Whitman Mayo

Boyz n the Hood -- Three friends struggle to survive in South Central Los Angeles where friendship, pain, danger, and love form a true picture of life in the 'hood in this critically acclaimed, action-filled story.

Washington, D.C., becomes the District of Comedy in this high-speed hit from writer-director Joel Schumacher (Veronica Guerin, Phone Booth, Bad Company). When young Albert Hockenberry (Adam Baldwin) wants to become a cabbie, he's got the wackiest teachers around, courtesy of his Uncle Howard (Max Gail) and the freewheeling D.C. Cab Co., including Samson (Mr. T) and Dell (Gary Busey). Along the way, Albert falls in love with beautiful waitress Claudette (Jill Schoelen) and gets caught up in a kidnapping, with Mr. T and the other cabbies riding to the rescue to the tune of Mission: Impossible. From a raid on a topless club and a game of chicken with an oncoming train to a cameo appearance by singer Irene Cara, their hilarious hi-jinks spell comedy with a "capital" C!

First-time director John Singleton garnered an Oscar nomination for this intensely dramatic story of life in a south central Los Angeles neighborhood. Following the attempts of Tre (Cuba Gooding, Jr.) to build a better life for himself, Boyz 'N the Hood reveals a world in which a trip to the store can end in death.

BOYZ 'N THE HOOD is the critically acclaimed story of three friends growing up in a South Central Los Angeles neighborhood, and of street life where friendship, pain, danger and love combine to form reality. "The Hood" is a place where drive-by shootings and unemployment are rampant. But it is also a place where harmony coexists with adversity, especially for three young men growing up there: Doughboy (Ice Cube), an unambitious drug dealer; his brother Ricky (Morris Chestnut), a college-bound teenage father; and Ricky's best friend Tre (Cuba Gooding, Jr.), who aspires to a brighter future beyond "The Hood." In a world where a trip to the store can end in death, the friends have diverse reactions to their bleak surroundings. Tre's resolve is strengthened by a strong father (Larry Fishburne) who keeps him on the right track. But the lessons Tre learns are put to the ultimate test when tragedy strikes close to home, and violence seems like the only recourse.