Hustle & Flow (2005)

I'm not much of a rap fan but I picked this one up on a lark after hearing some of the good things that have been said lately about Terrence Howard. I can honestly say it is one of the best movies I've seen in a while and I think Howard is on his way to becoming a top-tier Hollywood actor.

The story centers on a pimp and drug dealer named Djay, played by Howard. Djay is sleepwalking his way through life until fate taps him on the shoulder. He is given an old Casio keyboard for a dime bag of pot and he runs into an old buddy of his who is now a recording studio technician. The two things light a spark in Djay and he decides to take a shot at being a rapper. Using egg boxes to soundproof a room in his rundown house and using his whores for backup singers, Djay creates magic.

The movie manages to make a pimp into a sympathetic character, which is an accomplishment on its own right. But the movie isn't really about pimps any more than it's about whores or drug dealers. In fact, it's not even about black or white. The only two white characters in the movie are one of Djay's whores and a geeky keyboards guy and they are both shown in a fairly positive light. The movie is about realizing one's dreams and how the drive to do can bring meaning to even the most dismal situation. It's an old story but one I never get tired of.

Pimpin' ain't easy and this pimp is as realistic a pimp ever portrayed on film. Free of Blaxsploitation/glorified stereotypical pimps, Terrence Howard shines as DJay a man with a big dream and even bigger determination.

Craig Brewer brings the South to front with a raw and inspiring film about dreams. Brewer did an excellent job with the soundtrack which featured memorable sounds of the present and future south sound. Terrence Howard is amazing and even raps his own tunes! Supporting cast members also brought a fresh and personal feel to the movie. Taraji P. Henson as Shug was a warm and beautiful character that holds Djay's heart. Also Anthony Anderson plays a good straight character as Key.

All in all a surprise and very well written and acted movie!

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I usually avoid like the plague anything related to hip-hop/gansta rap, but I always say "If a movie's good, it's good" and this one was. It made me laugh out loud and also tear up a bit. For adults only because the language is ultra-filthy with a few explicitly sexual images (though no nudity), and much glorification of pot-smoking.

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4.5 stars. We've all seen this story before. A gangster, or a pimp as it is in this story, sees a chance to crawl out of the nowhere life he is seemingly trapped in and achieve some sort of redemption and/or trancendency through music. It's easy to root for the nobody reaching for the brass ring against all odds in the dim hope of becoming recognized as a greater human being than anybody thought possible. But most of these type of films fall flat due to poor writing and second-rate acting. "Hustle & Flow" is a surprising exception. The acting, all around, is often astonishing. Terrence Howard leads the way with a dominating performance which reminded me of the fine work of Benicio Del Toro, where both actors completely lose themselves in the role and we all believe the character actually exists somewhere out there in the world. The dialogue is superb, and with so many good actors drawn to this film, the words reach extremely high levels of literary sharpness. The biggest surprise for me, however, was that I thoroughly enjoyed all the music throughout the movie. I despise most Rap, but in "Hustle & Flow" the rapping is smooth and enveloped with soul, thus achieving much more depth of emotion in the final summation. Once again, an independent film shows up all those over-hyped, over-budget Hollywood films that we are force-fed each year. This is the first DVD in months where, as the credits began to roll, I eagerly hit the menu button and scoured the special features section for more "Hustle & Flow." Except for the familiar plotting, which is the only thing even slightly generic about this movie, the end result is phenomenal, all-around excellence.

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Hustle & Flow is a masterpiece of tension. It walks us through a world constantly on the edge of violence and surprises us with gentleness coiled within the pain and fear. After a while, I didn't even hear the cursing because the characters set up a drumbeat in my heart. There are no apologies here for bad choices and bad behavior, but you'll hope the characters triumph over themselves. This is a powerful movie because it dares to show we are all human beings. Every performance was transcendant. The music was inspired. Don't miss Hustle & Flow. It deserved its nominatons and awards and then some.