coming-of-age
Coming of age is a young person's transition from being a child to being an adult. The specific age at which this transition takes place varies between societies, as does the nature of the change. It can be a simple legal convention or can be ...
John Singleton
John Daniel Singleton (January 6, 1968 April 28, 2019) was an American director, screenwriter, and producer. He made his feature film debut writing and directing ''Boyz n the Hood'' (1991), for which he was nominated for the Academy Award for B ...
and starring
Tyrese Gibson
Tyrese Darnell Gibson (born December 30, 1978) is an American actor and singer. He released his self-titled debut album in 1998, which featured the single " Sweet Lady", peaking at number twelve on the U.S. ''Billboard'' Hot 100. His second ...
Ving Rhames
Irving Rameses Rhames (born May 12, 1959) is an American actor. He is best known for his supporting roles as IMF Agent Luther Stickell in the ''Mission: Impossible'' film series and gang kingpin Marsellus Wallace in ''Pulp Fiction''. He also a ...
,
Omar Gooding
Omar Miles Gooding Sr., also known by his stage name, Big OA.J. Johnson and
Taraji P. Henson
Taraji Penda Henson ( ; born September 11, 1970) is an American actress. She studied acting at Howard University and began her Hollywood career in guest roles on several television shows before making her breakthrough in '' Baby Boy'' (2001). Sh ...
. The film follows Joseph "Jody" Summers (Gibson), a 20-year-old bike mechanic who still lives with his own mother (Johnson), as he lives and learns in his everyday life in the hood of Los Angeles.
The film was originally written with rapper-actor
Tupac Shakur
Tupac Amaru Shakur ( ; born Lesane Parish Crooks, June 16, 1971 – September 13, 1996), also known as 2Pac and Makaveli, was an American rapper. He is widely considered one of the most influential rappers of all time. Shakur is among the b ...
in mind to play Jody; Shakur had previously worked with Singleton on ''
Poetic Justice
Poetic justice, also called poetic irony, is a literary device with which ultimately virtue is rewarded and misdeeds are punished. In modern literature, it is often accompanied by an ironic twist of fate related to the character's own action, he ...
''. However, following Shakur's murder in 1996, Singleton decided to replace Shakur with R&B artist
Tyrese Gibson
Tyrese Darnell Gibson (born December 30, 1978) is an American actor and singer. He released his self-titled debut album in 1998, which featured the single " Sweet Lady", peaking at number twelve on the U.S. ''Billboard'' Hot 100. His second ...
. Additionally, the role of Rodney was originally written for Ice Cube, who had worked with Singleton on ''
Boyz n the Hood
''Boyz n the Hood'' is a 1991 American coming-of-age hood drama film written and directed by John Singleton in his feature directorial debut. It stars Cuba Gooding Jr., Morris Chestnut, Ice Cube, Laurence Fishburne, Nia Long, Regina King, and An ...
'' and '' Higher Learning''. The film marked the feature acting debut of Gibson and provided Henson with her first prominent role.
Released in the United States on June 27, 2001, the film received predominantly positive reviews from critics and audiences, with many deeming it as Singleton's best film since ''Boyz n the Hood'', but underperformed commercially, grossing $29 million against a $16 million budget. The film is also the final feature film written by Singleton as he did not write any of his later feature-length directorial projects before his death in April 2019.
Plot
Joseph "Jody" Summers waits for his girlfriend Yvette at an
abortion clinic
Abortion is the termination of a pregnancy by removal or expulsion of an embryo or fetus. An abortion that occurs without intervention is known as a miscarriage or "spontaneous abortion"; these occur in approximately 30% to 40% of pregnan ...
after compelling her to go. They then have a heated argument about his lack of commitment and selfishness; she asks him if he will ever come live with her and their son JoJo, but he deliberately avoids the subject and comes and goes as he pleases.
Meanwhile, Jody also continues having affairs with other women, including a young girl named Peanut, with whom he also has a daughter, Lil' Nut. Jody also nearly has sex with Pandora, Yvette's colleague and co-worker, but manages to rebuff her advances. When Yvette discovers his cheating, their ensuing argument eventually turns physical, culminating in her kicking him out of her home.
Yvette's gangster ex-boyfriend Rodney is released from San Quentin State Prison and returns to the neighborhood to move in with Yvette. However, Rodney does not care for JoJo and wants to impregnate Yvette himself, but when Rodney attempts to rape Yvette in front of her son, he stops himself out of guilt. Despite their previous issues, Yvette begins to realize she still loves Jody.
