'Gang Tapes' is a serious and fascinating look into life in south central LA. The movie does not try to become a larger than life portrayal of the gangsta life it documents. Instead it pretends to be an actual camera recording of a boy and his surroundings as he grows up. In this respect, 'Gang Tapes' excels phenomenally. You will have to remind yourself constantly that it is not a documentary you are watching, but a film. 'Gang Tapes' does not break this superior reality at all. The actors never seem fake, except for slight faults in Lonzo's strange fascination with showing off, all of the gangbanger's seem real throughout 'Gang Tapes'. One surprise though, is the gunshots heard throughout the film. Because of my past experience with these Gangsta B-movies (of which I have become quite a collector)I was expecting the usual dubbed over, pathetic shots that sound either to loud, or to quiet for the gun that was fired. 'Gang Tapes' again keeps to reality, each shot sounds as it should, loud and uncontrollable. This helps to create the film's impressive, yet gritty reality. Perhaps the only downfall of 'Gang Tapes' is the large amounts of all talk/ no action scenes throughout the film. These sequences are often just large fragments of conversation from Lonzo to another gangbanger.Though boring, these scenes reveal each characters perfectly realistic personalities. They are important parts of the film's structure.
All in all 'Gang Tapes' is an accurate depiction of the lives of the residents in South Central LA.
9/10
