I apologize to Mighty Peking Man for the precious minutes he'll spend formatting and posting my review of a film that makes "Sexy and Dangerous" look like "Citizen Kane" in comparison. I apologize to Ryan Lundgren for ever making fun of his B-movie fetish and love of crappy American films like "Punisher" and "Child's Play 2", both of which are "Gone With the Wind"-like in comparison. I apologize to John Singleton, whose seminal gangsta film "Boyz 'N the Hood" this film borrows its title. I apologize to the creative geniuses behind "Sexy and Dangerous", a film I absolutely loathed but at least co-starred Francis Ng. I apologize to Numskull who will inevitably read this review but will immediately regret doing so. Never have I felt so dirty, so compelled to shower and lather and rinse and shower again after watching the absolutely awful, vile, putrid piece of shit that is "Girls in the Hood".

I erred. When I rented this film I assumed it would be a gritty gangsta knock-off featuring Hong Kong drive-bys, machine gun-toting babes, and a pulsating, bass-fueled soundtrack featuring Asia's hottest stars rapping ala Snoop Doggy Dogg. Boy, was I wrong. Instead, I got the following:

GITH is heavy handled in it's approach and probably would have worked better as a news expose on this seemingly problematic topic. Another problem the film has is playing itself as a comedy during serious moments, cramping the impact of this topical epidemic. Though I didn't mind a funny scene where one of the bunch plays a little 'johnny deeper', making her gentleman caller wear an Andy Lau mask as she steals his cd's.

Questionable is the presence of authority. There is only one scene where we see police officers; they do a sweep of the vagrants hanging around the Culture Center, check i.d.'s and send everyone on their way. This portrayal offsets almost every other H.K. film, where cops seem to permeate every scene. Though, here it's understandable to bash the police force for their invisible roles in curbing this situation. The film's strengths lie in it's no name cast(none whom look like movie stars), it's gritty cinematography, and the inclusion of the Hong Kong landscape; itself a desperate character. I am enamored with the scenes of bustling H.K. life; shot's that are sorely missed in contemporary H.K. cinema. Glimpses into the frenetic territory give you a sense of being there and act as a travelogue.

The film is slapped with a Cat III label for deviant language and behavior-the nudity used more so to satisfy the genre's needs, and without, might fail to attract filmgoers uninterested in the film's comment. Girls in the Hood, I think, is a precursor to many 'young and troubled' youth films involving female characters at it's core. There is also a rushed sequel, Suicide, including a slew of others still being churned out(see High K and PR Girls). Though the film is a bit goofy and overlong, it's message to the youth of H.K., parents as well, stays intact. Action filmgoers can skip.