Hood film
Hood film is a 1990s film genre originating in the United States, which features aspects of urban African American or Hispanic American culture. John Singleton, Mario Van Peebles, F. Gary Gray, Hughes Brothers, and Spike Lee are all directors who have created work typically classified as part of this genre. The genre has been identified as a sub-genre of the gangster film genre.
Director John Singleton, one of the pioneers of the genre. | |
| Years active | 1990s |
|---|---|
| Location | United States |
| Major figures | Hughes Brothers, Ernest Dickerson, F. Gary Gray, Spike Lee, John Singleton, Mario Van Peebles |
| Influences | Blaxploitation, L.A. Rebellion, Mexploitation, Race film |
The genre has since spread outside the U.S., to places such as the United Kingdom and Canada.
Hood films have been variously described under a wide-array of names by critics, such as 'street-gang', 'ghetto-centric', 'action-crime-adventure', 'gangsta rap films', 'black action films', 'new black realism', 'new jack cinema', and 'black urban cinema'. Spike Lee disparagingly referred to the genre as 'hiphop, urban drama, ghetto film'.