Follow @screenit

"HUSTLE & FLOW" (2005) (Terrence Howard, Anthony Anderson) (R) Alcohol/ Drugs Blood/Gore Disrespectful/ Bad Attitude Frightening/ Tense Scenes Guns/ Weapons Heavy Moderate Extreme Mild Heavy Imitative Behavior Jump Scenes Music (Scary/Tense) Music (Inappropriate) Profanity Moderate None None Extreme Extreme Sex/ Nudity Smoking Tense Family Scenes Topics To Talk About Violence Extreme Extreme Mild Moderate Heavy QUICK TAKE: Drama: With the aid of an unlikely team, a drug-dealing pimp tries to reinvent himself as a successful rap artist. PLOT: Djay (TERRENCE HOWARD) is a Memphis-based thug who makes a living selling drugs as well as the sexual services of his hookers such as Nola (TARYN MANNING), Shug (TARAJI P. HENSON) and Lex (PAULA JAI PARKER). Yet, the pimp questions his role in life and thinks he deserves and can achieve more than what he has up to this point. Envious of what hometown rap star Skinny Black (CHRIS LUDACRIS BRIDGES) has achieved, Djay gets a flash of inspiration after a chance encounter with a former classmate. Learning that Key (ANTHONY ANDERSON) is now a middle-class recording engineer, Djay proposes that he help launch his budding rap career. Key is uncertain, as is his prim and proper wife Yvette (ELISE NEAL) who isn't happy about the notion of her husband hanging out with a pimp and his hookers. Yet, Djay convinces Key who then brings in musician Shelby (DJ QUALLS) to help provide the beat. With no experience and little money but plenty of obstacles, Djay and his unlikely team set out to cut a demo tape that he hopes he can get into the hands of Skinny and thus reinvent himself as a recording artist. WILL KIDS WANT TO SEE IT? Older teens might be interested in it, as might those into rap music and/or who are fans of someone in the cast. WHY THE MPAA RATED IT: R For sex and drug content, pervasive language and some violence. CAST AS ROLE MODELS: TERRENCE HOWARD plays a pimp and drug dealer who wants to reinvent himself as a rapper. He uses strong profanity, smokes cigarettes and pot, drinks, and beats up a man and shoots another when things don't go his way. ANTHONY ANDERSON plays Djay's former classmate who he convinces to help produce his rap recordings, much to the dismay of Key's wife. He uses strong profanity and smokes pot. TARYN MANNING plays Djay's main hooker who has sex with men for pay and assists him in his quest to become a rap artist. She uses strong profanity and snorts some drugs. TARAJI P. HENSON plays one of Djay's hookers who's pregnant and provides vocals on his demo tape. CHRIS LUDACRIS BRIDGES plays the famous rapper that Djay approaches in hopes of getting a break in the business. He drinks, smokes pot and uses strong profanity. DJ QUALLS plays the nerdy but talented musician who mixes and adds music to Djay's rap numbers. He uses strong profanity and smokes pot. ELISE NEAL plays Key's wife who isn't pleased that he's gotten into the rap business or that he's hanging out with a pimp and his hookers. CAST, CREW, & TECHNICAL INFO HOW OTHERS RATED THIS MOVIE Curious if this title is entertaining, any good, and/or has any artistic merit? Then read OUR TAKE of this film. (Note: The "Our Take" review of this title examines the film's artistic merits and does not take into account any of the possibly objectionable material listed below). OUR WORD TO PARENTS: The following is a brief summary of the content found in this R-rated drama. Profanity (also heard in rap songs) consists of at least 141 "f" words, while many other expletives and colorful phrases are also uttered. Sexually related dialogue (some of it explicit) is present, as are partially seen and implied sexual encounters between a hooker and her customers. Nonsexual nudity (female bare breasts, butts) is present, while one hooker is usually seen in very skimpy and revealing attire. Various characters use drugs (pot and what looks like cocaine), while one is a dealer. They and others also drink and smoke. Violence includes a man pummeling another man (with bloody results), followed by him shooting another person (which may be unsettling or suspenseful to some viewers), while some other physical contact is also present (including a pimp grabbing one of his hookers by the throat and throwing her out of the house). Various characters have varying degrees of bad attitudes of one type or another, while attire and bodily self-expression might be enticing for some kids to imitate and some brief tense family material is present. If you're still concerned about the film and its appropriateness for yourself or anyone else in your home who may be interested in seeing it, we suggest that you take a closer look at our detailed listings for more specific information regarding the film's content. ALCOHOL OR DRUG USE Djay makes a drug deal with the owner of a bar and there's later some talk of dirty weed. A guy wants to buy some "crank" from Djay. Nola snorts what looks like cocaine. Key's wife complains about work and mentions someone coming to work high. Key and Djay have beer. Shelby states, "Okay, let's go smoke that joint" and we then see him doing that. Djay and Key smoke a joint, while Key also drinks. We see a beer in front of Djay. When Key and Djay nearly fight, Shelby separates them and asks, "Can't we just smoke a joint?" Djay bribes his