Hustle & Flow (2005)

I rewatched Hustle & Flow and found it as enjoyable as when it first came out.

It's about how a midlife crisis can give us a kick in the pants to follow our dreams. The fact that the midlife crisis takes place in the heart and mind of a street pimp makes for unique viewing.

I've only seen a small portion of Terrence Howard's acting roles, but his performance as the pimp DJay is by far the grittiest and most convincing of those that I have seen.

The quick-witted script in the capable hands of director Craig Brewer - with only his second feature film - doesn't pull punches in exposing DJay's darker side of ruthless exploitation. But we also quickly find that DJay has the heart and soul not only of a philosopher, but also of a frustrated artist - and that his creative aspirations are not only in order to better his conditions, but also to express his hard reality.

We also find that DJay's relationship with his triumvirate of tricks is not just a mercenary pimp-prostitute arrangement, but rather far more emotionally intricate. Taraji B. Henson delivers a fantastic performance as one of the hookers - if you saw her in Talk to Me you won't recognize her as the same actress.

With the help of a couple of buddies - played by D.J. Qualls and Anthony Anderson, who help to inject the pimp/prostitutes' small, sweaty crash pad with a good deal of humor - DJay begins to set his thoughts on North Memphis street life to some beats.

Some of the best scenes in the film are when we get to witness the homegrown production of the two surprisingly good original songs, 'Whoop that Trick' and 'It's Hard Out Here for a Pimp' - from plastering walls with egg cartons to insulate the sound, to creating beats and hooks, to Terrence Howard's character pouring his lifeblood into the microphone.

It's not long before we find ourselves - and all the other main characters in the movie - fully supporting DJay to realize his dreams.

One note: Terrence Howard's heavy North Memphis drawl might make non-American (and even some American) audiences wish for subtitles. It's an accent like I've never heard, and some might say it's overdone, but when it meets the fresh syncopated rhymes, it sounds way cool.

8/10