South Central: O bairro proibido

Though the film is "serious" and well intentioned, telling a heart-breaking story with a valid message, its impact is considerably weakened by a naïve story-line and a undistinguished screen-play. I hunted around to see if this was "based on a true story", like "The Birdman of Alcatraz", but I found no evidence; that might have excused some of the awkwardness. There are some movingly warm scenes, though I was never groping for a kleenex. It reminded me of one of those Worthy Westerns I watched as a kid, where the bad guy meets a good guy/woman who changes his life: it had too many predictable and not totally credible steps. When, at the end, the hoodlum about to shoot him says, "Prison sure turned you stoopid!", I was inclined to agree. He talked his way out of the jam, but only because the narrative demanded it: his speech would never have convinced me, any more than Eli's words in the prison cell would have made me turn over a new leaf. These key "speeches" lacked any eloquence, and I frequently found myself predicting the dialogue. Nevertheless its best moments, especially the confrontations, are really gripping - until the end, that is, when it's too easy to foresee that no harm will come to anyone and Good will prevail. It's unfashionable and courageous to give such a story a happy ending (cf. "La Haine", where the vicious circle of hate is NOT broken and a bleak future is foreseen), and perhaps its optimism speaks more deeply to audiences in the States.

This movie was filmed around the time of the Rodney King riots that ripped South Central Los Angeles. Let's face it, the heart and soul of Los Angeles isn't Hollywood. It's the people like in this movie who try to make living, earnestly, honestly, and respectively. Sadly, this film is still realistic to the plight of urban problems. I spent a lot of time in one of the great urban cities of the East Coast and the problems of poverty, the lure of leading drug dealing lives is real and tempting, domestic violence, child abuse, gangs, etc. still exist and will exist much to the attempts of prevention or society ignoring their presence. Anyway, this film is truly about the heart and soul of a city of ten million Angelenos and the father's attempt to save his son from a life of crime, violence, death, and drugs in the city. It's not an easy battle.

I would like to thank all of the fans and supporters of the the film; it pleases me greatly that you got the message. I am a retired (South Central L.A.) English teacher; I wrote the novel "South Central L.A. Crips(the story of the L.A. Street gang, 1971-1985)" in 1986 as a roman a clef (faction). "Deuce" was a euphemism for "Crip" (which was censored in movies in 1991) It had become obvious to me that the old canon of American literature would not inspire the will necessary to become literate for Crips and Bloods and many other lower class African Americans, so I interviewed hundreds of gangsters over a 4 year span and wrote a book about them that would do the job. The movie "South Central" was, initially, merely a vehicle to advertise the book and promote the message of literacy. I used the book and the movie in my curriculum for 12 years. Gangsters stole it out of my classroom and the local libraries. I considered it an ironic tribute and an effective way to distribute to the people who needed it the most. But, best of all, L.A.'s gang murder epidemic has been subsiding ever since until it's now lower than it has been in over 30 years. "South Central" was made to save lives and I believe it has as "Variety" predicted when it came out in the midst of over 1000 murders in 1992. I rushed it to the screen (I signed a 6 month option w/Steve Anderson for $1)because I knew there was a volcano about to erupt in South Central L.A. from teaching 100's of gangsters in the area; I partnered w/Steve and Oliver Stone because they had the sensitivity for the mission and skill to make the film. Unfortunately, "South Central", though completed in 1991, was not released until the summer of 1992 after the South Central L.A. Uprising which stigmatized it to the owners of theaters causing it to go from a projected 1200 (approx.) screen opening to less than 100. It was a big success immediately in video stores and on cable. Hopefully, it will last as long as "Huckleberry Finn". I am not a "Hollywood" writer; although I wrote the novel and collaborated on the screenplay (for which I received no credit), I was not able to join the WGA (I played Dr. King in the movie, so I am in SAG). However, I am honored to have made the film; I, even, believe it is time to remake it for today's audience. I would have liked to: keep it PG-13; eliminated the N-word and profanity; used more of the slang from the novel("h-nk-ball"?, "ginawagon"!, please); shown more of the L.A. Islamic influence and local history, obviously Bobby (Jimmie Black in the novel) is changed by copious reading like Malcolm X, and I, being a devout Muslim, wanted to note the great work Muslims have done in prisons (this, too, was pretty much anathema in 1991, but we sneaked it in subliminally). I have written a sequel, "Inhale Gasoline & Gun Smoke (the story of the L.A. Uprising)" which is probably too hot for Hollywood but will eventually be made one way or another. I am Executive Producer of SAB Productions and my film "Bilalian" shows on BET's Black Stories every now and then. My new book is "N*GG*S-The Black Curse", and completes my trilogy on South Central L.A.

As Salaamu Alaikum, Donald Bakeer P.S. 100% literacy for African Americans by 2010 (gangstas, too)!

South Central (1992) is a movie I recently rewatched on HBOMax. The storyline follows a man that grew up thinking the gang life would be the life for him. Shortly after his son is born he is sent to jail for ten years where his gang affiliation protects him from other inmates. When he discovers his son has joined the gang he is part of and starts his own life of crime, the father reforms, drops out of the gang, and works to gain parole so he can get out of jail and hopefully save his son from the life he lived. This movie is directed by Stephen Milburn Anderson (Ca$h) and stars Glenn Plummer (City of Lies), Byron Minns (Black Dynamite), LaRita Shelby (Martin), Reginald T. Dorsey (Hill Street Blues) and Tim DeZarn (Fight Club). The storyline for this film is very well done and does a great job of developing the characters so that you genuinely care about what happens to them. The roots of the storyline and why people make decisions is well told. The prison dynamics are also well presented. I really enjoyed the messages and the scriptures used to mentally get the father where he needed to be. The film also does a great job of showing how the responsibilities of parenting changes your perspectives on life. The evolution of all the characters in this film over the ten years are a delight to see and this is a powerful film that is really well done. While not perfect, I still strongly recommend this gem and would score it an 8/10.

This is a very good movie and a realistic view of south central at the time. I lived there and this is one of the few movies that showed a realistic view of life. Glenn Plummer should get more props for his acting. Some parts of this movie touched a lot of us on the streets, the acting is great. This movie laid the foundation for other popular hood movies like boyz n da hood and others, but it is much more than a hood movie it takes you through the struggles of life on the streets and how sometimes you can't help the situation that you're in. It tells of a man who had a messed up childhood, and who had to get his life together to save his son from the same hardships that he had growing up without a dad.It ends up being a true love story.. the love between a real father and his son.