Sim1Every breath I take, I'll be missing you
June 23rd 2009 11:01
No dream is too big
I don’t know if it is pertinent for me to write about a film I actually liked. It’s not something I usually do, as you may have noticed. But I didn’t just like this film, I was touched by it.
Yes, Hollywood knows exactly what to do to extract a few sneaky tears from you in the dark cinema where no-on can see....Take ‘Marley & Me’- an hour of blah blah and average performances from Jennifer Aniston and Owen Wilson and then something totally unforeseen and unpredictable happens- the ‘clearance puppy’ has died. Everyone cry now! (rubbish movie, by the way)
But the movie I’m about to review was meant to be a biopic, not a romantic girly-flick.
It is a bio pic about Christopher Wallace. You don’t know who that is? Well I didn’t know, either. If you are into hip hop or rap, you may know the dude as ‘Biggie Smalls’ or even more likely as ‘The Notorious B.I.G.’
The movie is simply named Notorious.
At the risk of repeating myself...Notorious touched me. I don’t know why, but somehow I almost started mourning The Notorious B.I.G. Thank heavens I was on a plane and it was night time, so no-one saw the sneaky tears normally reserved for the cinema.
So what have we got? A chunky kid from Brooklyn, writing lyrics about his everyday life. His mama is sure Chris is a good boy, and he is. Right until he starts trying to make some money and hiding plates of ,what his mama thinks is mashed potato, under his bed. This may sound a little naff and run of the mill to you- blah blah, yet another poor American New York brat turning to drug dealing and rapping- but this one isn’t the same old generic, fail-safe Hollywood storyline. George Tilman Jr. is telling a true story. It is all very matter of fact, it has documentary qualities. There are no drum rolls when Chris gets nicked and put in prison, just like there wouldn’t be if you and I cocked up and got fined. Yes, he got his girly pregnant just before he went inside, but hey, if you (dear female readers) or I got pregnant, it wouldn’t make the headlines now, would it?
The movie is not trying to make out that The Notorious B.I.G. was perfect. He wasn’t. (Who is?)
Christopher Wallace’s story is inspirational, in that (according to the film) the guy pretty much just walks into this recording studio and goes ‘Hey, I have got what it takes!’. How many of us can do that? Yes, B.I.G has his possé, including Puff Daddy, P Diddy, Pear Donut, whatever his name is. One of them goes to prison for our Christopher because he believes when B.I.G makes it big, the whole of the gang will make it big.
It is at this stage that I would like to B.I.G. it up for Jamal Woolard, he who plays the Notorious B.I.G. in the movie. I have never been big on rap or hip hop or whatever kind of music it is, and I have no idea what B.I.G looked like in real life. I could google him, of course, but for me the movie version of the Notorious B.I.G. is who I’ll have in my head forever. And I don’t think I’ll ever forget the look on Jamal’s face a split second before he gets shot.....Jamal Woolard throughout the film is totally believable. And it’s not often you can say that about a film. I believe him.
The war between the East coast rappers and the West coast rappers is ever present in this flick. It has to be, they killed each other back then and they are still killing each other now. I’m not pretending that I know why this is happening or what’s behind it, but I know it’s what’s claimed my hero B.I.G.’s life.
In the film, we learn that Biggie and Tupak Shakur were mates but due to the coast feud and some misunderstanding during a shooting, they are now at each other’s throats. Until Tupac gets killed at the age of 25. Watching those scenes, you can almost feel Chris’ pain when he finds out.
Of course, there are the excesses, the drugs, the bitches, the extravagant lifestyle.
B.I.G. has a daughter with his high school sweetheart, then falls in love with singer Faith Evans and marries her after, like, 5 minutes (well, 9 days, actually). He cheats on her, she takes him back etc etc...And he’s a complete shit. That’s it. I’m not here to make excuses for a dead man, I’m just reviewing a piece of cinema.
If this was a fictional story, you’d expect him to make it big and live happily ever after. And Christopher Wallace did make it big! In the movie, there he is, smoking a cigar looking at his fans going wild. By ‘he’ I mean, of course, Jamal Woolard, because I still haven’t googled B.I.Gs photo.
The film starts with the poignant scene in which Christopher Wallace is shot. Although all you see is him looking directly at his killer. That exact same scene is repeated towards the end of the movie when we see The Notorious B.I.G.’s entourage and friends frantically trying to revive him...
And then all that is left is his hat on some Los Angeles street...
Christopher George Latore Wallace died on March 9th, 1997 in LA. To this day, no-one knows who killed him.
The last scene of the film is Christopher’s mum (an awesome Angela Bassett) being driven in a limousine along a street absolutely jam-packed with her son’s fans. And they are playing the Notorious B.I.G.’s music and she realises...she can hear her son’s voice. (Sneaky-tear-in-a-dark-cinema -time again).
What really got me was that the boy who plays the 12-year old, lyric-writing Biggie at the beginning of the film is none other than B.I.G and Faith’s son- Christopher ‘CJ’ Wallace, Jr.
I have never owned a single one of Notorious B.I.G.’s records. Nor will I ever own any of his music, I don’t like rap. But since this movie, I will always be sad that he died so young.
