Straight Outta Compton (2015)

Blink and you’ll miss DJ Yella and MC Ren, strange for a movie about their own group. The script also feels protective of its subjects, sanding off rough edges a braver film would have shown, and at 147 minutes the last act drowns in contract fights. But the first half is electric. Watching them turn what they see on their own streets into songs, then hear a crowd shout every word back, is thrilling. The scenes with police are tense, angry and handled with real seriousness, and they explain where the music’s anger came from. O’Shea Jackson Jr. plays his own father with uncanny ease. Corey Hawkins makes Dre a quiet perfectionist, and Jason Mitchell’s Eazy-E is the heart, a hustler who discovers he has something to say. It made $201.6 million worldwide on a reported $28 to $50 million. An 8.0 because the music and the anger feel real, even when the story gets selective. $2,917 says you look up who produced your favorite song tonight and end up awake way past your bedtime.

What works: The young cast is terrific, especially Jason Mitchell as Eazy-E, and the recording and concert scenes capture real creative fire.

What doesn’t: DJ Yella and MC Ren barely register, the last act gets bogged down in contract fights, and the script smooths over its subjects’ rougher edges.

Who it’s for: Music fans who want a big, energetic origin story about a group that changed hip-hop and the conversation around it.