The Wood

Director: Rick Famuyiwa Rick Famuyiwa

Overview

A man who's uncertain about the biggest step forward of his life steps back to take a look at his younger days in this comedy/drama. Roland (Taye Diggs) is a few hours away from getting married, and he is starting to have second thoughts; as much as he loves his fianc?e, he can't stop thinking about Tanya (Tamala Jones), his first serious girlfriend in high school. Roland is hanging out with his two best friends, whom he also first met in school, Mike (Omar Epps), a solid regular guy, and Slim (Richard T. Jones), a flashy personality who plays pro basketball in Europe. They talk about the old days and flash back on growing up in Inglewood, California (nicknamed "The Wood") in the 1980's, when Run DMC and Eric B & Rakim were the happening sounds, and guys used to argue over who was hotter, Vanity or Apollonia. At the last minute, Roland takes off, wanting to pay Tanya a visit, and Mike and Slim are determined to track him down and make sure that he gets to the altar on time. The Wood was the debut feature film for writer/director Rick Famuyiwa, whose first short subject, Blacktop Lingo, won an enthusiastic response at the 1996 Sundance Film Festival.

Product Details

Release Date:	09/26/2017
UPC:	0032429282750
Original Release:	1999
Rating:	R
Source:	PARAMOUNT
Region Code:	1
Presentation:	[Wide Screen]
Sound:	[Dolby Digital Stereo, Dolby Digital 5.1 Surround]
Language:	English
Time:	1:46:00
Sales rank:	6,107

Cast & Crew

Performance Credits

Omar Epps	Mike
Sean Nelson	Young Mike
Taye Diggs	Roland
Trent Cameron	Young Roland
Richard T. Jones	Slim,Tanya,Cashier in Mini Mart
Duane Finley	Young Slim
Malinda Williams	Young Alicia
De'Aundre Bonds	Stacey
Cynthia Martells	Mike's Mother
Sanaa Lathan	Alicia
LisaRaye	Lisa
Elayn Taylor	Roland's Mother,Actor
Patricia Belcher	Mrs. Hughes
Geoffrey Blackshire	Cashier in Mini Mart
Jascha Washington	Mike's Brother
Aiysha Sinclair	Tracey
Melvin Lyons	Gang Member
Samuel Hiona	Cashier in Mini Mart 1986
Antwon Tanner	Boo
John Wesley	Police Officer
Oscar Dillon	Police Officer
Tia Gainer	Girl at Dance
Howard Thompson	D.J. at Dance
Douglas Shamburger	D.J. on Radio
Brandi Wilson	Girl at Dance
Christina Milian	Girl at Dance
Dawnn Lewis	Woman in Cleaners
Crystal Grant	Girl with Slim
La'myia Good	Monica
Alecia Smith	Girl with Roland
Kongit Farrell	Girl with Slim
Stacey Arnell	Woman with Stacey
Basil Wallace	Lisa's Father
Todd Boyd	Reverend Parker
Lathan Sanaa	Actor
Robert Hurst	Composer

Technical Credits

Rick Famuyiwa

Rick Famuyiwa	Director,Screenwriter
Albert Berger	Producer
Mali Finn	Casting
David Gale	Producer
Emily Schweber	Casting
Bruce Steinheimer	Special Effects
Van Toffler	Executive Producer
Eddie Watkins	Stunts
Ron Yerxa	Producer

Editorial Reviews

The Wood is a comedy divided into two ill-fitting halves: the good one, which takes place in the nostalgic 1980s and features unknown actors, and the bad one, a modern-day wedding disaster in which three rising stars show lackluster chemistry. The good one, however, is reason enough to recommend the movie. With Sean Nelson, the talented young actor who carried Fresh (1994), setting the pace, the flashback trio display an effortless joshing camaraderie, just one of the details of an Inglewood that seems charmed through the selective lens of memory. Here The Wood smartly tweaks the familiar agendas and archetypes of 'hood movies: The threatening gang-banger is wise and forgiving, and the cops, usually portrayed as racial profilers, are black. Even when the plot details are a little scattershot, the tone sees them through. The present tense, however, is another matter. Not only don't Omar Epps, Taye Diggs, and Richard T. Jones work well together, offering different characterizations and group dynamics, but director/screenwriter Rick Fumiyawa makes a crucial error by shifting the movie's perspective. While the flashback is told through the eyes of Mike (Nelson/Epps), it's Diggs' relatively unfamiliar Roland who's getting married, leading to narrative inconsistency and thematic confusion. Given the weak link between the flashbacks and the present, and Fumiyawa's evident preference for re-creating another era, The Wood would have been smarter to live in the past.