Menace II Society

Menace II Society
Theatrical release poster
Directed by	The Hughes Brothers
Produced by	Darin Scott
Screenplay by	Tyger Williams
Story by	Allen Hughes Albert Hughes Tyger Williams
Starring	Tyrin Turner Jada Pinkett Bill Duke Charles S. Dutton
Music by	QD III
Cinematography	Lisa Rinzler
Edited by	Christopher Koefoed
Distributed by	New Line Cinema
Release dates	May 26, 1993 (1993-05-26)
Running time	104 minutes
Country	United States
Language	English
Budget	$3.5 million
Box office	$27.9 million[1]

Menace II Society is a 1993 drama/hood film and the directorial debut of twin brothers Allen and Albert Hughes. Set in South Central Los Angeles, the film follows the life of a hoodlum named Caine Lawson and his close friends. It gained notoriety for its scenes of violence, profanity, and drug-related content. It was released in May 1993 to critical acclaim for its gritty portrayal of urban violence and its powerful underlying messages.

Plot

Caine Lawson and his best friend Kevin Anderson (O-Dog) enter a local store to buy malt liquor, as the Korean storekeeper and his wife watch them suspiciously. As they are about to leave, an argument ensues and the shopkeeper insults O-Dog by saying "I feel sorry for your mother". Enraged, O-Dog shoots him and his wife. He then takes money from the cash register, and the video surveillance tape. In a flashback, it is revealed that Caine’s father was a dope dealer who was killed in a drug deal when Caine was ten, and his mother was a heroin addict who later died of an overdose. As a result he went to go live with his grandparents. Later, Caine and his cousin Harold are carjacked and Harold is murdered, while Caine is wounded. When O-Dog informs Caine that he has learned the identity of the carjackers he, Caine, and their friend A-Wax, find the assailants and kill them.

Caine and O-Dog are hired by a local hood Chauncey, for a car insurance scheme but are caught in the process and arrested by police. A detective attempts to link Caine to the store killings by matching fingerprints. Once released, Caine buys a new car from a chop shop and robs a local for his Dayton wheels. Caine then purchases a large quantity of cocaine to cook into crack and sell. Caine begins to enjoy his new hustler lifestyle with his crew, and meets a local girl named Ilena at the park. After facing police brutality and recovering in a hospital, Caine is visited by his friend, Ronnie, who tells him that she has found a job in Atlanta and invites him to come with her. Caine shows hesitance but is eventually persuaded and the two end up making love. When Caine rejoins his friends, he notices that Chauncey is making drunken advances towards Ronnie. Furious, Caine takes one of O-Dog's gun which he uses to beat Chauncey senseless. Chauncey sends a copy of the tape to the police for revenge. Later, Caine gets a phone call from Ilena who tells him that she is pregnant with his child, but Caine tells Ilena it is not his problem.

Before leaving for Atlanta, Caine is confronted by Ilena's cousin, and an altercation ensues. Caine beats up Ilena's cousin in front of his grandparents house and continues to stomp him while he is down. After the fight, Caine's grandparents talk with him, and his grandfather tells him that they cannot let him stay with them anymore because they think that there is no hope for a hoodlum like him.

Heartbroken, Caine leaves and goes to Ronnie's house so they can go off in search of a better life in Atlanta. Just as Caine and Ronnie finish packing their things with help from the others, Ilena's cousin, seeking revenge on Caine for humiliating him, and a gang of gunmen execute a drive-by shooting on the house during which Caine's friend Sharif is killed and Caine is fatally wounded. As Caine slowly dies in Stacy's arms, he begins to see flashbacks of the events that led to this moment. He realizes that his crime-ridden life has finally caught up with him, and O-Dog is seen being arrested by the police. He also remembers when his grandfather asked him if he cared whether he lived or died and Caine's last thought is that he does, but now its too late.

