Baby Boy - O Rei da Rua

Baby Boy (2001) is a John Singleton picture that I recently rewatched on Tubi. The storyline follows a young man who lives with his mom, has a baby mama and has a side chick. He does his best to treat his baby mama right and create a direction with her...but is too selfish to let his side chick go. Meanwhile, his mom has a new lover and he's worried about getting kicked out. Will Baby Boy grow up and become a man and do what he needs to do to do right by the women in his life, or stay at his mom's house for life acting like the world owes him something?

As previously referenced, this movie is written and directed by John Singleton (Boyz N the Hood) and stars Tyrese Gibson (Transformers), Taraji P. Henson (Hustle & Flow), Ving Rhames (Pulp Fiction), Omar Gooding (Ghost Dad), Mo'Nique (Precious), A. J. Johnson (House Party), Snoop Dogg (Training Day) and Tamara Bass (Boston Public).

This movie is so well cast and written and contains a nice blend of comedy, drama and self-discovery. A. J. Johnson and Taraji P. Henson are absolutely gorgeous in this picture. There's some good shower and sex scenes in this picture. Ving Rhames steals the show though as his performance is hilarious, strong and impactful. Every scene he is in is tremendous. The breakfast scene, mom sex sounds through the wall and clothes selling sequences always crack me up. The acting is also very good, Henson's "he don't love me anymore" scene is tremendous. The ending with the character evolutions and new perspectives is also perfectly written. The one aspect of the movie that frustrated me was Tyrese's acting, which was inconsistent. His dreams and the shooting sequence were poorly done.

Overall, this is a very worthwhile film that isn't Singleton's best work but is definitely worth a viewing. I would score this a 7-7.5/10 and strongly recommend it.

While watching this movie, I had absolutely no idea what I would end up rating it. It was not an enjoyable experience. Not until it was over did I realize what a good job John Singleton had actually done. This was not a comedy, nor a romantic story, but a true depiction of SOME (NOT ALL) aspects of Black life. I recognized each and everyone of these characters, for better or worse. They were not exaggerated or sugar-coated, but portrayed in a true light which is often difficult to watch or accept. Which explained my uncomfortableness, I'm sure that was the point and it was well received. 7 out of 10***

Director John Singleton hits the black manhood where it hurts. His theme for the movie from the start is that black men in America are little more than babies. He rails against the culture that infantilize them and the men who live that way.

Joseph Summers (Tyrese Gibson) is a young black man struggling to get by. He lives with his mama (Candy Ann Brown). His baby mama Yvette (Taraji P. Henson) is frustrated with him. She starts going with gangster Rodney (Snoop Dogg). His mother has a new boyfriend Mel (Ving Rhames) who's done time.

It's very tough. Joseph makes mistakes. He's an idiot at times, but he isn't a bad guy. Tyrese Gibson doesn't allow him to play the fool in this. He instills the character with humanity even when things are at the lowest. If there is one message, I think Singleton is trying to tell young black men to get their sh14 together.

Baby Boy, the sequel-cum-remake of Singleton's last great feat Boyz 'N' the Hood, returns to the same neighborhoood 10 years later to look at new people in the hood, very personally at that, and it is fascinating.

The film stars in a debut of Tyrese Gibson (some may remember Cuba Gooding got his first speaking role with Boyz) as Jody, a boy (age 20) who still lives with his mother, is the father of 2 children from 2 different mothers, has no real job and often just hangs about complaining and being spoiled. The film looks at this character, but also the forces that sort of make him into what he is. It is a really good character portrait that also has some really fired up performances from Ving Rhames, as a new ex-con boyfriend of his mother, A.J. Johnson as the mother, Omar Gooding (Gooding Jr.'s brother) as Jody's good friend, especially Taraji P. Henson in one of the best female performances of the year as Jody's girlfriend and also mother of one of his children, and of course, Snoop Dogg as a version of himself (albiet evil). It's a delight from the streak of not that good movies out now, and it should be able to appeal to both black and white audiences. Definately reccomended. A-

Despite (or maybe because of) the negative things I'd heard from friends and acquaintances, I decided to check BB out for myself. I was very glad I did.

It's basically a scaled-down version of Boyz in the Hood, with fewer characters allowing for more development. While it's not quite on the same level as Boyz, it's a very emotional drama that's thought provoking, sad, hilariously funny, and at times subtly disturbing.

After this, Boyz, and Shaft, I am anxiously awaiting John Singleton's next work.