10 Greatest Mockumentary Films Of All Time
3. Fear Of A Black Hat
The microcosm that is 90s hip hop was seemingly built to be parodied. It’s easy to say Fear of a Black Hat is essentially Spinal Tap with Compton as the backdrop, but it doesn’t mean it isn’t an apt comparison.
It is a sharp parody of the rap scene and with its intricate interpretations and pin point caricatures, this could easily be mistaken for an extended sketch from The Chappelle Show. Which isn’t surprising considering that writer/director/caterer Rusty Cundieff would later go on to work on that very programme.
Following the rise and success of gangster rap trio N.W.H (Niggaz With Hats), the mockumentary follows a sociologist trying to analyse the group as part of a thesis on the musical genre as a whole. Consisting of Ice Cold, Tasty Taste and Tone Def, N.W.H. is a concocted blend of Chuck Dee, Masta Ace and Eazy-E with a dress code passed down from the Zulu Nation.
Amazingly, this still feels fresh 20 years later, from its bizarre logic to the crazy beefs and the fact that their white managers keep disappearing in macabre circumstances; Fear of a Black Hat manages to sit comfortably inside its glass house without throwing any stones.