John Singleton was only 23 when he made his masterpiece – and his feature directorial debut, at that. The fun facts and superlatives tied to this 1991 drama are well-known and well-deserved: In addition to supplying future stars Cuba Gooding Jr., Ice Cube, Morris Chestnut, Nia Long, and Regina King with their first major leading roles, the film – in which Laurence Fishburne’s Furious tries to steer Gooding’s Tre into adulthood with dignity, wisdom, and a beating heart – made Singleton both the youngest and the first Black filmmaker to be nominated for Best Director. You grow up fast, Boyz N the Hood makes painfully, unflinchingly clear, as a Black kid in South Central L.A. – Carys Anderson
