XcalibreEnts Movie Reviews: Dope

This was one of my favourite releases of 2015, a well written and directed comedy drama by Rick Famuyiwa, featuring some great actors and actresses, it was also produced by Forest Whitaker and executive produced by Pharrell Williams so from the get go i expected great things, and i was not disappointed. Amongst the best coming of age movies i've ever seen, Dope will make you laugh but the serious undertone that merge with the comedy in this movie is balanced out perfectly. In the first five minutes or so you would think this movie was set in the mid 90's not only because of the great 90's hip hop soundtrack that plays all the way through out the movie but also because of the main character and his two best friends love for the particular genre of 90's hip hop, i liked the way they incorporated that into the movie, great if you like your 90's hip hop as much as i do.

The main character Malcolm, played by Shameik Moore, does a great job in setting the tone and made it easy for the audience to connect with him and the other characters as he interacts with them from start to end of the movie, his on screen presence is one of the many reasons this movie works well, he even as his own rock group in the movie with his two friends Diggy and Jib as members, you also get a chance to see him perform some pretty smooth 90's hip hop dance moves at the end of the movie, a true talent.

The beautiful Zoe Kravitz, daughter of musician Lenny Kravitz, plays Nakia, the love interest in this movie who has a cool disarming demeanour that would make anybody fall for her.

Rapper, Asap Rocky is also in this movie in his first acting role, he plays 'Dom' the drug dealing gangster, a major role that leads to all of Malcolm's adventures, and he does a great job for a first timer, very impressive.

At first glance i thought Kiersey Clemons, who plays Diggy, (one of Malcolm's best friends) was a boy, then i later realised she's a lesbian character, a very funny and entertaining one at that.

In this funny scene Diggy proves she's a girl in order to get her and her friends into a club.

I could go on about the other great actors and characters in this movie because that's how good it is, but i'll leave it to you to check out the dopeness yourselves.

Synopsis and trailer

Malcolm (Shameik Moore) is carefully surviving life in a tough neighborhood in Los Angeles while juggling college applications, academic interviews, and the SAT. A chance invitation to an underground party leads him into an adventure that could allow him to go from being a geek, to being dope, to ultimately being himself.

Award winning musician and executive producer of Dope Pharrell Williams talks about the movie and the new music he wrote, Pharrell was the one who wrote and produced all of Malcolm's group 'Awreeoh' songs in the movie, now that i think about it you can hear is sound on every one of those songs, especially on a track called 'Don't Get Deleted' which as that signature sound of of his own group N.E.R.D.