next-door neighbor with some pot for a little quiet during a recording session. Miscellaneous people drink in a bar. A comment is made something along the lines of a drink in the hand being worth "a p*ssy in your lap." Djay gives Skinny a bag of pot. Djay has a beer. Djay and Skinny drink and share a joint in the bar. Later, both seem drunk and/or high (the latter more than the former). BLOOD/GORE Djay sees that Skinny has thrown his demo cassette into a filthy toilet in a public bathroom. Upset at Skinny who's disappointed him, Djay stuffs his demo cassette into Skinny's mouth and then repeatedly punches him in the face (resulting in a bloody mess). DISRESPECTFUL/BAD ATTITUDE Djay is a drug-dealing pimp who treats the women in his life like sexual property that he loans out for paid sexual services. Djay tells Nola, "Let me do the thinking for you." Commenting on Nola and her ability to sniff out air conditioning, Djay jokes that she's like an "old bloodhound bitch." Some viewers might not like the joking comment "You Mormons are some brave m*therf*ckers." Lex has a bad attitude toward Djay. That eventually infuriates him and he grabs her by the throat in anger. She's then whacking at him, prompting him to grab and then throw her out of the house, followed by dresser drawers of her clothes. Needing a new and better microphone, Djay convinces Nola to trade sex with the owner for it (she very reluctantly agrees and Djay leaves her alone with that man). The comment "I ain't no faggot" is made when Skinny (who's very high and/or drunk) needs to have Djay pull up his pants in a bathroom (we don't see any nudity). Djay sees that Skinny has thrown his demo cassette into a filthy toilet in a public bathroom. FRIGHTENING SCENES Lex has a bad attitude toward Djay. That eventually infuriates him and he grabs her by the throat in anger. She's then whacking at him, prompting him to grab and then throw her out of the house. Upset at Skinny who's disappointed him, Djay stuffs his demo cassette into Skinny's mouth and then repeatedly punches him in the face (resulting in a bloody mess). He then grabs his gun and shoots one of Skinny's men who enters the bathroom and then briefly takes another hostage. There's more shooting, including some men at Djay's car as he races away (the shots blow out the back window). GUNS/WEAPONS We see footage of Skinny on TV holding a rifle and later see the same again. After beating up Skinny, Djay then grabs his gun and shoots one of Skinny's men who enters the bathroom and then briefly takes another hostage. There's more shooting, including some men at Djay's car as he races away (the shots blow out the back window). Cops hold their guns on Djay. IMITATIVE BEHAVIOR Phrases: "M*therf*cker," "F*ck with me," "(Will you just) Shut the f*ck up," "What the f*ck /are you doing with my boy/happened to you/is this sh*t?" "Just f*cking with you," "You Mormons are some brave m*therf*ckers," "Who the f*ck is this nigger?" "Get the f*ck out of here," "F*ck that sh*t," "M*therf*cking bitch," "Give a f*ck," "Did I f*ck up?" "F*ck all that," "F*cked up," "F*ck you," "We do what the f*ck we need to," "Don't know sh*t," "Bullsh*t," "No sh*t," "Good sh*t," "I don't give a sh*t," "That little sh*t," "Hard sh*t," "Piece of sh*t," "Push that sh*t out," "Ain't that some sh*t," "I hate this sh*t," "Oh sh*t," "This sh*t is perfect," "Does a bear sh*t in the woods?" "That was the sh*t," "This sh*t ain't funny," "Same old sh*t," "Hard on" (erection), "Put some more d*ck in it," "Is a pig's p*ssy pork?" "You can suck my d*ck" (said as a put-down), "Piss," "Bitch" (said many times), "Licking our ass all day," "Nigger" (said many times), "Hell no," "I'm supposed to piss myself or something?" "For damn sure," "Country ass," "Kitchen ass," "You had balls...big gorilla balls," "Whoop that trick," "Sucked," "Punk ass," "Go to hell," "Bring your ass here," "Let's beat that bitch," "Calm your ass down," "What the hell?" "Bastard," "Tight ass," "Pretty damn fast," "My bad," "Take a piss" and "I ain't no faggot." The film could inspire some kids to take up rapping. Nola has a tattoo. A man has many tattoos and a ring through his upper chin. Djay rubs some money down inside his pants and then comments on his sweet juices on it. When Djay sees that Key is buying some batteries, he jokingly asks if he has a dildo. Nola is always seen in skimpy attire. Djay has a tattoo. Various characters have gold caps on one or more teeth, including Shug, Skinny and Djay. We see graffiti in a public bathroom. JUMP SCENES None. MUSIC (SCARY/TENSE) None. MUSIC (INAPPROPRIATE) Various rap songs contain the following: Many uses of the "f" and "s" words, other milder profanity, a reference to dropping a couple of grams (presumably drugs), lyrics about "shake it real fast," terms such as "bitch," a song title of "Beat that bitch" and a lyric of "whoop that trick" and something along the lines of "Let my nuts hang to the floor" and if you pay the price, they'll both "do you." PROFANITY At least 141 "f" words (38 used with "mother"), 130 "s" words, 1 slang term for sex ("do you"), 7 slang terms using female genitals ("p*ssy"), 4 using male genitals ("d*ck"), 27 asses, 12 hells, 11 damns, 1 S.O.B., 8 uses of "G-damn," 2 of "God" and 1 use of "For Christ's sakes." SEX/NUDITY Djay comments on "when we can