Way Past Cool

Comparing this movie to Boyz 'N The Hood was typical advertising hype. But I think the kidz in this flick, who are mostly age 12-14, might have been what the thugz in "Boyz" were like back when they could have been saved. I think that's the point of this film. That there's a magic age when most kidz can be saved, but no one wants to help them. I think anybody who expects "Hood" from this film is naturally going to be disappointed. I also think that it takes some imagination and really caring about kidz to get the message here. The book is a lot better than the movie, but books usually are. I think if this movie was shown to kidz of about the same age who are in it most of them would get the message and most of them would like it. I think a lot of older ppl who dis this movie are the same type who would dis Disneyland because it ain't on the real. But they would forget that Disneyland ain't made for ppl their age! There's a lot about this film that could have been better. Maybe with a big budget and more professional actors. But there's a lot of Little Rascals kind of acting here which was not professional either but was still very good. These kidz are trying, which is more than a lot of older ppl do. I think this was a kidz film made for the kidz who are in it and that's why older ppl might not like it. I give it a 10 for trying to deal with a subject that most of this country either glorifies or disses.

I wasn't sure what this movie was trying to be. It was pretty contrived and hokey, with a bunch of melodramatic dialog and unbelievable situations. Also it relied too much on kids doing dramatic roles (and providing narration) but that's just not enough to carry an R-rated adult film. Also the background music was out of place. It's supposed to be a gritty urban thing (I guess) but there's piano and acoustic guitar and some guy singing hokey ballads for much of it.

The rest of the technical elements were well done -- the cinematography, camera angles and everything -- but it just didn't click for me. I'd give it two out of five stars.

WAY PAST COOL (3 outta 5 stars)

I have mixed feelings about this movie. On the one hand it is an interesting story... with decent performances and it's certainly worth seeing. On the other hand, it is based on one of the most amazing books about contemporary "gang" life that I have ever read. So, what I like to pass on to anyone reading this review is: if you liked the movie at all... GO AND READ THE BOOK- IT WILL BLOW YOU AWAY! A lot of people seem not to like the movie because the main characters are all around 12 years old and some of their actions seem a little unbelievable. Well, part of the problem with this movie is that it can't really get into the characters of all of the the kids in only 90 minutes. On the plus side, most of the kids are pretty decent actors. (I think the little white Jamaican boy is a bit weak... but he's not THAT awful.) The kid playing Gordon is great... he's just the way I pictured him when I read the book. The older gangstas... Deek and Ty are pretty good actors, too. I'm not sure that the movie quite comes together as a whole... but it is well directed for the most part... with some really excellent scenes. (It might seem really hokey... but I really liked the scene with the rabbit in the hat near the end. Oh, and the scene where Markita takes Ty back to her place to see his son. And Ty's speech about his dad and the grape popsicles. Great stuff!) I wish I could be as excited about the movie as I was about the book (and practically every other book Jess Mowry has written)... but it's certainly an admirable effort anyway.

When I was watching this movie, I thought I had died and gone to heaven. But, then they realized it wasn't my time and sent me back to my living room and made me watch this horrible movie to pay for my sins. Wow. After watching this movie I wished everyone in it would have died. In real life. This isn't the first gang movie i've seen with little kids, but c'mon, whole gangs with 8 year olds totin pistols? And the biggest baller is a 16-year old? And don't even get me started on the played out themes used over and over by these movie companies. Crooked cops, drive by's and all that good stuff.I mean, what was up with the little white kid actin' Jamaican? The bad acting at least was done by kids, so i guess that's a plus. Don't rent this movie unless your drunk and with a bunch of friends, or you might just want to kill yourself.

You gotta be sh**ting me. Anyone that says these situations aren't believable is full of crap. This has a very interesting and different plot from most movies that are in the same genre. This gives insight from child's perspective and for me had a lot more thought provoking material than most movies.

Watching this movie brought back some childhood memories. i really enjoyed the music and dialog. If you haven't seen this movie. don't take these dip shits advice that this movie is horrible,horrendous,etc.

This is actually one of my favorite movies. To anyone that grew up poor or in a bad neighborhood would be able to appreciate this. I thought this was far better than Boyz N the hood but Hey thats just my opinion