It’s official, Straight Outta Compton is a bona fide hit. With an opening weekend estimated at about $60 million, there’s no doubt that all the folks back home in Compton are proud of the smash success of these hometown heroes. Except the only problem is they can’t actually see the film in Compton.
CBS Los Angeles reports that, despite the film’s huge success, it ironically can’t be supported in its namesake because Compton has no theaters, perhaps due to economic depression. The closest theater to the city is five miles away, in Paramount.
“‘It’s a low income area, it’s been heavily dis-invested in,’ USC professor of sociology Manuel Pastor said. ‘When you live in a community that doesn’t have that kind of retail, it’s a sign that the community is devalued and people within the community feel devalued.'”
A business group is hoping to change that with plans to build a 16-screen movie theater, as well as other retail businesses, in the community. And while those mainstream companies are important to help a community thrive, independent businesses (like the ones mentioned on Dr. Dre’s classic single from The Chronic, “Lil Ghetto Boy”) also help to rejuvenate a community that’s represented by its own citizens.
Hopefully Compton will have a movie theater soon, so they can actually see the unbelievable stories that emerge from the neighborhood, instead of waiting until it’s on TV.
(via CBS Los Angeles)
