Friday (1995)

Directed by F. Gary Gray (The Italian Job), Friday is fairly unique in the history of African-American cinema. Though it depends partly on the usual toilet humor, it does not have the same hyped-up, eager-to-please vibe of most other comedies. It's uncharacteristically laid-back with a refreshing lack of plot mechanics. This, plus the one-day, one-neighborhood setting, allows the characters to flourish in a more organic way. In this, it's almost on a level with such classics as Charles Burnett's Killer of Sheep (1977) and Spike Lee's Do the Right Thing (1989).

That said, the movie also comes with a troublesome air of misogyny; most of the women characters are seen either as sexual objects, or objects of scornful humor. It's also not particularly laugh-out-loud funny, as most of the humor is at the expense of other characters. There are glimpses of goodness, but in general, the overall behavior of the people in this neighborhood is not so great. However, the historical importance of the film, plus its genuine cult status, tend to make up for these disappointing shortcomings.