Jody’s mother Juanita finds marijuana in her garden and blames him, who then angrily blames her new boyfriend Melvin, an ex-convict. Melvin comes home, admits to Juanita that he planted it and apologizes. An upset Jody argues with his mother before getting into an argument with Melvin, which ends with Melvin punching him and breaking a table.
Frustrated, Jody leaves the house to see his friend Sweetpea. Soon after, Yvette kicks Rodney and his friends out of her apartment. Eventually, Yvette and Jody reconcile at Sweetpea's house, and Yvette tells Jody about how Rodney tried to rape her in front of JoJo. Rodney then steals Yvette’s money and keys from her wallet and drives off in her car to go and find Jody, whom he unsuccessfully tries to kill in a drive-by shooting.
Later that night, Jody and Sweetpea confront Rodney, and as he attempts to escape, Jody shoots him in the legs. Sweetpea urges Jody to kill Rodney, but he refuses, and so Sweetpea shoots and kills Rodney himself. Horrified by Rodney's death, Jody prepares to commit suicide by shooting himself in the head, but Melvin stops him before taking the gun. After reflecting on Rodney's death and how his absence endangered her and JoJo, Jody finally decides to move in with Yvette.
Jody then accepts that Juanita's relationship with Melvin is stable, and that he needs to protect and care for his own family. Afterward, Jody and Yvette get married and look forward to the birth of their unborn child. Meanwhile, Sweetpea decides to get baptized and abandon his old life as a criminal.
Cast
*
Tyrese Gibson
Tyrese Darnell Gibson (born December 30, 1978) is an American actor and singer. He released his self-titled debut album in 1998, which featured the single " Sweet Lady", peaking at number twelve on the U.S. ''Billboard'' Hot 100. His second ...
as Joseph "Jody" Summers
*
Omar Gooding
Omar Miles Gooding Sr., also known by his stage name, Big OTaraji P. Henson
Taraji Penda Henson ( ; born September 11, 1970) is an American actress. She studied acting at Howard University and began her Hollywood career in guest roles on several television shows before making her breakthrough in '' Baby Boy'' (2001). Sh ...
as Yvette, Jody's girlfriend
* Snoop Dogg as Rodney, Yvette's ex-boyfriend
*
Adrienne-Joi Johnson
Adrienne-Joi Johnson (born January 2, 1963) is an American actress, choreographer, fitness trainer, and life coach. Acting since 1987, Johnson has made many guest appearances on sitcoms, television dramas and music videos; she also has numerous ...
as Juanita, Jody's mother
*
Ving Rhames
Irving Rameses Rhames (born May 12, 1959) is an American actor. He is best known for his supporting roles as IMF Agent Luther Stickell in the ''Mission: Impossible'' film series and gang kingpin Marsellus Wallace in ''Pulp Fiction''. He also a ...
as Melvin, Juanita's ex-con boyfriend
*
Mo'Nique
Monique Angela Hicks (née Imes; born December 11, 1967), known professionally as Mo'Nique, is an American stand-up comedian and actress. She has received an Academy Award, BAFTA Award, Golden Globe Award, and Screen Actors Guild Award.
She ...
as Patrice, Juanita's best friend
*
Angell Conwell
Angell Conwell (born August 2, 1983) is an American actress. She is known for her roles as Leslie Michaelson in the CBS daytime soap opera, ''The Young and the Restless'' and Lisa Stallworth in the Bounce TV sitcom '' Family Time''. In film, she ...
as Kim, Sweetpea's girlfriend
* Tamara LaSeon Bass as Peanut, the mother of Jody's daughter Lil' Nut
*
Candy Ann Brown
Candy Ann Brown (also known as Candy Brown Houston) is an American dancer, choreographer and theatre, film and television actress.
Career
Brown is known for originating the role of June in the 1975 Bob Fosse-directed Broadway musical '' Chicago ...
as Ms. Herron, Peanut's mother
* Tawny Dahl as Pandora, Yvette‘s scandalous co-worker
*
Big Tray Deee
Tracy Lamar Davis (born April 27, 1966), better known by his stage name Big Tray Deee (formerly Tray Deee and Tracy Deee), is an American rapper signed with Snoop Dogg's label Dogghouse Records.
