Taylor Hackford on ohjannut tämän vahvan ja eeppisen tarinan sukua toisilleen olevista pojista, jotka kasvavat aikuisiksi veljeksinä itäisen Los Angelesin väkivaltaisessa jengikulttuurissa. Heidän yhteytensä katkeaa järkyttävissä olosuhteissa, ja kohtalo kuljettaa heistä jokaisen omalle tielleen: Pacon armeijaan ja huumepoliisiksi, Miklon San Quentinin vankilan julmiin jengeihin ja Cruzin huumeidenkäyttäjäksi. Mutta verisiteet ja kunnia punovat heidän elämänsä yhteen kunkin taistellessa omalla tavallaan vallasta ja kunnioituksesta.
Huumekyttä Alonzo Harris on kovanahkainen tapaus. Hän saa koulutettavakseen nuoren etsivän, joka sinisilmäisyyttään uskoo kaiken, minka Alonzo hänelle tuputtaa. Päivän mittaan sattuu erilaisia yllättäviä käänteitä, joka saavat kokelaan tajuamaan, että Alonzo on mahdollisesti pahempi kuin rikolliset, joiden perässä hän on. Denzel Washington palkittiin roolistaan Oscarilla.
A streetwise man flees South Central Los Angeles, heading to the suburbs and his lottery-winner uncle and cousin, to avoid a neighborhood thug with a grudge who has just escaped from prison.
Mousie and Sad Girl are childhood best friends in a contemporary Los Angeles poor Hispanic neighborhood. But when Sad Girl becomes pregnant by Mousie's boyfriend, a drug dealer named Ernesto, the two become bitter enemies. While their dispute escalates towards violence, the violence of the world around them soon also impacts their lives.
Lefty-a hard working, light hearted man is looking to make a decent buck. But when a simple bet goes horribly wrong, Lefty is stuck between a rock and gangster who's dead set on collecting his money.
Chicano gangster Micky Solis finds that his family has been slaughtered by the Chinese mob. His whole life force turns to finding the killers. A slick lawyer (Angus MacFadyen) leads Micky to a "nun" (Paz De La Huerta) who shows him who the killers are that took his family from him. Micky unleashes a war of bullets and emotions on the family until each one dies by the same sword they wielded. The only thought on Micky's mind is REVENGE: VENGANZA.
A young Chicano gang member in Los Angeles comes to realize that the gang life is not what he really wants but doesn't know how to get out.
Creeper helps friend and comedian Christina P rediscover her Inner Chola.
Johnny Sun is a Mexican American with a white mother and Mexican dad. He witnesses his parents murder and gets his revenge years later, leading to a hard life as a gangster in drugs and smuggling. He tries to keep his borther from the life and finds himself fending for his own life.
Violence erupts when two vicious street gangs go to war in the inner city. Duke, the gang leader of Tokers Town, is feeling the pressure from his Barrio to go to war with their rival gang 14th St. But while Duke was in jail he made a peace treaty with the leader of 14th St. only to discover they had broken it. Now with his homies getting shot and his mothers pleas to stop the violence he is at the breaking point.
Two childhood friends must fight against each other after growing up to be on opposite sides of the law.
A cop is assigned to investigate this so-called chupacabra that’s been seen all over town.
A man named Lucio decides to avenge the death of his sister-in-law after she is killed during a break-in. In order to complete this task, he must become part of a gang.