Genres

Visitors Review

2012-05-05 11:56:58

Just what we don't need

John Singleton is a gifted director. Unfortunately, I think he put a black eye in the gang with this film. Baby Boy is a portrayal of young black america that is not needed. You have a manchild who can't seem to ween himself from his mother. His girlfriend, who for all intents and purposes is a whiny & clingy, seems to be very smart but can't seem to get over her baby's daddy. Snoop's character who has no love for those, including Tyrese's girlfriend (who he comes to live off of after he gets out of prison). Jody's (Tyrese's character) mom seems to be comfortable with a man who has a shady past growin' reefer in her backyard. I am sure some viewers are going to say, "That's just the way things are." and Singleton is just portraying it as it is. Maybe so but aren't you tired of seeing black relationships portrayed in the worst light possible? While I don't suggest Mr. Singleton give us the Huxatables, may I suggest a much more positive characters than a young man in his early 20s riding around on a bike w/no job, pouting around his mama and making babies he can't take care of or black females who seem to be very smart but will take anything from a man just to have a relationship?

binsie 2012-05-04 18:17:13

Thoughtful, thought-provoking...requiring an adult grasp of message...a good see!

Although not as hard-hitting as Boyz in the Hood, Baby Boy is afascinatingdepiction of a young man's conflicted struggle on the road to becoming aman. It's revelations and insightfulness inspires thinking that makes yourealize that the same struggle occurs in many environments, cultures andcircumstances. Not only is Baby Boy conflicted, but his mother is also andthey play their fluctuating needs, desires and psychology out with greatintensity. The characters in this movie were well-cast, especially Tyreseand Ving Rhames. The only thing I could have done without was thegratuitous sex scenes. They could have closed the doors and we would havestill known what was happening. After all, we are adults.

2012-05-04 09:52:40

I liked it

I just got to see this film this morning. First of all, Jody needed to grow up. He was just another brother out there making babies and not doing nothing with his life. Staying at home and not contributing nothing. Then his mother meets a man who is good to her. At first, you wonder(like Jody) what this man's intentions are, but as time goes by, you can see that the brother really cares about the mother. Yet, in the midst of this, Jody and his main lady go through a lot of issues with trust,love, and the whole gamut.I was ready for them to stop the drama. I saw myself in the rest of the characters. I don't think that essentially they are bad people, just ordinary people who feel they are doing what they feel is best.

2012-05-03 17:06:05

Strickly Fiction; Not For Home Use Please.....

The movie was entertaining, and that's it. For those who experianced a moment of dejavu, well it's time to make some "MAJOR" changes.Ving was good and the music was great. NO not the rap selections featured on the soundtrack... The OLDIES! Now why didn't they make a soundtrack of those, it would have sold more copies, that's just my opinion..

edwagreen 2012-05-02 19:50:33

Sociology at its Best-Language at Worst Describes Baby Boy**1/2

Sociologists would have a field day with this film. Given the currentstate of things, it's amazing that African-Americans have not picketedthis film due to its extremely negative stereotyping of black life inAmerica.Black men are depicted as shiftless tramps, hustlers and just generallow-lives. Ditto for women.The language here is absolutely disgusting to say the least. You can'tget through a sentence without b and f bombs being hurled at eachother.How old is Tyrese Gibson's mom in this film? She must have had him whenshe was 14 or so.How horrible that the killing is never solved by police officials.These negative things being said, our sociologists would view this filmpositively claiming that it gives an adequate description of blacklife.Where are our so called black activists in protesting this film? Ithought I was back in the New York City classroom or other large urbanschool setting. What a disgusting film to show to all groups. Talk ofreviving of racial prejudice, this was really off the wall.

2012-05-02 01:33:32

This movie sucks

I saw Baby Boy on Cinnemax and it wasn't worth seeing. For one thing, about everyone in the movie is yelling at someone else. The characters cannot utter a single sentance without cursing. There is also a lot of nudity scenes which really could have been deleted. I guess that the setting for the movie is supposed to be the ghetto or 'hood, but I notice that people who live there have big screen TV's and fireplaces. Pretty much the movie is about someone who won't move out of his mom's home, stop sleeping with different women, get a job, and support his kids. Then there is the main character's loser girlfriend who FINALLY breaks up with him after he mistreated her for so long. She gets back together with him when he almost gets killed by kicking out his criminal cousin from her apartment. They get back together without him making an effort to change. Then the main character argues with his mother's boyfriend, but everything is made ok when the BF takes the gun out of the main character's hand. He and his friend just shot someone. Don't watch this stupid movie.

