Sugar Hill (1994)

SH was one of those fine drug movies, like Deep Cover, Menace To Society, that were around, pretty much the same time. What sucks, is like Menace To Society, this one missed an S.A. cinema release. From the first frame, or credits, you can tell you're in for none other, a fine two hours film, and this is exactly what you get with good black actors you like. We have a wonderfully refreshing opening, where a black mother O.D's. She has two little boys, where she uses the older one to cook her up a fix. This makes quite an impact on him, as we cut to a later time. Now grown up, this man (Wright, the wilder, out of control one) and brother (Snipes) are in the drug business, working for the NY mafia, under their boss played beautifully by Abe Vigoda, a fine sculptured performance. Snipes has fallen in love, and now sees that the future in this business is short limited, so he best be smart and get out now, so we know what's to ensue. He tries to pull his brother out of it, but he wants no part. I really like the drawn characters, as we really understand, who they are, but more importantly, why they are, what they are, especially Wright's character, that all come full circle in that dinner family scene with KFC. Wright is an exceptionally talented black actor, who really carves out his characters, like no other of his race I've seen. He's a more pathetic type, here, and he plays it wonderfully real, while Snipes is very good, and Clarence Williams 111, what can I say? Just another fine performance. Randle as Snipes's love interest is really good, where she plays a budding actress: waitress, that joke really old now. She's the victim of a nasty rape scene, too, by another black guy, which added some venom to this engrossing film. The end is rather hard hitting, engaging, which as to Snipes's fate, a real blow. The whole anti drug film is engaging, and lovers of these film, and others, I recommend it to ya, if you haven't seen it.

One of the best movies I've ever seen. The jazzy soundtrack , great cinematography, and insightful disposition from the protagonist is extremely rare for a movie centered around drugs and violence. To the untrained eye Romello Scruggs appears to be a perplexed drug dealer. However, if the viewer looks a little closer and has any understanding of drugs in the black community, it becomes evident how smart and tough he really is. Two parents strung out on drugs (mother dies of an overdose in front of him as a child), a brother who is very dependent on him (also sabotaging his plans on leaving the drug game), dealing with the politics and strife that comes with being a successful drug dealer, yet he's well read and has an extensive jazz collection. A man with money and power that understands that those things are not the recipe for happiness. A realistic depiction of a thought provoking and tactful drug dealer; Also the harsh reality of the drug game, power, and greed. It definitely possesses a melancholic feel throughout the movie, but not in a depressing way. The gaudy lifestyle is there from beginning to end, but sugar hill focuses more on the thought process and the struggles of maintaining the lifestyle. As a result it lacks the glorification and extravagance of the classic mob flicks. Though a film like this may not be appealing to everyone I feel that it possesses a deep yet simple message. The cons outweigh the pros in the street lifestyle. Rarely does it ever end well and it should not be glorified as much as it is. Especially in the black community. Classic film with a timeless message.

Bumped into this movie on Sky Cinema the other night, when it was halfway through. At first I assumed it was a hitherto-shelved Spike Lee film, especially when Wes popped up. I was riveted from then on by its uncompromising bleakness: a black Godfather III? Certainly left a similar impression, of the tragic futility of hard drugs and street gangs, of the sometime impossible difficulties inherent in changing one's life. IL' Wes has never convinced as an untarnished hero; here he is as convincingly uncertain, as shakily cocky, as he was in Jungle Fever and One Night Stand: a vastly underrated actor who really ought to get back in the saddle with Spike as soon as he possibly can. Never heard of the director, though.

Years after they saw their mother OD and their father shot in the legs over drug dealings, brothers Roemello and Raynathan now run the streets of Harlem. However Roemello begins to tire of the trade and looks to leave, a new girlfriend helping to show him what he is missing out on. However getting out is never easy and is made more complicated by Lolly Jonas moving in on their territory with the beginnings of a gang war.The score to this film is a lazy, rambling blues number that plays consistently at times, like wallpaper. It is this score that I think sums up the weakness of this film - it is too slow, too patient and too lacking in style or energy. That's not to say it's a poor film for it is not, but it could have been better. Much has been done to try and make this quite a serious film that avoids the black gangsta clichés but the plot requires too much talking and exposition. This wouldn't have been as much of an issue if the characters and narrative had been more convincing.However, I never fully bought Roemello and Raynathan as adults having just seen flashbacks of their childhood. I could accept that they would end up selling the poison that ruined their lives, but would Roemello been as balanced and as suave as he was? Likewise, in the drug game - to get on top wouldn't he needed to have been ruthless and violent? He just seems too nice. This lack of convincing characters is an issue as they were really needed to make the rather slow and talky script more involving. Despite this weakness the film is still interesting, it doesn't really do anything different from things you will have seen before, and parts of it hark back to better gangster-epic style films. It doesn't distinguish itself but I must give it credit for trying to be a serious black gangster film in a sea of New Jack type clichés in other films.Snipes has become a better leading man with time and he tries to give a serious role here as a younger man but it never convinced me. I never got a sense of any menace or `dark side' to his character - he played him far too upright and moral to be a convincing character - his battle to go straight would have been more interesting if it didn't look like he was already halfway there! Randle is OK but has little to really do, and I never once understand where her character was coming from. Wright is a more erratic performance and more convincing than Snipes. Support is good from a variety of well known faces including Williams, Hill, Hudson and Bottoms.Overall this is a serious gangster film that had potential but whose delivery is just a little too slow and talky. The characters are more than just clichés but the script can't get them where they need to go - it sets up complex characters with childhood background but then fails to bring that out as adults. Worth a watch but it is quite slow, aiming for the grandeur of better films that it can't quite reach.