Don't Be A Menace

Don't Be a Menace to South Central While Drinking Your Juice in the Hood
Theatrical release poster
Directed by	Paris Barclay
Produced by	Keenen Ivory Wayans Eric L. Gold
Written by	Shawn Wayans Marlon Wayans Phil Beauman
Starring	Shawn Wayans Marlon Wayans
Music by	John Barnes
Cinematography	Russ Brandt
Edited by	Marshall Harvey William Young
Production company	Island Pictures Ivory Way Productions
Distributed by	Miramax Films
Release date	January 12, 1996 (1996-01-12)
Running time	89 minutes 94 minutes (Unrated)
Country	United States
Language	English
Budget	$3.8 million
Box office	$20,109,115

Don't Be a Menace to South Central While Drinking Your Juice in the Hood (or simply Don't Be a Menace) is a 1996 American comedy film directed by Paris Barclay in his feature film directorial debut, and produced by Keenen Ivory Wayans, and also written by Wayans brothers Shawn and Marlon Wayans, who also both starred in the lead roles. The film was released in the United States on January 12, 1996.

Similar to I'm Gonna Git You Sucka, the film spoofs a number of African-American, coming-of-age, hood films such as Juice, Jungle Fever, South Central, Higher Learning, Do the Right Thing, Poetic Justice, New Jack City, Dead Presidents, Friday, and most prominently Boyz n the Hood, Menace II Society and Above the Rim. The film's title borrows phrases from some of those films, and some of the actors who starred in those movies appear in the film, in some cases appearing in similar roles or scenes as the films being parodied.

Ashtray (Shawn Wayans), Tray for short, is sent to the inner city to live with his father. Tray gets an education about life on the streets from his psychotic, gun-toting cousin Loc Dog (Marlon Wayans), Preach (Chris Spencer), and Crazy Legs (Suli McCullough). At a picnic Tray falls for the infamous Dashiki (Tracey Cherelle Jones) much to the distaste of ex-convict Toothpick (Darrell Heath). While Ashtray and Loc Dog head to buy some snacks, Toothpick and his posse confront Ashtray and hold him at gunpoint, until Loc Dog threatens them and they flee.