Printer-friendly copy Email this topic to a friend
Lobby Pass The Popcorn Pass The Popcorn Archives topic #49236

Subject: "" This topic is locked.
Previous topic | Next topic
bignick
Charter member
24054 posts
Fri Sep-09-05 06:02 PM

Click to send private message to this authorClick to view this author's profileClick to add this author to your buddy list
""


  

          

http://laweekly.com/ink/printme.php?eid=67656

SEPTEMBER 9 - 15, 2005

Pimping the Ride
Why Hustle & Flow matters — too much
by ERIN AUBRY KAPLAN

Craig Brewer (in cap) surrounded
by the Hustle cast: Movin' on
up, but at what cost?
(Photo by Andrew
Hetherington/Redux)
I’ve long believed that when it comes to judging black movies, the most accomplished film critics — most of them white, it must be said — lose their minds. Whether it’s due to a sense of political correctness, low expectations, fear of racial confrontation or just plain ignorance, reviewers tend to suspend their critical faculties and evaluate black films not on the basis of story, acting or character development, but according to a peculiar criterion that really boils down to one question: Is it black enough? In the beginning, that meant a movie that jibed with simple images and social roles acceptable to white folk — domestics, entertainers, comic relief and con men. (Hattie McDaniel’s history-making Oscar win for Gone With the Wind has, unfortunately, endured less as an acknowledgment of her talents than as an indictment of the industry that circumscribed those talents to fit an image that it wanted to see.)

Almost 70 years later, though it has been mitigated somewhat by the black freedom movement and the fitfully successful effort by blacks to seize control of their own media images, “black enough” still means blackness approved by a predominantly white mainstream culture. Of course, many blacks are themselves solidly part of the mainstream now and seemingly willing to accept the pejorative as status quo — one of the many strange and insidious effects of freedom. But looking at ourselves through the eyes of others and believing what we see isn’t anything new. What has changed markedly since the days of Gone With the Wind is the widespread embrace of black pathology, especially black urban pathology, as the standard for representative black images. Instead of non-threatening maids and minstrels, we now have whores and murderous gangstas being marketed as cool, hip and, above all, real. Such characterizations don’t debase black people, we’re solemnly told, they honor them; they tell our essential truths. A pimp isn’t a bad reflection on black folk — he’s our Everyman, our salt of the big-city earth. This is a new age; the old meanings don’t apply anymore. What’s most disturbing to me is how willingly critics and other gatekeepers of popular culture routinely reinforce this kind of Orwellian logic. And increasingly, they’re going a step beyond, sanctioning these dangerous stereotypes as not only permissible, but human. Which brings me to Hustle & Flow.


We all know that this film had some built-in traction because the screenwriter, Craig Brewer, is white and therefore automatically controversial. But let’s get some other things out of the way: Yes, John Singleton produced. Yes, the film has been championed by the likes of cinematic activist Spike Lee. Yes, Singleton and Lee have both made notable films of their own, some of which were specifically aimed at countering the black pablum coming out of Hollywood. Can they be wrong-headed sometimes? Self-serving, shortsighted, willing to ignore the content of a black independent film for the sake of proving that it too can find that coveted crossover audience, like My Big Fat Greek Wedding, March of the Penguins and dozens of other low-budget hits of the past decade? In a word, yes. Now back to the subject at hand. I was suspicious from the moment I read all the prerelease Hustle hype and saw the lurid billboards advertising the film, which blanketed South-Central like so many velvet paintings. Even so, I went hoping for the best; nobody has to convince me that Terrence Howard is a good actor. But 15 minutes into a showing of the film at the ArcLight Theater, I realized that not even Howard, as the movie’s pimp-rapper protagonist, DJay, could temper the fact that Hustle & Flow is bound to be the most despicable film of 2005.

At a time when white fantasies about black urban life have become routine, this movie, couched in full indie street cred courtesy of Sundance (where it won the Audience Award for dramatic feature), takes the genre to a level of exploitation and insult unique to the millennium. This is a nigger-fest minus some of the saturated color and amped soundtrack that a studio-produced movie would have — in short, minus the gloss that at least acknowledges the cartoonishness of the whole enterprise. But no such self-awareness exists in Hustle and its stripped-down “real” world, where all black men are thugs, criminals or rap artists, or — what’s the difference, really? — aspiring to be. Otherwise, they’re not authentic black men, which is one of the movie’s most pernicious racial messages (and, believe me, there are many). So intent is Brewer to stay on message that he turns DJay’s high-school buddy Key (Anthony Anderson), a middle-class man with a legitimate job, into the antihero — a sap with a nice house, devoted wife and church habit who can’t fulfill his destiny until he starts laying down tracks for “Whoop That Trick” (née “Beat That Bitch”). Too bad that Anderson, who skewered such tropes so brilliantly in Malibu’s Most Wanted, is stuck having to do this role with a straight face. He deserves something more evolved.

And then there are the women. In a movie that almost onanistically revels in its Madonna-whore complex, Elise Neal (as Key’s wife, Yevette) has easily the most thankless role — a soulless, sexless, screechy, head-swiveling sista-girl with perfect hair and nails who initially opposes her husband’s hanging out with a pimp and his whores — how unreasonable — but who finally stops denying her own blackness and realizes that she, too, can share in the dream of “Whoop That Trick.” She comes around, literally, showing up at DJay’s ghetto studio at dinner time one evening with a platter of finger sandwiches and dill dip, suddenly as meek and compliant as one of DJay’s tricks. Speaking of which, Brewer, in another twisted attempt to inject some family values into the middle of all this, has DJay and his most devoted, downtrodden whore, Shug (the one who, under threat of pain, provides backup vocals for “Whoop That Trick”), share an Officer and a Gentleman–style kiss before DJay goes off to his big audition; she helps him on with his leather coat and places a giant gold medallion around his neck, like a loving wife sending her husband to the office with a briefcase. These are but two of many moments in Hustle that are supposed to be heartwarming, but are instead infuriatingly hollow. Then, adding insult to injury, Brewer perverts black history by conflating it with the effort to make a hit record out of “Whoop That Trick” — framing the exploitative song’s journey in can-do sentiments like “I have a dream” and “By any means necessary.” That “Whoop That Trick” serves as the movie’s sole vehicle of black ambition, the pinnacle of everybody’s dreams — black and white, male and female — is not only hackneyed, it’s toxic. Martin and Malcolm are surely turning in their graves.

All of this is presented without an ounce of context. Believe it or not, I don’t object to Terrence Howard’s character per se. I could suffer DJay’s foibles, even his tunnel vision about “Whoop That Trick,” but there’s no compelling reason why we should. DJay riffs philosophical about dogs and men in the movie’s opening moments, but that’s it for back story. He’s a pimp, Shug is a ho, Skinny Black (the usually self-deprecating Ludacris) is a snarling, profane, gold-toothed rapper — evidently just because they’re black, and because this is Memphis. The comparison has been made before, but I’ll make it again: How is it that the Mafia, America’s über-criminals, get such empathetic film treatment — think Tony Soprano’s therapy sessions and Ray Liotta’s ruminating voice-overs in GoodFellas — and black criminals get squat? The only answer is that black criminality needs no explanation, just some celluloid to blow it up to 1,000 times its actual size. Talk about inequality: Not only is there a racially defined achievement gap, salary gap and health-care gap in this country — there’s a major story gap, too, and it’s getting filled in with more bullshit every year. Admittedly, black movies have a lot of catching up to do, because they’ve always been less about story and more about entertainment — shooting and swearing having replaced shuffling and grinning as the black opiate of choice. Changing the paradigm significantly has been a near-impossible task — just ask Charles Burnett, Julie Dash, Rusty Cundieff and a host of other thoughtful story-oriented black filmmakers whose stars should have risen much higher and faster than they did.


The only good thing I can say about Hustle & Flow is how effectively it reminded me of how much black folks are still tethered to their own worst images, even when they assume they’ve made a clean break. At the movie’s end, when the lights came on, I was surprised by the exhaustion and fury I felt, the compulsion I had to stand up and say, louder than necessary for all within earshot to hear, how awful I thought the whole thing was and how glad I was to leave the theater and get back to the real real world. I felt immediately charged with changing people’s minds; DJay and his crew were as far from my own daily life as possible, but that was still, unquestionably, supposed to be me up there on the screen. Whatever my fellow moviegoers thought of my declamation, nobody challenged it. I didn’t expect them to; race is what we like to see in the dark, not talk about in the light of day. As it happens, the next day, I went to a discussion group — a salon of black people who met to talk for a couple of hours about the appointed topic: black film. It was a lively and absorbing session, but also discouraging. Too many people in the room felt that the ghetto-centric black movie was not only okay, it was — here we go again — real. Then one participant, a guy I’ll call X, told a tale about a fellow black screenwriter who was casting about for a pimp-whore-ghetto story to write and quickly cash in on. In the course of his conversation with X, the screenwriter revealed a compelling story of his own — that of a college graduate who had overcome hardships of all kinds to get an education and eventually break into the business. “Why don’t you write about that?” X asked. The writer looked at him like he was mad. “That,” he said, “is not a story.” Not true: It’s a story. It’s just not a hustle. One day we’ll figure out the difference.

