If you’re anything like me, how you choose what movie you’re going to watch on Netflix, Redbox, or however you watch them in a few ways. Mine being these steps:
1. Genre-drama, comedy,documentary,etc.
2. The cover of the movie.
3. Cast.
4. The plot summary.
Sometimes its 1 out of 4, and not necessarily in that order, but usually its all 4…and in that order. Which brings me to this movie review of this post. So the day I watched this I was feeling Indie as in wanting to watch an indie film.
So boom, Genre-Indie, and this comes up. LUV(Learning Uncle Vincent) So I’m looking at the cover and that’s where it gets iffy for me. I mean look at it! I’m not usually into low budget black movies and that’s what this cover screams to me. I usually would go back to search at this point but I keep it moving.
Then you have the cast which sometimes is on the cover and in this movie they are.
You got Common (who is turning into a pretty decent actor if you ask me) so I’m like *wellllll….ok*, then you got Dennis Haysbert-more affectionately and commonly known as “the Allstate guy” next you have Meagan Good-its at this point where I almost went to search for a new movie again. No disrespect to Meagan but the movies she stars in have no benefit to me…except You Got Served….Then I see Danny Glover and I’m all kinda confused now because I’m like he’s like this revered actor with all kinds of nominations, awards, and real political/humanitarian efforts and he is in a movie with…..the girl from You Got Served… Meagan Good. Crazy right. The last picture on the cover is a funny looking cute kid (Micheal Rainey Jr.).
I’m now not only confused but also intrigued. This movie could go one of two ways so, I read the plot summary. I’m not typing that. You can read it for yourself, or read my way cooler version of it. Which is the reason for this post. Alright, so after all my 4 steps I watched the movie and here goes the review of it.
The movie is kind of one of those ‘day in the life’ type movies. Set in Baltimore,we are introduced to the kid-Woody and his uncle, Vincent played by Common. On this day which is the length of the movie, Woody gets to skip school and see how his uncle does things. Vincent has just finished a bid in jail for what we can assume is related to drugs and he wants to rejoin society and start a business the “right” way. However he has all these obstacles that’s preventing him from doing so, like his past criminal history, being profiled and stereotyped, and the lure of his old life.
It seems as if Vincent can’t catch a break to get what he needs to start that business the legit way so of course you guessed it-he has to go back to his old ways. But not without a fight of course. And it comes at a price. While all this is going on Woody is learning some key lessons in how to be a man, such as confidence with women, being honest, purchasing a suit, and how to act in a professional setting. Woody also learns the ways/code of the streets, which I feel both are needed. *Sidenote* The kid in this movie does an AMAZING JOB!!!!
The heights of the movie comes when uncle and nephew are put into two situations that will leave you (well it left me) anxious, excited, sadness-just a mixture of emotions. Now, I am a girl so of course I cried but the overall movie and not just the ending to me, was very moving.
Overall, the movie is surprisingly great. I admit I did the whole judging a book by its cover on this one and I was wrong. So don’t be like me-like if you don’t believe still go check it out for yourself. Its worth the 94 minutes. Pinky Promise.
Rating 4/5
-Eb
thekidswearcrowns.com 