SPOILER ALERT
When I saw the trailer for Straight Outta Compton in theaters way back when, I knew I had to see this movie. Not only did the cast look fantastic, but the situation surrounding the film couldn’t have been timelier.
The movie busted right into the theme that sparked the initial media controversy surrounding S.O.C., quite literally. (There isn’t enough time in one article to talk about the Dr. Dre abuse issue.) During a drug sale, the police completely destroy the home with a tank, a happy face pasted on the battering ram attachment, used to tear the house in two. It was obvious from the start that the relationship between the predominately African American people of Compton and the men in blue would be hard to watch, at best.
The members of N.W.A were consistently brutally stopped, humiliated and hurt by the police throughout the film, often without provocation. The song “Fuck the Police” by the group dealt with the lack of respect the cops had for the young men and consequently, the other way around.
The film also dealt with the real life beating of Rodney King, a L.A. taxi driver who was beaten, on camera, by the police. Of the four officers who were charged with assault with a deadly weapon, three were acquitted. The fourth was also acquitted of those charges, but the jury did not come to a decision on excessive force. These events were what to have been the final straw, leading to the deadly L.A. riots in 1992.
But why would any of these scenes create any controversy outside the silver screen? It’s possible because this movie was so timely. Almost too timely.
Instead of prepping with extra popcorn and extra twizzlers, theaters across the country prepped for the screening of S.O.C. with extra security. Universal Pictures partnered with these theaters for what they called “safety and liability” precautions.
Some theaters refused to even show the film at all. A theater in St. Petersburg, Fla., relatively close to my Tampa Bay area home, would not show the film, stating that not all of its theaters show ALL current movies.
Of course, many people are saying these precautions are not connected to anything racial.
Recent movie theater shootings have made even going to the theaters seem like an unsafe outing. S.O.C. was released after the recent shooting at Amy Schumer’s film Trainwreck in Lafayette, Louisiana, where two people were killed and nine were injured.
It’s understandable that movie theaters will be taking more precautions. WFLA News reported that Regal Theaters, the local theaters in Gainesville, will be checking bags nationwide in light of recent violent events.
But here is where this turns into a racial issue: There were 13 movies that opened the same day as S.O.C., including The Man from U.N.C.L.E. The week before, The Fantastic Four and Ricki and the Flash hit theaters and the week after Hitman: Agent 47 and American Ultra were released. Not a single one of these movies were said to be partnering with their production companies for more security, even the movies including epic violence.
There is a common thread here. It’s the same thread we hear in the news day-in and day-out. The brutalization of unarmed, mostly African Americans, by police, has become something of a staple in the news media. There is a growing distrust of the police force among many, and like back in the day, the nation is divided.
In some respects, I can understand the divide. In my short 21 years, I have never had a negative experience with any officer. I’ve had wonderful conversations with them on campus, and when my dad an I were in an accident, the officers were very kind in taking our statements and information, and sat and chatted with us later, like we’d known them for years.
However, I also grew up in suburban Clearwater, Fla. in the 21st century, with two successful parents and the ability to go and graduate from college. The difference between me and many is that I have the ability to sympathize with the world my parents inhabited in the 60’s, 70’s and so on, and take that history to heart.
Pretending like these things do not happen may make people feel better inside, but doesn’t discount that these things did happen, or make improvements for the future.
Theaters and Universal Pictures were both afraid that a movie dealing with similar atrocities facing our current society would make black people rise up and riot in the theaters. This is apparently something we should have done during 12 Years a Slave, and Selma as well, right?
A little more respect needs to be shown to minorities and all of the other people that were expected to “show out” at the movies. The protesting in the streets, whether you agree with it or not, is based in the realities people are facing here and now in the real world.
Though S.O.C. is a biopic depicting real life events, yes, but at the end of the day it is still a movie. Not everything that is relevant is fuel to the fire. And as irony would have it, the negative coverage and fear of violence was more controversial than the film itself.
