Menace II Society (1993)

Directors:

Albert Hughes
Allen Hughes

Writers:

Allen Hughes (story) &
Albert Hughes (story) ...

Release Date:

26 May 1993 (USA)

Genre:

Crime | Drama

Tagline:

This is the truth. This is what's real.

Plot:

A young street hustler attempts to escape the rigors and temptations of the ghetto in a quest for a better life.

Plot Keywords:

Street | High School | Ghetto | Watts Riots | Black Man

Awards:

2 wins & 2 nominations

Cast

Tyrin Turner	...	Caine
Larenz Tate	...	O-Dog
June Kyoto Lu	...	Grocery Store Woman (as June Kyoko Lu)
Toshi Toda	...	Grocery Store Man
Samuel L. Jackson	...	Tat Lawson
Anthony Johnson	...	Tony
Brandon Hammond	...	Five Year Old Caine
Glenn Plummer	...	Pernell
Reginald Ballard	...	Clyde
Khandi Alexander	...	Karen Lawson
Eugene Lee	...	Man #1
James Pickens Jr.	...	Man #2 (as James Pickins Jr.)
Nancy Cheryll Davis	...	Teacher (as Nancy Cheryl Davis)
Jullian Roy Doster	...	Anthony
Jada Pinkett Smith	...	Ronnie (as Jada Pinkett)

MPAA:

Rated R for strong violence, drug use and language.; Rated R for strong bloody violence, drug use and pervasive language. (director's cut)

Runtime:

97 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color (FotoKem)

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

Dolby

Certification:

New Zealand:R18 | Iceland:16 | Canada:16+ (Quebec) | Canada:R | South Korea:15 | Spain:18 | USA:R (certificate #45390) (director's cut) | Australia:R | Germany:16 | Netherlands:16 | Norway:18 | Sweden:15 | UK:18 | USA:R | USA:Unrated (director's cut) | France:-16

Filming Locations:

Compton Avenue, Watts, Los Angeles, California, USA

Company:

New Line Cinema

Trivia:

Tupac Shakur was originally attached to play Sharif, but was fired after a physical fight with director Allen Hughes.

Goofs:

Miscellaneous: After the party in the beginning of the movie, everyone decides to go to Jack in the Box. When O-Dog, Keesha and A-Wax get gas, you could see Jack in the Box behind them, but when Caine and Harold get shot, they are further down the street.

Quotes:

[Sharif tells Caine to stop vomiting]
Sharif: Come on now, get up from off your knees praying to that porcelain god, that white porcelain god.

Movie Connections:

Referenced in Century of Black Cinema (2003) (V)

Soundtrack:

PACKIN' A GUN

This is what is!

I saw this film the weekend it opened. At the time I was 33, a white male living in NYC. When I went to the theater, I noticed that most of the audience was Black and in their late teens. For some reason, they felt that this was a good "date" movie. When the movie began, and the Korean Grocery scene was presented, the audience went wild with comments like "Yeah, Yeah, Kill them!!". I must say I got a little nervous. But, as the movie progressed, I got absorbed in it. I liked Cane and I even liked O'Dog. When the movie ended, I started crying. I was embarassed. Then I noticed that the Black teenage guys around me were crying too. I applaud the Hughes Brothers for making a movie that is able to connect with so many people. I still cry while watching it on video. "Do you care if you live or die?"