Director John Singleton returns to the themes of his first hit Boyz N the Hood (a much better film than this). Jody (Tyrese Gibson), a name synonymous here with attitude, has children by two different girls, but still lives with his mother (AJ Johnson), unwilling to live out because his brother did so and died on the streets. His relationship with Yvette (Taraji P Henson), the mother of his son, is a series of violent, swearing, screeching break-ups and make-ups, chiefly over his relationship with other women. Then mom takes a lover, hulking Malvin (Ving Rhames), who openly taunts Jody with their sexual relationship. No one in the film seems prepared to give anyone else a chance to get along, so it's not surprising the skeletal story climaxes in violence, even though this very long-seeming movie has drifted into boredom long before. Gibson is good but the girls tend to over-pitch their performances. There's a happy ending of sorts here - but little real prospect of the cycle of misery being broken. This is familiar territory, tiresomely covered.