Baby Boy

Rating:
Summary: A Finely-Acted "Reality Check" of a Movie!
Review: "Baby Boy" is a movie that not only entertains and enlightens, but makes you think in a critical, non-sugar-coated way about one's position in life and taking responsibility for changing it. Singer Tyrese Gibson is excellent as the young and unambitious Jody. A.J. Johnson is great as his mother, Snoop Dogg plays the perfect thug, and the casting of the always-excellent Ving Rhames as Johnson's ex-con boyfriend who has "seen it all, and done it all to the fullest" was a stroke of genius on director John Singleton's part. A very good movie and tells a very good story.

Rating:
Summary: Good Performances But Passive Characters Sink the Drama
Review: "Baby Boy" tells an all-too-familiar story of an aimless, oversexed young man whose gifts in life seem undeserved, yet ironically bountiful. Already the much-absent father of two young children by two different women who compete for his attention, 20-year-old Jody spends most of his time predictably drifting about, riding his bike, getting high, building models, or butting heads with his self-indulgent mother's ex-con boyfriend, Melvin. For the characters in "Baby Boy," life generally doesn't get lived so much as it just happens--and while there is a natural flow to the story, one gets the impression that everyone just reacts to events without ever trying to influence them, making them quite passive despite the tough talk and urban attitude. What's left then is simple pathos, meaning you're either charmed or amused by the characters or--as too often happened for me--not. It's a shame because the performances seem sincere, even if Tyrese Gibson and Ving Rhames compete with one another over who can talk lower and be more stoic, and director Singleton stages his scenes with great effort. But without the distraction of having to really care about what happens to most of the people in the story, it's also easy to see the rather one-dimensional treatment of the male and female characters: the men simply want sex and food; the women simply want sex and a man. That makes sense for the younger characters, perhaps, but everyone in the film--including the older adults--seem programmed in this juvenile way. In the end, the plot boils down to a simple choice for Jody, and though the movie does have a happy ending, it nonetheless feels robbed of its full dramatic power. Once again, art imitating life doesn't always make art meaningful.

Rating:
Summary: Too bad Snoop is coming out with BONES.
Review: "Thumbs Up!"

This film is obviously powerful, and fun, sad and touching all at once. Though, this film is about getting out on your own, living life to its potential, and understanding a means to the world, all carries a weight, but the film doesn't carry it all the way. Baby Boy brings Snoop Dogg to his first motion picture supporting role. Him and Omar Gooding make a great team. Baby Boy is a walk through letting go of innnosence, a walk some of us have taken, a walk some are taking, and a walk people will take someday in their lives. It's too bad the film doesn't have enough grasp to give the film five stars. Check out Baby Boy.

Rating:
Summary: The Greatest Comedy Ever
Review: 'Baby Boy' is easily the greatest comedy ever made. I mean, to see Tyrese riding around on a totally pimped out bicycle and think he's cool...ahh, this is the stuff of classic film. He cheats on his girlfriend, has some kids, neglects those same kids, and then beats his girl for getting mad at him because he's out drinking and (...) with his homies all night every night. You'd think that all these things would take up all his time and he'd have none left to ride his chromed out bike, but you'd be wrong. He's constantly on it. There's not a single scene in this movie that won't make you laugh. And not only is it hilarious, its movies like this that help to alter the stereotypes that white america has about urban life. A fabulous film.

Rating:
Summary: Yo, its Bad, G
Review: ...And not good "bad", just plain bad. Its like a 90 minute rap video, full of stereotypes and bad attitudes. I wish Hollywood would stop making this garbage: ignorant black people are not funny or cool, they're disgraceful examples of how white America promulgates the idea of black men as violent, shiftless, sex crazed monsters.

Rating:
Summary: How It Is...
Review: ...The film, Baby Boy, although chalk full of cliches, was extremely insightful. There are things that other movie goers here complained about, like, "...does Jody (the main character) ever leave LA?" WE DON'T KNOW!!! It's an ending to the movie, and it's not a film that chronicles his whole lifem, just a short period of time. What's more, it's not about where he lived, it's more geared toward what he was doing with his life and how he was reacting as to his mothers relationships, as well as his own. ... I, myself, have been through situations extremely simaliar to Jodys, so maybe I'm bais in my review of the film, but I am choosing to give it a total of 5 stars, as this film is full of life lessons (if you look for them)and the cast, crew and filmakers did an extraordinary job creating a film that, in my opinion, was terribly underated. Watch this movie, learn a lesson, listen to the obscene dialogue, see the revcealing sex scenes and, at the same time, be inspired beyond your belief.

Rating:
Summary: SNOPP is great !!
Review: all i really wanted to say is I LOVE SNOPP !!

Rating:
Summary: Wasn't really impressed
Review: Although it got frustrating watching two characters who obviously love each other, not able to just love each other demonstrated good character developement, but it just wan't real enough for me. It seemed like in every scene there was a moral to be found which can get kind of annoying when you are force fed lessons supposed to be in the movie. The ending was too fairy-tale, not realistic at all 'cause you know Tyrese would have been sought after by Snoop's homies.

Rating:
Summary: A positive review
Review: Althought Baby Boy doesn't measure up to your typical John Singleton movie,it gives you much to think about. Being young and in a 10-year relationship, I can certainly identify with the story line. It shows how black woman tolerate a lot of unappropriate behavior from our men and end up settling for less than what we deserve. It also shows how we subject our children to this criminal and violent behavior.

I think that it is more of a wake up call to the young parents of today, to let them know that they don't have to settle for less and the do deserve more. On another note, if a young black man should get anything out of this movie is to be responsible for himself and his family. Young relationships are constantly being tested and you have to be ready for all of those challanges.

Rating:
Summary: I really enjoyed Baby Boy
Review: As my husband I talked about the movie on Monday night be both felt that this movie had a very stong message. Most of the people who see the movie will be blinded by the sex and violence. One of the better written African American movies because although his job was boosting, Baby Boy (Jody) eventually learned the value of the dollar and love. It was really cool when Singleton showed what could have happened as he was shot at while approaching his girls car. It was also cool the way his boy decided that God was the way. Things happen in a youngsters life to make them grow up and we hope that they don't have to go through such crazy things to get there but sometimes they do. It's the sign of the times. I believe the message that Singleton was trying to get through was that if you live hard you die hard.