Hustle & Flow

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Terrence Howard earned a well deserved Oscar nomination for his performance in Craig Brewer´s hip-hop drama "Hustle & Flow" and the film pulled home an unlikely Oscar for Best Achievement in Music written for Motion Pictures for an Original Song for the tune "It´s Hard Out Here for a Pimp." Against Kathleen York and Michael Becker´s song "In the Deep" from "Crash" and Dolly Parton´s "Travelin´ Thru" from "Transamerica," a rap song about a pimp seemed the least likely to earn a victory on Academy Awards night. Howard, on the other hand, earned kudos for his performance in "Crash" and also for his supporting role in "Four Brothers." The very busy actor didn´t pull home a gold statue in 2005, but certainly has the talent for a victory in another year.

Set in Memphis, Tennessee, "Hustle & Flow" is a solid film from director Craig Brewer; a man with a definite passion towards music. Terrence Howard stars as Djay, a pimp who has looked back on his life and realized he has done nothing but deal weed and pimp whores. Djay is determined to do something with his life and his passion for hip-hop music leads him into assembling a team comprised of his friend Key (Anthony Anderson) and a white church pianist Shelby (D.J. Qualls). With some of his prostitutes providing backing vocals, the unlikely trio of a clean cut family man, skinny white guy and bona-fide pimp work hard to lay down tracks and create a demo tape that will allow Djay to follow in the footsteps of another local thug turned superstar, Skinny Black (Ludacris). A local bartender, Arnel (Isaac Hayes of "Shaft" fame), has arranged a meeting between Djay and Skinny Black. Skinny is typically unhappy with the quality of weed he gets and Arnel has backed Djay´s quality of product and arranged for Djay to supply Skinny Black with high quality hydroponics during a hometown visit by the successful rapper.

The world of hip-hop and gangster rap is filled with stories of drug dealers who have become successful rappers in the entertainment world. From the early days of pioneers like Eric "Eazy-E" Wright to modern artists such as The Game and 50 Cent, rap is filled with bad boys who have used their purported gangsta beginnings to write hardcore and personal songs about the violence and hard times associated with growing up in the hood. "Hustle & Flow" is a film that uses these themes and along with the powerful performance of Terrence Howard and the strong writing and direction by Craig Brewer, "Hustle & Flow" paints a believable picture of a man who gets by as a pimp and drug dealer, but destines to make a living as a rapper and get out of the seedy underworld life. Though he doesn´t treat his girls with much respect and little tenderness, Djay cares for those around him and deep down, he is a man with a heart and with feelings; all of which can be heard through his hard-hitting flow.

The supporting cast of "Hustle & Flow" did not get the attention and accolades that Terrence Howard received, but they are all quite entertaining in this little film. The big man, Anthony Anderson, is a warm individual who has separated himself from growing up with Djay and life on the streets and found himself a nice house, loving wife and a respectable life. When Djay pays him a visit and asks for his help, Key sees the potential in Djay´s rhymes and offers to help cut a tape. The unlikely scene-stealer of the film is DJ Qualls, the skinny, white and nerdy boy from "Road Trip." In this film, he plays the white musical genius who loves rap music and understands where it comes from and what true rap music should be. His "Can we all get along and just smoke some weed?" demeanor brings a lighthearted and multi-cultural appeal to "Hustle & Flow." Hearing him sing the hook for "It´s Hard Out Here for a Pimp" was downright hilarious, but believable in its honesty. Taryn Manning and Taraji P. Henson are the two ladies who portray two of the last whores pimped out by Djay and both are great in their roles.

I love rap music. I always have. From my high school days of growing up in white suburbia and listening to Eazy-E, N.W.A., Slick Rick, Luke Skyywalker, Schooly D and other early rap acts, I´ve followed rap music from its beginnings and seen the form of music gain mainstream acceptance and the stories of past dealers-turned-rappers succeed and fail. I´ve seen Eazy-E and the other members of N.W.A., including Ice Cube and Dr. Dre, rise to the top of the charts and I´ve seen laughing stocks like Vanilla Ice fail miserably with his made up stories of growing up with 2 Live Crew´s Luke Skyywalker. Having paid close attention to the stories of so many rappers, "Hustle & Flow" felt legit. Terence Howard´s ´flow´ sounds like a song that has a chance to make the charts and achieve radio airplay and the lyrics of his songs were not far from many songs that have appeared on so many albums over the years. It isn´t the hard edged lyrics from "Straight Outta Compton" or the debut album from "The Geto Boys," but it has a Tupac Shakur (post Digital Underground 2-Pac) feeling to it.

"Hustle & Flow" is a film that may not appeal to those that have a bias against rap. It can certainly find its audience, much in the way Eminem found an audience with his semi-biographical film "8 Mile." The film´s director, a white man with a love of Elvis Presley, Memphis blues and other forms of music created another musical delight with "Black Snake Moan," but perhaps his being a white man making a black man´s music has allowed "Hustle & Flow" to have a more universal appeal to it. Backed by veteran director John Singleton, who made the incredible "Boyz in the Hood," the film had a solid cast of filmmakers. The film was dedicated to the late Sam Phillips, the man responsible for discovering a young man named Elvis Aaron Presley. Phillips´ life was the inspiration for the film and set to the modern stories of poor African-American males who have emerged from the wretched ghettos of the world to become chart-toppers, the film is a great depiction of a fictional person making a rise from thug to star.

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