Hughes, Allen

Menace II Society

Tyrin Turner may not have broken out into stardom as was initially expected, but his work in Menace II Society is one of the more powerful cinematic debuts. The film, from the brother writer-director team of Allen and Albert Hughes, chronicles life in the Los Angeles 'hood. Similar territory was covered in the equally commanding Boyz N the Hood, but what makes this cautionary tale stand out is not only the Hughes brothers' forceful story, (written with their friend, Tyger Williams) and direction, but the naturalness of then-newcomer leads Turner as Caine, Larenz Tate as O-Dog, and Jada Pinkett as Ronnie. They are so credible--occasionally frighteningly so--that the repressive universe of violent ghetto life is captured effectively. Life as portrayed here--and no doubt accurately so--is both figuratively and literally narrow. As a very young boy, Caine witnesses his dad murdered over something inconsequential, and his mom OD. His is a world where respect comes from intimidation, power from violence. Despite his understanding of right and wrong (values passed on by a good friend, his kind grandparents, a caring teacher), his life and its entrapments are too much to overcome. --N.F. Mendoza

Directed by twin brothers, Allen and Albert Hughes, this critically acclaimed cinematic masterpiece brilliantly details real life in today's tough inner city. With the powerhouse performances by Tyrin Turner (Deep Cover), Larenz Tate (The Fresh Prince of Bel Air) and Jada Pinkett (A Different World), the film also features dynamite supporting roles by Charles S. Dutton (Roc) and Bill Duke (Predator).

DVD Features:
Interviews
Production Notes
Theatrical Trailer

Dead Presidents

Twin brother codirectors Albert and Alan Hughes planned their first film, the 1991 ghetto crime drama Menace II Society as a response to John Singleton's Boyz N the Hood, which they considered wimpy and moralistic. They set their sights on The Deer Hunter in this ambitious follow-up, and they just about pull it off. Larenz Tate (from Why Do Fools Fall in Love) plays Anthony Curtis, an open-hearted African American teenager who gets shipped out to Vietnam with several of his pals, witnesses unspeakable horrors, and then struggles to readjust to civilian life. The evolving textures of life in a declining inner-city neighborhood over a period of a decade are seamlessly evoked, and there's enough nuanced character development and personal interaction for a seven-hour miniseries. Still in their early 20s, the Hughes brothers are already poised and masterful moviemakers; they cover an enormous amount of historical and emotional ground, and every twist and turn is crystal clear. They betray their inexperience only at the very end, in an elaborately staged heist sequence that, while stunningly executed, feels a bit desperate, as if they were reaching blindly for a big payoff. Chris Tucker (Rush Hour) has a startling supporting role as a kid who becomes junkie during the war, and never quite recovers. --David Chute

A Vietnam vet is drawn into a life of crime and, with the help of his war buddies, robs an armored car.
Genre: Feature Film-Action/Adventure
Rating: R
Release Date: 3-JUN-2003
Media Type: DVD

From Hell (Widescreen Edition)

Heavy on atmosphere and light on everything else, From Hell is visually impressive while lacking the depth of the acclaimed graphic novel it's based upon. Making their third feature since 1993's Menace II Society, twins Allen and Albert Hughes approach the Jack the Ripper case with physical precision, re-creating the gritty Whitechapel district of 1888 London in meticulous detail. What they've forgotten is the sheer terror that gripped Whitechapel in the wake of the Ripper's slaying of five prostitutes, investigated here by a Scotland Yard sleuth (Johnny Depp) who uses opium, laudanum, and absinthe to fuel his semiprescient visions of the slayings. Heather Graham attempts a slippery Cockney accent as a would-be victim, while Ian Holm steals the show as a has-been surgeon with devilish delusions of grandeur. Violence is obliquely suggested or briefly graphic, but no matter how you cut it, From Hell is only marginally thrilling as it treads familiar territory. --Jeff Shannon

In 1888 in the Whitechapel section of London, Inspector Fred Abberline uses his psychic powers to track down Jack the Ripper.
Genre: Horror
Rating: R
Release Date: 7-SEP-2004
Media Type: DVD

From Hell (Two-Disc Special Edition)

Heavy on atmosphere and light on everything else, From Hell is visually impressive while lacking the depth of the acclaimed graphic novel it's based upon. Making their third feature since 1993's Menace II Society, twins Allen and Albert Hughes approach the Jack the Ripper case with physical precision, re-creating the gritty Whitechapel district of 1888 London in meticulous detail. What they've forgotten is the sheer terror that gripped Whitechapel in the wake of the Ripper's slaying of five prostitutes, investigated here by a Scotland Yard sleuth (Johnny Depp) who uses opium, laudanum, and absinthe to fuel his semiprescient visions of the slayings. Heather Graham attempts a slippery Cockney accent as a would-be victim, while Ian Holm steals the show as a has-been surgeon with devilish delusions of grandeur. Violence is obliquely suggested or briefly graphic, but no matter how you cut it, From Hell is only marginally thrilling as it treads familiar territory. --Jeff Shannon

