Review: Hustle & Flow

Rated R | 116 mins

IMDB Info

Watch the first scene in Craig Brewer’s Hustle & Flow, a monologue by the now seemingly unstoppable Terrence Howard, and tell me that the actor isn’t a star. I had noticed Howard in previous movies—he was terrific in everything from the important Crash to the fun-and-games Big Momma’s House—but not ever like I did in this movie. He portrays his character, DJay, a Memphis Pimp who recognizes his dream to become a rapper, in a way that completely defies the concept of acting itself. Howard takes to the coldness of his character’s immoral business but never ceases to realize his potential to overcome it and his rough surroundings. In fact, as a testament to the power of his work, I would rank a scene in which DJay and his crew, formed by Anthony Anderson’s Key and D.J. Qualls’ Shelby, compose their first song, “Whoop That Trick”, as one of the best of the year. As Shelby frantically hits buttons on his mixing-board to allow the bass and high-hat of the song to kick in and Key sits back and realizes a star in the making, DJay begins to read the rhyme that he has written on a pad of paper, and we, the audience, become lost in the moment. The core of Howard’s performance, encompassed by the music, is unleashed, expressing simultaneously both his character’s angst and exuberance. Even when the movie falls for conventional ghetto-life-exploitation (this is a John Singleton Production, after all), and indulges too much in scenes featuring rap-star Skinny Black, Howard’s performance remains consistently amazing. Without him, Hustle & Flow may have come across as trite and clichéd—perhaps if one was to read Brewer’s script on paper, it would seem this way—but, as a finished product, it is a fully alive and noteworthy achievement in filmmaking. With any luck, Howard will be nominated for an Oscar.