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James Belushi, Tupac Shakur, Lela Rochon, Dennis Quaid, James Earl Jones ... see more see more... , David Paymer , Wendy Crewson , Gary Cole , Terrence 'T.C.' Carson , Brad Greenquist , James Handy , Kool Moe Dee , Victor Love , Robert La Sardo , Perry Anzilotti , Gregory Scott Cummins

A pair of corrupt police officers discover the hard way that crime really doesn't pay in this action drama. Divinci (James Belushi) and Rodriguez (Tupac Shakur) are two New York undercover cops with s... read more read more...erious money problems: Rodriguez owes a huge gambling debt, while Divinci wants to retire to Hawaii but lacks the cash. To stretch their paychecks, the partners pose as drug dealers, using narcotics confiscated as evidence; they sell the dope, and after receiving payment, they kill the buyers in carefully arranged drive-by shootings, always collecting the drugs afterward so that they can be sold again. The men try to morally justify their actions by claiming that they only kill people who need to be taken off the street anyway. Divinci's girlfriend, an exotic dancer named Cynthia (Lela Rochon), helps set the cops up with their latest victim, but after they've made the transaction, Divinci and Rodriguez discover the tables have been turned -- the purchaser is actually an undercover DEA agent. The DEA man winds up dead, and Divinci and Rodriguez are assigned to investigate the killing. Needing a fall guy, they try to frame a homeless man for the murder, but before long, their web of deception begins to collapse like a house of cards. Gang Related was the final film completed by rapper-turned-actor Tupac Shakur; he himself was the victim of a still-unsolved shooting in Las Vegas 13 months before the film was released. ~ Mark Deming, Rovi

Flixster Users

71% liked it

8,549 ratings

Critics

56% liked it

16 critics

R, 1 hr. 46 min.

Directed by: Jim Kouf

Release Date: October 8, 1997

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DVD Release Date: February 25, 1998

Stats: 322 reviews

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Flixster Reviews (322)


  • March 4, 2012
    Believe it or not but this is actually a decent cop thriller starring Shakur and Belushi! two dirty cops trying to lie their way out of killing an undercover detective by framing a homeless man.

    The premise is fine yet unoriginal but its handled well, both Belushi and Shakur pla... read morey their roles well and you do get immersed in the tension as they get deeper in doo doo. You know what's gonna happen to be honest but its a fun ride watching it unfold.

    Dennis Quaid plays the homeless man but I dunno why really, his role isn't really a big deal despite it being an important part of the story and Quaid seems to be sleep walking his way through it, I think this must have been his sparse acting period.

    Surprisingly good thriller, Belushi shows he can actually play it straight from time to time plus Lela Rochon is scorchingly hot :)
  • December 10, 2010
    Fairly dated yet pretty watchable. I think the main attraction for this film at the time was Tupac, but for me James Bellushi was the one that drove the film here.
  • August 26, 2007
    Not Bad Tupac ^_^
  • August 6, 2008
    didn't like this movie at all...i know they were taking out the bad guys, but they weren't all that good themselves....very shady movie....
  • June 4, 2007
    Maybe the single worst acting pairing in Hollywood history. Tupac and Jim Belushi? What kind of moronic tripe is this?
  • March 20, 2007
    When I read the description on the dvd box I was lookin forward to seein this flik

    Despite having Tupac and Belushi as the main stars it kinda tanked.

    It was NOT the cast that ruined it. It was the directors, writers, producers, etc.

    Had it been done a tad bit different ... read morePac & Belushi would of rocked the screen and the Academy Awards that year!!
  • March 4, 2007
    Tupac & James Belushi. What a team up. Good movie. I wish it could have been developed a little longer. It seemed a bit short in the "story" department. Anything with Pac is fine with me.
  • February 23, 2007
    This movie, though not the best cop movie out there is worth watching, if for no other reason you get to watch Tupac.
  • February 19, 2007
    I was never a Tupac fan - I just didn't see what the big deal was. However, I can say that he is one of the few rappers that actually had some sort of acting talent. If I was an actor, I'd be mad - someone else getting all the good jobs just because they dropped a hot album last ... read moreyear. I don't know why everyone feels the need to multitask. Just stick with what you're good at. Case in point: Madonna.

    Anyway, there were great twists and turns in this storyline, and it kept you guessing right up until the surprising end. Jim Belushi was nice and sleazy, offering a good contrast to Shakur's 'tortured soul' character.
  • August 14, 2006
    Tupac's last movie... and it was horrible... This was just not that good of a movie.... the fact that Tupac dies in it and is killed by a cop is a little out there

Critic Reviews


David Noh
July 16, 2007
David Noh, Film Journal International

Writer-director Jim Kouf crams the screen with enough incident, coincidence and characters to keep you watching. Full Review

Jeffrey Westhoff
May 27, 2003
Jeffrey Westhoff, Northwest Herald (Crystal Lake, IL)

I won't pretend to know anything about Shakur's music, but his death robbed filmgoers of an actor who only began to show his talent.

Frank Ochieng
May 25, 2003
Frank Ochieng, TheWorldJournal.com

An ambitious but instantly generic urban crime drama that conjures up the usual assortment of cliched' streetwise grittiness

Luke Y. Thompson
January 22, 2003
Luke Y. Thompson, New Times

Tupac was a very promising actor -- it's a shame this was the kind of film he usually wound up in.

James Sanford
June 28, 2002
James Sanford, Kalamazoo Gazette

There are several clever twists in the story, though Kouf never quite manages to make much of it seem credible. Full Review

Scott Weinberg
January 16, 2002
Scott Weinberg, Apollo Guide

Jim Kouf has managed to create a low-budget cop story that not only features a sterling cast, but also manages to entertain for two hours straight. Full Review

Owen Gleiberman
September 7, 2011
Owen Gleiberman, Entertainment Weekly

Click to read the article Full Review

Jeff Strickler
November 6, 2002
Jeff Strickler, Minneapolis Star Tribune

Click to read the article Full Review

Stephen Hunter
January 22, 2002
Stephen Hunter, Washington Post

Click to read the article Full Review

Kenneth Turan
February 14, 2001
Kenneth Turan, Los Angeles Times

Click to read the article Full Review

Critic ratings and reviews powered by RottenTomatoes.com

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Gang Related Trivia


  • Amber Tamblyn's father Russ was in what 1961, gang related musical?  Answer »
  • In what 1970's movie is there a charactor named Ajax? hint (movie is gang related.)  Answer »
  • Which actor/singer star in movies such as Above The Rim, Juice, Gang Related?  Answer »
  • Nothing but trouble, Juice, Poetic Justice, Above the Rim, Bullt, Gridlock'd, Gang Related were all films which featured who?  Answer »

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