Review by Dane Marti
I was pleasantly surprised by DOPE. Although low budget, the movie deserves a better adjective in praise than ‘dopey.’ Produced by the great Forrest Whitaker, this is an African American film and pretty hip to the Gangster culture, which unfortunately I have almost zero knowledge about or I wouldn’t be using dated slang like hip: My taste in music lies elsewhere. However, this film still managed to enthrall me with its dangerous, wild and raw world—it creates laughter while riding on a razor sharp knife of serious truth! Why is the film successful? Well… Because I liked the characters! They ground the film in authenticity.
Directed with skill by Rick Famuyiwa, what at first seemed to be a rather silly story quickly evolved into a satirical and clever look at a plethora of important topics such as crime and poverty, ingeniously melded with fashion, music and…how human beings see themselves!
Malcolm (played with subtle skill and panache by Shameik Moore) and his two friends are certifiable geeks growing up in Inglewood California, Circa NOW. However, the Rap music and fashion the three geeks love flowered back in the 90’s. They also like Game of Thrones and Manga, as well as other items more affiliated with Caucasian culture. The movie has a lot of fun gently pointing out how strange they look in comparison to more recent African American fashions. This, along with their dated haircuts and zany, loud shirts, makes them stand out in a crowd; they just don’t fit-in with modern, often violent, Inglewood.
Undaunted by harassment and threats of serious violence, they struggle onward, at least until Malcolm accidentally makes contact with the girl of his dreams. Before long, he’s helping her pass her G.E.D. Actually, Malcolm, who never knew his father, is aspiring to even greater things: He wants to go to Harvard. Of course, the audience realizes that he has the intellectual ability, even if his school principle—portrayed as a politically correct nincompoop, doesn’t realize this obvious fact in the student.
In fact, one of the fascinating and hilarious elements of the film is that the entire high school in the film is a microcosm of bad intentions and seriously silly mistakes, often bending over backwards to appear with it and cool, but idiotically unaware that “nefarious” things are going on right under their collective noses.
As seen in countless High School Movie Comedies, this element in the story might seem to be a major cliché, but DOPE hits the correct level—being cynically subtle, while lampooning the school as a symbol standing in for much of what is haywire and sick in modern society.
The performance by the actor portraying Malcolm reminds me of Dustin Hoffman’s performance in THE GRADUATE. While not completely in the same realm of quality, I still enjoyed this character’s quiet, quirky and intelligent performance when caught in the films cornucopia of uncomfortable situations.
Obviously, there are scenes of gang-related violence, but the film never goes too far or get too bloody. However, it still demonstrates to the viewer how mindless, intoxicated fun at a dance club can suddenly erupt into savage, sudden violence.
There’s some clever split-screen scenes, just one of the visual, cinematic tricks which enhance the film, not overburden the film with crap.
Although a comedy, this isn’t a sitcom. The F-word and N-word (in one hilarious scene in particular!) are splashed around like confetti at a decadent party. There’s also a plethora of young, sexy women parading around, but anyone easily offended probably wouldn’t be watching this film. Even the drug element in used as a plot point that fuels the storyline. I’ve got to be honest, the film isn’t CITIZEN KANE, nor was it meant to be. When I went into the theater, I had pre-conceived notions which were wrong.
Some of the film reminded 90’s white comedies and me of 80’s. In particular: THE BREAKFAST CLUB. I truly liked the three main leads in this film. Even as the film explores some unpleasant themes and subject matter (which should definitely be addressed and why not a comedy to do it?), the movie still contains a sincerely sweet core that definitely educates the audience on a world both arresting and fascinating.
3 of 5 Stars
