Hit & Miss: Rap Movies

From Eminem's critically acclaimed performance in 8 Mile, to Snoop's starring role in possibly one of the worst films ever made, Haz looks at the Hits & Misses of Rap Movies. Brace yourselves...

Words Andrew Hickey

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HIT: 8 MILE A scrappy, determined kid from a poor neighbourhood who will do anything to achieve his goal. What’s not to like? The fact that he was Caucasian didn’t hurt either. This rags-to-riches tale had similarities to other inspiring biopics, yet it still didn’t compromise on the hip-hop side, especially with the authentic rap battle scenes. Em’s success however was a gift and a curse as every rapper with a bit of money and some coke residue on their fingertips thought their story was worth telling. Music videos and 90-minute movies are two different things and just because you know cellulite doesn’t mean you know celluloid.

MISS: DISORDERLIES In the ‘80s a lot of cultural sins were committed. In 1987 the taste du jour was brain cell reducing slapstick movies like Police Academy. At the same time one of hip-hop’s biggest, and we do mean biggest, groups was the Fat Boys. With that Hollywood’s geniuses got to work. The result was Disorderlies, a broad, simplistic comedy about three bumbling obese guys working in a nursing home, who also happen to be really talented at rapping and beatboxing. The format gave the brilliant scriptwriters the chance to explore diverse topics like toilet humour, comedic overeating and cultural/racial differences. It also set the stage for Vanilla Ice’s schizophrenic epic Cool As Ice.

HIT: WILD STYLE One of the cornerstones of documented hip-hop culture Wild Style came at a time when hip-hop was gaining ground but was yet to break through. While Rapper’s Delight and other classic anthems had already been released the elements of hip-hop still remained on even footing and the music was yet to become the dominant force. A cross between documentary and fiction, the film carries an intense authenticity even today. Directed by a New York native, Charlie Ahearn, with only a low budget kung-fu flick to his name, it featured a cast of amateur actors, graffiti artists and rappers. The result is a stupid dope fresh classic. Word.

MISS: BELLY 2 – MILLIONAIRE BOYZ CLUB A trend in the movie industry dating back several decades, movie studios have attempted to cash-in on the name value of previous films by releasing a sequel, no matter how unnecessary. If any film didn’t need to have a sequel Belly is a strong contender. A product of its time, the original was a result of several key players coming together and an audience that was at least interested. By 2008, memory of Belly had faded and there was zero interest in a sequel but that didn’t stop Game and co. Rather than just name dropping rappers he attempted to fill the shoes of DMX and his original co-stars to predictably formulaic results only fit for YouTube.

HIT: SOMETHING FROM NOTHING – THE ART OF RAP The story of rap music is one that has been heard and documented many times. However there is no one film that has been able to capture it all, from its beginnings to the present. So leave it to that chameleon, Ice-T, the original gangsta-turned-TV-cop. The fact that he knows where these rappers are coming from was both a positive and a negative. It provided a new level of insight that couldn’t be captured by just any filmmaker, yet it appears like many of the subjects felt the need to pander to Ice and his musical legacy. Despite those minor flaws, it is as close to definitive as any rap documentary so far.

MISS: URBAN MENACE Thanks to the lucrative nature of the music industry in the late ‘90s, many delusional rappers saw the opportunity to inflate their image and expand their empire by moving into the world of movies. With the straight-to-video market in full effect, the likes of Master P and Mack 10 were able to produce their own vanity films on a shoestring budget. Already a pop culture icon, Snoop Dogg was the ideal candidate to become a movie star. While usually calculating, Snoop’s weed dependency worked to his detriment when he signed on for Urban Menace. Playing an angry preacher he is pitted against cold-hearted mobsters Big Pun and Fat Joe. It was directed by the low budget maestro behind Kickboxer 4 and Alien from LA, so obviously it’s amazing.

HIT: FEAR OF A BLACK HAT As much as the endless quoting and referencing (“these go to 11”) has threatened to ruin it, there is no denying that This is Spinal Tap is a brilliant parody of the rock music industry. While it sadly doesn’t carry the same level of reverence in pop culture Fear of a Black Hat, aka This is Spinal Rap, is as accurate as any rap movie to hit the screen. Much like its rock counterpart, Fear of a Black Hat is clearly the work of people who understand and love the culture and have the laser sharp comedic skills to expose it, contradictions and all. Far superior to CB4, the film never stops with the laughs and actually has a tight soundtrack.