  

Printer-friendly copy | Top


Topic Outline
Subject Author Message Date ID
Someone sounds mad for no real reason......
Sep 09th 2005
1
RE: Someone sounds mad for no real reason......
Sep 09th 2005
2
      That wasn't criticism.....
Sep 09th 2005
3
           How dare she put down Whoop that Trick!!!
Sep 09th 2005
4
           RE: That wasn't criticism.....
Sep 09th 2005
5
Nick what'd you think when you saw the movie?
Sep 09th 2005
6
RE: Nick what'd you think when you saw the movie?
Sep 09th 2005
7
      i know
Sep 09th 2005
8
very insightful but,
Sep 09th 2005
9
Sep 09th 2005
10
LOL you're obsessed with this movie, nick!
Sep 09th 2005
11
RE: LOL you're obsessed with this movie, nick!
Sep 10th 2005
19
Great essay. It's still the second best movie of the summer.
Sep 10th 2005
12
RE: Great essay. It's still the second best movie of the summer.
Sep 10th 2005
13
      but how do you know?
Sep 10th 2005
15
           Yep.
Sep 10th 2005
16
           RE: but how do you know?
Sep 10th 2005
18
she's reaching
Sep 10th 2005
14
Enjoyed the movie...good article.
Sep 10th 2005
17
i hate black people like her
Sep 10th 2005
20
Dust under the sink
Sep 10th 2005
21
eh, i know people like djay
Sep 10th 2005
22
RE: eh, i know people like djay
Sep 10th 2005
23
      RE: eh, i know people like djay
Sep 10th 2005
24
      RE: eh, i know people like djay
Sep 10th 2005
25
      it wasn't FOR "black america"...it was for america...WE are america
May 05th 2006
53
           RE: it wasn't FOR "black america"...it was for america...WE are america
May 06th 2006
58
                explain...
May 07th 2006
62
                re
May 07th 2006
66
                RE: it wasn't FOR "black america"...it was for america...WE are america
May 07th 2006
64
                     i have no interest in seeing a movie about a rapping pimp.
May 07th 2006
65
Good article. This quote stands out to me:
Sep 10th 2005
26
she didn't watch the movie
Sep 10th 2005
27
Shhh... she was too busy being offended for all black people
Sep 10th 2005
28
i laffed...
Sep 10th 2005
32
      Hey, normally I ride for Erin Aubry Kaplan
Sep 10th 2005
34
basically. lol
Sep 11th 2005
36
She saw what she wanted...
May 05th 2006
43
at its core, its about pimps and hoes....
Sep 10th 2005
29
right and the godfather is just about evil greaseballs
May 05th 2006
50
i mean, this statement exposes the writers huge bias...
Sep 10th 2005
30
this is EXACTLY how I feel about this piece of shit film
Sep 10th 2005
31
Tell us how you really feel.....
Sep 10th 2005
33
her mention of black vs. white gangsters
Sep 11th 2005
35
what positive? are you kidding me?
Sep 11th 2005
38
are you high?
Oct 04th 2005
40
Nobody saw it
Sep 11th 2005
37
My Thoughts
Sep 12th 2005
39
Thanks for saying that.
Oct 04th 2005
41
re
May 05th 2006
42
married to a white man? see, i ain't even wanna say i was thinkin that
May 05th 2006
49
I DON'T GIVE A FUCK WHAT YOU THINK, BITCH!!!
May 05th 2006
44
she would make the worst producer in hollywood
May 05th 2006
45
I couldn't have said this better myself. My brother.
May 05th 2006
47
      exactly!
May 06th 2006
57
it's very much a matter of access
May 05th 2006
46
Her hyperbolic premise renders her entire argument useless
May 05th 2006
48
when she writes about Akeelah and the Bee, do holla
May 05th 2006
51
and this bitch tried to cyse fucking Rusty Cundieff!!!! i'mma convulse!
May 05th 2006
52
May 05th 2006
54
May 05th 2006
56
hustle & flow is a blaxploitation flick, nothing more
May 05th 2006
55
RE: hustle & flow is a blaxploitation flick, nothing more
May 06th 2006
59
      RE: hustle & flow is a blaxploitation flick, nothing more
May 07th 2006
60
           RE: hustle & flow is a blaxploitation flick, nothing more
May 07th 2006
63
                RE: hustle & flow is a blaxploitation flick, nothing more
May 08th 2006
67
                     uh huh...
May 08th 2006
68
                          RE: uh huh...
May 09th 2006
69
AKA: why come all movies about black people gotta be
May 07th 2006
61

KCPlayer21
Charter member
30076 posts
Fri Sep-09-05 06:48 PM

Click to send private message to this authorClick to view this author's profileClick to add this author to your buddy list
1. "Someone sounds mad for no real reason......"
In response to Reply # 0


  

          


I'm a believer, tellin' you I really believe
I'm a believer, even though I've never seen
I'm a believer, look at my life and you will see
I'm a believer, how can you not believe?
- Mary Mary

  

Printer-friendly copy | Top

    
bignick
Charter member
24054 posts
Fri Sep-09-05 08:14 PM

Click to send private message to this authorClick to view this author's profileClick to add this author to your buddy list
2. "RE: Someone sounds mad for no real reason......"
In response to Reply # 1


  

          

or someone is being critical of popular culture beause its her job.

  

Printer-friendly copy | Top

        
KCPlayer21
Charter member
30076 posts
Fri Sep-09-05 09:14 PM

Click to send private message to this authorClick to view this author's profileClick to add this author to your buddy list
3. "That wasn't criticism....."
In response to Reply # 2


  

          

she sounded like Craig Brewer and John Singleton pissed in her Cheerios or somethin, if she didn't like the flick, she didn't like it, but don't act like every black movie has to represent every black person in America. It was like she got personally offended that they would portray black folks like that when in reality there are people who are living just like the characters in Hustle and Flow......



I'm a believer, tellin' you I really believe
I'm a believer, even though I've never seen
I'm a believer, look at my life and you will see
I'm a believer, how can you not believe?
- Mary Mary

  

Printer-friendly copy | Top

            
sithlord
Member since Aug 05th 2002
2832 posts
Fri Sep-09-05 09:37 PM

Click to send email to this author Click to send private message to this authorClick to view this author's profileClick to add this author to your buddy list
4. "How dare she put down Whoop that Trick!!!"
In response to Reply # 3


  

          

n/m.
Does anybody in any city outside of Memphis hear that song or "Hard out here for a Pimp" on the radio?
Serious question.

"...most sistahs only recognize a good man when he's a character in a shitty movie, a shitty play, their favorite daytime soap or a shitty book written by a homosexual."
From Reggie Eggert's online review of "Diary of a Mad Black Woman"

  

Printer-friendly copy | Top

            
bignick
Charter member
24054 posts
Fri Sep-09-05 09:43 PM

Click to send private message to this authorClick to view this author's profileClick to add this author to your buddy list
5. "RE: That wasn't criticism....."
In response to Reply # 3


  

          

>she sounded like Craig Brewer and John Singleton pissed in
>her Cheerios or somethin,

not to me. she just sounded like someone who didn't like the movie.

?if she didn't like the flick, she
>didn't like it, but don't act like every black movie has to
>represent every black person in America.

she didn't say that, and she wasn't acting like that. what she was complaining about--and she stated this clearly--was the belief that movies like Hustle & Flow are somehow "real" when they don't represent anything like the lives of a lot of black people.

>It was like she got
>personally offended that they would portray black folks like
>that when in reality there are people who are living just like
>the characters in Hustle and Flow......

disagree. she didn't seem personally offened. she seemed like an adult with valid criticisms of a film.

  

Printer-friendly copy | Top

navajo joe
Member since Apr 13th 2005
6565 posts
Fri Sep-09-05 09:50 PM

Click to send private message to this authorClick to view this author's profileClick to add this author to your buddy list
6. "Nick what'd you think when you saw the movie?"
In response to Reply # 0


          

-------------------------------

A lot of you players ain't okay.

We would have been better off with an okaycivics board instead of an okayactivist board

  

Printer-friendly copy | Top

    
bignick
Charter member
24054 posts
Fri Sep-09-05 09:59 PM

Click to send private message to this authorClick to view this author's profileClick to add this author to your buddy list
7. "RE: Nick what'd you think when you saw the movie?"
In response to Reply # 6


  

          

i had no interest in seeing it.

  

Printer-friendly copy | Top

        
navajo joe
Member since Apr 13th 2005
6565 posts
Fri Sep-09-05 10:02 PM

Click to send private message to this authorClick to view this author's profileClick to add this author to your buddy list
8. "i know"
In response to Reply # 7


          

-------------------------------

A lot of you players ain't okay.

We would have been better off with an okaycivics board instead of an okayactivist board

  

Printer-friendly copy | Top

Morehouse
Member since Feb 25th 2003
7568 posts
Fri Sep-09-05 10:31 PM

Click to send email to this author Click to send private message to this authorClick to view this author's profileClick to add this author to your buddy listClick to send message via AOL IM
9. "very insightful but,"
In response to Reply # 0


  

          

how much does this movie really matter?

  

Printer-friendly copy | Top

SoulHonky
Member since Jan 21st 2003
25919 posts
Fri Sep-09-05 10:46 PM

Click to send email to this author Click to send private message to this authorClick to view this author's profileClick to add this author to your buddy list
10. ""
In response to Reply # 0


          

"How is it that the Mafia, America’s über-criminals, get such empathetic film treatment — think Tony Soprano’s therapy sessions and Ray Liotta’s ruminating voice-overs in GoodFellas — and black criminals get squat?"

I thought The Wire and Clockers were pretty good about this. Menace to Society and Boyz in the Hood also portrayed this well IMO. There are tons of terrible Mafia movies out there. Has there been a quality one since Goodfellas?

