Player's Ball

Rating: 8/10 (22 July 2005)

I guess the old saying "Every dog has its day" is true but also perhaps no more in a way than it can be applied to Southern hustlers and pimps. "Hustle & Flow," written and directed by Craig Brewer, is a movie about that one shot. It's about how everybody's got a dream, and they only get one chance to grasp it and hold on to it.
From the outset, this could have been a laughable, if not completely stereotypical "gangsta hustla" flick about aimless Memphis layabouts who attempt to brighten their dim outlook on life through hip-hop. In all respects, from the advertisements on television, that's what it appears to be but when you actually see the movie in action, a whole new dimension is revealed.
"Hustle & Flow" flows through its story the same way most "dream" movies do but somewhere in there, we get a genuine feel for the characters and their motivations, and an especially profound performance from lead actor Terrence Dashon Howard as DJay, a Southern hustler who suddenly finds himself writing rhymes almost every minute of the day.
As I write this, I'm still humming the words in my head ("Whoop that trick! Whoop that trick!"). Of course with those words, come sounds and with the sounds come images, powerful ones. The makings of a truly good rap song, in my view, originate in deep meaningful words that are written from the heart, and that's how DJay's lyrics flow. (I'm aware his lyrics are hardly inspiring, but you get the idea.)
As the Southern hustler/pimp in a mid-life crisis, the mode is turned on for DJay when a junkie sells him one of those old Casio electronic keyboards. He toys around with it for a little bit, as he remembers that he had one himself when he was little boy but soon a light switches on, and DJay is tossing around lyrics like a football.
He presents his ideas to an old high school buddy, Clyde a.k.a. "Key" (Anthony Anderson, in a nice turn-around role from his usual comedic antics), who currently records demos for his church. When DJay first pitches his plan to him, Key is discreet, "A lot of people talk the talk, but don't walk the walk," as he at first believes he's not serious. Key's wife Yevette (Elise Neal) isn't especially happy by this sudden turn of events for her husband but he's profoundly touched, as is DJay, by the sound, and the two are quickly chanting "Whoop that trick!" like it's the Gospels, but Yevette is at least supportive enough to remind them that even they have to eat dinner.
Meanwhile, DJay must also contend with the worrisome troubles of his current reality, from live-in stripper Lexus (Paula Jai Parker) and her baby son, both of whom he eventually throws out of the house, to his pregnant ('ho, or main girlfriend? I'm not sure) Shug (Taraji P. Henson), who eventually sings the chorus of his demo, and Nola (Taryn Manning), who also aspires to do something else with her life. Together, with Clyde and white boy disc jockey Shelby (DJ Qualls), everybody, in a fashion much like a family, begin recording demos left and right with a makeshift studio in DJay's house.
"Hustle & Flow" is pleasantly surprising in a way that a lot of black-themed movies aren't anymore. It has a genuine spirit that's carried on the shoulders of its lead performer, Terrence Dashon Howard, who speaks with that unique Southern hustler drawl and slang that makes his character all the more realistic and believable. He's simply brilliant in this role, as I've heard he's no stranger to music himself and his lyrics in this film seem so inspired you'd think he has a shot at a career as a rap star.
What all of their hard work eventually culminates in, of course, is a chance meeting with a rapper from Memphis who managed to blow up and is featured prominently on television and such; his name is Skinny Black (real-life rapper Ludicrous), who DJay insists he attended school with. DJay sees the opportunity on July 4th to slide Skinny Black his demo tape and have him put the thing on the radio.
"Hustle & Flow" ends on a note of deep profundity. Does DJay blow up and become the huge star he wants to be? I won't tell, but the movie ends in such a way you'd think it was true about people with dreams. Key says that life doesn't always pan out the way it should for some people, but that also, sometimes, it does. The thing about it is, he's right.
Note: As a fan of rap, it is true what Shelby says about how much of popular music arose from or originated in the South (in addition to a lot of good rappers), from Arrested Development, to Outkast, to the Geto Boys, to Ludicrous himself (whom I'm no big fan of).
Note #2: Yes, I'm aware that "Ludicrous" is typed correctly; it gets auto-corrected by IMDb for some reason so please just ignore the spelling.
8/10