The most fascinating parts of F. Gary Gray's Straight Outta Compton--a rags-to-riches biographical film about the rise and fall of gangsta rap pioneers N.W.A--have nothing to do with the aforementioned rags nor the aforementioned riches. Instead, Straight Outta Compton shines as a cultural time capsule of the nascent gangsta rap movement and the cultural stresses that informed it. Documentary footage of the Rodney King beatings, the L.A. Riots, and recreations of violent LAPD-operated drug busts in poor neighborhoods contextualize the group's outrageous music, proving that such classic hits as "Fuck tha Police" were symptoms, not causes, of a minority community facing abhorrent systematic racism and limited economic opportunities. I was equally astounded by the astute casting of rap legends. Plenty has already been said about the chameleonic casting of young men who look exactly like the members of N.W.A., but I'd like to point out that when Marcc Rose appeared as Tupac Shakur, my breath left my body. More informed critics than myself can comment on whether or not the film did justice to N.W.A.'s story. But as a film, particularly in light of the recent upsurge of protests against police violence, Straight Outta Compton succeeds.
8/10
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