Juice (1992)

This movie will forever be a hood classic. Tupac has many movies, but this was his first. Think about Poetic Justice, Gang Related, Gridlock'd, Above the Rim, and Bullet. Don't be fooled, the man was just getting started.However, this will always be one of my favorites. Bishop was scary and so was Tupac in this role. Kudos to one of the best rappers of all time. Who says so? The Rock-n-Roll Hall of Fame, that's who. RIP TUPAC! Your legacy continues...Juice is a 90's movie that tells the story of 4 Harlem youth that are friends until one snaps, becomes trigger-happy, and gets hooked on the thrill the gun. After seeing this many times over the years, I must say that the characters in this movie makes it worth watching. When you really dissect the roles, a lot went on between these friends.Raheem was the mediator and peacemaker, Q was the talented and ambitious one, Bishop was the hot-headed one, and Steel was the big baby of the crew. I think most people have been a part of cliques that sound just like this. I know I have, even as a female. I think the whole thing played out how it was supposed to. When you look at it from the beginning there was a contempt and jealousy from Bishop toward Q from the start. It's obvious that Q wanted to become a DJ and make something of himself. Unfortunately, Bishop didn't see that bright of a future for himself. You can really tell his hatred for Q after he won his first set at the contest, and he walks through the crowd and approaches them before they robbed Old Man Quiles. If looks could kill!! I think that's what makes this movies so easy to relate to because we've all had those snake-ish friends hanging around us knowing they were silently praying for our downfall. The same thing with Bishop hugging Raheem's mother and sister at the funeral. The same man he murdered! How twisted do you have to be to kiss the man's mother on the cheek and be there to help the family grieve? The thing is, people do it all the time. This movie just keeps it too real! It happens!!If you really think about it, Raheem was just the buffer between those two, so inevitably Bishop would remove the buffer between him and Q resulting in a final showdown. Bishop and Q was the endgame. Raheem was in the way, and Steel was just a casualty of war, just as everyone else was. Also, if you pay attention to Bishop's father in the beginning, you can tell that mental illness clearly ran in his family because his father was "crazy," which is also why it wasn't that far off base that he would eventually snap as well.All in all, this movie was very well played whether it ever gets the recognition it deserves or not.

The movie Juice released in 1992 was directed by Ernest Dickerson and cast four major actors which are Tupac Shakur, Omar Epps, Jermaine Hopkins, and Khalil Kain. This thriller is rated R and focuses on the life of four inner city young adult males. This movie was relevant in 1992 and is still very relevant in 2016 it portrays betrayal on a large scale and teaches a lot of life lessons specifically for college age students.  I found this movie to be great and, also a way to reach various crowds of people with all the action and drama within the movie.   The movie beings with the start of the four guys school day although they are in high school they almost never go. Then continues on with the average day of the teenage boys shoplifting, fighting, and getting into all sorts of trouble. The movie gives you a clear example of what it is like living in an inner city community. It specifically shows you how gentlemen of the past, present, and future have dreams of making it out of bad neighborhoods. You get to see all the problems they face day in and day out which includes peer pressure, deaths, betrayal, and the meaning of a true friendship. The violent scenes of the movie are the most lesson field parts also. I believe Dickerson did a great job of directing this film he has a clear way of organizing the film. He organizes this way so that the audience can get a complete feeling of how the African American boys in 1992 were feeling. I also feel like the scenery helped it even more because it is placed directly in the heart of Harlem. Having this horrific scenery gives it more of an inner city feel. Instead of four suburban teenagers in the suburbs, the use of the four African American male actors helps me to understand and connect it with people I know. The movie being so reliable is what I believe makes the film incredible, it seems like it is a story that has happened to me and I'm just retelling it. Overall Juice is a movie that will draw every person between the ages 16-25. It has enough thrill and scenes to relate to this wide range of viewers. It can also be a motivation to teens all across the world. I believe it can be a motivation because it gives obvious reasons for why teen should not follow peer pressure, intake drugs, drink, and always follows their dreams. I mention teens all across the world because although many people believe inner city kids are the only once who face violence, in reality, all teens do. The violence every teen faces is different and comes in different shapes, forms, and height but overall it is obstacles everyone must cross. Juice has a great way of portraying the best way and the worst way of overcoming your individual obstacles. Ernest Dickerson should be extremely proud of this incredible film he directed. He provided entertainment while teaching life lessons that everyone could use like how to love, commitment, honesty, and friendship. If I had to rate this movie I would give it a 8 of 10 simply because its intriguing but could give a little more back story.

This movie was a complete disappointment to me. Granted, I was born in 1993 and never got the witness the 2Pac era. From everything I read, 2Pac is a very intelligent and self educated man, but his acting in this role doesn't impress me. He is basically portraying the gangster image he portrays in his rap music. He didn't have to go too far out of his bubble. The plot was very basic and I was vastly disappointed. It's the kind of plot that has been reused so many times, except this one doesn't have any added elements that will keep you watching until the end, EXCEPT for Tupac Shakur (because of how influential he was at the time). There are far more superior gangster movies out there. Don't be deceived by this cast. Some names will make it very appealing but in the end, it will not be worth it.

Juice is yet another hood film that presents itself honestly and with a good sense of realism. It doesn't capitalize on anything but the reality and the dangers of growing up in a city lead by gun violence and senseless murders. In the mix of it all are four Harlem boys all portrayed effectively by Omar Epps, Tupac Shakur, Jermaine "Huggy" Hopkins, and Khalil Kain.The boys call themselves "The Wrecking Crew," and are trying to survive with what they have in a dangerous town. They spend most of their time at an arcade or a record shop when they cut school a little early, most of the time being harassed by the police or a gang in the process. One day, one of the boys named Bishop (Shakur) buys a gun, and convinces the other three members to come along in stickup. They rob the store, and from that moment on things go from bad to worse for the boys.There is a subplot involving another one of the gang's members nicknamed "Q" (Epps) who is an aspiring DJ, and has a big DJ competition the night of the planned robbery.Writer and Director Ernest R. Dickerson has worked as the cinematographer on various Spike Lee films, and this marks his very first shot behind the camera. While Juice is passable and well-made, it suffers by comparison with film's made by Lee like Do the Right Thing and School Daze. It also can be compared to Boyz N The Hood, another excellent hood film by John Singleton.I believe because of Spike Lee films and works of John Singleton is the reason why Juice has slipped through the cracks. It has a following, but because of strong critical acclaim surrounding the other pictures and this one just having mixed reviews is the reason why this isn't remembered as well as the other films.The moral of Juice is great about a psychological change one person can go through in a matter of time, the message about gun violence, and strong friendships being tested. However - this is taken in a more clichéd manner than any other hood film I've seen. We don't know a whole lot about the characters, and we don't know about they're raised. We don't get the parental backstory which is what Boyz N The Hood was cluttered with.I'm recommending Juice for its morals, its sense of realism, and its subject matter. However, the delivery is a little askew, and the four boys aren't developed as well as they could be. This is still one more realistic hood film that many should make time to see, but this film only reaches the level of average to decent while all of Singleton's films surpassed the above average mark.Starring: Omar Epps, Tupac Shakur, Jermaine "Huggy" Hopkins, Khalil Kain, Samuel L. Jackson. Directed by: Ernest R. Dickerson.