"Fear of a Black Hat" is a low budget, mockumentory made in 1994. It was written, directed, and acted in by Rusty Cundieff. Cundieff plays the role of Ice Cube, one of the three rappers in the group NWA, Niggaz With Hats, who are being interviewed by a sociologist over a one year period for her thesis.
It chronicles the groups rise to fame and their subsequent break up over this year. It is obvious that this is not your typical $50 million + film extravaganza, but it also becomes quickly apparent that it is well conceived, thought out and the laughs are packed in scene to scene. Many people compare this to the movie "Spinal Tap" and it would be fair say that it is a gangster rap version of that entertaining flick.
The key that makes "Fear of a Black Hat" seem hilarious instead of just funny is the audiences familiarity of early 1990's rap stars such as Tone Loc, LL Cool J, C + C Music Factory, NWA, MC Hammer, Ice T, Vanilla Ice, Salt 'n Pepper, and others. These personalities and their hit videos are all mocked very cleverly throughout the film. Almost all the video clips shown are direct alterations of big hits. They are done so well that many of my friends who were not familiar thought they were original video clips. Both Ice Cube (Cundieff) and Taste T (Larry Scott - of the "Revenge of the Nerds") sound like professional rappers. The third member, Tone Def spins the records with various body parts and fills in nicely with his twisted phrases of wisdom.
Some of the spoof videos include: "Booty Juice", "My Peanuts", "Guerrillas in the Midst", "F-ck the Security Guards", "Gangsta's Life Ain't Easy", "Come and Pet the P.U.S.S.Y.","Grandmama Gonna Kick Your Ass", "Wear Your Hat", and "I'm Only Human".
What this film amounts to is a mosaic of interviews, songs, philosophies, and performances which are tied in extremely well. Taste T's militant views, Ice Cube's warped political dissertations to explain his sexual and social perversions, and Tone Def's new age humanity all add to the flavor.
Having watched this film several times, there are scenes that jump out now that I missed earlier, addressing my opinion that this is a comedy layered with laughs.
The language, as you might guess, is quite strong, but used appropriately to get the gist of the industry.
Other films that compliment well are: Spinal Tap and CB4.
Be prepared to laugh out loud, but keep the door closed. Give an extra 1/2 star.
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