The biggest issue with black criminal films is that to make it truly effective, it has to be more about the socio-economic conditions which drives people into criminality and less about the actual criminal actions. That isn't going to interest many Hollywood suits.

Hustle and Flow was a solid movie that got blown up too much at Sundance. It happens all the time. This author seems to have bought into the hype and is acting like this film is the be-all, end-all of black cinema.

  

Printer-friendly copy | Top

AFKAP_of_Darkness
Charter member
84244 posts
Fri Sep-09-05 10:47 PM

Click to send email to this author Click to send private message to this authorClick to view this author's profileClick to add this author to your buddy listClick to send message via AOL IM
11. "LOL you're obsessed with this movie, nick!"
In response to Reply # 0


  

          

_____________________

http://fc03.deviantart.net/fs70/i/2010/287/6/c/the_wire_lineup__huge_download_by_dennisculver-d30s7vl.jpg
The man who thinks at 50 the same way he did at 20 has wasted 30 years of his life - Muhammed Ali

  

Printer-friendly copy | Top

    
bignick
Charter member
24054 posts
Sat Sep-10-05 11:18 AM

Click to send private message to this authorClick to view this author's profileClick to add this author to your buddy list
19. "RE: LOL you're obsessed with this movie, nick!"
In response to Reply # 11


  

          

i just love talking about shit like this. and i find it incredible that whenever someone black criticizes something black--which, technically, this movie isn't. this is a fact that i think is lost to a lot of people--they are dismissed as being "haters" or just being angry.

  

Printer-friendly copy | Top

ZooTown74
Member since May 29th 2002
43582 posts
Sat Sep-10-05 01:57 AM

Click to send email to this author Click to send private message to this authorClick to view this author's profileClick to add this author to your buddy list
12. "Great essay. It's still the second best movie of the summer."
In response to Reply # 0
Sat Sep-10-05 02:02 AM by ZooTown74

  

          

And had no issues with the so-called "reality" of the movie. I usually dig Erin Kaplan's essays - the ones where she deals with on L.A. politics and their effects on the black community, which are a majority of her essays, btw - but she's way off with this one.
___________________________________________________________________________________________
<---- errr-AH!


Brother's gonna work it out
Brother's gonna work it all out

  

Printer-friendly copy | Top

    
bignick
Charter member
24054 posts
Sat Sep-10-05 03:25 AM

Click to send private message to this authorClick to view this author's profileClick to add this author to your buddy list
13. "RE: Great essay. It's still the second best movie of the summer."
In response to Reply # 12


  

          

>btw - but she's
>way off with this one.

to me, she's dead on.

  

Printer-friendly copy | Top

        
navajo joe
Member since Apr 13th 2005
6565 posts
Sat Sep-10-05 08:29 AM

Click to send private message to this authorClick to view this author's profileClick to add this author to your buddy list
15. "but how do you know?"
In response to Reply # 13


          

not having seen the movie?

-------------------------------

A lot of you players ain't okay.

We would have been better off with an okaycivics board instead of an okayactivist board

  

Printer-friendly copy | Top

            
ZooTown74
Member since May 29th 2002
43582 posts
Sat Sep-10-05 10:11 AM

Click to send email to this author Click to send private message to this authorClick to view this author's profileClick to add this author to your buddy list
16. "Yep."
In response to Reply # 15
Sat Sep-10-05 10:12 AM by ZooTown74

  

          

But even she - having seen it - is still way off.
___________________________________________________________________________________________
<---- errr-AH!


Brother's gonna work it out
Brother's gonna work it all out

  

Printer-friendly copy | Top

            
bignick
Charter member
24054 posts
Sat Sep-10-05 11:16 AM

Click to send private message to this authorClick to view this author's profileClick to add this author to your buddy list
18. "RE: but how do you know?"
In response to Reply # 15


  

          

>not having seen the movie

i agree with her assessment of the way that white critics handle movies like this.
i agree with her frustration that black movies aren't "real" unless they have drug dealers, pimps, rappers, etc.
i share her frustration that even when black people get to star in a critical acclaimed movie, we still have to be playing the same types of characters.

  

Printer-friendly copy | Top

Calico
Charter member
24604 posts
Sat Sep-10-05 04:15 AM

Click to send email to this author Click to send private message to this authorClick to view this author's profileClick to add this author to your buddy listClick to send message via AOL IM
14. "she's reaching"
In response to Reply # 0


  

          

sounds like she wanted to identify with the movie, but couldn't, so she figured it wasn't relective of the black experience (which pissed her off)...and therefore, not good...it's all BS, she makes a comment that all the black men are hustler, crimals or rappers, THEN mentions anthony anderson's character and forgets about issac hayes....the movie was great...i loved it...if you didn't, fine...just don't try to make the pot deeper than it is...

"yes, sometimes my rhymes are sexist, but you lovely bitches and hos should know i'm tryin to correct it"- hiphopopotamus

  

Printer-friendly copy | Top

gmltheone
Member since Jun 11th 2003
8564 posts
Sat Sep-10-05 10:37 AM

Click to send email to this author Click to send private message to this authorClick to view this author's profileClick to add this author to your buddy list
17. "Enjoyed the movie...good article."
In response to Reply # 0


  

          

To be honest there is a need for cultural criticism like this in our own backyard. The movie was about a few things, but let's be real the main characters WERE pimps and hoes. The redemption in the movie can with "It's so hard being a piiiimp" playing. Whether she's off base or not it did need to be addressed and put on the table intelligently. That is all.


-------------
George Bush doesn't care about black people" - Kanye West

  

Printer-friendly copy | Top

buildingblock
Charter member
100000 posts
Sat Sep-10-05 11:32 AM

Click to send private message to this authorClick to view this author's profileClick to add this author to your buddy list
20. "i hate black people like her"
In response to Reply # 0


  

          

...a child is born with no state of mind, blind to the ways of mankind, god is smilin' on you and frownin' too, because only god knows what you gonna do...©melle mel

  

Printer-friendly copy | Top

Nettrice
Charter member
61747 posts
Sat Sep-10-05 11:56 AM

Click to send private message to this authorClick to view this author's profileClick to add this author to your buddy list
21. "Dust under the sink"
In response to Reply # 0


  

          

On Ellen, Kayne West talked about how he used to sweep dust under the sink instead of just dealing with it. In this case, he was referring to the poor, Black and underserved in New Orleans but I think this also applies to a movie like Hustle & Flow. I think it's safe for me to write that I abhor Ying Yang and Lil Jon (and I am from the south). However, I liked Hustle & Flow. What disturbed me most was the fact that the real hero in the movie was the white prostitute who was empowered to be "the boss". Yet, it was inevitable. She was the talentless one, the one who didn't have a place in the studio.

In this review I don't think Kaplan really dealt with the "dust under the sink" at all. Brewer tried to but he did not know how to deal with it in a way that was motivating or inspiring for Black folks. Like Crash, H&F does not offer any solutions but neither did Do the Right Things or Boyz n the Hood. Hustle and Flow will never be a classic but I am glad I saw it.

<--- Blame this lady for Nutty.

  

Printer-friendly copy | Top

MikeLove
Charter member
13221 posts
Sat Sep-10-05 12:01 PM

Click to send private message to this authorClick to view this author's profileClick to add this author to your buddy list
22. "eh, i know people like djay"
In response to Reply # 0


  

          

young brutha in his 20's
that pimped white broads
and rapped while he did it
this cat saw his life on screen

these stories dont have to be telling the stories of the MASSES, right?
just one person's story




all these movies
diary of a mad black woman
hustle & flow
whatever
they speak to someone

shit, Ray spoke to ME & i aint blind, play piano, or do smack.

<----- The reason your team's players jump into the stands after a TD

  

Printer-friendly copy | Top

    
bignick
Charter member
24054 posts
Sat Sep-10-05 12:16 PM

Click to send private message to this authorClick to view this author's profileClick to add this author to your buddy list
23. "RE: eh, i know people like djay"
In response to Reply # 22


  

          

>these stories dont have to be telling the stories of the
>MASSES, right?
>just one person's story

she never said anything to the contrary. the problem is that Hollywood continues to produce movies for and about black America that present a one dimensional, sometimes cartoonish view of who we are. isn't it odd that with all the inspirational stories that one could tell about a black man from the inner city, white people latched on to the one the one that has a black man being a misogynist and a criminal...again.

>all these movies
>diary of a mad black woman
>hustle & flow
>whatever
>they speak to someone

sure they do, but that doesn't mean that she has to like them. just because a movie has black faces on the screen doesn't mean that they have to speak to all black people.

  

Printer-friendly copy | Top

        
MikeLove
Charter member
13221 posts
Sat Sep-10-05 01:48 PM

Click to send private message to this authorClick to view this author's profileClick to add this author to your buddy list
24. "RE: eh, i know people like djay"
In response to Reply # 23


  

          

isn't it odd that with all the
>inspirational stories that one could tell about a black man
>from the inner city, white people latched on to the one the
>one that has a black man being a misogynist and a
>criminal...again.

nah, she forget Ray. It won an oscar for Best Actor


<----- The reason your team's players jump into the stands after a TD

  

Printer-friendly copy | Top

            
bignick
Charter member
24054 posts
Sat Sep-10-05 02:04 PM

Click to send private message to this authorClick to view this author's profileClick to add this author to your buddy list
25. "RE: eh, i know people like djay"
In response to Reply # 24


  

          


>nah, she forget Ray. It won an oscar for Best Actor

she didn't forget about anything. this is an essay about Hustle & Flow. as for Ray, everyone knows that movies like that are the exception to the rule for black folks in Hollywood. that's why people were so excited about it.

