Brooklyn Babylon

REVIEW
Tariq Trotter (a.k.a. Black Thought), the lead singer of the Philadelphia rap group The Roots, stars in this music-filled romantic drama from the director of Slam. It is set in a Brooklyn neighborhood put on edge by religious and racial tensions. It is in this volatile world that the beautiful Jewish Sara (Karen Goberman) and Sol (Trotter), a West Indian Rasta rapper on the verge of success, live separate lives. That is until a minor car accident brings them together. Sara, chafing under the oppressive "protection" of her anger-filled boyfriend and her family's religious conservatism, becomes entranced with the gentle Sol, who wants nothing to do with the escalating threat of violence that's beginning to engulf the area. The two begin a budding, but forbidden romance, ever mindful of the hotheaded emotions on both sides. With shades of West Side Story, director Levin offers a vivid view of two communities' lifestyles and small incidents that escalate animosity and threaten to tear the two apart. But it is Trotter and Goberman as the lovers who are the core of this story, two people who must attempt to triumph over the fanaticism and scorn of those around them. A fast-paced, timely and romantic film featuring the music of The Roots, along with Rahsel, Bounty Killa, and Spragga Bens.