Career
Before becoming a rapper, Davis was an a ...
as Knucklehead #1
*
Goldie Loc
Tha Eastsidaz is a hip hop trio consisting of Snoop Dogg, Tray Deee and Goldie Loc. Their first appearance was on Tommy Boy Records' ''The Ride: Music from Dimension'' with Crooked Eye Q on a Battlecat-produced song called "Feels So Good" in ...
as Knucklehead #2
Singleton makes an uncredited cameo as a bootlegger who attempts to sell pirated DVDs to Jody and Sweetpea, while his mother Sheila Ward plays a mourner in the dream sequence where Jody sees himself at his funeral. Additionally, his daughter Cleopatra appears in the beginning of the film as Lil' Nut, Jody's daughter with Peanut.
Reception
Box office
In its opening weekend, the film grossed $8,606,403 in 1,533 theaters in the United States, averaging $5,614 per theater, and ranking #5 at the
box office
A box office or ticket office is a place where tickets are sold to the public for admission to an event. Patrons may perform the transaction at a countertop, through a hole in a wall or window, or at a wicket. By extension, the term is fre ...
. It grossed a total of $28,734,552 domestically and $647,097 elsewhere for a total of $29,381,649, above its $16 million production budget.
Critical response
''Baby Boy'' received positive reviews from critics and has a rating of 71% on Rotten Tomatoes based on 92 reviews with an average score of 6.2 out of 10. The consensus states "Preachy and repetitive in parts, ''Baby Boy'' still manages to exude authenticity, thanks to its competent cast." The film also has a score of 55 out of 100 on Metacritic based on 26 critics indicating 'Mixed or average reviews'.
Roger Ebert
Roger Joseph Ebert (; June 18, 1942 – April 4, 2013) was an American film critic, film historian, journalist, screenwriter, and author. He was a film critic for the ''Chicago Sun-Times'' from 1967 until his death in 2013. In 1975, Ebert beca ...
gave the film 3½ stars out of 4 and stated in his review: "''Baby Boy'' is a bold criticism of young black men who carelessly father babies, live off their mothers and don't even think of looking for work. It is also a criticism of the society that pushes them into that niche. There has never been a movie with this angle on the African-American experience" and " tdoesn't fall back on easy liberal finger-pointing. There are no white people in this movie, no simplistic blaming of others; the adults in Jody's life blame him for his own troubles, and they should."
Kenneth Turan, film critic for the ''Los Angeles Times'', praised the film for being "...Compelling.... heartfelt and personal..." Jonathan Rosenbaum of ''Chicago Reader'' also liked the film, stating "Like John Singleton's other features, this is far from flawless.... But the characters are so full-bodied and the feelings so raw and complex that I'd call this the best thing he's done to date..."
The film ultimately received 10 nominations at the
Black Reel Awards of 2002
The 2002 Black Reel Awards, which annually recognize and celebrate the achievements of black people in feature, independent and television films, took place in Washington, D.C. on April 21, 2002. ''Training Day'' was the big winner of the evening, ...
NAACP Image Awards
The NAACP Image Awards is an annual awards ceremony presented by the U.S.-based National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) to honor outstanding performances in film, television, theatre, music, and literature. Similar to ...
Locarno International Film Festival
The Locarno Film Festival is an annual film festival, held every August in Locarno, Switzerland. Founded in 1946, the festival screens films in various competitive and non-competitive sections, including feature-length narrative, documentary, s ...
in competition for the Golden Leopard and would receive a 'Special Mention' from the jury for "For its innovative concept and ensemble acting."
Director John Singleton was very proud of the movie: "It was just soulful, I made a movie that I wanted to be as soulful as a Marvin Gaye record. That was my goal for better or worse. Not necessarily a perfect film, but just something that you watch, it’s memorable. That’s what I love about that movie."
Soundtrack
A soundtrack containing hip-hop and R&B music was released by
Universal Records
Universal Music Group N.V. (often abbreviated as UMG and referred to as just Universal Music) is a Dutch– American multinational music corporation under Dutch law. UMG's corporate headquarters are located in Hilversum, Netherlands and its ...
Top Soundtracks
The ''Billboard'' charts tabulate the relative weekly popularity of songs and albums in the United States and elsewhere. The results are published in ''Billboard'' magazine. ''Billboard'' biz, the online extension of the ''Billboard'' charts, pr ...
, and spawned one charting single, "
Just a Baby Boy
"Just a Baby Boy" is a song by American rapper Snoop Dogg featuring guest vocals from American R&B singer and actor Tyrese and rapper Mr. Tan, taken from the soundtrack '' Baby Boy''. The song was written by Snoop Dogg, Tyrese and Kevin "DJ Bat ...
Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Singles & Tracks
The Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs chart ranks the most popular R&B and hip hop songs in the United States and is published weekly by ''Billboard''. Rankings are based on a measure of radio airplay, sales data, and streaming activity. The chart had 100 p ...