get a hard on" (erection). For a sexual encounter with Nola, we hear that it's twenty dollars in the front and forty in the back. Nola wears a very small skirt (that the camera focuses on) and a midriff-revealing top. She then gets into a car with a customer for sex. Nola wears a very small and revealing top that shows parts of her breasts (side and bottom). We see a close-up of a pole dancer's clothed butt as she gyrates around that pole. We then see other such women in thong bottoms shaking their butts in a bar. One such woman does a sexy lap dance for a male patron. We see various bare female butts (some in thongs), bare backs and cleavage in an exotic dancers' changing room. A sign for a strip joint shows the shape of a woman in a sexy outline. A woman shows some cleavage. Commenting on Nola in a sexual manner, Djay says that she doesn't bite, but she just nibbles a little bit. In a short skirt, Nola asks a man if he wants to see her walk in her heels all the way to his lap. Djay rubs some money down inside his pants and then comments on his sweet juices on it. When Djay sees that Key is buying some batteries, he jokingly asks if he has a dildo. Nola suggestively sucks on a popsicle. When Shug says that her child must have gotten something from his daddy, Djay sarcastically replies, "Whoever that is." We see Nola in a very small and tight tube top. We see some miscellaneous cleavage. Nola is always seen in skimpy attire. Nola goes off with another guy, and from behind the car we see the silhouette of her having sex with him in the backseat (thus no nudity). Yvette argues with Key over his time spent in a house "full of 'hos" (whores) while working with Djay in recording his rap music. Nola shows lots of bare thigh as she lies on a sofa. We briefly see Nola's bare breasts as she's getting dressed and we can see the shape of her nipples through the material once she's dressed. A comment is made about a "back door man." Key states that his wife gets freaky on his birthday. Lex shows cleavage in her midriff-revealing top. A comment is made about "feel like popping my p*ssy." Djay tells Key that the latter needs "some ass" and that he has a "room full of p*ssy." He later tells Key that his wife needs to put something in her mouth and then adds "If you know what I mean." Needing a new and better microphone, Djay convinces Nola to trade sex with the owner for it (she very reluctantly agrees and Djay leaves her alone with that man). Djay passionately kisses Shug. A comment is made something along the lines of a drink in the hand being worth "a p*ssy in your lap." A young woman in a bikini sits on Skinny's lap in a bar. A question is asked "Is a pig's p*ssy pork?" We see a miscellaneous couple making out in a bar. Skinny tells a story of someone stealing his car while he was having sex (something about getting his "ugly") and that they had to be fast since he was quick (meaning Skinny having sex). We see some miscellaneous cleavage. The comment "I ain't no faggot" is made when Skinny (who's very high and/or drunk) needs to have Djay pull up his pants in a bathroom (we don't see any nudity). Nola wears a short skirt and shows a lot of cleavage in her top. SMOKING Djay smokes at least 10 times, Nola and Skinny (cigar) each smoke once and some miscellaneous characters smoke in several scenes. TENSE FAMILY SCENES We hear that Djay's father died when the boy was just 12. Yvette argues with Key over his time spent in a house "full of 'hos" (whores) while working with Djay in recording his rap music. Key's wife cries because he's never home anymore. There's brief talk of Djay's dead father. TOPICS TO TALK ABOUT Pimps and hookers. Rap artists. Drug dealers and drug use. Djay's observation of comparing dogs and men, stating the former are carefree but that the latter are always guessing. When Lex says that her child must have gotten something from his daddy, Djay sarcastically replies, "Whoever that is." Midlife crisis. The comment that sometimes you have to lie to keep a dream alive. VIOLENCE A man runs at Djay in a bar, there's a brief scuffle and Djay then punches that guy in the face. Lex has a bad attitude toward Djay. That eventually infuriates him and he grabs her by the throat in anger. She's then whacking at him, prompting him to grab and then throw her out of the house, followed by dresser drawers of her clothes. Key and Djay nearly come to blows over comments that Djay has made to Key, prompting Shelby to have to separate them. Upset at Skinny who's disappointed him, Djay stuffs his demo cassette into Skinny's mouth and then repeatedly punches him in the face (resulting in a bloody mess). He then grabs his gun and shoots one of Skinny's men who enters the bathroom and then briefly takes another hostage. There's more shooting, including some men at Djay's car as he races away (the shots blow out the back window). Cops hold their guns on Djay and then pin him to a car as they arrest him. One man punches Djay, causing Key to rush him and the two have to be separated in the ensuing scuffle. Reviewed May 12, 2005 / Posted July 22, 2005

Other new and recent reviews include:

Privacy Statement and Terms of Use and Disclaimer
By entering this site you acknowledge to having read and agreed to the above conditions.

All Rights Reserved,
©1996-2016 Screen It, Inc.