Faith Evans and Sean Coombs (Puff Daddy) recorded the song ‘I’ll be missing you’ after Chris’ death and every time I hear it, it reminds me of one of my favourite movies- Notorious.
Apologies for crying all over your computer screens....
I don’t know if it is pertinent for me to write about a film I actually liked. It’s not something I usually do, as you may have noticed. But I didn’t just like this film, I was touched by it.
Yes, Hollywood knows exactly what to do to extract a few sneaky tears from you in the dark cinema where no-on can see....Take ‘Marley & Me’- an hour of blah blah and average performances from Jennifer Aniston and Owen Wilson and then something totally unforeseen and unpredictable happens- the ‘clearance puppy’ has died. Everyone cry now! (rubbish movie, by the way)
It is a bio pic about Christopher Wallace. You don’t know who that is? Well I didn’t know, either. If you are into hip hop or rap, you may know the dude as ‘Biggie Smalls’ or even more likely as ‘The Notorious B.I.G.’
The movie is simply named Notorious.
At the risk of repeating myself...Notorious touched me. I don’t know why, but somehow I almost started mourning The Notorious B.I.G. Thank heavens I was on a plane and it was night time, so no-one saw the sneaky tears normally reserved for the cinema.
So what have we got? A chunky kid from Brooklyn, writing lyrics about his everyday life. His mama is sure Chris is a good boy, and he is. Right until he starts trying to make some money and hiding plates of ,what his mama thinks is mashed potato, under his bed. This may sound a little naff and run of the mill to you- blah blah, yet another poor American New York brat turning to drug dealing and rapping- but this one isn’t the same old generic, fail-safe Hollywood storyline. George Tilman Jr. is telling a true story. It is all very matter of fact, it has documentary qualities. There are no drum rolls when Chris gets nicked and put in prison, just like there wouldn’t be if you and I cocked up and got fined. Yes, he got his girly pregnant just before he went inside, but hey, if you (dear female readers) or I got pregnant, it wouldn’t make the headlines now, would it?
Christopher Wallace’s story is inspirational, in that (according to the film) the guy pretty much just walks into this recording studio and goes ‘Hey, I have got what it takes!’. How many of us can do that? Yes, B.I.G has his possé, including Puff Daddy, P Diddy, Pear Donut, whatever his name is. One of them goes to prison for our Christopher because he believes when B.I.G makes it big, the whole of the gang will make it big.
It is at this stage that I would like to B.I.G. it up for Jamal Woolard, he who plays the Notorious B.I.G. in the movie. I have never been big on rap or hip hop or whatever kind of music it is, and I have no idea what B.I.G looked like in real life. I could google him, of course, but for me the movie version of the Notorious B.I.G. is who I’ll have in my head forever. And I don’t think I’ll ever forget the look on Jamal’s face a split second before he gets shot.....Jamal Woolard throughout the film is totally believable. And it’s not often you can say that about a film. I believe him.
The war between the East coast rappers and the West coast rappers is ever present in this flick. It has to be, they killed each other back then and they are still killing each other now. I’m not pretending that I know why this is happening or what’s behind it, but I know it’s what’s claimed my hero B.I.G.’s life.
In the film, we learn that Biggie and Tupak Shakur were mates but due to the coast feud and some misunderstanding during a shooting, they are now at each other’s throats. Until Tupac gets killed at the age of 25. Watching those scenes, you can almost feel Chris’ pain when he finds out.
Of course, there are the excesses, the drugs, the bitches, the extravagant lifestyle.
B.I.G. has a daughter with his high school sweetheart, then falls in love with singer Faith Evans and marries her after, like, 5 minutes (well, 9 days, actually). He cheats on her, she takes him back etc etc...And he’s a complete shit. That’s it. I’m not here to make excuses for a dead man, I’m just reviewing a piece of cinema.
If this was a fictional story, you’d expect him to make it big and live happily ever after. And Christopher Wallace did make it big! In the movie, there he is, smoking a cigar looking at his fans going wild. By ‘he’ I mean, of course, Jamal Woolard, because I still haven’t googled B.I.Gs photo.
The film starts with the poignant scene in which Christopher Wallace is shot. Although all you see is him looking directly at his killer. That exact same scene is repeated towards the end of the movie when we see The Notorious B.I.G.’s entourage and friends frantically trying to revive him...
And then all that is left is his hat on some Los Angeles street...
Christopher George Latore Wallace died on March 9th, 1997 in LA. To this day, no-one knows who killed him.
The last scene of the film is Christopher’s mum (an awesome Angela Bassett) being driven in a limousine along a street absolutely jam-packed with her son’s fans. And they are playing the Notorious B.I.G.’s music and she realises...she can hear her son’s voice. (Sneaky-tear-in-a-dark-cinema -time again).
What really got me was that the boy who plays the 12-year old, lyric-writing Biggie at the beginning of the film is none other than B.I.G and Faith’s son- Christopher ‘CJ’ Wallace, Jr.
I have never owned a single one of Notorious B.I.G.’s records. Nor will I ever own any of his music, I don’t like rap. But since this movie, I will always be sad that he died so young.
Faith Evans and Sean Coombs (Puff Daddy) recorded the song ‘I’ll be missing you’ after Chris’ death and every time I hear it, it reminds me of one of my favourite movies- Notorious.
Apologies for crying all over your computer screens....
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