Human misery in it's purest form. LIFE IS HOT IN CRACKDOWN is the new film from Buddy G and concerns the daily lives of a various assortment of characters living on the streets dealing with difficult situations such as drug abuse, gang violence, among other hot button issues. A mother(Illeana Douglas) allows her abusive boyfriend to lash out at her and the kids because of his personal problems after losing his job. A store employee, Manny(Victor Rasuk), who runs it at night, with a wife and kid(the kid, when we first are introduced to the family cries all the time, causing an emotional stress for them all)is almost killed by a robber whose gun is jammed. A married couple, Marybeth(Kerry Washington)and Benny(Desmond Harrington), both junkies, try to remain a solid couple despite their habits(and she is best friends with a wealthy transvestite, Ridley(Mark Webber) while Benny has a hard time adjusting to his decision to get a sex change)and times of friction in their relationship. Black youths, led by thug Romeo(an intense Evan Ross), consider themselves quite the gangsters until they are betrayed by who they thought was their ally on the street. Two cops work the beat on these streets, one a young rookie(Thomas Ian Nicholas) along with a tired partner(Vondie Curtis-Hall) who has been a veteran cop a long time and has seen it all.
Drug movies are never easy for me to sit through because you see people voluntarily destroy their lives. Unlike COMBAT SHOCK which ends in depressing fashion, Buddy G's newest film does provide some hope for a few of his characters. For instance, when it appears that their parents have left them all alone, Willy(Ridge Canipe)and Susie(Ariel Winter) may've, in actuality, been spared a life of despair and horror..if anything, it's quite possible that foster care would better benefit them. When Benny attempts to rob a store and is shot in the process, he's left in a comatose state, but it could be a wake-up call he needs to get things right in his life.
But, there are also plenty of bleak, uncompromising moments as well. An old man is bullied by Romeo and his boys unmercifully because he used money "owed to them" to buy his medicine and groceries..while his sick mother deteriorates, Romeo is out living a life of crime, basking in the power he thinks he has, his inevitable doom apparent in who he chooses to align himself with. It's never fun watching a little girl hiding behind a pillow afraid she'll be hit by a screaming man complaining that his "family" isn't doing enough to help pay the rent. Ridley feels liberated that he'll finally be able to address who he really is, but when faced with being cut off from his trust fund, this freedom could be shortlived..and that could include abandoning the one true friend who helped motivate him to embrace his homosexuality, Marybeth.
LIFE IS HOT IN CRACKTOWN is what Buddy G can do with a decent budget and a good ensemble cast. Children aren't admonished from the harsh environs of life on the streets..one girl Willy knows is stabbed and we see others prostituting themselves. The black youth who terrorize the old man and follow orders to do a series of chores for their gang brothers are punished for the life they chose. And, to protect himself, Manny packs a pistol but how will he respond when a gun is pointed at him and to the idea of actually shooting someone, even if it's a robber? Nothing's more disconcerting than seeing kids with guns and constant eruptions of violence at their hands. Buddy Giovinazzo is a brave filmmaker who doesn't take the easy way out, instead portraying urban squalor and broken homes/lives as they really exist. This movie is based on his own collection of stories and it's an impressive return. With Shannyn Sossamon as Manny's wore out wife Concetta and Laura Flynn Boyle as an aging hooker, Betty. Lots of drug abuse is featured in this movie and there are endless instances of unpleasantness, but Buddy G doesn't wallow in the details as much.
Drug movies are never easy for me to sit through because you see people voluntarily destroy their lives. Unlike COMBAT SHOCK which ends in depressing fashion, Buddy G's newest film does provide some hope for a few of his characters. For instance, when it appears that their parents have left them all alone, Willy(Ridge Canipe)and Susie(Ariel Winter) may've, in actuality, been spared a life of despair and horror..if anything, it's quite possible that foster care would better benefit them. When Benny attempts to rob a store and is shot in the process, he's left in a comatose state, but it could be a wake-up call he needs to get things right in his life.
But, there are also plenty of bleak, uncompromising moments as well. An old man is bullied by Romeo and his boys unmercifully because he used money "owed to them" to buy his medicine and groceries..while his sick mother deteriorates, Romeo is out living a life of crime, basking in the power he thinks he has, his inevitable doom apparent in who he chooses to align himself with. It's never fun watching a little girl hiding behind a pillow afraid she'll be hit by a screaming man complaining that his "family" isn't doing enough to help pay the rent. Ridley feels liberated that he'll finally be able to address who he really is, but when faced with being cut off from his trust fund, this freedom could be shortlived..and that could include abandoning the one true friend who helped motivate him to embrace his homosexuality, Marybeth.
LIFE IS HOT IN CRACKTOWN is what Buddy G can do with a decent budget and a good ensemble cast. Children aren't admonished from the harsh environs of life on the streets..one girl Willy knows is stabbed and we see others prostituting themselves. The black youth who terrorize the old man and follow orders to do a series of chores for their gang brothers are punished for the life they chose. And, to protect himself, Manny packs a pistol but how will he respond when a gun is pointed at him and to the idea of actually shooting someone, even if it's a robber? Nothing's more disconcerting than seeing kids with guns and constant eruptions of violence at their hands. Buddy Giovinazzo is a brave filmmaker who doesn't take the easy way out, instead portraying urban squalor and broken homes/lives as they really exist. This movie is based on his own collection of stories and it's an impressive return. With Shannyn Sossamon as Manny's wore out wife Concetta and Laura Flynn Boyle as an aging hooker, Betty. Lots of drug abuse is featured in this movie and there are endless instances of unpleasantness, but Buddy G doesn't wallow in the details as much.