  

Printer-friendly copy | Top

        
Basaglia
Member since Nov 30th 2004
49463 posts
Fri May-05-06 08:38 PM

Click to send email to this author Click to send private message to this authorClick to view this author's profileClick to add this author to your buddy list
53. "it wasn't FOR "black america"...it was for america...WE are america"
In response to Reply # 23


  

          

>>these stories dont have to be telling the stories of the
>>MASSES, right?
>>just one person's story
>
>she never said anything to the contrary. the problem is that
>Hollywood continues to produce movies for and about black
>America that present a one dimensional, sometimes cartoonish
>view of who we are.

fuck outta here with that. that trailer ran in arthouses and malls across this damn country. i saw it with a rack of white people at a pre-screening.

and why are you soooo fuckin afraid of a country ass bamma nigga with a damn perm misrepresenting who you are to white folks? this is where me and nigga like you differ. i give white folks the benefit of the doubt to KNOW BETTER. you scared ignant ass niggas gonna make it tougher for good ones like us, who work every fuckin day and keep our shit in order? fuck all that. we're passed that stage. i rep myself.

isn't it odd that with all the
>inspirational stories that one could tell about a black man
>from the inner city, white people latched on to the one the
>one that has a black man being a misogynist and a
>criminal...again.

and this is why hankyheads like kaplan need to go see and write about movies like akeelah and the bee and let white folks know that movies like those are interesting to talk about as well.

>>all these movies
>>diary of a mad black woman
>>hustle & flow
>>whatever
>>they speak to someone
>
>sure they do, but that doesn't mean that she has to like them.
> just because a movie has black faces on the screen doesn't
>mean that they have to speak to all black people.

conversely, just because a movie has black faces on the screen doesn't mean it has to speak FOR all black people.

____________________________________________________


Steph: I was just fooling about

Kyrie: I wasn't.


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R8OWNspU_yE

  

Printer-friendly copy | Top

            
bignick
Charter member
24054 posts
Sat May-06-06 05:36 PM

Click to send private message to this authorClick to view this author's profileClick to add this author to your buddy list
58. "RE: it wasn't FOR "black america"...it was for america...WE are america"
In response to Reply # 53


  

          



>and why are you soooo fuckin afraid of a country ass bamma
>nigga with a damn perm misrepresenting who you are to white
>folks?

i'm not afaid of some character in a movie misrepresenting me and i never suggested anything to that effect. in fact, i'm not AFRAID of anything to do with the movie. i'm just sick of seeing the same lame ass cliches being trotted out over and over again.

>this is where me and nigga like you differ. i give
>white folks the benefit of the doubt to KNOW BETTER.

i don't expect white people or anyone to think less of me because of Hustle & Flow. what people like you refuse to except is that there are black people out there who JUST DON'T WANT TO SEE THAT SHIT.

>and this is why hankyheads like kaplan need to go see and
>write about movies like akeelah and the bee and let white
>folks know that movies like those are interesting to talk
>about as well.

she's not a movie critic so she's not going to be writing about that many movies anyway. but she's written a ton of pieces that relate to the "black experience." so, if that's your concern, she's doing her part.

>conversely, just because a movie has black faces on the screen
>doesn't mean it has to speak FOR all black people.

agreed. and she never said that Hustle & Flow had to speak for all black people. all she did was write an essay expressing her misgivings about the movie.

  

Printer-friendly copy | Top

                
Basaglia
Member since Nov 30th 2004
49463 posts
Sun May-07-06 03:30 PM

Click to send email to this author Click to send private message to this authorClick to view this author's profileClick to add this author to your buddy list
62. "explain..."
In response to Reply # 58


  

          

I felt immediately charged with changing people’s minds; DJay and his crew were as far from my own daily life as possible, but that was still, unquestionably, supposed to be me up there on the screen


^^^^^that

do you agree with these feelings she's expressing here?

because this is the kind of mentality that i don't get from black folk like her. that movie was about a low-level memphis pimp who was disgusting with himself and his surroundings and finally decided to do aomething about it. now, what does he have to do with some hankyhead sista in cali?

non-blacks know better.

____________________________________________________


Steph: I was just fooling about

Kyrie: I wasn't.


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R8OWNspU_yE

  

Printer-friendly copy | Top

                    
bignick
Charter member
24054 posts
Sun May-07-06 10:59 PM

Click to send private message to this authorClick to view this author's profileClick to add this author to your buddy list
66. "re"
In response to Reply # 62


  

          

>I felt immediately charged with changing people’s minds; DJay
>and his crew were as far from my own daily life as possible,
>but that was still, unquestionably, supposed to be me up there
>on the screen
>
>
>^^^^^that
>
>do you agree with these feelings she's expressing here?

not exactly. but i understand the sentiment. there are so few representations of black people on the big screen, i don't think it's illogical to feel a twinge when something that you feel is a negative stereotype gets that much pub.

>because this is the kind of mentality that i don't get from
>black folk like her. that movie was about a low-level memphis
>pimp who was disgusting with himself and his surroundings and
>finally decided to do aomething about it. now, what does he
>have to do with some hankyhead sista in cali?

i can't speak for her, but i know there are a lot of people who feel like stories about black folks dealing drugs, pimping, rapping, etc have been done to death.

>non-blacks know better.

having spent a fair amount of my life in fly-over country...you're giving white people way too much credit.

  

Printer-friendly copy | Top

                
dandredger
Member since Nov 18th 2004
58 posts
Sun May-07-06 06:26 PM

Click to send private message to this authorClick to view this author's profileClick to add this author to your buddy list
64. "RE: it wasn't FOR "black america"...it was for america...WE are america"
In response to Reply # 58


          

DUDE, you haven't even seen the movie.

Get a card from Blockbuster or Hollywood Video or whatever tickles your sack and view the film FOR THE FIRST TIME, objectively.

Otherwise, shut the fuck up.

  

Printer-friendly copy | Top

                    
bignick
Charter member
24054 posts
Sun May-07-06 10:55 PM

Click to send private message to this authorClick to view this author's profileClick to add this author to your buddy list
65. "i have no interest in seeing a movie about a rapping pimp."
In response to Reply # 64


  

          


>Otherwise, shut the fuck up.

no.

  

Printer-friendly copy | Top

celery77
Member since Aug 04th 2005
25307 posts
Sat Sep-10-05 02:19 PM

Click to send email to this author Click to send private message to this authorClick to view this author's profileClick to add this author to your buddy list
26. "Good article. This quote stands out to me:"
In response to Reply # 0


  

          

>The comparison has been made before, but I’ll make it
>again: How is it that the Mafia, America’s über-criminals, get
>such empathetic film treatment — think Tony Soprano’s therapy
>sessions and Ray Liotta’s ruminating voice-overs in GoodFellas
>— and black criminals get squat? The only answer is that black
>criminality needs no explanation, just some celluloid to blow
>it up to 1,000 times its actual size.

It's been shown that films about criminals, the underworld, and despicable characters can still have some redemptive value and novel insight into our society, and especially the characters themselves. But generally when it's black criminals, even when they're the central characters they're still completely flat.

And it should be pointed out that while this author is accurately pointing out a problem in Hollywood, every argument here should be amplified x1000 times and repeated ad nauseum in regards to the current video game industry. Grand Theft Auto has started a toxic "real crime" trend that has resulted in lots of video games where the players control black thugs, running around killing, stealing, and having no reason or remorse for any of it. There's something like 4 or 5 titles that are basically just GTA -- only more hood-ified! coming out this Christmas. It's despicable. The rampant racism and sexism in the video game industry is largely ignored b/c liberals don't play the games, but I'd say video games have an almost equal effect on our culture as film nowadays.

Shit's depressing...

  

Printer-friendly copy | Top

k_orr
Charter member
80197 posts
Sat Sep-10-05 03:43 PM

Click to send private message to this authorClick to view this author's profileClick to add this author to your buddy listClick to send message via AOL IM
27. "she didn't watch the movie"
In response to Reply # 0


  

          


>Shug (the one who, under threat of pain, provides backup
>vocals for “Whoop That Trick”),

  

Printer-friendly copy | Top

    
ZooTown74
Member since May 29th 2002
43582 posts
Sat Sep-10-05 06:30 PM

Click to send email to this author Click to send private message to this authorClick to view this author's profileClick to add this author to your buddy list
28. "Shhh... she was too busy being offended for all black people"
In response to Reply # 27
Sat Sep-10-05 06:31 PM by ZooTown74

  

          

to notice any itty bitty details like that. I hope her hands don't hurt from all of that hard hand wringing.
___________________________________________________________________________________________
<---- errr-AH!


Brother's gonna work it out
Brother's gonna work it all out

  

Printer-friendly copy | Top

        
MikeLove
Charter member
13221 posts
Sat Sep-10-05 10:32 PM

Click to send private message to this authorClick to view this author's profileClick to add this author to your buddy list
32. "i laffed..."
In response to Reply # 28


  

          

I hope her hands
>don't hurt from all of that hard hand wringing.