2012-04-24 18:25:53

Didnt quite reach its aim

This movie definitely had the potential to be an eye-opener for young black 'baby boys', but in the end it missed its mark. While quite entertaining, it failed to make a sound statement for the socially conscious viewer,which might have been alright if it had been a comedy, but it was obvious it was intended to be a drama taken seriously. And for that reason alone, I am left somewhat disappointed. First, in how passive the girlfriend Yvette's character was. Even though she screamed at Jody all the time, she still basically said it was ok for him to cheat on her as long as it wasnt anyone she knew and as long as he didnt give her any diseases. Sad. He treats her horribly and even has another baby with another girl and she still keeps him. Even more sad. And although she finally kicks him out, she does nothing to get on with her life and instead mopes around the house and cries that he no longer loves her. Sadder still. But actually, what's TRULY sad is that her character probably IS 'keeping it real'. So many young girls today are JUST that insecure to allow such behavior from a man. But it would have been nice to see a stronger female role that could survive without someone who wasnt any good anyway.But if her character had to stay the same then there could atleast have been a better ending for Jody's character. Am I the only one who didnt see a 'happy ending'? Is it just me or did nothing about Jody's character change? The only difference I noticed was that he was being nicer to his mom's boyfriend, which was only right. But it never showed that he got a job, and he still got into YVETTE's car and took out keys to YVETTE's apartment. What changed?! Looks like he went from living off of his mother to living off of Yvette. It just seems to me that the mark of no longer being a 'baby boy' would have been to show him get a job, his OWN car, and a new apartment for his family. But I suppose that falls on the writer and director. The one good thing I can say is that Tyrese did the best with what he was given. I was very impressed with his acting.

sschwartz3 2012-04-24 02:12:12

Looking foward to seeing the entire film, just caught last twenty minutes

Just happened to be channel surfing and the beauty of an actress combinedwith prolifically foul dialogue caught my attention as my wife commentedthat "this language is avilable to children at this time?," (twelvenoon),made me realize that many would skip this film for just this reason andcaused me to remain there to see if the rest of this film could sustainthis"alienation?"I attended to the film in the background but after a minute or 2 gave itmyentire attention as I realized this was a powerful film whose substanceandplot were searingly real and a very exciting sort of docudrama.After a few more minutes I was amazed at the depth of characters,truthfulportrayals and breathe and extent of situations this film took on.The language is a vehicle that along with a complex interweaving ofconcentrated lifes really makes many points.I only caught the last twenty minutes or so but I'm really lookingforwardto seeing the entire film.John Singleton is no more just a mere name.

frereloupe9 2012-04-16 01:32:19

An unambitious move by singleton, yet enjoyable to certain extent

Singleton's solid direction didn't save the uneven pacings of this film ,and not only the pacing, theres alot of Gap that occured here, i dont knowwhat it is exactly but probably the lack of resolution and the absence ofconsequences that suppose to be given to some of the lead characters, idon't know maybe its just me, after Boyz n' the hood(1992) where theendingis brilliantly justified or the murkier 'Menace to Society' (1993), thisoneseems to be too easy going on facing the hard days yet to come, so ishouldprobably blame it on the script.The story opens with a fresh sequence on the definition of why a blackmaleis defined as a baby boy, we are then introduced with the title character,Jody , A 20 yr old unachieving young man trying to break free off thedirectionless life on the street but seems to do little about it,insteadhepreffers the good old in and out and sampling other local females, despitealready giving babies to his steady girlfriend and another mistress typeofwoman,oh yes, he also lives with his young mom who still samples ondifferent type of thug boyfriends, that is until the biggest thug,MelvinakaVing rhames came by , took the heart of mom, and leave Jody with oedipusangst, now i leave it to here, since it is really hard to break down asummary for this one, every scenes seems to be working like a miniepisodesof themselves, which is also the weakness of this film.Other than that , good acting, Tyrese did a good job playing Jody,considering he is a singer, and a young one at that, he got the emotionplayed all on the right spot (i think), Taraji Henson as the pressurizedlover who bears Jody's baby, Ving "Marcellus" Rhames as a proud ex-oldschooler who dates Jody's mom (watch for a very innovative staminarequiringsquatting activity he and J's Mom perform..priceless) , Omar Goodingstealsevery scene he is in as Jody's cuz who's raging about his current lifestatus, and what "lesson of life in da street" film is it withoutemployinga hardcore gangsta rapper? Snoop Dog appears here looking more evil asusual, heLL, even Tupac did a cameo, sorta...i rent this DVD without any expectation whatsoever, since one review ireadgave this film a 1 outta 5,and also this film went straight rentalswithoutshowing anywhere in cinemas out here.... thus i am quite satisfied knowingthat this stuff isn't really that bad, i mean Singleton's film couldn't bethat bad wouldn't it? well bad it ain't only it could have been muchbetter2.5 out of 5+2.5 for neat acting job and cinematography, plus the nice squattingidea.-2.5 for the numbing pacings, the overused shootout in the porch scene,andplotholes that might go away if youre just watching this to killtime.

