Hustle & Flow (2004)
Average Rating: 7.3/10
Reviews Counted: 154
Fresh: 126 | Rotten: 28
Hustle & Flow is gritty and redemptive, with a profound sense of place and exciting music.
Average Rating: 7.4/10
Critic Reviews: 39
Fresh: 32 | Rotten: 7
Hustle & Flow is gritty and redemptive, with a profound sense of place and exciting music.
liked it
Average Rating: 3.6/5
User Ratings: 118,366
My Rating
Movie Info
One man's struggle to rise above his circumstances prompts him to try a career in music in this acclaimed drama from writer and director Craig Brewer. Djay (Terrence Howard) is a low-level pimp and drug dealer who scraped together a living in the ghettos of Memphis, TN. Djay isn't happy with his life, and the realization that he's reached the same age when his father unexpectedly died has made him start thinking about changing his ways. Djay has always had a gift for spinning stories, and after
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Cast
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Terrence Howard
Djay -
Anthony Anderson
Key -
Taryn Manning
Nola -
Taraji P. Henson
Shug -
Paula Jai Parker
Lexus -
Elise Neal
Yevette -
Isaac Hayes
Arnel -
D.J. Qualls
Shelby -
Ludacris
Skinny Black -
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All Critics (162) | Top Critics (42) | Fresh (135) | Rotten (28) | DVD (35)
It's kind of a conventional story, but it's told in such a unique way and the locations in Memphis all feel very authentic.
Top CriticHustle & Flow suspends you in its spell of mood, of feeling, of climate. It's a pop picture that finds its richness in peeling down to the essentials of good storytelling.
Watching as a pimp, a pothead and a pregnant hooker play and sing in a makeshift bedroom recording studio, and becoming increasingly caught up in their determination and hope, it's impossible not to think that this is a part of the American Dream, too.
Every now and then, Brewer pulls off a near-miracle with his flinty characters: He lets us, for a moment, slip into their lives -- and sing their song.
Unlikely as this may sound, Hustle & Flow -- about a low-down Memphis pimp who wants to be a rapper -- is the feel-good movie of the summer.
What makes the picture sail past its flaws is its earnest understanding of the desperation that drives people to regain control of their lives -- and the profound courage required to attempt it.
Of all the exuberantly built-up beats, Taraji P. Henson's beautifully shocked and elated response to unexpectedly forming the nucleus of "It's Hard Out Here for a Pimp" gives "Hustle" its soul and won that song an Oscar.
For an alleged indie hit, the film is nothing if not shrewd about audience-hooking and sensory-manipulation
This movie about a philosophical pimp is for adults only.
Edgy camerawork fails to distract from the fact that Hustle & Flow -- a hit a Sundance -- is about as edgy as the crust on Mom's apple pie.
...may try to look all hard and realistic, but at its core it's really about heart. (HD DVD Edition)
...an inspiring and ennobling character study in which love and respect trump pure success.
The HD-DVD version of Hustle & Flow provides a very nice collection of extras, although only the movie trailers are in HD.
Craig Brewer has a distinctive voice. He writes dialogue that authentically conveys the truth of real life while also touching on universal themes of hope and healing.
Revives the healthy debate as to whether gangsta' rap is glorifying or condemning the thug life, while delivering the simple message that pimps are people, too.
...fiercely original, thoroughly engaging...
Audiences will be seduced into setting aside their moral qualms and rooting for this hip-hop hustler.
A ghetto fabulous flick certain to generate some healthy debate as to whether it is glorifying or condemning the thug life which is so celebrated by the Hip-Hop Generation.
The characters are as comical as they are realistic, and the natural humor that comes from their aspirations and predicaments prevents the movie from seeming too earnest or self-important
Audience Reviews for Hustle & Flow
Super Reviewer
"Everybody gotta have a dream."
Hustle & Flow is one of those movies that I didn't want to see end. The film had a lot going for it, from a natural knowledge of the small time hustlers and dealers to the surprisingly good music; and of course there's Terrence Howard in the role that really gave him a name.
DJay is a smalltime pimp and drug dealer living in Memphis with three of his women and a small child. He's struggling with life as he enters a mid-life crisis because of a memory of his father dying at the age he is now. To try to improve his life, he begins rapping. He meets an old school friend who is now a gospel music producer, and brings him and another producer on to help make DJay's demo tape.
This movie isn't overly original in anything it is doing, but the voice is good. The dialogue hits like a hard bass beat the whole film long. Especially when the words are coming out of Howard's mouth. Howard does a phenomenal job with his dialogue and the accent of the character. He basically is this movie and with it resting on his shoulders, it succeeds.
The content isn't for everyone as there's a lot of demeaning language toward women and what not, but it can't be slandered for its content. The content is dead on and this fictional story of a hustler turned actor has a basis in real life as many rappers used to be exactly what DJay is. As far as a urban, music, crime drama goes; Hustle & Flow is an entertaining and well-made one to get into.
Super Reviewer
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- Djay: Whoop dat trick!
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