Genres

Visitors Review

nama chakravorty 2012-05-25 08:58:02

Amazing..........

Craig Brewer's 'Hustle & Flow' is one of the finest independent filmsto come out in Hollywood. A films that shows reality in its truestform. A story about a pimp aspiring to become a rapper. The idea isfantastic if first of all, and the execution is just a cherry on thecake. Agreed the film ends up sad, but it leaves you satisfied andenergetic. 'Hustle & Flow' rocks.Performances: Terrence Howard is fantastic, the soul of the film. He'sastonishing in every frame he appears in, and is easily one of the bestperformances of this decade. Anthony Anderson is as usual, excellent.Taraji P.Henson delivers an earnest performance. Taryn Manning is arevelation. She's superb. Others are decent.on the whole 'Hustle & Flow' is a brave and reverting film. I love thisfilm, and I recommend each and every cinema this film. Two Thumbs Up!

Frank Ochieng 2012-05-25 01:22:35

...has a more authentic and thorough scope that captures the seedy desperation of a street hustler...audacious, believable, and percolates with riveting forethought

thevitalogist 2012-05-23 22:21:07

Why do so many people praise this film?

This is one of those films like "Million Dollar Baby" where people askyou if you "have seen it YET", like everyone should be mandated to seeit. There is another element similar to "Requiem for a Dream" or "FightClub" where its COOL to see this film because its fresh and bleedingedge. It really does not fulfill either of these categories. Its madeby MTV, and it feels like it was made by a typical MTV viewer. Theacting was mediocre and the script was filled with melodramatic,stereotyped mush that made watching it really sour. The music wasn'tgood, the message wasn't good, and the aesthetics were nothingexceptional. This film is some young, inexperienced director'smasturbatory work. He did not have an objective when he began makingthis film, and he definitely did not end up with one. Seriosuly, themessage is "If you try hard enough, you can achieve anything!" My momused to tell me that until I was like 4 when she decided that it isbetter for me to know how the real world works, and not remain in somefantasy world for the rest of my life. This guy is a pimp and a drugdealer. He is a bad human being. I am sick of praising people in filmswho live off of other peoples misery. Johnny Depp in "Blow"? Aww we aresad that you can't see your daughter again. No. You provided most ofthe cocaine that was snorted during the 70's. Who cares if you can'tsee your daughter again. They are keeping her away from you because YOUARE A ROTTEN HUMAN BEING. Same concept here. Don't waste your time.

Robert W. Butler 2012-05-23 06:52:26

Something weirdly magical happens in Craig Brewer's directing debut to suspend our disbelief and get us rooting for the film's unlikely hero.

tedg 2012-05-22 13:25:24

An Embarrassing Hook

Sometimes a movie is successful, engaging you but leaves you feelingdirty.Sometimes a movie is well enough made to seem worthwhile but gives younothing, nothing at all.Sometimes a movie purports to be a genuine visit, an exploration inreal, raw human dynamics from a world we wouldn't other wise see. Thisdoes advertise itself that way. And it is a fraud.The "true" part is the story of the guy, the Memphis rapper who soldCDs out of the back of his car. He tricked his way into a meeting withthe director — a polished white guy — and made a demo in 24 hours fromscratch. That song won the Oscar prompting the ghetto/ trailerparkhoots half the world saw. That part is genuine, a man "making it."But what false is everything else. Oh, I know folks get offended at themisogynism, but that's excusable here because that is the way most ofthe world runs. What is obnoxious is that we see a man "findinghimself," following his path," and other sorts of soft notions aboutmoving from irrelevance to a full life. The opening speech gives it toyou in terms of dogs and man.And we see him do so in the context of making the song that bothredeems him and forms the sonic backdrop of the movie. It seems sogenuine on screen: a whore finds her center to sing; a repressedproducer finds his groove la la la. And our pimp finds untappedresources that must exist lest we wouldn't have a movie.But in reality this is not the case. The top musical talent in Memphis(which is saying something) is turned to giving us what we see asgenuinely from the man's soul but could never be. Never. And even if itwere, does this song do anything but make your head bob for threeminutes?The acting is impressive, and we should give Singleton credit for that,I think. But what a waste these actors must have known this to be. Welike it, but it is lies. We like it because it is lies. There is nogenuine black culture any more. It is all packaged to be sold, pimped.Ted's Evaluation -- 2 of 3: Has some interesting elements.

