Straight Out of Brooklyn is a drama that emphasizes the feelings and emotions of many children, teens, and young adults in this world who go through some the similar situations the main character goes though in having to live in broken homes of constant alcohol abuse & domestic violence witnessed from those responsible of taking care of them. The ending message gives all who watches this film an important lesson that the viewer itself is the most powerful force who can choose make a positive solution to break the tradition (or cycle) of abuse handed down, from generation to another. I definitely recommend this film to anyone who wants to take action by helping those who are victims of abuse & admitted abusers themselves who want to change themselves before it is too late. Therefore, my rating is an absolute 10.

Consider the plight of Dennis Brown. He is living in the projects at Red Hook, Brooklyn, at the time when violence, drugs and despair was rampant among the poor, mostly black residents of that crime infected area. Dennis shows he is a young man of a certain intelligence, who is going nowhere because instead of thinking about getting an education and beating the poverty, he has decided to solve his problems in a different fashion, he will rob the drug lord that has business in the same housing complex.Dennis' father Ray, is a man that feels beaten by the system. He is also a man who has defeated himself and his family by drinking heavily. Alcoholism is making him take all his frustrations against his loving wife, Frankie. He beats her every time he is too drunk to think clearly, as he rants and raves. Dennis, and his sister Carolyn, are helpless in defending their mother, who, like all victims, will not do anything to help herself and stays by her man.Dennis' life has a positive side in the love he shares with Shirley, the young waitress. Shirley understands she wants no part of what Dennis tells her he is about to do, but she is helpless in trying to stop him from ruining his life and that of his family's. Everything conspires against Dennis in the end."Straight Out of Brooklyn", directed by Matty Rich, who also has a key part in it, shows a talented man who tells it like he saw it. The film has some awkward moments, but in general Mr. Rich achieved a great coup by casting an ensemble team to give life to his characters. Best of all, the amazing Larry Gilliard Jr., who as Dennis shows a range of emotions others, more accomplished actors, would have problems portraying. George T. Odon, Ann Sanders, Barbara Sanon, play the other members of the Brown family with assurance. Reana Drummond is another surprise who gives life to Shirley and makes us like her.The film is a vivid account of what life is like for people caught in a desperate situations caused by the environment and the lack of opportunities and the way they were dealt a bad hand by fate.

I have seen at least 450 films from the "Urban" genre, and I have to say I am always perplexed by this film. If you are someone who is fussy about the aesthetics and the technical aspects of a film, you do not want to see this film. However, if you are looking for a film with strong performances by black actors, or a film with a look at life in the projects, this is the film for you. I think sometimes when we talk about project life we imagine a certain picture or image. This film deals a lot more with the mindsets of people in the projects. The most powerful performance is by George T. Odom, whose monologues and multi-personalities combine for a great example of a struggling black man. Larry Gillard Jr. is also in this film(the man who played D'Angelo Barksdale in HBO's The Wire) and he delivers a relatively impressive performance as a ordinary kid in the projects. Overall this is an impressive film with no budget. The one thing you need to be warned about is at times it is so low budget it will sometimes look as it was scenes from staged plays. I also wish the supporting cast was made up of better actors. I like this film, enough that i look at scenes from it once and a while when I myself am studying character archetypes.

This film boasts credible performances by the cast, including some powerful moments. The pacing is uneven at times, almost, but not convincingly, giving it a cinema verite feel. The makeup for the battered wife is obvious to distraction. It is certainly worth viewing, but one has to do so without comparing it to something a large studio would distribute. I would love to see what Matty Rich might produce with a larger budget.