- Sep 22, 2013
- 4,956
- 250
- 85
The highly provocative urban drama Dead Presidents looks at the young lives of ethnic minority men displaced by their involvement in the Vietnam War and failing to reassimilate into civics life in the States despite all kinds of spiritual motivations. The engaging if tragic modernism dystopian film directed by the talented if shocking Hughes Brothers (Menace II Society) examines the psycho-sociological forces that would make certain decisions made by post-war veterans in socially challenging circumstances altogether surprisingly understandable. These are shocked minority men seeking an escape from the cold reality of an unusual homeland after coming home from a devastating war. Suddenly, what was once Motown or disco is now suddenly ghetto and dark bank!
The veteran buddies decide to band together to stage an incredibly thrilling armored car robbery in the early morning and recruit the protagonist's lifelong girl-friend for the masked job. The job has twists and turns and results in violence and a huge amount of money, and perhaps a very tragic end.
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This is crime-noir and war-veteran storytelling at its finest, despite its rather clear ethnic environment themes. The protagonist's lifelong girl-friend, if not wife, has decided to become a Black Panther and encourages the main character, portrayed beautifully by Larenz Tate, to join her, but instead he manages to persuade her to join him and his veteran buddies in the armored truck heist. The very gloomy story turns reminds us why life-decisions made in realistic conditions reveal why humanity is clearly defined by raw resilience if not perfect peace. That's why Dead Presidents, a very under-rated modern gem, should be categorized as a simple dystopian film and arguably lumped with defining comparable American movies such as Dog Day Afternoon (Al Pacino), A Perfect World (Kevin Costner), and Above the Rim (Marlon Wayans, Leon). It's therefore obviously an outstanding Blu-ray entertainment, inviting audiences to celebrate the visual face of social disparity! I give this 5/5 stars! You gotta see it, but it's definitely an adult movie.
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"Money is everything" (Ecclesiastes)
The veteran buddies decide to band together to stage an incredibly thrilling armored car robbery in the early morning and recruit the protagonist's lifelong girl-friend for the masked job. The job has twists and turns and results in violence and a huge amount of money, and perhaps a very tragic end.
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This is crime-noir and war-veteran storytelling at its finest, despite its rather clear ethnic environment themes. The protagonist's lifelong girl-friend, if not wife, has decided to become a Black Panther and encourages the main character, portrayed beautifully by Larenz Tate, to join her, but instead he manages to persuade her to join him and his veteran buddies in the armored truck heist. The very gloomy story turns reminds us why life-decisions made in realistic conditions reveal why humanity is clearly defined by raw resilience if not perfect peace. That's why Dead Presidents, a very under-rated modern gem, should be categorized as a simple dystopian film and arguably lumped with defining comparable American movies such as Dog Day Afternoon (Al Pacino), A Perfect World (Kevin Costner), and Above the Rim (Marlon Wayans, Leon). It's therefore obviously an outstanding Blu-ray entertainment, inviting audiences to celebrate the visual face of social disparity! I give this 5/5 stars! You gotta see it, but it's definitely an adult movie.
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"Money is everything" (Ecclesiastes)
