My Review of Hustle and Flow (with SPOILERS)*
*Please note that this review contains spoilers. If you haven't seen the movie, you might not want to read it. I will indicate where major spoilers are with a heading entitled, SPOILERS, however I take no responsibility if you choose to read on and then get upset cuz I told the ending. In other words: It's my blog, I can do what I want.
Last night I went to see the critically aclaimed indie movie, Hustle and Flow. First, because Tunji was talking about it and second, I think Terrence Howard is pretty damn fine. That was enough for me to shell out $9.75 at the Magic Johnson Theatre down the block. I was also interested in seeing a white director's take on a poor Black pimp turned rapper; my curiousity prompted me to see how how bad it would be. To my surprise, I was thoroughly impressed with a lot that went on in this movie, mainly the acting and directing.
The women were amazing! Taraji P. Henderson plays a pregnant prostitute, who doesn't know who her baby's father is. She is perhaps the sweetest woman in the movie. She's basically the homemaker and you can't help but to love her. She's a solid road dog and does the most thoughtful things for the house and for DJay. Taryn Manning, another solid road dog, is literally DJay's (Terrence Howard's character) right hand woman. She rides for her pimp and is down for whatever, but she's also very sincere and she won me over in a great scene where she lays down the law. I was surprised to find myself nodding in agreement with her and rooting for her. She did her thing. Elise Neal plays Key's wife. She's the hardworking, take no shit Black woman who has worked to have a stable home and provides for herself and her man. I loved the complexity of her character and the way that Craig Brewer chose to write her as a supporting Black woman rather than the overplayed castrating Black female. Basically, she's also a rock solid road dog for her man as well. Elise Neal also did her thing. Three very different roles, but all three are powerful and they really do steal the show away from Terrence Howard at times. Their energy, sincerity, ability to really make you LIKE them, I was very impressed. Each woman was so integral to DJay's story and helped the movie along.
The directing was great. I particularly liked a lot of the angles, with many facial expression closeups, I definitely felt connected to the characters. I also felt like I was able to see the actors acting. I found myself drawn into their struggles and I enjoyed how the director kept the story more about the characters than the plot. In fact, it's not a very busy movie, there's really not a lot going on and I could see the danger of it becomng boring, but those supporting women, as well as the directing really worked to make Hustle and Flow a strong film.
Now, Terrence Howard definitely did his thing, but there's no doubt for me that he's an actor. Oscar-worthy? Not in this film. Mainly because the plot pretty much sucked! Summation: Characterization,phenomenal... plot,sucky. Is that contradictory? Not necessarily. Here's why the plot sucked:
SPOILER
The pimp turned rapper story is definitely not mysterious. It can be argued that many rappers aren't really the hardcore gangstas they rhyme they are, but many have sold drugs, stolen, shot or will shoot. So this plot wasn't unrealistic or even disappointing in theory. But a pimp (and a poor pimp at that) turned rapper from a mini piano he trades to a dopehead, turned criminal from a ridiculously stupid barfight, turned (potential) millionaire from the hype he gets surrouding his 11 month imprisonment, solidly reifies the commercialized, ghetto-pimp-playa-trick-white-washed-idolized images of the current successful rap game. Young, poor Black men (cuz the old poor ones already know the deal) are fed an image of how violence is bad, you'll go to jail and that sucks, but if it's for a good cause, if it's from your heart (you're defending the months of blood, sweat, and tears you put into your first demo tape), then it's ok. Hey, you'll probably even get a rap deal out of it.
How much more interesting it would have been, if we were given an alternative vision of moving out of a depressed, degenerative state that involved a mental growth where one has to give up one dream and work on a new dream? What would it have meant to have DJay just totally BOMB? Have him be successful, get a hit, without the violence or jail and then BOMB, like so many artists out here do. What would it have meant, for him to really really WANT to do something and learn that he might have to reevaluate his possibilities based on real life shit? The tagline of the movie, "Everybody's gotta have a dream," is sweet but unresolved. The reality is that everyone does HAVE a dream...but what's debilitating is that many Black youth have the SAME dream. In our capitalistic society where imperialism is the ticket to a "safe nation", only SOME people's dreams are coming true. What about a movie that talks to Black youth about the fact that we need to be dreaming up some NEW dreams that involve happiness and freedom where we are resisting the system that is set to keep us imprisoned, poor, depressed, and dying from birth?
I think Craig Brewer was able to successfully represent the pain of a poor Black man, that's really not too hard to do. You don't have to be continually raped, maimed and beat down to know it's painful. However where he fails, as so many "real" movies about the hood do, is in neglecting to address the next phase of the situation. What's the next move in the game for those who aren't going to make it as a rapper. What should their focus be, how do they move out of the realms of povery, despair and depression? I'd like to see that movie made. Hustle and Succeed. Hustle and Happiness. Hustle and Resistance. When are we gonna realize that surviving is not just being alive? There's more to living, to surviving than being an exploited body.
I'm waiting on that movie.
Last night I went to see the critically aclaimed indie movie, Hustle and Flow. First, because Tunji was talking about it and second, I think Terrence Howard is pretty damn fine. That was enough for me to shell out $9.75 at the Magic Johnson Theatre down the block. I was also interested in seeing a white director's take on a poor Black pimp turned rapper; my curiousity prompted me to see how how bad it would be. To my surprise, I was thoroughly impressed with a lot that went on in this movie, mainly the acting and directing.