David H. Schleicher 2012-05-22 04:00:52

Well Acted Post-Modern Blackploitation Flick

The "upward economic and social mobility through musical talent" genrehas never been one of my favorites. This is, remember, the genre thatbegot "Glitter." In the past three years, however, the genre has risenhigh in the ranks of populist entertainment in both its fictional ("8Mile") and non-fictional ("Ray" or "Walk the Line") forms."Hustle and Flow" crackles and pops onto the screen in its first framesas a throwback to character-driven 1970's movie-making that explored acertain criminal or non-traditional subculture of society (ala "TaxiDriver" or "Mindnight Cowboy"). The filmmakers do a great job early onof giving us an intimate and sympathetic, though never glorifying, lookinto the life of a Memphis pimp and the relationships he has with hisenvironment and hoes. A great ensemble cast and hyper-intelligentscript give it a surprising emotional resonance and moral complexity,much in the same way P.T. Anderson peered into the dysfunctional familyof adult filmmakers in "Boogie Nights." The characters in "Hustle &Flow" use music in the same way the characters in "Boogie Nights" usedfilming sex, as an abstract way to connect and communicate with thepeople around them.Terrance Howard (previously seen in a pivotal supporting part in thesocially conscious "Crash") gives a powerhouse performance in the leadrole. He displays a certain gravitas few performers possess, and it'struly put to the test as he is still able to carry the film even as itdescends into a series of gangster-rap clichés in the final thirtyminutes. The filmmakers really missed a golden opportunity to put outsomething that could've served both as a grandiose tragedy (ala JohnSingleton's "Boyz in the Hood") or biting social commentary (ala"Network" or "Bullworth"). After displaying such promise in the firstthree quarters of the film, it's ashame they copped out, as theiramazing cast and lead performer never did.

Emanuel Levy 2012-05-21 00:45:01

Dynamic rap music and visual style help make Hustle & Flow an enjoyable experience despite its naive and simplistic philosophy and abrupt tonal changes.

bird_dc 2012-05-20 05:34:48

Hustle and Flow - "Hard out hear for a pimp"

This movie moved me. I am a 31 year old guy who lives in Austin,TX andI watched the movie with a 22 year old friend of mine from Kansas...weboth thought it was a fantastic movie. It doesn't matter if your fromthe south or not. It doesn't matter if your a fan of rap or not. Thismovie breaks down the mid-life crisis from a very interesting viewpoint. This movie has a since of realism to it. Its not another moviewith big explosions and car chase scenes....it takes a more realisticapproach to story telling. Anyone who has ever sat in a room with afriend and an 8 track recorder will feel this movie. Kind of makes youwonder what could have been; and what still can be!!! A must see forMovie Fans. Oh yeah, one last thing....this movie had me singing "woopthat trick" for days after I watched it.

RichHartford 2012-05-15 22:20:57

Change From Pimp/Hustler To DJ

DJay,played by Terrence Howard, is a pimp and drug dealer who isdissatisfied with his life and wants to make a change in Hustle AndFlow.After acquiring a keyboard and reacquainting himself with an oldfriend from school,Key, played by Anthony Anderson,who has become asound technician. Then,he decides to try making hip hop songs. Key andsound-mixer friend,Shelby,played by DJ Qualls coordinates with DJay puttogether several songs. The group experiences many setbacks throughout the creative process.DJay must hustle those around him in order to procure proper equipmentand recording time, and Key's relationship with his wife becomesstrained. At the end of the film, in a bit of irony, sees a duo ofprison guards who have their own rap group asking DJay to listen totheir demo, much as DJay had approached Skinny Black. After the guardsrequest him to listen to the demo, he accepts their tape and respondswith the following: "You know what they say, everybody gotta have adream," which was the slogan for the film.Hustle And Flow was a great independent drama film.Terrence Howard wasexceptional as DJay.The screenplay by Craig Brewer was also great intrying to tell a story of a man who sought change in his life.Hisdirection by was crisp as well. Highly recommended for viewers who seekthemes about the welfare of disenfranchised people particularlyAfrican- Americans. Highly recommended indeed.

Pablo Villaca 2012-05-15 11:17:07

Merece créditos por seus dois primeiros atos e pelas performances excelentes que oferece.

Kimberly Graham 2012-05-13 03:12:14

"Hustle and Flow"

I was apprehensive about seeing this movie but to my surprise I reallyenjoyed the movie. I had initially planned to see "Crash" but we missedthe showing so we decided to see "Hustle and Flow and I am really gladthat I did. I am very critical about movies that I see. Lately mostmovies that are released are disappointing. I thought Hustle and Flowwas a breath of fresh air. I liked the theme of the movie abouteveryone having a dream despite their circumstances. Terrance Howarddid an excellent job with this role. His southern accent and rappingskills were superb. Taraji Henson also pushed out a wonderfulperformance. I would advise everyone to go see this movie. Please gosee this! It's worth it.

cwrdlylyn 2012-05-12 19:27:51

HUSTLE & FLOW : Film-making Dynamite With The Searingly Good Terrence Howard...

