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Movies / On DVD / Baby Boy
Baby Boy

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Baby Boy (2001)

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Reviews Counted:89

Fresh:61

Rotten:28

Average Rating:6.1/10

Consensus: Preachy and repetitive in parts, Baby Boy still manages to exude authenticity, thanks to its competent cast.

Rated: R [See Full Rating] for strong sexuality, language, violence and some drug use

Runtime: 2 hrs 10 mins

Genre: Dramas

Theatrical Release:Jun 27, 2001 Wide

Box Office: $27,823,989

Synopsis: In 1991, 23 year-old director John Singleton guided viewers through South Central Los Angeles, taking an unflinching look at the devastating impact of violence on the black family. Boyz N The... In 1991, 23 year-old director John Singleton guided viewers through South Central Los Angeles, taking an unflinching look at the devastating impact of violence on the black family. Boyz N The Hood's realistic portrayal of the inner city changed the face of black cinema forever. Ten years later, the Academy Award-nominated director and writer returns to the same inner-city L.A. neighborhood and its complex social and political issues for the story of Jody (Tyrese Gibson), a misguided, 20-year-old African-American who is really just a "baby boy" finally forced -- kicking and screaming -- to face the commitments of real life. Streetwise and jobless, he has not only fathered two children by two different women -- Yvette (Taraji P. Henson) and Peanut (Tamara Bass) but still lives with his own mother. He can't seem to strike a balance or find direction in his chaotic life. To make matters worse, Jody must contend with his volatile best friend, Sweetpea (Omar Gooding), who has spent his life shuffling in and out of prison and seems to find trouble wherever he goes. In the meantime, Jody's 36-year-old mother, Juanita (A.J. Johnson), has finally started to live her life again and is dating Melvin (Ving Rhames), a reformed O.G. ("old gangster"). Juanita is enjoying the simple things in life -- her mantras, her garden, her new man -- and wants Jody to finally take responsibility for his own life and children. Once Melvin moves in, there's little room in the nest for a kid who's overstayed his welcome and is perfectly content to ride the line between boy and man. Inevitably, Jody must face Melvin, both his "baby mamas," a new adversary, Rodney (Snoop Dogg), and his own fears of adulthood if he wants to escape the life of a baby boy. -- © 2001 Columbia Pictures [More]

Starring: Tyrese Gibson, Snoop Dogg, Ving Rhames, Tamara LaSeon Bass

Starring: Tyrese Gibson, Snoop Dogg, Ving Rhames, Tamara LaSeon Bass, A.J. Johnson, Omar Gooding, Taraji P. Henson

Director: John Singleton

Director: John Singleton
Screenwriter: John Singleton
Producer: Dwight Williams, John Singleton
Composer: David Arnold
Studio: Columbia Pictures

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Release:

Jul 4, 2006

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Reviews for Baby Boy

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61 - 80 (sorted by date)
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The companion piece to Singleton's seminal Boyz N the Hood lacks not only the depth of story but also the emotional integrity and thoughtfulness of the 1991 hit.

Full Review Source: Philadelphia Daily News | comment Comment
06/28/01
Renee Lucas Wayne
Renee Lucas Wayne
Philadelphia Daily News

If only Singleton had filtered Baby Boy's passion through the ideas of real deep thinkers on this subject, he might yet fulfill the great promise that he showed us back when he was a 23 year-old baby boy wonder himself.

Full Review Source: Orlando Sentinel | comment Comment
06/28/01
Roger Moore
Roger Moore
Orlando Sentinel

The gratuitous violence sucks, and the pat conclusion prompts one to shout don't believe the hope!, but otherwise Singleton has wrangled his characters into a very impressive emotional exorcism.

comment Comment
06/28/01
Gregory Weinkauf
Gregory Weinkauf
New Times

Baby Boy is a movie that will act like a smack in the face to some audiences, while others may simply laugh in recognition.

Full Review Source: Chicago Tribune | comment Comment
06/28/01
Michael Wilmington
Michael Wilmington
Chicago Tribune
Top Critic Icon Top Critic

Baby Boy has its slow parts, its obvious parts, its egregious parts. But it’s also a film that can take you to a place no other summer movie can.

