As Believable as the Bush Administration's Reasons for Invading Iraq

Rating: 5/10 (6 March 2006)

Not to be outdone by Julia Roberts, Craig Brewer and his earnest cast led by Terrence Howard set out to prove that pimps, as well as whores, can have hearts of gold too. And despite the gritty 70s movie finish they spray over their film, "Hustle & Flow" is about as grounded in reality as "Pretty Woman."
Howard does a decent job, and anyone who's seen him in person knows how different he is, at least in his mannerisms and voice, from the character of DJ in the film. But he didn't really stand a chance when up against the ridiculous screenplay he and everyone else were forced to slog their way through. Howard's character, a small-time pimp stagnating in some Tennessee back water, who dreams of breaking out into the hip-hop world, felt about as authentic as the cartoon blacks Steven Spielberg created for "The Color Purple." There are some involving scenes built around DJ and his motley assortment of fellow music lovers creating their songs, and it's easy to be swept along in the funky rhythm of these moments. But the ghastly plot twists toward the end of the film that find DJ going to jail for injuring a thug in a shooting, and then finding stardom on the airwaves while he sits behind bars, surpassed mere over-earnestness and sailed headlong into plain stupidity. Are we really supposed to believe that just because DJ's hooker sidekick dropped some demos off at a couple of local radio stations that suddenly the whole world knows who he is? Or that prison guards are going to be handing him their own demos and seek his help in breaking into the music biz? Even Spielberg isn't that corny.
And not since "Chitty Chitty Bang Bang" assaulted our ears has a movie's theme song more quickly worn itself thin due to its sheer catchy repetitiveness.
Grade: C