Knights of the South Bronx

Under-funded schools with a large percentage of poverty-ridden students often find it difficult to provide a high quality education, but sometimes it just takes one special teacher to spark the interests and intellects of an entire classroom of children. Richard Mason (Ted Danson), a white-haired, recently unemployed businessman, decides to revive his long-dormant passion for teaching by accepting a substitute teaching position at a poverty ridden public school in the South Bronx. Thrown into a fourth-grade classroom, Mr. Mason is at first doubtful of his ability to positively impact a classroom of students that include a smart-mouthed, seemingly stupid boy named Jimmy (Malcom David Kelley), a crack-addict's daughter Kenya (Keke Palmer), French immigrant M.D. (Yves Michel-Beneche), and Kindergartner Dawson (Antonio Ortiz) who has no place to go but his sister's classroom once his half-day Kindergarten class finishes for the day. When student Jimmy stumbles upon Mr. Mason in the park one weekend, he discovers that his teacher is a brilliant chess player and becomes completely intrigued by the game. Suddenly, Mr. Mason realizes that the game of chess might just provide a whole new way to reach a classroom full of unwilling students. Soon, his students are showing up early for school in order to play chess, participating in class, and even doing their homework. As Mr. Mason encourages his students to perfect their games and enter a local chess tournament, each child's sense of self-worth grows as do their test scores in all subjects. Ultimately, the children become superior chess players as well as firm believers that if they refuse to give in to anger and use their intellect, they can become just about anything they want to be. Based on the true experience of David MacEnulty, Knights of the South Bronx is a well-acted, potent presentation about the power of intellect and self-confidence. (Ages 8 and older with parental guidance) --Tami Horiuchi

Middle-aged and recently unemployed, Richard Mason (Ted Danson) decides to return to his first love: teaching. He finds a job as an inner-city schoolteacher teaching fourth grade. Richard discovers a way to reach out to his skeptical students through the game of chess. Against all odds, he inspires his students to become champions, not only at chess, but in life! Ted Danson gives a compelling performance in this heroic, heartwarming story based on true events co-starring Keke Palmer and Malcolm David Kelley. Knights of the South Bronx proves that no matter who you are or where you come from, if you play like a winner, you can be a king!

American Pimp

There's a fascinating film to be made about the pimp culture and the myth of the outlaw sexual entrepreneur. American Pimp, a slick and entertaining but rather timid documentary by filmmaking brother act Allen and Albert Hughes (Menace 2 Society, Dead Presidents) isn't quite it, but it's a captivating document nonetheless. Flashy, garrulous real-life characters with names like Charm, Rosebudd, Too $hort, C-Note, and the "internationally known" Bishop Don Magic Juan take over their interviews with silver-tongued charm, spinning self-aggrandizing, often contradictory stories of life in the trade. The Hughes never challenge those contradictions and give only token representation to the women in the life (who have either bought into the myth or are too cowed to say differently). Apart from a few unguarded statements by less cagey subjects, the film avoids the seedy flip side to the so-called benevolent relationship between pimp and "ho." More to the Hughes' point is the fluid relationship between media image (as celebrated in such blaxploitation classics such as The Mack and Willie Dynamite) and street image. Simultaneously embracing and decrying their outlaw status, these pimps transform themselves into peacocklike fashion statements inspired by the very images they find so denigrating. They are undeniably dynamic characters playing out a bizarre fantasy of wealth, power, and swaggering sexuality, but if the film shows the cracks in their masks, it never manages to reveal the men under the money or expose the fallacy behind the fantasy. --Sean Axmaker

Urban auteur filmmakers the Hughes Brothers (Menace II Society Dead Presidents) hit the mean streets with an "incredibly entertaining and charismatic" (Shout) expose on real-life pimps. A "snappy stylish documentary" (The New York Post) containing "blunt raw power and stylistic energy" (The Hollywood Reporter) American Pimp is "a primer on pimp craft and culture" (Shout) that takes you into the shadowy world of prostitution "putting on the screen everything you ever wanted to know about pimps" (Nuart).Cutting straight to the heart of the world's oldest profession this intimate portrait of infamous "mack-daddies" like Filmore Slim C-Note Gorgeous Dre and Rosebudd is eye-opening and shocking. From the dirty streets of New York L.A. and San Francisco to the "Players Ball" in Milwaukee you'll walk the boulevard of broken dreams and hear every heart-wrenching story and hilarious anecdote. It's an exclusive ride you've never experienced - and won't soon forget.System Requirements:Directed By: The Hughes Brothers. Running Time: 87 Min. Color. This film is presented in "Widescreen" format. Copyright 2001 MGM Studios.Format: DVD MOVIE Genre: DOCUMENTARIES/MISC. Rating: R UPC: 027616854803 Manufacturer No: 1001189