HUSTLE & FLOW HUSTLE & FLOW, featuring a blazing turn from the enthralling TerrenceHoward, is an unexpectedly wrenching movie that moves along at a beatjust as pulsating as the music genre it centers around.The movie wraps you around it's finger with it's opening "calm beforethe storm" monologue where D-Jay (Howard) sits in his hot Chevy withNola (Taryn Manning), his best prostitute, talking about the world. Youcan see this is a man doped up on some drugs while she is as well, butthe artistic soul inside of him is clearly trying to push itself out ofD-Jay in a way he can't yet grasp. And as soon as the audience sees thecore reality and humanity of the character... the beat starts drivingthe film.When D-Jay starts to rap, Howard shows you that this isn't a passionslowly coming out of him... it is a tidal wave of frustration, passion,talent, and desperation pounding against a wall of drugs, depression,and disappointment that he has built up for years. Yet, even in hischildlike excitement over the new prospects in his life, he can neverbreak free of the lifestyle and situations that life as a pimp has puthim in.This truly is a brilliant performance from Howard and he deserves theattention he has received from the Academy and other criticsorganizations. But it's also refreshing to know that this ensemble wasrecognized at SAG. It truly was some of the best ensemble work I'veseen in a long time (faaaaaaar surpassing CRASH... which was an exampleof true ensemble work sure, but this is an example of true ensemblework on a superior level with the talent leaping off the screen). TarynManning was especially compelling in her role as D-Jay's "cheifinvestor". It's a shame no buzz developed around her for a SupportingActress nomination.I've read some reviews cite this film as ridiculous... but to me, thelife of a Pimp is in some ways "ridiculous". Despite the terribleliving situations and rough lifestyle... their lives are filled withover-indulgence in all the wrong things. Sex, drugs, and music.However, this movie never looks down on the struggle and dream ofD-Jay... partially because of brilliant pacing, and very much sobecause of Terrence Howards searing performance. HUSTLE & FLOW is agenuine surprise. Fully engrossing, heartbreakingly honest,entertainingly open-minded... everything to add up to greatness.I probably never would have rented it had I not felt required to b/c ofit's Oscar nominations. But I am thrilled I did, b/c despite it's lackof "important messages" and "political topics"... HUSTLE & FLOW is oneof the best films I've seen this year.Film-making dynamite.... A ...

gracie28 2012-05-10 17:40:25

It has a real script and plot- two thumbs up

The fact that this movie held the attention and empathy of a middleclass white person throughout tells you it was very artistically done.The movie actually has character development even of street hookers anda pimp. You don't necessarily sympathize them them but you sure canempathize with people going through midlife re-considerations. The castis great. Very realistic and heartfelt acting. The direction has alight touch but is very mature and sure. The music is great, especiallythe hook they record for one of the pimp's demo songs in the studio.The little white hooker is a bit of an enigma, which is as it shouldbe. Overall this unlikely film is one of the year's best. It puts dumbbig budget Hollywood flicks to shame with the quality of the script andthe casting and acting. Plus it is just plain entertaining.

Dee 2012-05-10 13:16:21

Going to buy it as soon as it comes out on DVD!

I loved it!! This is NOT a family movie - it definitely deserves the"R" rating. Some will complain because of the negative images, but theyare part of our society and ignoring them won't make them go away. Irated it based on my level of enjoyment - not on movie snob criterialike sophisticated dialog, elegant sets, etc. It made me laugh, made mecry - just made me feel. While I can't personally relate to thecharacters, it allowed me to see up close what happens when people havelittle or no resources. Each character was different yet most were thesame - stuck doing what they had to do to survive. I was rooting forDJay. Like another reviewer, I'm glad Terrence got to make this filmand showcase the depth of his talent. I was even feeling his flow andwanted to "Whoop that trick" too!!

bob wisener 2012-05-02 10:22:38

living the dream

I almost walked out of this movie a couple of times but am glad that Istuck it out. This is a cut or two above the blaxploitation flicks ofthe 1970s and a more realistic portrayal of the black culture, I think,than "Shaft" (I'm white, by the way). I sympathized with D-Jay, thelead character, who wanted to quit pimping and live his dream. Mostmovie pimps are stereotyped, but D-Jay's character looked atprostitution (the world's oldest profession, we're told) as a means toan end. So, I was disappointed when D-Jay, rather than beat up the manin the electronics store for eyeing his woman suspiciously, lends herout in return for the microphone he wants. The movie heats up when aMemphis native-turned-rap star comes home for July 4 and chills outwith his posse at a local club. Clutching a demo tape of his rap tunes,D-Jay gets a meet-and-greet session with the established star, and Idare not reveal more. A movie that easily could have failed succeedsbecause of the strength, and honesty, of its fine cast. And, the yearshave been good to Isaac Hayes, whose theme from the original "Shaft"was ground breaking in its day.