<----- The reason your team's players jump into the stands after a TD

  

Printer-friendly copy | Top

            
ZooTown74
Member since May 29th 2002
43582 posts
Sat Sep-10-05 11:16 PM

Click to send email to this author Click to send private message to this authorClick to view this author's profileClick to add this author to your buddy list
34. "Hey, normally I ride for Erin Aubry Kaplan"
In response to Reply # 32
Sat Sep-10-05 11:22 PM by ZooTown74

  

          

(and her white husband... okay, maybe I shouldn't have mentioned that)

But if she knew, or thought she knew, what the movie was about, why did she even bother? Her mind was made up before she sat down, despite what she may have written to the contrary.

Wait, before anyone gets the bright idea to quote her in an effort to "refute my point," I'll do it for them:

>I was suspicious from the moment I read all the prerelease Hustle hype and saw the lurid billboards advertising the film, which blanketed South-Central like so many velvet paintings. Even so, I went hoping for the best; nobody has to convince me that Terrence Howard is a good actor. But 15 minutes into a showing of the film at the ArcLight Theater, I realized that not even Howard, as the movie’s pimp-rapper protagonist, DJay, could temper the fact that Hustle & Flow is bound to be the most despicable film of 2005.<

Actually, her writing actually proves my point for me. Wow, I'm pretty good.

And like I said, the movie was the second best movie of the summer, behind Batman.

Shit, now that I think about it, I may have seen the movie at the same time in the same theater she did. There were these two older black women who were talking about the movie as everyone was walking out. If I remember, one loved the film, said it was uplifting and showed that anyone has the right to a dream, no matter what they do (ding! ding! ding!), while the other just had her mind made up: "Well... I just thought it was... just terrible... just... ugh..."
___________________________________________________________________________________________
<---- errr-AH!


Brother's gonna work it out
Brother's gonna work it all out

  

Printer-friendly copy | Top

    
Dove
Charter member
32915 posts
Sun Sep-11-05 04:36 PM

Click to send email to this author Click to send private message to this authorClick to view this author's profileClick to add this author to your buddy list
36. "basically. lol"
In response to Reply # 27


  

          

  

Printer-friendly copy | Top

    
unohoo
Charter member
15278 posts
Fri May-05-06 09:29 AM

Click to send email to this author Click to send private message to this authorClick to view this author's profileClick to add this author to your buddy listClick to send message via AOL IM
43. "She saw what she wanted..."
In response to Reply # 27


          

...she probably wrote half of that before she saw one frame of the movie.

Only thing I agree with is her point about black pathology being marketed to the masses as normal.

--------------------

blah blah blah

  

Printer-friendly copy | Top

Torez
Charter member
19262 posts
Sat Sep-10-05 08:52 PM

Click to send email to this author Click to send private message to this authorClick to view this author's profileClick to add this author to your buddy listClick to send message via AOL IM
29. "at its core, its about pimps and hoes...."
In response to Reply # 0


  

          

its like black folks don't wanna accept that.
“The spirituality of which I speak in principle, I have never attained to.” (c) wesley

  

Printer-friendly copy | Top

    
Basaglia
Member since Nov 30th 2004
49463 posts
Fri May-05-06 08:17 PM

Click to send email to this author Click to send private message to this authorClick to view this author's profileClick to add this author to your buddy list
50. "right and the godfather is just about evil greaseballs"
In response to Reply # 29


  

          

____________________________________________________


Steph: I was just fooling about

Kyrie: I wasn't.


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R8OWNspU_yE

  

Printer-friendly copy | Top

Torez
Charter member
19262 posts
Sat Sep-10-05 08:56 PM

Click to send email to this author Click to send private message to this authorClick to view this author's profileClick to add this author to your buddy listClick to send message via AOL IM
30. "i mean, this statement exposes the writers huge bias..."
In response to Reply # 0


  

          

>>Elise Neal (as Key’s wife, Yevette) has easily the most thankless role — a soulless, sexless, screechy, head-swiveling sista-girl with perfect hair and nails who initially opposes her husband’s hanging out with a pimp and his whores — how unreasonable — but who finally stops denying her own blackness and realizes that she, too, can share in the dream of “Whoop That Trick.”<<<<

her reluctance never related to her blackness to me at all. it was the natural skepticism any wife would have to her husband hanging out in a houser full of hoes.

the writer has a complex, that's got him carrying glocks and tecks (c) chino xl
“The spirituality of which I speak in principle, I have never attained to.” (c) wesley

  

Printer-friendly copy | Top

soulsike
Member since Jul 20th 2002
2560 posts
Sat Sep-10-05 09:21 PM

Click to send private message to this authorClick to view this author's profileClick to add this author to your buddy list
31. "this is EXACTLY how I feel about this piece of shit film"
In response to Reply # 0


          

nm

  

Printer-friendly copy | Top

    
KCPlayer21
Charter member
30076 posts
Sat Sep-10-05 11:02 PM

Click to send private message to this authorClick to view this author's profileClick to add this author to your buddy list
33. "Tell us how you really feel....."
In response to Reply # 31


  

          


I'm a believer, tellin' you I really believe
I'm a believer, even though I've never seen
I'm a believer, look at my life and you will see
I'm a believer, how can you not believe?
- Mary Mary

  

Printer-friendly copy | Top

Dove
Charter member
32915 posts
Sun Sep-11-05 04:36 PM

Click to send email to this author Click to send private message to this authorClick to view this author's profileClick to add this author to your buddy list
35. "her mention of black vs. white gangsters"
In response to Reply # 0


  

          

how can she compare how Sopranos vs. images in Hustle & Flow?
Has she not seen Sugar Hill? Hoodlum? or even New Jack City for that matter? All had characters who were seemingly normal, productive citizens unless you knew what they actually did.

I think anytime a movie comes along with questionable images, people want to throw the baby out with the bathwater by condemning every film that's ever been made.

It's cool she didn't like the film, but it's too bad she didn't get any of the positive out of it.

David Banner's movement to Heal The Hood
Aid for the victims of Hurricane Katrina
www.healthehood.com

  

Printer-friendly copy | Top

    
soulsike
Member since Jul 20th 2002
2560 posts
Sun Sep-11-05 05:31 PM

Click to send private message to this authorClick to view this author's profileClick to add this author to your buddy list
38. "what positive? are you kidding me?"
In response to Reply # 35


          

nm

  

Printer-friendly copy | Top

    
bignick
Charter member
24054 posts
Tue Oct-04-05 04:29 PM

Click to send private message to this authorClick to view this author's profileClick to add this author to your buddy list
40. "are you high?"
In response to Reply # 35


  

          


>Has she not seen Sugar Hill? Hoodlum? or even New Jack City
>for that matter? All had characters who were seemingly normal,
>productive citizens unless you knew what they actually did.

yeah. if you hadn't seen Nino Brown running shit up in The Carter, you could easily mistake him for a NASCAR dad.

  

Printer-friendly copy | Top

cantball
Charter member
46630 posts
Sun Sep-11-05 04:38 PM

Click to send email to this author Click to send private message to this authorClick to view this author's profileClick to add this author to your buddy listClick to send message via AOL IM
37. "Nobody saw it"
In response to Reply # 0


  

          

it didn't matter
____________________
www.myspace.com/chamilton

Michael: George Michael, I’m sure that Egg is a very nice person. I just don’t want you spending all your money...

George Michael: Ann.

Michael: ... getting her all glittered up for Easter, you know?

  

Printer-friendly copy | Top

Buddy_Gilapagos
Charter member
49336 posts
Mon Sep-12-05 10:19 AM

Click to send email to this author Click to send private message to this authorClick to view this author's profileClick to add this author to your buddy list
39. "My Thoughts"
In response to Reply # 0


  

          

1. She is ashamed of this film. (You shouldn't have told me that she is married to a white man) It might not be fair to say, but I would guess she is ashamed of black people who live like this. You know the thought of watching this with her husband makes her skin crawl.

2. Her critic relies on oversimplification/reductionism. Anthony Anderson's character is not a hen pecked sellout. His wife's character was not a shrill, hysterical nag. She was right to be upset with her husband hanging with pimps n' hoes and the movie did not portray her unfavorably.

3. As annoyed as this critic is with H&F, I am annoyed by the slew of The Best Man's Love Jones for Brown Sugar in the Wood. The critic is right that most critics are incapable of reviewing black movies, but I feel that it is too often the case that they give passes to these shallow black romantic comedies where every one is beautiful and has great jobs, by saying at least it give "refreshing images" of black people. It was refreshing the first time out, by "Two Can Play That Game" had me jonesing for a movie about a memphis pimp instead of another black romantic comedy featuring Morris Chestnutt.

4. I personally hate when criticism is driven by moral imperatives especially at the sacrifice of realism. The truth is, there will probably be a slew of poorly made films about pimps and hoes and I will hate them like this critic. However, her sense of morality does not permit her to like any film about pimps and hoes that is not a morality tale. I think sense of morality is threatening to being a good critic.

**********

Reality check: according to the 2000 census, there were more than 31,000 black physicians and surgeons, 33,000 black lawyers. There are about 1,400 black athletes playing professional basketball, football and baseball combined.

  

Printer-friendly copy | Top

    
Leamas
Member since Dec 25th 2004
1851 posts
Tue Oct-04-05 06:34 PM

Click to send email to this author Click to send private message to this authorClick to view this author's profileClick to add this author to your buddy listClick to send message via AOL IM
41. "Thanks for saying that."
In response to Reply # 39


  

          

Pass the popcorn and leave the soapbox at home.


--------------------------------------------
It must be the Kung Pau chicken. George likes his chicken spicy.

