Welcome to Compton! ``Straight Outta Compton'' sounds a warning

History of Compton and NWA

At the beginning of this film, a tank suddenly arrives in Compton. This is a true story. At the time of the formation of the NWA , a new type of drug called crack was rampant, and in order to combat it, Los Angeles Police Chief Daryl Gates compared the fight against drugs to a "war" and sent tanks into black neighborhoods such as Compton under the name "Operation CRASH/Hammer."

Many people may remember the Clash from Dennis Hopper's film Colors (1988). The people who make the most profit from drugs don't live in Compton. However, police officers start to relentlessly monitor the residents, and they are often stopped on the streets, leading to conflicts. This film depicts this scene many times, so we can easily understand how NWA came into conflict with the police and ended up writing the controversial song " Fuck tha Police ."

Then, in 1992, the trial of Rodney King, who had been beaten by the Los Angeles Police Department, caused a major riot that shook Los Angeles. Citizens who were not satisfied with the police's acquittal sang "Fuck tha Police" and scrawled the words on destroyed storefronts. It is clear how close their songs were to the citizens of Los Angeles.

“Straight Outta Compton” (C) 2015 Universal Studios. All Rights Reserved.

NWA is often described as "gangster rap." I remember it being like that in Japan too. They were dangerous and hardcore... that's the kind of atmosphere they exuded.

However, what you notice while watching this film is that the rest of the cast is pretty respectable, except for Eazy-E (Jason Mitchell), who was a drug dealer. Ice Cube (O'Shea Jackson Jr.), who writes the lyrics, is a hard worker who goes to school regularly and writes down lyrics in a notebook. And Dr. Dre (Corey Hawkins), who makes the beats, also shows that he really loves music, rather than being a delinquent. It's easy to see how passionate they are about music, and the scenes where they seem to be having fun making music are exciting, just like a music biopic. And Eazy-E, who manages them, makes use of the business acumen he developed on the streets as a drug dealer. He caught people's attention by using the image of "gangsters" to his advantage and shocking society.

The shock they caused to society was so great that they were noticed by the FBI. However, they had the strength to use it for advertising. When NWA came out, the rap world was dominated by New Yorkers, and Los Angelesers were still in their infancy and looked down upon. So Eazy-E got a man who had been in the music business for a long time, Jerry Heller (Paul Giamatti), on his side. However, this later caused a rift in the trust between the members.

“Straight Outta Compton” (C) 2015 Universal Studios. All Rights Reserved.

The fact that members Dr. Dre and Ice Cube were involved in the production played a major role in the film being able to depict the feud between the band members in detail without hiding anything. The scene towards the end where Eazy-E and Ice Cube reunite and Dr. Dre and Eazy-E talk on the phone about reuniting are very emotional and bring tears to the audience's eyes. However, in reality, Ice Cube and Dr. Dre had such strong opinions that Jerry Heller himself sued them after the screening. Not only Jerry Heller, but many others have sued this film, and there were many problems during and after filming.

Suge Knight, the founder of Death Row Records, who appears in this film, caused a traffic accident to disrupt filming, resulting in the death of one person, and is currently in prison. One of the criticisms of this film is the way it portrays women. Dr. Dre's past violence against women was revealed, leading to him issuing an apology. This film was well received, but due to these troubles, it is said that it has withdrawn from the Oscar race.

Closely involved in NWA