Full Review Source: Atlanta Journal-Constitution | comment Comment
06/28/01
Eleanor Ringel Gillespie
Eleanor Ringel Gillespie
Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Top Critic Icon Top Critic

While primarily an examination on the young African-American male, Singleton's social commentary is universal to all men.

Full Review Source: Jeff Huston's Believe Me | comment Comment
06/28/01
Jeffrey Huston
Jeffrey Huston
Jeff Huston's Believe Me
N/R

Click to read the article

Full Review Source: WBAI Web Radio | comment Comment
06/27/01
Prairie Miller
Prairie Miller
WBAI Web Radio

John Singleton must believe the truth will set him free, for he tells it, uncompromisingly, in Baby Boy. You may or may not like what you see, but there it is, indisputably, right in your face.

Full Review Source: Washington Post | comment Comment
06/27/01
Stephen Hunter
Stephen Hunter
Washington Post
Top Critic Icon Top Critic

For the first time since Hood, Singleton is really sailing.

Full Review Source: USA Today | comment Comment
06/27/01
Mike Clark
Mike Clark
USA Today
Top Critic Icon Top Critic

Superbly acted by everyone involved (Rhames does his best work since Pulp Fiction), the film is really more about character than plot, though frankly, at more than two hours, it could have used a bit more of the latter.

Full Review Source: TV Guide's Movie Guide | comment Comment
06/27/01
Ken Fox
Ken Fox
TV Guide's Movie Guide

Tyrese may be the marquee name, but Rhames is a man among Baby Boys.

Full Review Source: South Florida Sun-Sentinel | comment Comment
06/27/01
Todd Anthony
Todd Anthony
South Florida Sun-Sentinel

Maybe if Singleton didn't try to repeat Boyz N the Hood with Baby Boy, he would've made a better movie.

Full Review Source: Seattle Times | comment Comment
06/27/01
John Zebrowski
John Zebrowski
Seattle Times

Occasionally becomes too wound up in its overly melodramatic moments and is a bit too uneven in its storytelling approach for its own good or the viewer's ultimate enjoyment.

Full Review Source: Screen It! | comment Comment
06/27/01
Jim Judy
Jim Judy
Screen It!

Baby Boy can be tough going, very tough going, but the cast is built to take it.

Full Review Source: San Francisco Chronicle | comment Comment
06/27/01
Bob Graham
Bob Graham
San Francisco Chronicle
Top Critic Icon Top Critic

In addition to being ruthlessly honest, Baby Boy is also Singleton's most cinematic work to date.

Full Review Source: Sacramento Bee | comment Comment
06/27/01
Joe Baltake
Joe Baltake
Sacramento Bee

Though it's a daring and commendable message, Singleton has trouble focusing it.

Full Review Source: Rochester Democrat and Chronicle | comment Comment
06/27/01
Jack Garner
Jack Garner
Rochester Democrat and Chronicle

The film is emotionally overloaded with confrontations that repeat like a boxing- match replay that refuses to quit: Jody vs. Mom, Jody vs. Yvette, Jody vs. Melvin, Jody vs. the neighborhood thugs, Jody vs. Jody.

Full Review Source: Newsday | comment Comment
06/27/01
Jan Stuart
Jan Stuart
Newsday
Top Critic Icon Top Critic

... an attempt to confront and challenge the legacy of cultural images based on killers, gang-bangers, and womanizing studs...

Full Review Source: Seattle Post-Intelligencer | comment Comment
06/27/01
Sean Axmaker
Sean Axmaker
Seattle Post-Intelligencer

Baby Boy sometimes gets repetitive and is slightly overlong. But it's got solid performances and great dialogue, and, most impressively for a summer movie, it actually gives you something to think about.

Full Review Source: New York Post | comment Comment
06/27/01
Lou Lumenick
Lou Lumenick
New York Post
Top Critic Icon Top Critic

A bracing film, passionate, frightening, sobering and funny all at once.

Full Review Source: Houston Chronicle | comment Comment
06/27/01
Eric Harrison
Eric Harrison
Houston Chronicle
Top Critic Icon Top Critic
 
 
61 - 80 (sorted by date)
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