Josh Bell 2012-05-01 14:19:14

Hustle & Flow ends with a little too much overwrought tension, and it borders on hokey at times, but in all those little moments, it's a perfect groove.

uptownbill 2012-04-30 13:19:05

Black on Black Hate

Hustle and Flow must be the favorite movie of The Klan, David Duke, andClarence Thomas. Not since Birth of a Nation has there been a worstdepiction of African American people. Every character in the movie iscompletely self loathing and full of misogynistic thoughts and actions.Terrance Howard plays a failure of a pimp who mistreats his prostitutesand throws one of them on the porch in the middle of the night alongwith her crying baby in his walker.This movie depicts that there is no craft to making rap music and thatit is the theme music of the slime of society. Every song is aboutdrugs, violence, bitches and hoes.He later beats up a drugged rapper and shots his way out of thesituation. He goes off to jail but not before he convinces his whiteprostitute that she is in charge. What a movie hero.John Singleton is the new D.W. Griffith perpetuating destructive blackstereotypes. What did we do to you John? Who hurt you? Hustle and Flowshould be called Black on Black hate. The hustle is the marketing tohip hop audiences; the flow is the cash flow the studio will make.uptownbill@hotmail.com

fred-287 2012-04-29 19:41:37

With apologies to Michael Moore, one can be a "stupid white man" and still like this movie....

To quote from the Cramps' anthemic cover of the 1950's hit "Rocket inmy Pocket": "Well I don't know about art but I know what I like…." Isure don't know much about Rap/Hip-Hop/Krump/Crunk/whatever, but I knowa nice little well-told story when I see one. I'll admit "Hustle &Flow" had not exactly been high on my must-see list but this pastSaturday I really wanted to go to a movie; since I don't live in NewYork or Chicago or Los Angeles, what was available was stuff I'd eitherseen or didn't care to see…. Then I thought "Well hell, let's give thisa shot." Proved to be a good decision on my part.We're introduced to a somewhat unassuming-looking black guy in hismid-to-late-30's sitting in his vintage car smoking a cigarette as helays out some down-home philosophy (which gets tellingly repeated nearthe end) to an unseen character who then is revealed as a youngstrung-out-looking white chick. If we hadn't known in advance, weneedn't have been Einstein to grasp that she's a prostitute and he'sher pimp. Eventually a customer pulls up; when the pimp's initial salespitch fails to sink in, he exasperatedly tells his "ho" to(paraphrasing somewhat) "explain to this gentleman how this situationshould proceed." She gets into the john's car and off they go as thepimp sits and watches and smokes. I don't know how the pimp knows thatthe client is not some psycho who wants to murder his employee. Isuppose one develops a "sixth sense" for that sort of thing.The pimp is played by Terrence Howard, about whose performance evenhaters of the move have been raving. I kept wondering where the heckI'd seen this guy before---turned out he'd been in "Crash" which I'dseen relatively recently, as a completely different kind of character.As the pimp he's rock solid, never hits a wrong note, a guy born on thewrong side of the wrong tracks suffering from being just intelligentenough to know what a waste his life has been thus far. He sucks onthose cigarettes like an oxygen tube. He's followed the "path of leastresistance" to become a pimp, has three in his "stable" under his roof;one of them has an infant son, plus another one is pregnant; it's allhe can do to keep them all and himself more or less functioning. Idoubt I've ever seen a pimp portrayed this realistically in a moviebefore. I've known plenty of managers in "legitimate" jobs who didn'tremotely have the level of "people skills" needed here.He takes possession of a Casio mini-keyboard which in the movie's bestscene he uses to pacify the squalling son of one of his hookers. Thisgets him thinking about a music career like that of one "Skinny Black,"a Memphis "homeboy" he may or may not have known once. He enlists thehelp of a childhood chum to concoct a recording studio in his home withegg crates stapled to the walls for sound-proofing; they have to turnthe fan off to record and (in the second best scene) the pimp has to goplacate his hostile neighbor (using marijuana, apparently the universalmedium of exchange) whose music is seeping into their recordingsession. There's a nice atmosphere in all this of "real" people givingit their all to break into a tough business, hinting back to those"Let's put on a show in the barn!" epics from the 1930's. I couldn'tbegin to say if the music they eventually record is "good" or "bad" bythe standards of that genre, but they sure put a lot of heart into it.The bashful stammering pregnant woman who gets dragooned into being abackup singer and who blossoms with each "take" is an absolute joy towatch. She alone was enough to make me believe this really was theSouth.Unfortunately it gets a little formulaic towards the end with therequisite violence which we know in advance won't lead to death becauseat that point too much time has been invested for such a drasticdeparture. The "somewhat happy" ending seems just a little contrived.But it's all played with absolute conviction & I for one was perfectlyhappy to "buy into" it. Not since my 1990's favorites "Smoke Signals"and "Ulee's Gold" has a movie made such an appealingly "human"impression on me. It may be the first movie this year since "Kung FuHustle" that I see twice.Towards the end the pimp tells his friend that if the new baby of aprostitute and an unknown john ever asks him if she could be President,"I'll look her in the eye and lie to her….'cause sometimes that's whatyou gotta do." Damn, that was poignant. Some day, I reckon, there'll bea black President, and a female President, maybe even both at once;it'd be kinda cool if I could live to see that….The part of the church-going somewhat-happily-married sound engineermust have been a cakewalk for Anthony Anderson after his turn as thedemonic drug lord on the best cop show on TV, i.e. "The Shield." Thisguy has a genuinely approachable "everyman" quality; I predict he'llhave the next long-running "mainstream" sitcom after that of Bill Cosbyand Will Smith.....