The women were amazing! Taraji P. Henderson plays a pregnant prostitute, who doesn't know who her baby's father is. She is perhaps the sweetest woman in the movie. She's basically the homemaker and you can't help but to love her. She's a solid road dog and does the most thoughtful things for the house and for DJay. Taryn Manning, another solid road dog, is literally DJay's (Terrence Howard's character) right hand woman. She rides for her pimp and is down for whatever, but she's also very sincere and she won me over in a great scene where she lays down the law. I was surprised to find myself nodding in agreement with her and rooting for her. She did her thing. Elise Neal plays Key's wife. She's the hardworking, take no shit Black woman who has worked to have a stable home and provides for herself and her man. I loved the complexity of her character and the way that Craig Brewer chose to write her as a supporting Black woman rather than the overplayed castrating Black female. Basically, she's also a rock solid road dog for her man as well. Elise Neal also did her thing. Three very different roles, but all three are powerful and they really do steal the show away from Terrence Howard at times. Their energy, sincerity, ability to really make you LIKE them, I was very impressed. Each woman was so integral to DJay's story and helped the movie along.
The directing was great. I particularly liked a lot of the angles, with many facial expression closeups, I definitely felt connected to the characters. I also felt like I was able to see the actors acting. I found myself drawn into their struggles and I enjoyed how the director kept the story more about the characters than the plot. In fact, it's not a very busy movie, there's really not a lot going on and I could see the danger of it becomng boring, but those supporting women, as well as the directing really worked to make Hustle and Flow a strong film.
Now, Terrence Howard definitely did his thing, but there's no doubt for me that he's an actor. Oscar-worthy? Not in this film. Mainly because the plot pretty much sucked! Summation: Characterization,phenomenal... plot,sucky. Is that contradictory? Not necessarily. Here's why the plot sucked:
SPOILER
The pimp turned rapper story is definitely not mysterious. It can be argued that many rappers aren't really the hardcore gangstas they rhyme they are, but many have sold drugs, stolen, shot or will shoot. So this plot wasn't unrealistic or even disappointing in theory. But a pimp (and a poor pimp at that) turned rapper from a mini piano he trades to a dopehead, turned criminal from a ridiculously stupid barfight, turned (potential) millionaire from the hype he gets surrouding his 11 month imprisonment, solidly reifies the commercialized, ghetto-pimp-playa-trick-white-washed-idolized images of the current successful rap game. Young, poor Black men (cuz the old poor ones already know the deal) are fed an image of how violence is bad, you'll go to jail and that sucks, but if it's for a good cause, if it's from your heart (you're defending the months of blood, sweat, and tears you put into your first demo tape), then it's ok. Hey, you'll probably even get a rap deal out of it.
How much more interesting it would have been, if we were given an alternative vision of moving out of a depressed, degenerative state that involved a mental growth where one has to give up one dream and work on a new dream? What would it have meant to have DJay just totally BOMB? Have him be successful, get a hit, without the violence or jail and then BOMB, like so many artists out here do. What would it have meant, for him to really really WANT to do something and learn that he might have to reevaluate his possibilities based on real life shit? The tagline of the movie, "Everybody's gotta have a dream," is sweet but unresolved. The reality is that everyone does HAVE a dream...but what's debilitating is that many Black youth have the SAME dream. In our capitalistic society where imperialism is the ticket to a "safe nation", only SOME people's dreams are coming true. What about a movie that talks to Black youth about the fact that we need to be dreaming up some NEW dreams that involve happiness and freedom where we are resisting the system that is set to keep us imprisoned, poor, depressed, and dying from birth?
I think Craig Brewer was able to successfully represent the pain of a poor Black man, that's really not too hard to do. You don't have to be continually raped, maimed and beat down to know it's painful. However where he fails, as so many "real" movies about the hood do, is in neglecting to address the next phase of the situation. What's the next move in the game for those who aren't going to make it as a rapper. What should their focus be, how do they move out of the realms of povery, despair and depression? I'd like to see that movie made. Hustle and Succeed. Hustle and Happiness. Hustle and Resistance. When are we gonna realize that surviving is not just being alive? There's more to living, to surviving than being an exploited body.
I'm waiting on that movie.
Posted @ 9:41 AM
2 Comments :
hmm i am really surprised by your review. i agree that the performances were solid and that the ending was really glamorized. but i was really uncomfortable with the portrayal of the female characters... I think for me it's that, as you say, this movie really stresses the point that everyone must have a dream but at the end of day, it's his dream and his dream only. Taraji Henson's character (however strong her performance) still, to me, comes off as a woman who does what she is told, as does Nola (Taryn Manning) despite the fact that she tries to lay it down. i mean i'm all about supporting your man and giving your all for him, but only if that support goes both ways - and i didn't see that in this film. so while the roles that the three women play in DJay's life (in terms of helping him realize his dream) might give them a small amout of power, i doubt it makes them strong.
i mean i realize with the dearth of complex, yet still positive, portrayals of Black women out there, it's nice not to see the sassy Black bitch for a change (although let's not play, there was such a character in this film - she was just given the boot) but still... either we're angry she-men or we're suffering for our men. i refuse to believe that our stories cannot be told differently.
That is very interesting. Because I didn't really see it as their story, and maybe that is also a problem, when the women can be the backburner to this one man's success. I agree that it began as his dream only, but I thought what made the women interesting was that it became thier dream after awhile, that it was a team effort. I felt like while DJay gained confidence in a different future, the women also began to reenvision how it could be. The reality of the plot is that it really is just his dream that is the focus of the story and I don't think there was an attempt to bring about a feminist viewpoint in regards to a situation where the women are clearly most useful as sex objects. That's a problem, too.
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