Coke Boys

A hard-hitting story about African American drug-dealing criminals in Los Angeles.

Cain (Cook) is a crime boss who runs a drug ring. He viciously keeps everything in order along with the help of his friend and associate Trey (Armstrong). Things take a turn for the worse as the police put pressure on Trey to collaborate with them in order to put an end to Cain's illegal activities.

This short crime thriller pays homage to the hood films of the nineties and contains many elements that are often present in that genre, most of which involve crime. Criminals are seen handling drugs, counting money, threatening each other, beating people up and shooting them. The screenplay offers a detailed insight into how crime trafficking operates and the dangers of living the life of an outlaw. There is a great deal of violence, profanity and the fear of death is often present, revealing that this is the kind of lifestyle that gangsters have.

The vast majority of the characters are criminals, with the exception of police detective Harvey (Cureton) and his colleague, who represent the law trying to bring down the wrongdoers. Cain represents the ruthlessness and brutality of being a ganster, as he mercilessly beats associates and kills them. Generally, the acting is not great but it is good enough for the audience to understand the characters.

Considering that this film was made with a low budget, the production value quality is OK, although it would be fair to say that at certain points the image looks poor. The editing includes well executed montage sequences and the directing effectively captures an image of some locations in Los Angeles.

Unsurprisingly, since this is a hood film, the soundtrack contains a variety of rap songs and there is also tense music.

This dark story explores what life is like as a drug-dealing criminal, focusing primarily on the dangers and tragedies of being part of the underworld. It carries the message that leading such a life will have devastating consequences.