filmguynyc 2012-04-27 15:41:46

Don't miss!

Take a look at Terrence Howard's performance in "Crash," and then gosee what he does in "Hustle & Flow." The guy does all the little (andbig things) a film actor has to do to be credible. Not only that, hehas an absolutely mesmerizing screen presence. If he doesn't become a major superstar, winning accolades and awardsalong the way -- as opposed to the kind of superstar status of, say,Tom Cruise or one of the other lightweight pretty boys -- then we'llknow once and for all that the system is totally gamed."Hustle & Flow"? I went to it the night it opened in NYC, having heardthe buzz about it in reviews on NPR and in the NY Times. I was somewhatskeptical, yet I bought my ticket with an open mind, hoping I'd beentertained, enlightened, etc. Maybe what I really wanted was something other than the Big BucksProduction Crap that the major studios turn out so routinely. I wasn'tdisappointed. Because "Hustle & Flow" didn't overwhelm me with effects.Instead it got me involved in a story about some downtrodden yet everhopeful characters. Craig Brewer's script crackled with wit, pathos, hope and rage, and hisdirection was blessed by so much verisimilitude that the part ofMemphis he intended to portray became almost visceral on the screen,tiny elements (wisps of smoke from a cigarette, beads of sweat, theoily smudges on an old fan) adding volumes to the back story. Brewer's casting decisions were inspired. Terrence Howard (DJay) willget all the "star" play, but he's got some terrific support in TarynManning (Nola), Taraji P. Henson (Shug), Paula Jai Parker (Lexus),Anthony Anderson (Key) and DJ Quails (Shelby). All in all, this is a "don't miss" film. A breakout by itswriter/director, star and cast. Will it win big in this year'sHollywood awards shows? Hard to say. It should, in my opinion. Onething is sure... it's infinitely better than the "5.9" rating it's beengiven up to this point in time. Almost forgot... all hail John Singleton for producing the film! On NPRI heard that he put $3 million of his own cash into getting it done.Let's hope he cashes in big-time...

fincherfan22 2012-04-27 09:28:31

Terrence Howard is phenomenal!

Incredibly moving, yet definitely not for everyone, Hustle & Flow tellsthe story of D-Jay, an incredibly conflicted Memphis pimp down on hisluck. In one of the most raw and intense performances of recent memory,newcomer Terrence Howard embodies D-Jay with an animal-like ferocitythat will help you overcome what few formulaic clichés embody thescript. In his mid forties, D-Jay seems too old and far too nice forhis profession, and his "hos" seem to take notice. You see, D-Jayrepresents a lifetime of failed dreams, ambitions, and wrong turns. Itseems as if it could all be over, but then fate offers him theopportunity to realize his life-long goal of becoming a successful rapstar. D-Jay pours his heart and soul into his music, just as Howardpours his into the performance, and the result is somewhat of a urbanRocky, a true underdog tale. This is perhaps the first hip-hop film toactually get it right, and everything that 8-Mile should have been.Don't let the subject matter keep you from enjoying Howard's brutaltour-de-force.