The Education of Sonny Carson
Picture: C Sound: C Extras: B+ Film: A-
There is a real posing
problem still today in terms of urban crime and the fact that most African
Americans are still growing up in a society where they are a minority figure. Rap music in general focuses on the idea of
‘easy money’, which is part of the problem because to some the only way to get
anywhere in life is to cheat, steal, or kill.
Gang violence has always been a problem in the urban community,
especially around larger cities. This
brings us to the semi-forgotten, yet powerful 1974 film The Education of Sonny Carson, which has been cited in the work of
Wu Tang Clan and Lauren Hill.
The film is based on the
autobiography of Sonny Carson, which is part of the reason why the film is
accurate and effective. The film deals
with Carson’s life as he grows up in the ghetto and finds a
life based around gangs with the only way to get out being luck or death. Taking place in Brooklyn Carson regardless of
his actions only ends up in more trouble because even being one of the best
students in his school his path ahead has been laid. He ends up in prison, where he realizes that
he must change directions in life, but feels trapped. Once again this goes back to the fact that
some people cannot change the outcome of who they are because of the color of
their skin. Carson gets out of prison only to find the world around
him in more chaos as those closest to him are hooked on drugs and the violence
and greed is only becoming worse.
Training Day (2001) tried to address some of these issues, but became lost in the
fact that it didn’t know how to pull everything together. It did hit some of the points that violence
can be a vicious circle. The Education of Sonny Carson is an
effective film to be seen even now 30+ years later. In fact, looking back now it is easy to see
why this film has been an inspiration to many as well as a thoughtful
interpretation of that type of life. The
film utilizes some very clever tactics bringing the life of Sonny Carson some
real dimension.
VCI has brought forth one
of their best catalog titles to the DVD format to date, with a nice amount of
extras making this a sought after title.
First there is the film, which has been issued here with its original
1.77 X 1 transfer, which is not perfect, but at least the film is available
widescreen. The softness and detail can
be a real problem with colors looking very muted and contrast is off. The mono soundtrack is nothing impressive
either with dialogue and music being somewhat harsh too, and an unintended echo
during an early chapter.
The real treat with this
film though is the extras and just the film itself. The audio commentary is one of the better
supplements on DVD to date offering insight from the real Sonny Carson and
Director Michael Campus. It is sad that
Campus never went onto bigger projects given that this film is that smart and
well executed. Given that this was a
low-budget film to begin with Campus was able to do very much with very
little. There is also a full biography
on Sonny Carson, a photo album, and the theatrical trailer on the DVD as well
making this a nice edition.
- Nate Goss
