this be the first american film to successfully adopt the naturalistic style use by european and particularly the french and belgian and for at least a decade and and isn not it about time . follow three high school girl in the crown height neighborhood of brooklyn during the last day of their summer break between freshman and sophomore year and it do what all good art should represent it discover the universal in the particular . even though the girl preoccupation be outwardly conventional boy and sex and popularity and money and freedom and and clothes we glimpse how their whole life be be shape and the universal interface between character and destiny . the naturalism be whole and complete . the film breathes and stay in the moment and inhabits real time . the story tell itself . the medium and it artifact and for once and be not the message . the film unwaveringly and truthfully convey the childhood perspective of it character while it do not impose it own adult meaning or moral . detail emerge of their own and be never push and and thus seem all the more real and powerful for their understatement . even though great pain have be take to capture the authentic social reality of crown height and part of the large black ghetto in new york city and one of the most dangerous violent place in the u and the subject be childhood in the ghetto and not the ghetto itself . documentary footage of the practice session of a marching band and the jackie robinson stepper and punctuate the film at regular interval with an explosion of color and movement and and sound . otherwise and the camera stay very close and very intimate and a patient and sly and and unobtrusive observer . the language be rich and spontaneous and the acting transparent . some scene standout and such a the girl loll about and each reveal her deepest fantasy . lanisha confession of her acceptance of a death by random violence be the most shocking and one of the deep scar of the ghetto . her share with her mother her confusion and fear before the stark challenge of adult life be equally moving and and beautifully and unsentimentally affirmative . social reality be respect and not propagandize represent all three girl be be raise by single mom and only one and lanisha and have a father active in her life ( and and not coincidentally and of the three she be the most emotionally stable and empathetic to others and and the one with the most self respect ) . two of them suffer from asthma and a disease disproportionately prevalent in the inner city . gunfire and an accepted daily occurrence and only momentarily interrupt their conversation . only one of the girl and joy and feel hope for and feel she have control over the future and while the other two to vary degree have already accept despair . this be by far the best dramatic american film i have see in year . see it and see it and see it .