  

Printer-friendly copy | Top

    
bignick
Charter member
24054 posts
Fri May-05-06 04:09 AM

Click to send private message to this authorClick to view this author's profileClick to add this author to your buddy list
42. "re"
In response to Reply # 39


  

          

>1. She is ashamed of this film. (You shouldn't have told me
>that she is married to a white man) It might not be fair to
>say, but I would guess she is ashamed of black people who live
>like this. You know the thought of watching this with her
>husband makes her skin crawl.

you're making 3 huge leaps about her as a person based on nothing more than her dislike of one movie. i don't think i have to say any more about that.

>3. As annoyed as this critic is with H&F, I am annoyed by the
>slew of The Best Man's Love Jones for Brown Sugar in the Wood.
>The critic is right that most critics are incapable of
>reviewing black movies, but I feel that it is too often the
>case that they give passes to these shallow black romantic
>comedies where every one is beautiful and has great jobs, by
>saying at least it give "refreshing images" of black people.

i couldn't agree more. my wife and i call those "anti-stereotype stereotypes." and those movies actually annoy me more because it allows white people to feel they're off the hook.

>It was refreshing the first time out, by "Two Can Play That
>Game" had me jonesing for a movie about a memphis pimp instead
>of another black romantic comedy featuring Morris Chestnutt.

where that logic breaks down is that we've seen WAAAAAY more black pimps at the movies than we have black romantic comedies.

>4. I personally hate when criticism is driven by moral
>imperatives especially at the sacrifice of realism. I think
>sense of morality is threatening to being a good critic.

see, i think that a lot of people really dislike or disagree with her as a critic, and then make unfair judgements on her as a person. it's like peole automatically discount the option that maybe she just thought it was an awful movie and immediately label her some self-hating sellout.

for the record, i didn't see it. it just didn't look interesting to me.





  

Printer-friendly copy | Top

    
Basaglia
Member since Nov 30th 2004
49463 posts
Fri May-05-06 08:11 PM

Click to send email to this author Click to send private message to this authorClick to view this author's profileClick to add this author to your buddy list
49. "married to a white man? see, i ain't even wanna say i was thinkin that"
In response to Reply # 39


  

          

people like this are becoming a fuckin parody of themselves.

____________________________________________________


Steph: I was just fooling about

Kyrie: I wasn't.


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R8OWNspU_yE

  

Printer-friendly copy | Top

theprofessional
Charter member
8761 posts
Fri May-05-06 03:51 PM

Click to send email to this author Click to send private message to this authorClick to view this author's profileClick to add this author to your buddy list
44. "I DON'T GIVE A FUCK WHAT YOU THINK, BITCH!!!"
In response to Reply # 0


  

          

YO THOUGHTS... YO THOUGHTS... YO THOUGHTS AIN'T MY THOUGHTS!!
BITCH, I'M FLOWIN' STRAIGHT FROM THE SURVIVAL SCROLLS!!!

CUT THAT BITCH OFF!!!!

"i smack clowns with nouns, punch herbs with verbs..."

  

Printer-friendly copy | Top

theprofessional
Charter member
8761 posts
Fri May-05-06 04:20 PM

Click to send email to this author Click to send private message to this authorClick to view this author's profileClick to add this author to your buddy list
45. "she would make the worst producer in hollywood"
In response to Reply # 0


  

          

cause this movie right here...

>In the course of his
>conversation with X, the screenwriter revealed a compelling
>story of his own — that of a college graduate who had overcome
>hardships of all kinds to get an education and eventually
>break into the business.

...would make about twelve dollars at the box office.

as for her beef with hustle and flow, what's really harmful to black films is people like her who demand that every black character in every movie is a fair representation of all black people. if every black movie that opens is greeted with a crowd of black folks complaining that the characters are too poor or too rich or too violent or too sanitized, eventually hollywood is gonna stop making black films, or at least stop making challenging ones.

the truth is, A LOT of black people suffer a similar standard of living to the characters in hustle and flow... too many. so is it really that despicable to tell their story in a measured and thoughtful film, or would she rather we ignore them completely and hope some hurricane takes care of that problem for us?

personally, i was surprised at how exploitative hustle and flow WASN'T. nothing about djay's lifestyle was glorified-- even he hated what he saw in the mirror-- except his passion for pursuing his dream, a passion that spread to every other character in the movie. i'll say it again, the DREAM and the PASSION is what's glorified in hustle and flow, not the lifestyle. yeah, the dream happened to be rapper, but in reality for MANY poor black folks, rapper is one of maybe four attractive options they see themselves presented with.

i thought hustle and flow was one of the best films of 2005, black or otherwise, and it's a real shame that so many people's kneejerk reaction to any film with poor black folks in it is to cry exploitation. it's just a way to avoid facing the issues head-on. it'd be just like someone saying that all those poor black folks on TV in the aftermath of katrina were a product of exploitation by the white media, as opposed to facing reality and saying, "holy shit, there's a LOT of poor black folks in america. maybe we should do something about it."

"i smack clowns with nouns, punch herbs with verbs..."

  

Printer-friendly copy | Top

    
ZooTown74
Member since May 29th 2002
43582 posts
Fri May-05-06 07:21 PM

Click to send email to this author Click to send private message to this authorClick to view this author's profileClick to add this author to your buddy list
47. "I couldn't have said this better myself. My brother."
In response to Reply # 45
Fri May-05-06 07:23 PM by ZooTown74

  

          

>personally, i was surprised at how exploitative hustle and
>flow WASN'T. nothing about djay's lifestyle was glorified--
>even he hated what he saw in the mirror-- except his passion
>for pursuing his dream, a passion that spread to every other
>character in the movie. i'll say it again, the DREAM and the
>PASSION is what's glorified in hustle and flow, not the
>lifestyle. yeah, the dream happened to be rapper, but in
>reality for MANY poor black folks, rapper is one of maybe four
>attractive options they see themselves presented with.
>
>i thought hustle and flow was one of the best films of 2005,
>black or otherwise, and it's a real shame that so many
>people's kneejerk reaction to any film with poor black folks
>in it is to cry exploitation.

I cannot tell you how many people I talked to had who an objection to the "content" of the film, and hadn't even seen it. They just knew that it was "about a pimp." And the sad fact is that these are creative folk who would really have related to DJay's story had they just given the movie a chance. They like to create but are stuck in dead-end jobs so they feel trapped -- just like DJay. But because he's a pimp that makes it a no-no. I mean, how DARE a pimp, of all people in "our community," have a dream.
________________________________________________________________________________________
Hey there
Lay there
Won't you take me home?
I'll write your name in a song

  

Printer-friendly copy | Top

        
theprofessional
Charter member
8761 posts
Sat May-06-06 04:35 PM

Click to send email to this author Click to send private message to this authorClick to view this author's profileClick to add this author to your buddy list
57. "exactly!"
In response to Reply # 47


  

          

>>I mean, how DARE a pimp, of all people
>in "our community," have a dream.

"i smack clowns with nouns, punch herbs with verbs..."

  

Printer-friendly copy | Top

Zesi
Charter member
24062 posts
Fri May-05-06 07:11 PM

Click to send email to this author Click to send private message to this authorClick to view this author's profileClick to add this author to your buddy list
46. "it's very much a matter of access"
In response to Reply # 0


  

          

i think
the definitive opinion on hustle and flow
will be 5 to 10 years from now


like how we now realize what a shit film titanic was
maybe hustle and flow is good
maybe it isnt


what it definitely isn't at this very moment is The Definitive Black Experience (tm).

and when you make a picture like this, you've got to be ready for some backlash.

because we aren't well represented in film.
what were the other "black" films of last year?
hell, what black films are there this year (oh, akeelah and the bee. um. well, even though the year is practically half over, maybe we'll get another!) of course i could be missing some films. i'm sure you'll let me know what i missed.

oh madea, and that preaching movie.
i'm tingling from my fine cinematic options.

and because we aren't well represented and white people generally don't care to know the onion layers of the black experience, there are some really foolish people making judgements on you and me from that movie. and that pisses me off.


  

Printer-friendly copy | Top

Basaglia
Member since Nov 30th 2004
49463 posts
Fri May-05-06 08:07 PM

Click to send email to this author Click to send private message to this authorClick to view this author's profileClick to add this author to your buddy list
48. "Her hyperbolic premise renders her entire argument useless"
In response to Reply # 0
Fri May-05-06 08:10 PM by Basaglia

  

          

<< “black enough” still means blackness approved by a predominantly white mainstream culture.>>

absolutely false. in fact, it's a fucking stupid statement. degrees of blackness are judged by the black community. destiny child don't want a "soldier" because that's what they're reading in cosmo and allure. fuck outta here. blacks follow blacks. whites follow blacks following blacks. that's american pop-culture. always has been.

<<like My Big Fat Greek Wedding,>>

and this is the problem i have with fuckin uppity boho hankyhead santimonious fuckin negroes. every fuckin ethnicity can indulge and celebrate their fucking stereotype except "NIGGERS"!!! i'm fucking sick of this shit. i think it's fuckin beautiful how niggas curse and laugh and bullshit amongst themselves. there's nothing better than seeing a white person take in the sight of black family being "BLACK!!!" and having the dumb ass look of wonder, like the life they're living is fucking BORING. yeah, isn't it great how italians and greeks and jews can be loud and crass and fuck and people call it "enjoying life" but when niggas do it it's an unpardonable sin? it's disgusting and i wish black folk would stop apologizing.

fuck her.

and before someone throws about a pathetic ass red herring about me endorsing niggas shooting each other and kids fuckin up in school as black culture, go blow yourself.