colinwhitefan 2012-04-15 08:42:49

job well done

I really enjoyed this movie, Singleton did a good job here. Tyrese can sing,but the boy can act too, his performance was very superb as Jody. I knowmany people can relate to the issues in this film. I don't know about you,but I am getting tired of Snoop Dogg he can't act and his character got onmy nerves. If you can see past Snoop Dogg, Baby Boy was time well spent, ifyou haven't seen it you should it is a very worthy film.

Darkfalz 2012-04-15 14:08:05

Another degrading "life in the hood" film

I don't really understand the non-black persons obsession with "black"movies, like Boyz in the Hood, Menace 2 Society and those kinds of "films".I did actually enjoy Boyz, because it was a good story above all else, andFishburne's performance was excellent.This isn't nearly as good, but it's a heck of a lot better than his broaderventures into writing and directing. In other words, Singleton should stickto writing black characters, not point that big bigoted mind of his atdepicting other races, because complete and utter unrealistic trash likeHigher Learning happens when he does that.The biggest problem I have with this film is the way it glorifies the "life"of these black, criminal gang banger types. Just like bad rap music. Andbecause the film doesn't really go anywhere, it just beats in the same themeover and over until the predictable and contrived finale.The performances by the non actors (Snoop Doggy Doggy etc.) are prettyawful, but they weren't exactly asked to do Shakespeare here so it's easy tooverlook. Watch it if you want another (realistic?) view of life in theghetto, don't waste your time otherwise.

2012-04-15 00:02:58

Didnt quite reach its aim

This review is from: Baby Boy (Special Edition) (DVD) This movie definitely had the potential to be an eye-opener for young black 'baby boys', but in the end it missed its mark. While quite entertaining, it failed to make a sound statement for the socially conscious viewer,which might have been alright if it had been a comedy, but it was obvious it was intended to be a drama taken seriously. And for that reason alone, I am left somewhat disappointed. First, in how passive the girlfriend Yvette's character was. Even though she screamed at Jody all the time, she still basically said it was ok for him to cheat on her as long as it wasnt anyone she knew and as long as he didnt give her any diseases. Sad. He treats her horribly and even has another baby with another girl and she still keeps him. Even more sad. And although she finally kicks him out, she does nothing to get on with her life and instead mopes around the house and cries that he no longer loves her. Sadder still. But actually, what's TRULY sad is that her character probably IS 'keeping it real'. So many young girls today are JUST that insecure to allow such behavior from a man. But it would have been nice to see a stronger female role that could survive without someone who wasnt any good anyway.But if her character had to stay the same then there could atleast have been a better ending for Jody's character. Am I the only one who didnt see a 'happy ending'? Is it just me or did nothing about Jody's character change? The only difference I noticed was that he was being nicer to his mom's boyfriend, which was only right. But it never showed that he got a job, and he still got into YVETTE's car and took out keys to YVETTE's apartment. What changed?! Looks like he went from living off of his mother to living off of Yvette. It just seems to me that the mark of no longer being a 'baby boy' would have been to show him get a job, his OWN car, and a new apartment for his family. But I suppose that falls on the writer and director. The one good thing I can say is that Tyrese did the best with what he was given. I was very impressed with his acting.

Chacarie 2012-04-14 12:26:23

This movie is off the rector scale

WHEN I FIRST SAW THIS MOVIE I THOUGHT "OH THIS IS A GOOD MOVIE FILLED WITH BABY MAMA DRAMA AND A REALLY ROMANTIC GHETTO TYPE MOVIE AND I CAN REALLY RELATE TO YVETTE IN THIS MOVIE".