From Hell

Heavy on atmosphere and light on everything else, From Hell is visually impressive while lacking the depth of the acclaimed graphic novel it's based upon. Making their third feature since 1993's Menace II Society, twins Allen and Albert Hughes approach the Jack the Ripper case with physical precision, re-creating the gritty Whitechapel district of 1888 London in meticulous detail. What they've forgotten is the sheer terror that gripped Whitechapel in the wake of the Ripper's slaying of five prostitutes, investigated here by a Scotland Yard sleuth (Johnny Depp) who uses opium, laudanum, and absinthe to fuel his semiprescient visions of the slayings. Heather Graham attempts a slippery Cockney accent as a would-be victim, while Ian Holm steals the show as a has-been surgeon with devilish delusions of grandeur. Violence is obliquely suggested or briefly graphic, but no matter how you cut it, From Hell is only marginally thrilling as it treads familiar territory. --Jeff Shannon

A clairvoyant police detective must stop the most notorious serial killer in history - Jack the Ripper - before it's too late! Johnny Depp and Heather Graham star in this "engrossing, stylish thriller" (People) that "grips tighter than a chokehold and cut as deep as a knife" (Washington Post)

American Pimp - Raw Outtakes and The Hard Truth (with Official CD Soundtrack)

1. A Pimp Is Only As Good As His Product (Dialogue)2. Skin Tight - Ohio Players3. Mary Magdalene (Dialogue) - Gorgeous George4. I Want'a Do Something Freaky To You - Leon Haywood5. Bitch (Dialogue) - Kenny Redd6. Easin' In - Edwin Starr7. Call My Ho (Dialogue) - Rosebudd8. Bustin' Out - Rick James9. Workin' Everyday (Dialogue) - Brad10. Kung Fu - Curtis Mayfield11. Be Thankful For What You Got - William DeVaughn12. Fish To Water (Dialogue) - Brad13. Bread & Butter (Dialogue) - Don Juan14. Slide - Slave15. Bitch (Dialogue) - Payroll16. Pursuit Of The Pimpmobile - Isaac Hayes17. Goon Hand (Dialogue) - Brad18. Don't Mess With Mr. T - Marvin Gaye19. Riding High - Faze-O20. The World Is A Ghetto - War21. Visionary (Dialogue) - Don Juan22. After The Dance - Marvin Gaye23. Heaven (Dialogue) - RosebuddFormat: DVD VIDEO Genre: MUSIC DVD/CONCERTS UPC: 826663538298 Manufacturer No: DVD35382

Above the Rim & Menace II Society (2pc) (2pk)

This rousing basketball drama centers around Tommy "Shep" Sheppard (Leon), a former high school basketball star now haunted by the accidental death of his best friend, and Kyle Watson (Duane Martin), an arrogant high school player in danger of slipping into crime. Though Shep avoids commitment in his life as a security guard, his attraction to Kyle's mother (Tonya Pinkins) draws him out of his protective shell--but Kyle is more interested in mentorship from Shep's gangster brother Birdie (Tupac Shakur). Above the Rim is melodramatic but played with grit and energy by a solid cast, particularly Shakur. Writer-director Jeff Pollack keeps the story moving and gives the characters enough spin to rescue them from being clichés; the result is engaging despite its formulas. Also featuring Bernie Mac and Marlon Wayans. --Bret Fetzer

Tyrin Turner may not have broken out into stardom as was initially expected, but his work in Menace II Society is one of the more powerful cinematic debuts. The film, from the brother writer-director team of Allen and Albert Hughes, chronicles life in the Los Angeles 'hood. Similar territory was covered in the equally commanding Boyz N the Hood, but what makes this cautionary tale stand out is not only the Hughes brothers' forceful story, (written with their friend, Tyger Williams) and direction, but the naturalness of then-newcomer leads Turner as Caine, Larenz Tate as O-Dog, and Jada Pinkett as Ronnie. They are so credible--occasionally frighteningly so--that the repressive universe of violent ghetto life is captured effectively. Life as portrayed here--and no doubt accurately so--is both figuratively and literally narrow. As a very young boy, Caine witnesses his dad murdered over something inconsequential, and his mom OD. His is a world where respect comes from intimidation, power from violence. Despite his understanding of right and wrong (values passed on by a good friend, his kind grandparents, a caring teacher), his life and its entrapments are too much to overcome. --N.F. Mendoza

From Hell/Joy Ride