____________________________________________________


Steph: I was just fooling about

Kyrie: I wasn't.


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R8OWNspU_yE

  

Printer-friendly copy | Top

Basaglia
Member since Nov 30th 2004
49463 posts
Fri May-05-06 08:19 PM

Click to send email to this author Click to send private message to this authorClick to view this author's profileClick to add this author to your buddy list
51. "when she writes about Akeelah and the Bee, do holla"
In response to Reply # 0


  

          

nm

____________________________________________________


Steph: I was just fooling about

Kyrie: I wasn't.


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R8OWNspU_yE

  

Printer-friendly copy | Top

Basaglia
Member since Nov 30th 2004
49463 posts
Fri May-05-06 08:25 PM

Click to send email to this author Click to send private message to this authorClick to view this author's profileClick to add this author to your buddy list
52. "and this bitch tried to cyse fucking Rusty Cundieff!!!! i'mma convulse!"
In response to Reply # 0


  

          

that muhfucka wrote sprung and fear of a black hat.

not only were they bad movies, but they were coon-worthy. and not the good kinda cooning either. it was the kind that falls flat, like some shit malcolm jamal warner would write.

that chick lost. nick, stop tryna push her dumb ass arguments.

____________________________________________________


Steph: I was just fooling about

Kyrie: I wasn't.


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R8OWNspU_yE

  

Printer-friendly copy | Top

multsanta
Charter member
864 posts
Fri May-05-06 10:37 PM

Click to send email to this author Click to send private message to this authorClick to view this author's profileClick to add this author to your buddy list
54. ""
In response to Reply # 0


          

>skewered such tropes so brilliantly in Malibu’s Most Wanted

i stopped reading after this sentence.

  

Printer-friendly copy | Top

    
multsanta
Charter member
864 posts
Fri May-05-06 11:18 PM

Click to send email to this author Click to send private message to this authorClick to view this author's profileClick to add this author to your buddy list
56. ""
In response to Reply # 54


          

although i do agree with some of what this writer is saying...

  

Printer-friendly copy | Top

jahlove7
Charter member
10743 posts
Fri May-05-06 11:14 PM

Click to send email to this author Click to send private message to this authorClick to view this author's profileClick to add this author to your buddy listClick to send message via AOL IM
55. "hustle & flow is a blaxploitation flick, nothing more"
In response to Reply # 0


  

          

some of you are being hoodwinked and don't even realize it. i agree with the writer. imo, she's not coming off as some uppity negroe, but as someone that understands the game hollywood plays with creating films about us that are nothing more than stereotypes and caricatures that are supposed to reflect 90% of the black experience. "h&f" does NOTHING to detract from that game hollywood plays. the writer is white, the characters lack any kind of depth or development, it's simple modern day stepin' fetchit cinema, dirty south style. "hustle.." was made to appease the black crowd that gets off on emotions and not intelligence while schooling the white audience about the "authentic" black experience in the hood. that's bullshit, but most of you cats buy into it, not understanding that MOST of our cinema is based on stereotypes. the difference with this flick is that it was done at a slower pace, which gives it a different feel and makes the audience think they're seeing something that they actually aren't.

these days, i cringe at my black movie choices. it's either the anti-stereotype, "deliver us from eva" flicks, or bullshit movies like this one. it never ceases to amaze me how we can't see more films of substance like "eve's bayou". and before most people say a flick like "eve's..." wouldn't do well at the box office, how do you really know if it's never even given a chance?

inaugural member - okayplayer sports hall of fame.


what i'm digging right now:

chocolate butterfly - self-titled
laura jane - welcome to my planet boo
me & this japanese guy - waiting for the miracle
wade3 - dreams
tracey amos - who are we really?

  

Printer-friendly copy | Top

    
Calico
Charter member
24604 posts
Sat May-06-06 05:42 PM

Click to send email to this author Click to send private message to this authorClick to view this author's profileClick to add this author to your buddy listClick to send message via AOL IM
59. "RE: hustle & flow is a blaxploitation flick, nothing more"
In response to Reply # 55


  

          

>some of you are being hoodwinked and don't even realize it.
>i agree with the writer. imo, she's not coming off as some
>uppity negroe, but as someone that understands the game
>hollywood plays with creating films about us that are nothing
>more than stereotypes and caricatures that are supposed to
>reflect 90% of the black experience.

in NO way, shape or form does the film imply that it's a reflection of the black experience...in fact, peolpe need to stop thinking that every movie that stars black folks is supposed to represent the race itself, or has any notions of doin such...motherfuckers don't watch MI3 or RV and think "well that's how white people live"


"h&f" does NOTHING to
>detract from that game hollywood plays. the writer is white,
>the characters lack any kind of depth or development, it's
>simple modern day stepin' fetchit cinema, dirty south style.
>"hustle.." was made to appease the black crowd that gets off
>on emotions and not intelligence while schooling the white
>audience about the "authentic" black experience in the hood.
>that's bullshit, but most of you cats buy into it, not
>understanding that MOST of our cinema is based on stereotypes.
> the difference with this flick is that it was done at a
>slower pace, which gives it a different feel and makes the
>audience think they're seeing something that they actually
>aren't.
>
you reachin....it's about a dude wit a dream and how that dream affects him and the people around him...THAT'S NOT SUPPOSED TO BE DEEP....niggas goin to see H&F and expectin to see Roots are some non comprehensive folks...and what movies do ANYTHING to detract from the hollywood game?? every once and a while a few ar made, but the key is FEW...where do see "stepin' fetchit" ?? niggas grow up watching fuckin knight rider and act like they were watching amos n andy...go sit down....and i HOPE you're not sayin that films like Menace and Boyz are better cause they were made by black guys and therefore better represent "the experience"...if so...i'm sorry your brain works like that...and most hollywood is based on one strereotype or another, so you might wanna recognize game before pointin fingers

>these days, i cringe at my black movie choices. it's either
>the anti-stereotype, "deliver us from eva" flicks, or bullshit
>movies like this one. it never ceases to amaze me how we
>can't see more films of substance like "eve's bayou". and
>before most people say a flick like "eve's..." wouldn't do
>well at the box office, how do you really know if it's never
>even given a chance?

i hear you on this part, there should be more choices, but the studios don't think stuff like "eve's" will make money and only an good indie film will ever prove them wrong...

"yes, sometimes my rhymes are sexist, but you lovely bitches and hos should know i'm tryin to correct it"- hiphopopotamus

  

Printer-friendly copy | Top

        
jahlove7
Charter member
10743 posts
Sun May-07-06 01:41 AM

Click to send email to this author Click to send private message to this authorClick to view this author's profileClick to add this author to your buddy listClick to send message via AOL IM
60. "RE: hustle & flow is a blaxploitation flick, nothing more"
In response to Reply # 59


  

          

>in NO way, shape or form does the film imply that it's a
>reflection of the black experience...in fact, peolpe need to
>stop thinking that every movie that stars black folks is
>supposed to represent the race itself, or has any notions of
>doin such...motherfuckers don't watch MI3 or RV and think
>"well that's how white people live"

that's bullshit. the writer himself said he was trying to portray black life in its true form, so you're waaaay off base on this one. and while i don't expect every flick that has black people in it to represent the race, i don't expect every black flick to be a motion picture stereotype either. it could be me, but that' the way i roll.
>
>you reachin....it's about a dude wit a dream and how that
>dream affects him and the people around him...THAT'S NOT
>SUPPOSED TO BE DEEP....niggas goin to see H&F and expectin to
>see Roots are some non comprehensive folks...and what movies
>do ANYTHING to detract from the hollywood game??

don't even try to insult my intelligence with the roots line. that pretty much lets me know where your head is at. and what the fuck are you talking about? are you insinuating that EVERY flick ever made plays into the hollywood game? how many movies have you actually seen? obviously not many to come with that line...

every once
>and a while a few ar made, but the key is FEW...where do see
>"stepin' fetchit" ?? niggas grow up watching fuckin knight
>rider and act like they were watching amos n andy...go sit
>down....and i HOPE you're not sayin that films like Menace and
>Boyz are better cause they were made by black guys and
>therefore better represent "the experience"...if so...i'm
>sorry your brain works like that...and most hollywood is based
>on one strereotype or another, so you might wanna recognize
>game before pointin fingers

uh-oh, do i sense contradiction? figures...and where the fuck does the nightrider/amos-n-andy comparison come from? did you have tv when you were kid? and sense you're talking it there, both "menace and boyz" were more fully developed hood flicks. and the black writing played a large part in that. lol at you for defending some what cat who made caricatures out of black people. like i said, i know where you head is at on this one...and you're telling me i might wanna recognize game? ha!ha!ha!
>
>i hear you on this part, there should be more choices, but the
>studios don't think stuff like "eve's" will make money and
>only an good indie film will ever prove them wrong...

that too is bullshit. black flicks that go beyond the hood or the i'm-the-too-rich-negro joints don't get the love because the brass in hollywood don't feel that it relates to the reality of black life, nothing more. granted, we have a long way to go in cinema, but we've been down this road before with flicks in the tradition of "eve's bayou"...and they were all pretty damn successful at the box office.

inaugural member - okayplayer sports hall of fame.


what i'm digging right now:

chocolate butterfly - self-titled
laura jane - welcome to my planet boo
me & this japanese guy - waiting for the miracle
wade3 - dreams
tracey amos - who are we really?

