Straight Out of Brooklyn

Theatrical Release Date: 1991 05 22 (USA)

UPC: 027616896612

Studio: MGM

MPAA Rating: R   Contains:[Violence, Adult Situations, Strong Sexual Content, Not For Children, Profanity, Substance Abuse]

Summary: Matty Rich's Straight out of Brooklyn is an unflinching portrait of an African-American family struggling to survive in a Brooklyn housing project. The family's oldest son (Lawrence Gilliard Jr.) decides that the easiest way to get his family out of the projects is by robbing a local drug dealer, but that plan turns disastrous when the pusher and his gang track the boy and his family down. Rich was only 19 years old at the time he wrote and directed Straight out of Brooklyn (he also appears as Larry in the film). ~ Stephen Thomas Erlewine, Rovi

Category: Drama

Awards: Best First Feature – Independent Spirit Awards Best Performance by an Actor in a Supporting Role in a Motion – Independent Spirit Awards Best Film Music – Independent Spirit Awards Best Supporting Actor – Independent Spirit Awards Special Jury Recognition: Dramatic – Sundance Film Festival

Features: Original theatrical trailer
English: mono
Spanish: mono
English, French & Spanish subtitles

Straight Out of Brooklyn

Format: Digital Video Disc (DVD)

Release Date: 10/07/2003

Aspect Ratio: 1.85:1 Theatre Wide-Screen, 1.33:1 Pre-1954 Standard

Audio: DD1 Dolby Digital Mono

Runtime: 83 Minutes

Sides: 2

Number of Discs: 1

Language(s) English,Spanish

Subtitles: English,French,Spanish

Region: USA & territories, Canada

Chapters: Side #1 -- [FS]
1. Main Title/Rage [6:12]
2. Gotta Do Something [6:26]
3. Broken Pride [2:25]
4. Women [6:09]
5. Plan [6:35]
6. Mopes and Dreams [8:30]
7. Parental Concerns [5:06]
8. White Demons [3:22]
9. Shotgun [4:30]
10. Father & Son [3:28]
11. Loyalty & Hard Work [2:25]
12. Cutting a Rug [5:24]
13. Falling Apart [5:41]
14. Robbery [5:24]
15. Repercussions [7:25]
16. End Credits [3:27]
Side #2 -- [WS]
1. Main Title/Rage [6:12]
2. Gotta Do Something [6:26]
3. Broken Pride [2:25]
4. Women [6:09]
5. Plan [6:35]
6. Mopes and Dreams [8:30]
7. Parental Concerns [5:06]
8. White Demons [3:22]
9. Shotgun [4:30]
10. Father & Son [3:28]
11. Loyalty & Hard Work [2:25]
12. Cutting a Rug [5:24]
13. Falling Apart [5:41]
14. Robbery [5:24]
15. Repercussions [7:25]
16. End Credits [3:27]

Derek Armstrong

As powerful as contemporary inner-city films such as Do the Right Thing and Boyz N the Hood were, the tale of hopelessness in the projects feels even more achingly real on a lower budget. Such is Straight Out of Brooklyn, the remarkable debut from teenage writer/director Matty Rich, so gritty that it looks like a documentary. Shot on a shoestring with a cast of all first-time actors, including the director in a supporting role, the film gets right inside the moments of crisis in a poor African-American family. George T. Odom is menacing as the drunken father, a ranting lout who frequently leaves the family's kitchenware in a pile of rubble when he gets liquored up. His painful ravings are scary, but the real hurt exists within the pregnant silences, as his family waits out the storm, too obedient to do anything but cower. Although the sense of futility dominates, Odom's infrequent happier moments with his teenage son (Lawrence Gilliard Jr.) hint at the functional bonds that could exist between them all if they could indeed get "straight out of Brooklyn." The actors all give naturalistic performances, and the young actors in particular (Gilliard, Rich, and Mark Malone) effectively translate their own experiences to generate a sense of youthful bravado and enthusiasm. Rich's point is well made: there's just so little for the characters to be enthusiastic about. ~ Derek Armstrong, Rovi

Cast and Crew: David Belgrave  Actor 
Soraya Hyppolite  Actor 
Ulysses Rivers  Actor 
Joseph Pillonia  Actor 
Lawrence Clifford, Jr.  Actor 
James Arnold Mayes  Actor 
Albertha Moody  Actor 
Joseph A. Thomas  Actor 
J.R. Hill  Actor 
Billy R.  Actor 
Walter Meade  Actor 
Dorise Black  Actor 
Booker T. Matthews  Actor 
William Erskine  Actor 
Robert N. Nash  Actor 
Ali Shahid Abdul Wahha  Actor 
Krystal Davis  Actor 
James McFadden  Actor 
Fran Sperling  Actor 
Ira Deutchman  Producer 
Lidsay Law  Producer 
Matty Rich  Director 
Matty Rich  Producer 
Matty Rich  Screenwriter 
Harold Wheeler  Composer (Music Score) 
Lawrence Gilliard, Jr.  Actor 
George T. Odom  Actor 
Ann D. Sanders  Actor 
Barbara Sanon  Actor 
Reana E. Drummond  Actor 
Matty Rich  Actor 
Mark Malone  Actor 

Country: USA