Boyz N the Hood: Shifting Hollywood Terrain

“At long last comes a book we have all been waiting for: Joi Carr’s masterful examination of John Singleton’s classic Boyz N the Hood. Throughout, her wide-ranging scholarship is impressive, and her analysis is illuminating. She elucidates the perhaps surprising historical/creative links between Singleton’s work, Ellison’s Invisible Man, and Van Peebles’ Sweet Sweetback’s Baadasssss Song. Also included in this valuable book are the screenplay of the film plus insightful critical essays as well as a series of interviews conducted by Carr. Her interview with Singleton reveals the autobiographical themes that went into his directorial debut as well as directors he was influenced by. Her interview with Boyz producer Steve Nicolaides says much about the state of the movie industry at the time the film went into production. Then there is her interview with actress Tyra Ferrell, who played Mrs. Baker, the mother of Dough Boy and Ricky, in the film. The Ferrell interview builds to indicate to us the position of African American women in Hollywood in the 1990s and of course, today. There is also a seemingly brief moment in the interview when Ferrell recounts an incident on set when she was not fully into her character—and how Singleton handled the situation, which succinctly reveals to us his direct, perhaps blunt, creative skills as a director as well as Ferrell’s creative awareness as an actress. Ferrell also has telling comments about her experience when working on White Men Can’t Jump. Dr. Carr also brings to her work an awareness of cultural life in Los Angeles and the dangers that exist for African American males who must walk a tightrope to survive.
Most significant, in so much of this book, we see a young director (not long out of film school) coming into his own and adroitly helming a major production that was cheered when shown at the Cannes Film Festival and that has affected moviegoers (black and also white) in a way that few other films in history have ever done.
This book is an accomplished, enlightening piece of work, a great companion to Singleton’s film. Highly recommended!”
—Donald Bogle
Film Historian/Author
Toms, Coons, Mulattoes, Mammies, and Bucks: An Interpretive History
of Blacks in American Films, 5th Edition, and Dorothy Dandridge: A Biography
University of Pennsylvania
New York University’s Tisch School of the Arts

“This wise and pioneering book is the first serious and substantive treatment of John Singleton’s classic film! This film and book speak with great courage and insight into the plight and predicament of young black men. Don’t miss this book!!”
—Cornel West
Professor of the Practice of Public Philosophy,
Harvard University;
Professor Emeritus, Princeton University