City Of Lies (2020) - Movie Review

In the greater mythology of hip-hop, there are few events that serve as true turning points for the culture as much as the untimely death of Biggie Smalls and Tupac Shakur. Partly because of how publicised their living beef was, partly because their deaths made for an argument to turn mainstream hip-hop down a more peaceful direction (Will Smith breaking out on his solo career in the wake of that is no coincidence), and partly because it embodies the inner workings of myth in that we’re still not entirely sure what really happened. They were both gunned down within a short amount of time of each other, and it remains one of the greater unsolved mysteries of the culture, up there with the anxious waiting for Detox to drop before Dr. Dre stopped edging his audience and admitted it wouldn't happen.

All Eyez On Me (2017) - Movie Review

No matter how timid I may come across in these reviews, I know that talking about ideas and concepts in relation to films is still less risky than statements concerning other forms of media. Like, for instance, rap music. I will always consider myself a hip-hop head first and foremost when it comes to music, but the amount of outrage that gets generated in those circles over the most minor shit really doesn’t make me all that willing to admit to such things in public. I bring this up to help cushion the blow of what may be one of the more inflammatory statements I could make within that context: I’m not that massive on Tupac. I have respect for the guy’s place in the industry, and I certainly like some of his music, but in oh-so-popular discussions over who is the greatest MC of all time, I’m far more likely to suggest The Notorious B.I.G. than Tupac.

 

However, with that in mind, Straight Outta Compton showed that biographical cinema and rap music intersecting could lead to great results (possibly less great than I initially thought when first watching it, but that’s a discussion for another time) so, even without absolutely loving the subject, hopefully we’ll get something similar here. Key word being “hopefully”.