Cast

• Tyrin Turner - Kaydee (Caine) Lawson
• Jada Pinkett - Ronnie
• Larenz Tate - Kevin (O-Dog) Anderson
• Samuel L. Jackson - Tat Lawson
• MC Eiht - A-Wax
• Glenn Plummer - James "Pernell" Richards
• Clifton Powell - Chauncy
• Marilyn Coleman - Mrs. Lawson
• Arnold Johnson - Thomas Lawson
• Pooh-Man - Doc
• Julian Roy Doster - Anthony
• Too Short - Lew-Loc
• Jermaine "Huggy" Hopkins - Tyrone
• Khandi Alexander - Karen Lawson
• Vonte Sweet - Sharif Butler
• Ryan Williams - Stacy
• Bill Duke - Detective
• Dwayne L. Barnes - Basehead
• Charles S. Dutton - Mr. Butler
• Khalil Kain - Carjacking Victim
• Garen Holoman - Junior
• Brandon Hammond - Five Year Old Caine
• Saafir - Harold Lawson
• Cynthia Calhoun - Jackee
• Erin Leshawn Wiley - Ilena
• Samuel Monroe Jr. - Ilena's Cousin
• Clifton Collins, Jr. - Vato #2

Production

Originally, MC Ren was set to play A-Wax, rapper Spice 1 to play Caine, and Tupac Shakur to play Sharif, but they were later fired with director Allen Hughes claiming that Shakur was causing trouble on the set. Six months after the firing, Shakur assaulted the director, resulting in Shakur being found guilty of assault and battery.^[2] Shakur did not want to play the role of Sharif, as he did not agree (in regards to the authenticity of such a role) that a Muslim could also be a gangbanger. He is quoted as saying the following in a video interview,^[3]

"I said okay, cool... fire me from this $100,000 movie, because I ain't goin' play no gangbanger who's a Muslim. There ain't no such thing, I refuse to play parts that don't exist. I will be a young nigga, but will be a real young nigga."

—Tupac Shakur

Tupac wanted to play O-Dog. They were later replaced with Larenz Tate and Tyrin Turner, respectively.^[4]

The movie featured realistic dialogue, and is known for its crude and profane language. The word "fuck" and its derivatives are used 300 times in the 97-minute film. This was a record up to that time and the film still holds one of the highest "fuck" per minute rates at 3.07 times per minute. The movie was edited for an R-rating; edited scenes included Samuel L. Jackson's character's killing of the man in the poker scene, the shooting of the red-sweatered gang member by A-Wax, and Caine's death at the end. This was all reinstated in the director's cut. The director's cut was first released on LaserDisc, then released on DVD in 2008. The film's first DVD release was the R-rated theatrical version. The director's cut has since been re-rated R for strong bloody violence, drug use and pervasive language (instead of strong violence, drug use and language). An additional scene was also added, showing Caine and O-Dog breaking into a car in the garage. But according to the Hughes brothers, a prison riot scene, which was cut by the studio to avoid an NC-17 rating, has not been restored.

Reception

Menace II Society received generally positive reviews from critics.^[5] The film scored an 85% 'fresh' rating on Rotten Tomatoes, based on 35 reviews. Chicago Reader critic Jonathan Rosenbaum stated, "This is a powerful, convincing, and terrifying look at teenage crime in contemporary Watts."^[6] Owen Gleiberman from Entertainment Weekly gave it a positive review, stating, "Menace II Society is bleak, brilliant, and unsparing."^[7] EmanuelLevy.com gave the film an A, saying it is "The most stunning feature debut in the new African American cinema, even more so than Boyz n the Hood to which the coming of age feature bears thematic resemblance."^[8] The film was placed on both Gene Siskel and Roger Ebert's 10 best films of 1993 lists, with Ebert praising "the way the filmmakers tell Caine's story without making him seem either the hero or victim".^[9][10]

The film received some negative reviews. Geoff Andrew of Time Out stated, "Regrettably, the Hughes Brothers' first feature is a compendium of cliches."^[11] Stephen Holden of The New York Times stated, "If Menace II Society is terrific on ambiance, it is considerably less successful in revealing character."^[12] At the 1994 MTV Movie Awards, the film was awarded Best Movie, beating out the likes of Philadelphia, Jurassic Park and Schindler's List.^[13] The film also won an Independent Spirit Award for Best Cinematography.^[14]

See also

• List of films featuring surveillance
• Menace II Society (soundtrack)
• Boyz N The Hood
• Colors (film)
• New Jack City
• Juice (film)
• Goodfellas

References

External links

Wikiquote has quotations related to: Menace II Society

• Menace II Society at the Internet Movie Database
• Menace II Society at AllMovie
• Menace II Society at Rotten Tomatoes
• Menace II Society at Metacritic
• Menace II Society at Box Office Mojo