Hustle & Flow

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source: Hustle & Flow

I enjoyed this one. It's a simple movie, nothing to fancy, but certainly pleasant to follow. Very raw, not only the cinematography that was quite basic, but also the story that almost looked like a biography. I can imagine a lot of hip hop artists starting like this, somewhere in a shaddy neighbourhood, in a dusty basement, trying to get out of that mysery, with the wrong crowd, but the only crowd you know. The acting was more than decent. The music was good, had a nice flow to it. To me one of the better hip hop movies I watched lately, simple but effective.

I saw the preview of this movie a couple of weeks ago and loved it. You can't help but feel sympathy for DJay. This movie shows you that in a split second your whole life can change, and most of the time in a bad way. Terrence Howard is absolutely powerful in this role. As much as I hated his character in Crash, I felt so sorry for this character (DJay) he played so well. I laughed, cried and wondered silently to myself, how many people live like this. Sometimes just having a dream is not enough. I hope this movie gives Terrence Howard the recognition he so deserves. I have been rooting for him for a while now and hope that this will be his breakthrough.

In the DVD extra making of, you find out every studio passed on it till John Singleton decided to finance on his own. Well, those studios for once were right. This "pimp" never shows any musical talent, nor a Dream to be involved in the music industry at all-then Wa-laa, he has a burning desire to start spitting, and the world needs to listen. And somehow, this has been a lifelong dream? Its more like his life long dream has been to make money by any means necessary, so I guess becoming a rapper fulfills that dream in a way. This main character isn't anyone of any morals or ethics, his one admirable quality is that he allows a pregnant * to stay at his crib, wow, this guy is my kinda guy. And in the making of extra, the cast and crew treat this piece of garbage like it was the most important film ever made-and a story that HAD to be told. God help us.

Terrence Howard was very good as the pimp in this movies. Terrence Howard is amazing and his acting is accompanied by ANTHONY ANDERSON who also delivered the goods. The best part was when Terrence Howard was talking to Skinny Black in the bar. That was a great scene. I won't say what Terrence Howard did. He is a great actor and WHOOP THAT TRICK stuck in my head for days after seeing this movie. Terrence Howard is a rapper in disguise. He was able to pull off the Terrence Howard shuffle with no problem at all. Terrence Howard is not Denzel yet, but he is well onto his way. Terrence Howard is the next big black thing to come out of Hollywood. I hope that Terrence Howard decides to continue making great movies because he is up there with Forrest Whittaker now!

The movie flowed very well. Terrence Howard (D-Jay) gave a very believable performance as a pimp. Taraji Henson (Shug) was also very good. Even though D-Jay was a pimp he had a good heart and even though he was verbally abusive, he did not physically abuse his "ho's". The movie also made you feel like these people were only doing what they had to do in order to survive in the poor area that they were living in and to appreciate the opportunities we have where we are and that we're not there. Because, "except for the Grace of God it could be any of us trying to live the best way we can". I only wish the movie had elaborated on what their life would be like at the end but I guess this way we can have a sequel.

This is purely a character driven picture. The acting is very good on all counts. There is frustration, angst, and hope that is palpable. The director wisely cuts out a lot of the gritty details of the hustle and focuses more on the characters as humans trying to survive. It helps to identify with care for the people involved. The story is simple yet focused and involves some growth and learning. Particularly enjoyable was Djay's friendship with the people around his life. The ending was a bit of cop-out though causing me to wonder if the character had actually learned anything about humility. A bit of a letdown. Otherwise it was a good drama worth the watch and rental.

The premise behind the film is simple. An unsatisfied man is unhappy with its present life, and he must make the necessary changes to achieve satisfaction. It's simple, but the portrayal is complex, and the performances are vibrant and superb. The film moves along a bit slowly at first, but once the set ups are taken care of, its energy and possession are relentless. Howard does a sensational job with his character, and he charms you as he repels in the beginning scenes. The rest of the cast is equally good. The idea of presenting how music originates is not original. What makes this film work is its sincerity and grittiness. It's a film to be treasured and admire, one that will have you cheering for its characters and might ask to take a look at your own life to see if anything needs to be done, now...