. The soundtrack contains interludes which are sound clips from the film. An album of the film's score, by British composer David Arnold, was released by
Varese Sarabande
Varese ( , , or ; lmo, label=Varesino, Varés ; la, Baretium; archaic german: Väris) is a city and ''comune'' in north-western Lombardy, northern Italy, north-west of Milan. The population of Varese in 2018 has reached 80,559.
It is the ca ...
Just a Baby Boy
"Just a Baby Boy" is a song by American rapper Snoop Dogg featuring guest vocals from American R&B singer and actor Tyrese and rapper Mr. Tan, taken from the soundtrack '' Baby Boy''. The song was written by Snoop Dogg, Tyrese and Kevin "DJ Bat ...
"- 4:16 ( Snoop Dogg featuring Tyrese & Mr. Tan)
#"Just a Man"- 3:59 (
Raphael Saadiq
Raphael Saadiq (; born Charles Ray Wiggins; May 14, 1966) is an American singer, songwriter, multi-instrumentalist, and record producer. He rose to fame as a member of the multiplatinum group Tony! Toni! Toné! In addition to his solo and group ...
featuring
Devin the Dude
Devin Copeland (born June 4, 1970), better known by his stage name Devin the Dude, is an American rapper from Houston, Texas. He is known for his unique rapping style and his 2002 songs "Lacville '79" and "Doobie Ashtray".
Early life
Devin Copel ...
)
#"Focus (Interlude)"- :22 (Tyrese &
Taraji P. Henson
Taraji Penda Henson ( ; born September 11, 1970) is an American actress. She studied acting at Howard University and began her Hollywood career in guest roles on several television shows before making her breakthrough in '' Baby Boy'' (2001). Sh ...
)
#"Baby Mama"- 4:44 ( Three 6 Mafia featuring La Chat)
#"Talk Shit 2 Ya"- 4:35 (
D'Angelo
Michael Eugene Archer (born February 11, 1974), better known by his stage name D'Angelo (), is an American singer, songwriter, multi-instrumentalist, and record producer. He first garnered attention after co-producing the single "U Will Know" ...
featuring Marlon C)
#"I'd Rather Be With You"- 4:55 (
Bootsy Collins
William Earl "Bootsy" Collins (born October 26, 1951) is an American bass guitarist and singer.
Rising to prominence with James Brown in the early 1970s, and later with Parliament-Funkadelic, Collins established himself as one of the leading na ...
Tha Eastsidaz
Tha Eastsidaz is a hip hop trio consisting of Snoop Dogg, Tray Deee and Goldie Loc. Their first appearance was on Tommy Boy Records' ''The Ride: Music from Dimension'' with Crooked Eye Q on a Battlecat-produced song called "Feels So Good" in ...
Baby
An infant or baby is the very young offspring of human beings. ''Infant'' (from the Latin word ''infans'', meaning 'unable to speak' or 'speechless') is a formal or specialised synonym for the common term ''baby''. The terms may also be used to ...
& Lac)
#"Guns and Butter (Interlude)"- :30 (
Ving Rhames
Irving Rameses Rhames (born May 12, 1959) is an American actor. He is best known for his supporting roles as IMF Agent Luther Stickell in the ''Mission: Impossible'' film series and gang kingpin Marsellus Wallace in ''Pulp Fiction''. He also a ...
)
#"We Keep It G"- 4:44 (Lost Angels)
#"Eat Sleep Think"- 3:36 (Connie McKendrick)
#" Just to Keep You Satisfied"- 4:24 ( Marvin Gaye)
#"I Hate You (Interlude)"- :41 (Tyrese & Taraji P. Henson)
#"Love & War"- 5:21 ( Anthony Hamilton featuring
Macy Gray
Natalie Renée McIntyre (born September 6, 1967), known by her stage name Macy Gray, is an American R&B and soul singer and actress. She is known for her distinctive raspy voice and a singing style heavily influenced by Billie Holiday.
Gray ha ...
)
#"Straight Fucking"- 4:59 (
The Transitions
The Transitions were an R&B group formed in the early 2000s in the United States. They were signed to the record label Universal Music Group. The group was hand-picked by veteran R&B artist Michael Bivins. Each member of the trio came to Bivins i ...
List of hood films
This is a list of hood films – films focusing on the culture and life of African-Americans, Hispanic Americans, and/or in some cases, Asian Americans living in segregated, low-income urban communities, as well as comparably deprived and crime-ri ...