#816) Cooley High (1975)

The Plot: Preach and Cochise (Glynn Turman and Lawrence Hilton-Jacobs) are best friends attending Chicago’s Cooley Vocational High School in 1964. When not in class (which is often), the two can be found hanging out in Chicago’s Near North Side, with Preach gambling what little cash he has at Martha’s and Cochise riding high off a recent basketball scholarship. “Cooley High” is the very definition of a hangout movie, as we watch these two go from one adventure to another. Highlights include Preach trying to get with classmate Brenda (Cynthia Davis), and a joyride in a stolen Cadillac. 

Why It Matters: The NFR quotes NPR, which called the film “a classic of black cinema”. The film is also praised for its “unique sensibilities”, “taut direction”, and the “incredible naturalistic acting styles” of the cast. 

But Does It Really?: It took me a minute to get this film’s hangout vibe, but ultimately I dug “Cooley High”. While the film itself is a bit meandering, you can tell it’s coming from an authentic place; far more nuanced than the blaxploitation films of the same era. Plus, if you’ve seen “Boyz n the Hood” it’s not hard to see the “Cooley” influence. A yes for “Cooley High” on the NFR; an important stepping stone in Black movie history.

Shout Outs: Not a direct reference, but the film was heavily promoted as the Black “American Graffiti”. Eric Monte did not see “Graffiti” until after “Cooley High” was in production, so any similarities are coincidental. 

Everybody Gets One: Screenwriter Eric Monte based the screenplay on his own experiences attending Cooley High and living in Chicago’s Cabrini-Green housing project. After dropping out of Cooley High his junior year, Monte moved to Hollywood and became a writer for “All in the Family” and eventually “The Jeffersons” and “Good Times”. Michael Schultz started off as a stage director, with a TV adaptation of his production of “To Be Young, Gifted, and Black” leading to more film and TV opportunities.

Title Track/Wow, That’s Dated: “Cooley High” was the nickname for Edwin Gilbert Cooley Vocational High School in Chicago’s Near North Side. Sadly, the school is one of the film’s dated qualities; it closed in 1979 and was demolished two years later.

• What is it with Chicago and car chases? The chase between our friends in the Cadillac and the police is one of those moments that’s almost “American Graffiti” but not quite. Fortunately, it turns out this car chase is actually relevant to what little plot this film has.

• Another unexpected moment for me: Godzilla! The movie everyone goes to see in the theater before the big fight is 1964’s “Mothra vs. Godzilla”. The only thing more unexpected than seeing this movie within a movie is that Godzilla took second billing in one of his own films!

• The scene where Preach and Brenda have sex for the first time highlights the dangers of making out with your glasses on. Been there. Also, flute music during a sex scene. Very tasteful.
• In the opening credits, Garrett Morris gets third billing as the strict but supportive teacher Mr. Mason, yet he doesn’t show up until about two-thirds of the way through the movie. Did he have earlier scenes that got cut? Anyway, I’m glad he shows up, the movie could use an adult figure that wasn’t one of the kids’ absent parents. Like Lawrence Hilton-Jacobs, Garrett Morris was just a few months away from his most iconic TV role as one of the original Not Ready for Prime Time Players on “Saturday Night Live” (or “NBC’s Saturday Night” as it was known at the time).

• [Spoilers] Goddamit, did this movie have to go tragic? The film had a fun, easy-going vibe up to this point, and Cochise’s death is a cold splash of harsh reality. In all fairness, this was based off an actual experience Eric Monte had in high school with one of his friends.
• The song playing at Cochise’s funeral is “It’s So Hard to Say Goodbye to Yesterday”, the only song written especially for the “Cooley High” soundtrack. If it sounds familiar, you’re probably thinking of a cover that we’ll discuss in the “Legacy” section.

• Another “American Graffiti” comparison: A “What happened to everyone” epilogue text. One character apparently died during the violence at the 1968 Democratic Convention. Do you think Haskell Wexler saw it?

• As of this writing, both Glynn Turman and Lawrence Hilton-Jacobs are still with us and actively working. In 2008, Glynn Turman won an Emmy for his work on the HBO drama “In Treatment”.
• “Cooley Hight” inspired two different sets of “Boyz” in 1991. As previously mentioned, John Singleton’s “Boyz n the Hood” definitely shares some DNA with this movie (mainly a major character with a scholarship and a tragic end). That same year, the singing group Boyz II Men released their debut album “Cooleyhighharmony”, which featured a cover of “It’s So Hard to Say Goodbye to Yesterday”.

• Among other filmmakers inspired by “Cooley High” are Spike Lee and Robert Townsend, the latter of whom makes their film debut in “Cooley” as one of Preach and Cochise’s classmates.
• Eric Monte adapted “Cooley High” into a series for ABC, but after the pilot was poorly received, the show was retooled, with a new set of characters in L.A.’s Watts neighborhood, and became “What’s Happening!!” That’s right, an NFR movie is responsible for the Rerun dance.

Listen to This: Three songs from the “Cooley High” soundtrack have found their way onto the National Recording Registry: Martha and the Vandellas’ “Dancing in the Street”, The Temptations’ “My Girl”, and The Four Tops’ “Reach Out I’ll Be There”.