2012-04-14 03:01:25

Explore Black Culture

I'm a big fan of John Singleton's movies. How anyone can watch "Boyz in the Hood" without being touched by the struggle is beyond me. This is obviously an updated version of an older man/child struggling with how he matures, in jail or as a productive family member. Involved with all the habits of stereotyped blacks, deep inside the protagonists must decide if he chooses the mother of his child that loves him or the ways of the streets and the influence of his brothers.While I particularly liked the storyline involving the girlfriend, most viewers will be touched by the role of Ving Rhames, the new boyfriend of his mother's. A former con with two strikes against him, Ving cuts an imposing image on the screen and shows more of a sexual side than in any other of his movies. Snoop Dog has an excellent roleplaying himself to perfection as a worthless ex-con/ex-boyfriend. Also of significance is the peer pressure influence of his closest friend who easily should end up in jail or dead taking his friend with him.White Americans of which I am one, live in a world not familiar with the struggles of young black American males. While I believe this movie to be overdramatized, there is still a significant truth to be viewed. If you enjoyed this movie, I would encourage you to read Nathan McCall's "Makes me Wanna Holler", a story of a young black male growing up in Virginia for another story of young black men struggling under heavy peer pressure to succeed in a world that they view from a different perspective.

2012-04-11 01:25:56

bAbY b0Y

Singleton's solid direction didn't save the uneven pacings of this film , and not only the pacing, theres alot of Gap that occured here, i dont know what it is exactly but probably the lack of resolution and the absence of consequences that suppose to be given to some of the lead characters, i don't know maybe its just me, after Boyz n' the hood(1992) where the ending is brilliantly justified or the murkier 'Menace to Society' (1993), this one seems to be too easy going on facing the hard days yet to come, so i should probably blame it on the script.The story opens with a fresh sequence on the definition of why a black male is defined as a baby boy, we are then introduced with the title character , Jody , A 20 yr old unachieving young man trying to break free off the directionless life on the street but seems to do little about it,instead he preffers the good old in and out and sampling other local females, despite already giving babies to his steady girlfriend and another mistress type of woman,oh yes, he also lives with his young mom who still samples on different type of thug boyfriends, that is until the biggest thug,Melvin aka Ving rhames came by , took the heart of mom, and leave Jody with oedipus angst, now i leave it to here, since it is really hard to break down a summary for this one, every scenes seems to be working like a mini episodes of themselves, which is also the weakness of this film.Other than that , good acting, Tyrese did a good job playing Jody, considering he is a singer, and a young one at that, he got the emotion played all on the right spot (i think), Taraji Henson as the pressurized lover who bears Jody's baby, Ving "Marcellus" Rhames as a proud ex-old schooler who dates Jody's mom (watch for a very innovative stamina requiring squatting activity he and J's Mom perform..priceless) , Omar Gooding steals every scene he is in as Jody's cuz who's raging about his current life status, and what "lesson of life in da street" film is it without employing a hardcore gangsta rapper? Snoop Dog appears here looking more evil as usual, heLL, even Tupac did a cameo, sorta...i rent this DVD without any expectation whatsoever, since one review i read gave this film a 1 outta 5,and also this film went straight rentals without showing anywhere in cinemas out here.... thus i am quite satisfied knowing that this stuff isn't really that bad, i mean Singleton's film couldn't be that bad wouldn't it? well bad it ain't only it could have been much better

kcmack33 2012-04-10 11:00:22

Excellent Movie

This movie was great and will be a classic. It depicted real life inSouth Central LA and was dedicated to sending a message about growingup and facing responsibilities. Anyone who couldn't see that really didnot pay attention to the movie at all. I did, however feel that theacting could have been slightly better, but for the most part, I feltthat parts were chosen for the right people to act them out. I hopethat a Baby Boy two comes out with a more mature/father-figure BabyBoy. It may be a long shot but stranger movies have been made. Afterseeing this movie, it has made me want to see more movies with the sametype of depiction that Baby Boy had.KcMack

2012-04-09 22:57:54

One of my favorite movies of all time

This review is from: Baby Boy (Special Edition) (DVD) I love this movie!! I can watch it and never grow tired of it. This is one of my favorite movies of all time. I still can't believe that this movie is almost 10 years old and STILL looks like it was released in theatres yesterday.Thanks again amazon.com

2012-04-09 12:11:38

Everyone can identify!

I have to admit, this movie is better than what I have expected. It was painfully true in some ways. Some say that it's stereotypical, but it really isn't. I've read some of the reviews and some think that it shows blacks in a negative light, but at the same time John Singleton is trying to educate these young people at the same time. He's trying to make them reevaluate themselves by basically seeing themselves in this film. I think everyone from different backgrounds can identify with the characters.

2012-04-05 17:06:31

Poor acting and full of stero types

This is a poor movie on all scales. The acting, plot, and characters were all weak.

2012-04-05 06:20:56

One of the best movies of the 21st century!

I really enjoyed this movie. I rented it first and then saw it on standard cable (BET). Now I own a copy and I enjoyed this movie. I think the story is a realistic one and it was very well portrayed by the actors in the movie. This movie is a "must see" for anyone who has not yet had the opportunity to see it.