MISS: DA HIP-HOP WITCH Anything with the term ‘da’ in the title, that was created after 1993, should be immediately disqualified. That one sin is only the tip of the Titanic-sized iceberg known as Da Hip-hop Witch. Produced in 2000, the “film” aimed to capitalise on the popularity of the short-lived cultural phenomenon The Blair Witch Project and the commercial success of rap music. A prolific music video director, Dale Resteghini was able to call in favours from a who’s who of rap stars including Ja Rule and future Oscar winner Eminem for his second feature film. The final product was so brilliant and well conceived that Em’s management demanded his scenes be removed when it came out on DVD in 2003.

HIT: COCAINE COWBOYS This enthralling documentary is the ultimate rap movie without directly being about rap. Moving at a rapid speed, much like its subjects lived, Cocaine Cowboys is the real life Scarface tale of how cocaine came into America and has served as inspiration for the fictional yarns spun by your favourite coke dealer rapper. A highly addictive experience, pun intended, it is more entertaining than anything from Young Jeezy and it happens to be true. The detail and energy put into this film almost makes the viewer consider becoming a coke dealer, if only for a brief moment before reality sets in.

MISS: HOUSE PARTY 4 – DOWN TO THE LAST MINUTE Another entry in the completely unnecessary sequel stakes, music entrepreneur Chris Stokes decided to resuscitate the rotting corpse that was the House Party franchise, which should have ended at the second flick, for a fourth film. This time the chemistry of Kid N Play was replaced by the charisma deficient R&B boy band IMx, which included Marques Houston, Jerome ‘Young Rome’ Jones and Kelton ‘LDB’ Kessee. When rich Uncle Charles leaves his stylish home in the hands of nephew Jon Jon, he throws what he describes as an "entertainment party" and all sorts of wacky, side-splitting wackiness ensues. It’s Home Alone for dummies without the playful violence. For shame.

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It’s hard to believe it’s been 10 years since ’8 Mile’ first hit screens. Eminem’s semi-autobiographical flick hit home for everyone from hip-hop lovers to suburban wannabes and helped legitimise the culture on a grand scale. Much like its place in music history, hip-hop has always had a shaky history in the film world. The influx of inept rappers turned actors and half-baked vanity projects have made it hard for legitimate hip-hop film projects to be seen or even get made.

Before the exploitation though there was blaxploitation, see it kind of has the word ‘black’ in there (clever). This was the first sub-genre of films to be made by and starring black performers, and created the blueprint almost every rapper would imitate, along with Scarface of course. Unlike the polite or subservient black characters that Hollywood films previously featured, blaxploitation saw the black protagonists take the lead and rip Hollywood a new one.

Technically though the first movie to feature black characters in a role of power was Putney Swope, directed by Robert Downey Sr. in 1969. Hip-hop’s official relationship with the film world began innocently with filmmakers who wanted to document this exciting new culture. These documentaries were made by both music scenesters (Downtown ‘81) and curious outsiders (Style Wars). Always the industrious types, this public interest prompted the hip-hop community to get in on the action. This resulted in well meaning yet poorly performed flicks like Krush Groove and Tougher Than Leather. Not to be outdone, greasy Hollywood types took their precious hip-hop and made it palatable to a white audience, so basically non-threatening. We got gems like Body Rock starring Lorenzo Lamas and the grand daddy of them all Breakin’ 2: Electric Boogaloo, the hip-hop equivalent of cringe classics like Troll 2 and The Room.

As a culture always fighting for respect, hip-hop’s determined attitude carried over to the rap-related movies that came out in the wake of the ‘80s explosion. Spike Lee, a man never known for subtlety, was one of many filmmakers, along with John Singleton and the Hughes Brothers, who ushered in the conscious hood movie taking a heavy handed approach when it came to telling black stories. While their artistic qualities can’t be denied the likes of Poetic Justice and Jason’s Lyric suffered from being overly dramatic, like an off-Broadway play. Taking the opposite approach we also got hip-hop renditions of the gangster flick (New Jack City) and goofy comedies (Friday, How High). Then there was the Tupac film, a sub-genre on its own that typically included one great performance from its star and terrible scripting. Since then we’ve seen a rise in successful rapper-actors and Oscar winning rap epics like the excellent Hustle & Flow, yet we’ve also had to suffer through vanity projects from Soulja Boy and 50 Cent and straight-to-DVD junk like Hustletown Mobbin, starring Lil Flip.

Hip-hop means many things to different people so the chances of a rap movie that is universally approved by all will remain a rarity. Still that won’t stop us from looking at the history of hip-hop on screen, from the good to the atrocious. Did we miss your favourite flick? Let us know!