Loosetooth Reviews: Straight Outta Compton (2015)

There’s nothing new about biographical films, each just has a different subject of focus, and for as long as there have been films, biopics and true stories have been a staple of cinema, recounting stories of people who’ve done great things, pushed boundaries, changed lives.

Of course this will apply to the likes of Abraham Lincoln, or Stephen Hawkins, both of which have been the focus of Oscar winning films in recent years, a man who helped change the way we live, and a man who helped change the way we think.

Just as important are the men and women that changed the way we feel, people who through their art, through whichever medium they use, have influenced countless lives, often in ways the influenced are unaware of.

Music can be that shoulder to cry on, can be the one that gets you when no one else does, can speak for you when you don’t have the words…and sometimes it’s good to dance to. Luckily for Movieland great musicians are often troubled, struggle with addictions, get in trouble with the law, and often surround themselves with people that are just as mixed-up as they are, and that makes for instant entertainment.

Usually a music biopic will focus on a particular musician and/or a particular period in that musician’s life. Walk the Line followed the early days of Johnny Cash, and his relationship with fellow country star June Carter. Oliver Stone’s The Doors, while being a biopic of the psychedelic rock outfit, primarily focuses on frontman Jim Morrison.

…and then there’s Straight Outta Compton

The movie follows the formation, rise, and demise of hip-hop group N.W.A., one of the genre’s most influential collectives, and whose members included producer supreme Dr. Dre and lyricist/screenwriter/actor Ice Cube.

The film primarily focuses on the stories of Ice Cube, Dr. Dre and Eric ‘Eazy-E’ Wright, all be it with more than a dash of artistic license, which given the film counts Dre, Cube and Tomica Woods-Wright (Eazy-E’s Widow) is understandable. There is no mention of Dr. Dre’s various domestic abuse charges for example.

The film’s version of events goes like this: Dr. Dre convinces Eazy-E to leave behind his drug dealing and instead finance a record label, believing that they can make some serious money if they combine their skills & resources. Dre brings along Ice Cube and DJ Yella, while Eazy-E brings MC Ren into the fold.

Following the success of their first single music manager Jerry Heller takes interest in the group, and convinces Eazy to hire him as their manager. After being picked up by Priority Records the group produce their debut album Straight Outta Compton, which becomes a smash-hit and leads the boys on a nationwide tour.

Ice Cube leaves after it emerges that Eazy is making more than all the other members, despite them all being responsible for the group’s success. Animosity flares up between Cube and the remaining members, and eventually Dre also leaves, sighting Heller’s management as the reason for his departure.

Several years later Eazy attempts to reunite the group, but on the eve of the reunion he becomes incredibly ill, diagnosed with HIV and dies not long after.

While the basics are there, many of the details are different from what has previously been documented. History says that it was Eazy & Heller that formed the label, and Eazy that gathered together the various members. Whereas the film says it was Dre’s idea, which he then put forward to Eazy.

Oh, and there’s the small matter of Arabian Prince, one of the founding members of the group (who parted ways shortly after recording the first album) who has been completely written out. Who by his own admission was present during various scenes in the film. Never let the truth get in the way of a good yarn, right?

To be honest it doesn’t really matter, unless you’re hip-hop’s answer to Stephen Fry, you’re unlikely to know or care about the fine details, the film itself is an excellent piece of work, featuring some great performances from a cast of relative unknowns. Paul Giamatti being the only recognizable face.

The free leads, Jason Mitchell (Eazy-E), Corey Hawkins (Dr. Dre) and O’Shea Jackson Jr. (Ice Cube) all have the potential to make a name for themselves in Movieland. Hawkins has appeared in Spike Lee’s Blackkklansman and Ryan Reynolds movie 6 Underground, while Mitchell has appeared in the likes of Kathryn Bigelow’s Detroit, The Disaster Artist, Mudbound, with both starring in Kong: Skull Island.

Jackson didn’t initially seem to want to pursue acting, concentrating more on being a rapper, just like his daddy… Ice Cube. No prizes for guessing how he got the job, joking aside Jackson does have an uncanny resemblance to his father. Since then though he’s appeared Long Shot, Just Mercy and Godzilla: King of Monsters.

At two and half hours it may be a tad long for some, but there’s never really a moment when you start looking at your watch, between the acting, music, and story at large it’s 147 minutes well spent.

Have you seen Straight Outta Compton yet? If so what did you think? Let us know in the comments.