Legendary Compton band Gangsta Rap is preparing to release a comeback album. A documentary filmmaker follows the band as they prepare for the re-launch of their legendary careers.
The Lowdown
Remember the mockumentary about the rise to fame of MC Gusto, Stab Master Arson, and Dead Mike and their rap group CB4?
Watch that.
Gangsta Rap: The Glockumentary is a documentary by Carlton Bentley, portrayed by the actual film’s director Damon “Coke” Daniels. The subjects for his documentary are “Compton’s most murderous group, Gangsta Rap.” The group has been on the scene for 17 years with 10 albums, 5 EPs, numerous stints in the penitentiary and countless baby mamas. Yes, it is that bad.
The band includes members Murder Mike, Du Rag and DJ Ballistics. We also meet their manager Scott as well as their number one groupie Uretha. Mike is the big guy with the mouth, Du Rag is the chubby one with curlers in his hair about 90% of the time and Ballistics is their DJ (the third one following the death of their first two). Ballistics never speaks and when asked questions, is usually sitting on the toilet taking a shit.
The documentary shows the comeback of the band, now in their forties, to a world that just doesn’t care. It also shows the troubles of the band as Uretha, Murder Mike’s woman, comes between them. There are a few (very, very few) humorous moments between Du Rag and Uretha, as they spar back and forth about her promiscuity. One funny line I remember is when she kisses Murder Mike and Du Rag quips, “he just kissed every dick in L.A.” See, Uretha is a slut who has ten kids, and although Murder Mike has taken a paternity test for all ten, none are his.
Scott has a few moments as the manager who cannot get control of what the group wants and needs. The rest of the movie is full of gangsta slang that is not funny, rap songs that are annoying and stereotypes that don’t pass the test. I think my favorite moment in the film is when Dian Bachar (BASEketball) makes a surprising appearance as a limo driver. That is only enjoyable because I am a pretty big fan of the “little bitch.”
The songs include In My House Shoes, which is supposed to be humorous because the guys had sold out and earned an endorsement deal for the sale of house shoes. There is a song called My Mama’s a Bitch, which was written about Du Rag’s mom, who is tougher than all three rappers. The mockumentary goes on to poke fun at NWA, Ice T, Biggie and Kanye West. Unfortunately, the film is not good enough to make the jabs mean anything.
The acting is fine as both Howie Ball (Du Rag) and Slink Capone (Murder Mike) are pretty solid in their roles. Damon “Coke” Daniels is also good in his role as the incredulous filmmaker who watches as the group falls apart. He shows some skill as a director as well, putting together a film that looks as good as you could have hoped. It is his script that causes the entire thing to fall apart, feeling uninspired and unoriginal (he also wrote My Baby’s Daddy, so this should come as no surprise). Skip this one; it ain’t worth your time.
The Package
The video is not all that great, which is a good thing if you want it to look like a realistic documentary but a bad thing if it is supposed to look like a theatrical release. The sound is pretty decent too. There is a video for In My House Shoes which is forgettable, some pretty lame deleted scenes and trailers.
