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Critics Consensus: Comprehensive yet brisk, Nas: Time Is Illmatic offers an absorbing look at a hip-hop classic and the life of the artist who made it.
Critic Consensus: Comprehensive yet brisk, Nas: Time Is Illmatic offers an absorbing look at a hip-hop classic and the life of the artist who made it.
All Critics (37) | Top Critics (14) | Fresh (37) | Rotten (0)
A well-made and well-shot companion piece to the album, telling the story of Nas' early life and the circumstances that led to his birth as a hip-hop legend.
Time Is Illmatic does a terrific job of weaving hip-hop history into a highly personal story.
The movie is inspiring and tragic, and, directed by street artist One9, it's captured in an artful, emotional way that will speak to an audience beyond rap fans.
As both an origin story about a great artist and a distillation of '80s urban blight, it's as breathless and real as any street-corner rhyme.
The album lives as a touchstone, and a turning point, in New York hip hop. The film may be far less significant, but it does bear witness to the music's greatness.
Since many of the themes from "Illmatic" have become mere clichés in contemporary rap, this film serves as a reminder of the potential and the promise that hip-hop truly holds.
Just as "Illmatic" brought people from all across the globe a little closer to Queensbridge, Nas: Time is Illmatic draws audiences closer to hip-hop.
Brief, informative and direct, the historical details post-Illmatic grow less interesting, yet the film's first half is electric and engaging.
The result, directed by graffiti artist and first-time director One9 is less an ordered history of facts than an emotional snapshot of the artist's childhood and thoughts about where he is today.
As humbling as hagiographies come.
Paints a vivid portrait of all that Nas the artist and Nasir Jones the person are in a remarkably efficient 75-minute run time.
You certainly don't have to be a pre-established fan to appreciate this picture, as sometimes just seeing how much something can mean to others is gratifying enough.
An informative and revealing documentary that takes a thrilling look at an artist's life and the many factors that motivated him to create such an extremely influential album regarded ever since its birth as a seminal piece of artistic cry against social oppression.
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