Straight Outta Compton (2015)

There were five guys in the popular and influential rap group NWA.  The movie only focuses on three of them: Dr. Dre (Corey Hawkins), Ice Cube (O'Shea Jackson Jr.), and the late Eazy-E (Jason Mitchell).  I'm guessing that could be because they are the most well-known of the group.  But I kept wishing that MC Ren (Aldis Hodge) and DJ Yella (Neil Brown Jr.) could have been shown more than just supporting players.

The movie is what it is.  It starts off strong, showing that yes, Eazy-E was dealing drugs.  Dr. Dre was a club DJ working for peanuts, and getting grief at home from his mom about that.  Ice Cube was writing lyrics, but he was involved with another rap group at that time.  Dr. Dre makes a deal with Eazy-E, to bankroll a recording with Eazy-E on the microphone, and brings the group together.  

The record becomes a hit, and then enters Jerry Heller (Paul Giamatti) who makes a deal with Eazy-E to make the group more popular.  But like another rap song said, "More money, more problems".  The movie then goes slightly downhill, covering artists feeling taken advantage of, egos clashing, partying to excess, drug use, etc., but not making those scenes feel fresh.  There were also times the story felt like it was jumping around, especially during the last half of the film.

Others involved in NWA's history make an appearance in the story including Snoop Dogg (Keith Stanfield), Tupac Shakur  (Marcc Rose), and Suge Knight (R. Marcos Taylor).  O'Shea Jackson Jr., who plays Ice Cube in this movie, is the son of Ice Cube (real name, O'Shea Jackson Sr.).  

The Ides of March (2011)

Stephen (Ryan Gosling) is a smart, ambitious staffer who works on the presidential campaign of Governor Mike Morris (George Clooney).  Morris is an Obama-like candidate; a campaign poster bearing his image is similar to ones the real life president used early on in his run for office.  Morris is good-looking, articulate, and says all the things the masses want to hear.  Paul (Phillip Seymour Hoffman) is the head campaign runner, and he and the staff work hard to put Morris ahead in the polls and drum up support.

There's the usual dose of political strategies and deals done.  Tom Duffy (Paul Giamatti), the guy who's running the campaign of Morris' competition, convinces Stephen to meet with him.  This is a political no-no, but Stephen meets Tom in secret.  Tom claims that Morris has no chance.  He admires Stephen's work, and he wants him to come work for him.  Stephen turns it down, but somehow, the news of the clandestine meeting is leaked.  Ida (Marisa Tomei), a political reporter, wants Stephen to spill the details or else she's going to run with what she knows.  But this becomes the least of Stephen's problems when he learns of a scandal that could bring Morris' campaign crashing down.

I went to this movie with a friend who told me as the credits rolled, "I could never be in politics with all that going on."  I agreed.  As the daughter of a precinct captain, I was privy to how underhanded the political world could be, and still is.  My late father tried to get both my younger sister and I involved in that world, but the "one hand washes the other" mentality turned us off.  Clooney directed this film, co-wrote the screenplay, and helped produce it.  He did a good job of showing the fast paced, backroom dirty deals and compromises that politicians and their supporters do to win an office.  The Stephen character comes off as being a bit idealistic at first, but a cynical, dark side comes slowly comes out when he has to make some hard decisions throughout the story.  I also liked the Senator Thompson character, played by Jeffrey Wright, who operated purely from a "what's in it for me?" standpoint.

George Clooney appeared on series TV ("The Facts of Life" and "ER", both on NBC) before transitioning to the movies.  He has an Oscar for Best Supporting Actor 2005 (Syriana).  Ryan Gosling was in Crazy, Stupid, Love (2011) and The Notebook (2004).  Phillip Seymour Hoffman was in Capote (2005).  Paul Giamatti appeared in Cinderella Man (2005).  Marisa Tomei is a Supporting Actress Oscar winner for My Cousin Vinny (1992).  Jeffrey Wright was in two James Bond movies -- Quantum of Solace (2008) and Casino Royale (2006).

Cinderella Man (2005)

Jim Braddock, (Russell Crowe) a boxer, is doing well at the beginning of the film. But then, the Great Depression takes its toll on him and his family. A broken hand keeps him out of the ring for awhile. He's reduced to begging for work at the docks to provide for his wife Mae (Renee Zellweger) and their three kids. Then his fast-talking manager, Joe Gould (Paul Giamatti), gets him another fight. Braddock is expected to lose, because he is considered to be washed up.

The plot focuses mainly on Braddock's struggle to keep his family together during tough economic times. Braddock is shown as a proud family man, a regular guy who just wants his kids to have a little more than he did. His wife never attends his matches in person, because she can't take seeing her husband get hit. Yet, she supports his decision to fight. As Braddock moves up in the ranks, his struggle brings hope to his family, and others as well.

There was a real Jim Braddock, who was a boxing champion in the 1930's. He eventually retired from boxing after losing to Joe Louis. The movie covers events leading up to a defining fight against Max Baer (Craig Bierko). There are some inaccuracies in the film. For example, Baer is made out to be a out-and-out villian, when he wasn't that bad. Otherwise, this is one of the better boxing-themed movies.

Mr. Crowe won an Oscar for his performance in Gladiator (2000). Mr. Giamatti was an odious radio executive in Private Parts (1997). Ms. Zellweger was the lead in Bridget Jones Diary (2001). Boxing fans will recognize the older man playing one of Braddock's corner men during the fights. It's Boxing Hall of Famer Angelo Dundee, the man who trained Muhammad Ali.