NWA biopic Straight Outta Compton is the amazing story of a seminal American band, and it’s told in a highly entertaining way.
With Eazy E, Ice Cube and Dr Dre among its founding members, the group changed hip-hop forever, pioneering gangsta rap and inspiring countless artists.
This true story of such a unique and notorious band fits surprisingly well into the biopic formula. Many of its themes hit hard - particularly now in a post-Ferguson world.
It's not a perfect film. Whittling down the massive amount of stories that could've been told in the story of NWA was a near impossible feat and the second half of the film crams in a little too much. Dr Dre's savage bashing of Dee Barnes was excised from the story, perhaps part of the self-mythologising he as a producer undoubtedly employed in the production.
But it is nonetheless a surprisingly honest look at these iconic rappers' history together, the nasty falling-outs they went through and ultimately Eazy's death in 1995.
The soundtrack, of course, is one of Straight Outta Compton's strongest elements. I recommend you ask the cinema to turn it all the way up.
Four stars.
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Straight Outta Compton:: Director: F Gary Gray:: Starring: Corey Hawkins, O'Shea Jackson Jr, Aldis Hodge, Paul Giamatti, Neil Brown Jr, Keith Stanfield, Demetrius Grosse, Corey Reynolds, Alexandra Shipp:: Rating: R16 - Sex scenes, violence, drug use & offensive language:: Running Time: 147 minutes:: Release Date: September 3, 2015
