Movie Review: 'Jason's Lyric' (1994)

Director Doug McHenry takes an ancient theme — redemptive love blooming amid a wreckage of brotherly rivalry and neighborly warfare — and sets his old-fashioned movie in violent, drug-addled, contempo-inner-city Houston. Allen Payne plays Jason, a good son; Bokeem Woodbine puts in a powerful performance as Joshua, his bad brother; and Jada Pinkett plays Jason's sweetheart, Lyric, who dreams of a better life. The themes are big; the characters, however, are underdeveloped and appear poised to break into songs from West Side Story at a moment's notice. C