On the streets of Memphis, DJay's hustle was second to none. No problems were presented in his day to day of running the working girls from back seat to proverbial back seat, and bringing the hottest grown product to the locals. But DJay's "mode" had never taken him any further than his day to day hustle, leading into his midlife crisis of questioning and unknown paths. His path, though crooked, crossed with that of an old school acquaintance, Key, a Church music record producer who shows him the difference between talking the talk and walking the walk. With the support of the tender yet resolute Shug and the innocuous and avid Nola, DJay takes on his destiny with vigilance and swagger. He soon realizes that his situation, though, is rooted heavily in the real world and that there is more to walking the walk than just having a dream. His realization is that in order to blaze your own path, you have to possess equal measures of both hustle and flow.
The Film
Craig Brewer's inspirational tale of a Memphis pimp relentless in his pursuit of breaking through his midlife crisis by making his music dreams come to fruition, Hustle & Flow moves with rhythm and edge. It is truly a film with a "mode" that is all it's own. When you envision the humble beginnings of most great icons of the rap culture, you think gangster or drug dealer, you don't see a compassionate yet tenacious pimp from Memphis who speaks like a philosopher in order to hustle his way from dollar to dollar. But when you meet the indelible DJay, played by Terrence Howard, you begin to see the reality of life on the streets. In so many ways DJay personifies the delusions of every thug, hustler, and pimp that roams the back alleys of any urban jungle of the South. But where DJay falls short in his morality, he all but makes up for it in the amount of heart and soul that he transfers into his music. But having talent is not enough, his success is also dependent on his strong supporting cast which includes his unlikely love interest Shug, played by Taraji P. Henson, and his girl on the streets Nola, played by Taryn Manning. The two women seem to act as a balance beam which keeps DJay from slipping completely into the grandeur that he has created for himself in his own mind. They represent his reality, and ultimately they become the driving force behind his unwavering quest to break into the music industry.
In the beginning of this film, I was impressed by DJay's intelligent dialogue and almost prophetic delivery, but it soon became apparent that it was all a part of his natural hustle. But even though DJay is the epitome of the bottom feeders of society, you are drawn into his masked sense of compassion and responsibility that he takes in keeping the people around him afloat in a sea of sinking lives. The story surrounds you with reasons why DJay should not be the winner, should not be the hero, and should not come out on top. But you can't help but associate with the emotions of wanting to break free from the everyday grind and take a chance on your dreams, which is what DJay's quest is all about.
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