  

Printer-friendly copy | Top

            
Calico
Charter member
24604 posts
Sun May-07-06 06:07 PM

Click to send email to this author Click to send private message to this authorClick to view this author's profileClick to add this author to your buddy listClick to send message via AOL IM
63. "RE: hustle & flow is a blaxploitation flick, nothing more"
In response to Reply # 60


  

          

>>in NO way, shape or form does the film imply that it's a
>>reflection of the black experience...in fact, peolpe need to
>>stop thinking that every movie that stars black folks is
>>supposed to represent the race itself, or has any notions of
>>doin such...motherfuckers don't watch MI3 or RV and think
>>"well that's how white people live"
>
>that's bullshit. the writer himself said he was trying to
>portray black life in its true form, so you're waaaay off base
>on this one. and while i don't expect every flick that has
>black people in it to represent the race, i don't expect every
>black flick to be a motion picture stereotype either. it
>could be me, but that' the way i roll.
>>

the film only really delved into the lives of two black households...one was a pimp's and the other was a guy wanting to help a pimp out....i didn't think brewer would actually try to say these two household's represented anything involved wit "black life"...it surely didn't come across that way on screen to..but hey i didn't know that was his intention...but name these films, black or white, that don't have stereotypes?? i'm not saying it's a good thing, but i AM saying it's a commom practice that many movies are about the same old shit...




>>you reachin....it's about a dude wit a dream and how that
>>dream affects him and the people around him...THAT'S NOT
>>SUPPOSED TO BE DEEP....niggas goin to see H&F and expectin
>to
>>see Roots are some non comprehensive folks...and what movies
>>do ANYTHING to detract from the hollywood game??
>
>don't even try to insult my intelligence with the roots line.
>that pretty much lets me know where your head is at. and what
>the fuck are you talking about? are you insinuating that
>EVERY flick ever made plays into the hollywood game? how many
>movies have you actually seen? obviously not many to come
>with that line...
>
so...you have no respone to THE FACT that movies FROM hollywood of course end up playin to hollywood game..you'd rather throw insults...ok..

>every once
>>and a while a few ar made, but the key is FEW...where do see
>>"stepin' fetchit" ?? niggas grow up watching fuckin knight
>>rider and act like they were watching amos n andy...go sit
>>down....and i HOPE you're not sayin that films like Menace
>and
>>Boyz are better cause they were made by black guys and
>>therefore better represent "the experience"...if so...i'm
>>sorry your brain works like that...and most hollywood is
>based
>>on one strereotype or another, so you might wanna recognize
>>game before pointin fingers
>
>uh-oh, do i sense contradiction? figures...and where the fuck
>does the nightrider/amos-n-andy comparison come from? did you
>have tv when you were kid? and sense you're talking it there,
>both "menace and boyz" were more fully developed hood flicks.
>and the black writing played a large part in that. lol at you
>for defending some what cat who made caricatures out of black
>people. like i said, i know where you head is at on this
>one...and you're telling me i might wanna recognize game?
>ha!ha!ha!
>>
"more fully developed hood flicks"...is that an oxymoron?? still throwin insults...no real anwers...are you sayin gthat many of the characters in those other hood movies made by black folks AREN'T caricatures?? your ruining your own points homie...

>>i hear you on this part, there should be more choices, but
>the
>>studios don't think stuff like "eve's" will make money and
>>only an good indie film will ever prove them wrong...
>
>that too is bullshit. black flicks that go beyond the hood or
>the i'm-the-too-rich-negro joints don't get the love because
>the brass in hollywood don't feel that it relates to the
>reality of black life, nothing more. granted, we have a long
>way to go in cinema, but we've been down this road before with
>flicks in the tradition of "eve's bayou"...and they were all
>pretty damn successful at the box office.

i musta missed something, cause all i know is at the end of the day hollywood wants to make money...if they think they can make loot from stuff like "eve's" (i NEVER heard it making alotta money at the box office, but..whatever) they would make it...it's not THAT serious...if they didn't wanna make serious black movies at all they wouldn't let the biopics thru the gate, cause they are the most serious black realted thing hollywood works wit...biopics bring in alotta money, and the ones about black folks will course involve "the black experience", so i'm not understanding why you think hollywood even cares about "black life"..they simply don't think more serious, non biopic movies will make money..and they are wrong...

"yes, sometimes my rhymes are sexist, but you lovely bitches and hos should know i'm tryin to correct it"- hiphopopotamus

  

Printer-friendly copy | Top

                
jahlove7
Charter member
10743 posts
Mon May-08-06 12:25 AM

Click to send email to this author Click to send private message to this authorClick to view this author's profileClick to add this author to your buddy listClick to send message via AOL IM
67. "RE: hustle & flow is a blaxploitation flick, nothing more"
In response to Reply # 63


  

          

>the film only really delved into the lives of two black
>households...one was a pimp's and the other was a guy wanting
>to help a pimp out....i didn't think brewer would actually try
>to say these two household's represented anything involved wit
>"black life"...it surely didn't come across that way on screen
>to..but hey i didn't know that was his intention...but name
>these films, black or white, that don't have stereotypes?? i'm
>not saying it's a good thing, but i AM saying it's a commom
>practice that many movies are about the same old shit...

you REALLY need to read brewer's comments. most of the films that are based on stereotypes involve people of color; even the white flicks. most white films devoid of people color are more about fantasy, not stereotypes. and if anything, name the white films that don't have people of color that are full of stereotypes.
>
>so...you have no respone to THE FACT that movies FROM
>hollywood of course end up playin to hollywood game..you'd
>rather throw insults...ok..

dude, you're beating a dead horse. i've already said that most films involving people of color are nothing but stereotypes most of the times. it's always been that way, and until we make changes ourselves, will probably always be that way.
>
>"more fully developed hood flicks"...is that an oxymoron??
>still throwin insults...no real anwers...are you sayin gthat
>many of the characters in those other hood movies made by
>black folks AREN'T caricatures?? your ruining your own points
>homie...

dude please...you're playing yourself. "menace..." was loosely based on a scorcese flick. "good fellas" is a (white) hood flick, as is "casino" and even "raging bull". the fact is, just because a film is a hood movie doesn't mean it can't have characters that are developed. that wasn't the case with "hustle..." now was it?
>
>i musta missed something, cause all i know is at the end of
>the day hollywood wants to make money...if they think they can
>make loot from stuff like "eve's" (i NEVER heard it making
>alotta money at the box office, but..whatever) they would make
>it...it's not THAT serious...if they didn't wanna make serious
>black movies at all they wouldn't let the biopics thru the
>gate, cause they are the most serious black realted thing
>hollywood works wit...biopics bring in alotta money, and the
>ones about black folks will course involve "the black
>experience", so i'm not understanding why you think hollywood
>even cares about "black life"..they simply don't think more
>serious, non biopic movies will make money..and they are
>wrong...

i never said "eve's..." made a lot of money at the box office. what i said was that "eve's..." is in the tradition of black films of the past (jd's revenge, the educatio of sonny carson, cotton comes to harlem, five on the black hand side, uptown saturday night/let's do it again, and even car wash) that did well at the box office despite not being known as ghetto/hood flicks. the difference is that hollywood was more accepting in promoting those movies and the mindset of the black audience was open to checking for such films.

inaugural member - okayplayer sports hall of fame.


what i'm digging right now:

chocolate butterfly - self-titled
laura jane - welcome to my planet boo
me & this japanese guy - waiting for the miracle
wade3 - dreams
tracey amos - who are we really?

  

Printer-friendly copy | Top

                    
Calico
Charter member
24604 posts
Mon May-08-06 07:56 PM

Click to send email to this author Click to send private message to this authorClick to view this author's profileClick to add this author to your buddy listClick to send message via AOL IM
68. "uh huh..."
In response to Reply # 67


  

          

well agree to disagree cause this convo is just goin in circles...but i'm sure we can both agre on the fact that H&F isn't a great movie and black cinema could be alot better...

"yes, sometimes my rhymes are sexist, but you lovely bitches and hos should know i'm tryin to correct it"- hiphopopotamus

  

Printer-friendly copy | Top

                        
jahlove7
Charter member
10743 posts
Tue May-09-06 01:39 AM

Click to send email to this author Click to send private message to this authorClick to view this author's profileClick to add this author to your buddy listClick to send message via AOL IM
69. "RE: uh huh..."
In response to Reply # 68


  

          

>well agree to disagree cause this convo is just goin in
>circles...

we can agree to disagree. it doesn't mean either one of us is wrong, we just have different opinions...

but i'm sure we can both agre on the fact that H&F
>isn't a great movie and black cinema could be alot better...

most definately on both counts...

inaugural member - okayplayer sports hall of fame.


what i'm digging right now:

chocolate butterfly - self-titled
laura jane - welcome to my planet boo
me & this japanese guy - waiting for the miracle
wade3 - dreams
tracey amos - who are we really?

  

Printer-friendly copy | Top

kayru99
Member since Jan 26th 2004
16105 posts
Sun May-07-06 11:32 AM

Click to send email to this author Click to send private message to this authorClick to view this author's profileClick to add this author to your buddy list
61. "AKA: why come all movies about black people gotta be"
In response to Reply # 0


          

crime dramas or comedies?

Malibu's most wanted was some offensive bullshit, tho. Hustle and flow was just to qoute a friend "Hollywood's Nigger Rocky movie".

  

Printer-friendly copy | Top

Lobby Pass The Popcorn Pass The Popcorn Archives topic #49236 Previous topic | Next topic
Powered by DCForum+ Version 1.25
Copyright © DCScripts.com