Justice (Janet Jackson) loses her boyfriend when someone shots him right in front of her on a date at the drive-thru. It's the violent world of South Central L.A. She withdraws into her hairdressing job and her poetry. Lucky (Tupac Shakur) is a postal carrier who is sweet on her. His ex is a drug addict whom he has a daughter with. Going to the hair show convention in Oakland, Justice has to ride with Lucky in his mail truck. He's going to his friends to work on his music. They argue. He throws her off his truck. And then they start to talk to each other.

This is more of a romance within the gritty backdrop of violence. It's a surprising follow up to director John Singleton's debut 'Boyz n the Hood'. Justice is an angry character. Janet Jackson doesn't play it quirky or lightly. She is just bitter. She doesn't have the sweetness. Tupac shows that he was a good actor. It's a fairly safe romance. I like the minutia of everyday life. I don't really buy the romance. The chemistry is slightly off. I think it's Janet, but it's not fatal. It doesn't help that I find the poetry annoying. Her grumpiness just got me down.

Rarely have I seen a modern movie about romance that was so angry and bitter--and all without purpose. The Maya Angelou poetry seems out-of-place in a story about a beautician's rocky courtship with a troubled postman in South Central L. A., and yet it practically sounds like music next to all the "F--- you"'s and N-words. Some may argue this constant foul language is "realistic", but the majority of the film is unconvincing in its relationships (which are puzzling, to say the least). Janet Jackson has a sweet smile, and looks attractive in her corn-rows and floppy hats, but the mercurial tone of the picture is up and down, back and forth, and finally we just give up on 'Justice' and all her scowling friends. And what about that ratty beginning at the drive-in? *1/2 from ****

John Singleton's "Poetic Justice" might be of interest nowadays for the presence of Tupac Shakur, who was shot dead three years after the release. But more than that, it's a soft, positive look at relationships in South Central. Janet Jackson plays the title character, who accompanies some friends to Oakland. While the movie does have some intense scenes, the poetry narration - hence the title - moves everything along.

Released the year after the Rodney King riots, it shows the desperate situation in which large numbers of people in South Central live, making efforts to get by without trouble (no easy task). These are complex characters, each with something to add. I recommend it.