John Singleton gives young black men the attention that crime dramas too often reserve for the danger around them. We value his patience with actors, even when his dialogue insists on explaining what they have already shown us.
Fi1m perspective
Laurence Fishburne’s Furious Styles gives his son advice in Boyz n the Hood (1991), and Singleton allows their exchanges to be ordinary as well as important. Cuba Gooding Jr.’s Tré listens and responds, rather than merely waiting for a speech to finish. The father’s authority does not prevent either actor from making the relationship feel personal. We find Singleton persuasive here because he gives us time to care about these people before asking us to fear for them.
Ice Cube’s Doughboy benefits from the same care. His restraint lets us sense the thought behind the casual manner, without requiring a declaration each time his feelings change. Casting musicians became a recurring practice, with Tupac Shakur and Tyrese Gibson also appearing in Singleton’s films. With Cube, the result is a performance that makes the neighbourhood worth watching even when nobody is in immediate danger.
After that debut, Poetic Justice (1993) approached South Central life through a female perspective, with Janet Jackson and Tupac Shakur. Higher Learning (1995) moved to racial and social tensions on a college campus. Shaft (2000) and 2 Fast 2 Furious (2003) took him into studio action, where his work became more conventional. Between them, Baby Boy (2001) returned to South Central and the difficulties of growing up and taking family responsibility.
What troubles us is his tendency to make dialogue do the explaining after a performance has already done enough. We felt angry during Furious’s speech about gentrification because Fishburne makes the neighbourhood’s future feel immediate and personal. But the character is also being made to deliver a lesson, and the scene would benefit from more trust in the audience. The women in Boyz n the Hood deserve fuller lives, too; the care given to its young men is not shared equally. Start with Boyz n the Hood, and give its quieter conversations as much attention as its warnings.
Biography
John Singleton was an American film director, screenwriter and producer. He was born in Los Angeles, California, and studied screenwriting at the University of Southern California, where he won several writing awards.
Singleton wrote and directed his debut feature Boyz n the Hood (1991), which drew on his experiences growing up in South Central Los Angeles. The film received Academy Award nominations for Best Director and Best Original Screenplay, making him the youngest person and the first African American nominated for Best Director. His other directing credits include Poetic Justice (1993), Higher Learning (1995), Shaft (2000), 2 Fast 2 Furious (2003), Four Brothers (2005) and episodes of series such as American Crime Story and Snowfall.
