep into his mind, but are
quickly passed by when he re­
members the code of the streets,
which says there is no right and
wrong.
- .
The Hughes Brothers, twins
Albert and Allen, successfully put
together a film about real life.
A single mother raising her on,
a girl getting pregnant, high school
graduation, 40-ounce parti s, liv­
ing, loving, and dying. Real life in
the hood.
I remember what Spike said
. and like omebody's mother or
something, I say, "Well, maybe
this on mor won't hurt."
And it doesn't.
AI 'LI GO � on in
a ful! circle. Admist car jacking,
dope linging, and the tension be­
tw en Koreans and Blacks, espe­
cially in L.A., Cain's life un urIs
into a whirlwind of reality.
Caine's grandfather' ks him:
"Boy, do you car whether you
live or di 1"
Caine's answer: "I don't
know."
In Caine's world, living and dy­
ing aren't choices, just formalities
everybody goes through.
The Hughes' film d ,how-
ever, have characters who try to
find another way down the road of
life. Vonte Sweet as Sharif, hus­
tler turned Muslim alway lov­
ingly preaches to his boys about
. righteousress, Charles S. Dutton
portrays Sharif's father, Mr. But­
ler, the only adult male the boys
respect.
TYRIN TURNER FILLS the
shoes of Caine, incl uding a narra­
tive reminiscent of Larry Fish­
burne in Deep Cover.
Larenz Tate succe fully ex­
plodes into a psychotic frenzy as '
O-Dog. Also catch glimpses of
Too Short and Yo-Yo ..
Tyrin Turner (C ine). Top row (l-r): Tony Mason, Ryan Willi m ,
Albert Hughes, Darrin Scott, Tyger Williams and Allen Hughe .
dia is on trial in the communities
the Hughes Brothers r mind us
that violence in the community i
mu h more important. Yeah, vio­
le nee in movies is bad. But vio­
I nee in life is worse.
MENACE II SOCIElY'S CAST MEMBERS - Bottom row (I-r):
Lar nzTate a-Dog) and MC Eiht (A-Wax). Middl row (I-r): Clifton
Powell, Charle Dutton (Mr. Butler), Vonte Swe t (Sh rlt) and
Menace doesn't preach like
South Central and is much heavier
than Singelton's Boyz. It com
with street humor, street wisdom,
and str et violence.
And while violence in the m -
Cinematically, the Hughes
Brothers' have come along way
from doing rap videos. Their mo­
tion picture debut is fresh and
vivid. The brothers have indeed
stayed true to the an form of film,
creating an exciting collage of
wickedly hard characters taking
life one day at a time, never won­
dering if it will come tomorrow.
I -
MC Eiht of Compton Most W -nted pictured with director Alb r Hugh .
of
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nn
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Vivi
eKon
By TUREKA TURK
Michigan Citizen
Vivienn McKone
has a look in her ey
that say she know
something you d n't.
What she know i
that her v ic i an n­
ergetic cool br z
into a ch nging c n­
temporary jazz s nco
McKone' If-ti­
tled debut i a br th
of fr h air into In­
er- pping wi dom.
you ben r bewar '
you better bewar
war f t the
·thing y u put m VIVIENNE MCKONE
through .
if. u put me there
you bett r tr n 7 at holdin n
" war It, the irst rcle . , is a ut that i r mirusccnt of early
win Out i tcr-flavor ut with a I k w man' 'a and charm
warnin a br ther not to ven think ut m in with thi ister .
McKone' talent do n't II in on' pIc C .
k yboards and a dynamic lyrici t
McKone' but i ull ot ltght-heartcd wit and tru em ti ,
turning an otberwi drc ry tern n into a unny nvertabl rid
thr u h t • wond '. of . Kon . rmnd.
I _