I had a mini-adventure yesterday searching for the film, Boyz n the Hood. I decided to double-up this movie for a class assignment and the encyclopedia project I am working on. I do not own the film so yesterday I set out to buy or rent it. At the outset I must say that I did not think this film would be hard to find. It was nominated for two Academy Awards and gave the world a view of life that should be explored in more detail. I can say that after a two hour search it is reasonable to assume that some stores in Maine may racially profile the customer base for available products. One of my buddies and I started at the Movie Gallery in Orono. They did not have it for rent or for ‘pre-viewed’ purchase. Ok, fine, so we rolled into Bangor. First stop, Blockbuster. They have it right? Um, nope, not for rental or ‘pre-viewed’ purchase. Ok, ok, so next door to Blockbuster is a used CD and movie store. Do they have it? Nope. From there we hit Wal-Mart and Target. No dice there either. Laughing and surprisingly intrigued we proceeded to the mall where I remembered there was this massive store that only sells used DVDs and VHS. Yeah, they were closed, as in closed forever. Before trying Border’s we decided to hit Circuit City. This store was a commercial version of ground zero. Whew, there were DVDs in the candy display, boxes strewn about, and people everywhere. We hit the DVD section and there is no order. Titles starting with D are in the A’s, it is crazed. We just rifiling through the racks and with a Hollywood style built-in surprise, I FIND IT! In fact, it is the two-disc bonus edition, so even better. The price is $19.99 and at this point I do not care. At the check-out counter they ring it up and it was only $11.80! So only have two hours of looking, I found the flick.
Which leads me to ask some questions. Maine, do you not like Black films and filmmakers? Don’t you think it is a tragedy to have a Paris Hilton movie or a copy of Don’t Be a Menace to South Central While Drinking Your Juice in the Hood and not a groundbreaking film like Boyz n the Hood?
Now that that is settled, onto some Super Bowl predictions. I am rooting for a Steelers victory over Arizona with a score of 27-17.
