F. Gary Gray's Straight Outta Compton is a relatively straightforward musical biopic that benefits from Gray's strength at portraying male bonding. The film has been criticized for glossing over NWA's more unsavory aspects, particularly Dr. Dre's abuse of women, but this strikes me as typical of the rose colored glasses that Hollywood dons when assaying a musical biopic whether it be Night and Day, Funny Girl or Lady Sings the Blues. Paul Giamatti's Jewish manager could have been a stock figure out of any of these pictures or, indeed, any urban based Hollywood musical of the 20th century. Straight Outta Compton seeks to mythologize NWA as righteous rebels who are galvanized into musical action by a racist system. Gray seeks to spread that myth by printing the legend and his film works within that framework.
Gray has previously worked almost entirely within the action genre, but is able to reinvestigate the honor among thieves theme he explored most rewardingly in The Italian Job. His portrayal of the ups and downs of the esprit between Dr. Dre, Ice Cube, and Eazy-E brings the film to life; DJ Yella and MC Ren, predictably, are given short shrift compared to their comrades. When Gray uses a crane shot to heighten the import of NWA entering the arena of their first big gig, he presents their career as an epic quest to find meaning and catharsis in a hostile world. Nearly all of NWA's flaws are banished from this self-produced film, even their dire second album is ignored. Suge Knight is tapped to embody the dark side of the rap world and, admittedly, he is a good candidate for villainy. Eazy-E's demise provides the tragic denouement that this allegedly gritty, yet traditionally cheesy Hollywood biopic demands. (5/9/16)
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