Hustle & Flow poster & wallpaper
Get movie widget Recommend it Add to Favorites

Terrence Howard, Anthony Anderson, Taryn Manning, Taraji P. Henson, Paula Jai Parker ... see more see more... , Elise Neal , Isaac Hayes , D.J. Qualls , Ludacris , Juicy J , Terence DaShon Howard , Jordan Houston

One man's struggle to rise above his circumstances prompts him to try a career in music in this acclaimed drama from writer and director Craig Brewer. Djay (Terrence Howard) is a low-level pimp and dr... read more read more...ug dealer who scraped together a living in the ghettos of Memphis, TN. Djay isn't happy with his life, and the realization that he's reached the same age when his father unexpectedly died has made him start thinking about changing his ways. Djay has always had a gift for spinning stories, and after picking up a cheap keyboard, he begins picking out beats to go along with his rhymes. After bumping into an old high-school buddy who works in gospel music, Key (Anthony Anderson), Djay decided to take the plunge and remake himself as a rapper. With the technical know-how of Key and the musical input of a local beat maker named Shelby (DJ Qualls), Djay begins turning his way with words and his first-hand knowledge of the street life into music, as his two live-in girlfriends, Lexus (Paula Jai Parker) and Shug (Taraji P. Henson), add their musical input and emotional support and Nola (Taryn Manning) continues to turn tricks to pay the bills. When local boy-turned-nationwide hip-hop star Skinny Black (Ludacris) comes to town to pay a visit to Arnel (Isaac Hayes), a club owner friendly with Djay, he sees an opportunity to put his demo in the hands of someone who can bring his music to the masses, though it turns out to be far more difficult than he expected. Hustle & Flow had its world premiere at the 2005 Sundance Film Festival, where it received a number of rave reviews and took home the Audience Award. ~ Mark Deming, Rovi

Flixster Users

80% liked it

117,213 ratings

Critics

82% liked it

154 critics

R, 1 hr. 54 min.

Directed by: Craig Brewer

Release Date: July 22, 2005

Invite friends to see

DVD Release Date: January 10, 2006

Get It:

Stats: 5,641 reviews

report incorrect info

Photos

Terrence Howard whup that trick Hustle & Flow Hustle & Flow Hustle & Flow Hustle and flow Ludacris Terrence Howard even better "Hustle and Flow" Hustle & Flow Hustle & Flow Craig Brewer Hustle & Flow Hustle & Flow Hustle & Flow
Upload a Photo | View All Hustle & Flow Photos

Your Rating


clear rating

Flixster Reviews (5,641)

  • aquateen2
    May 4, 2012
    aquateen2
    [img]http://images.rottentomatoes.com/images/user/icons/icon14.gif[/img]

    Shortly after the film's release, the subsequent project by legendary and visionary director Craig Brewer which he also penned and directed was Black Snake Moan, my favourite film of all time. So by natu... read morere I was excited and had high expectations before seeing it but they were elevated even higher when I discovered that the film was phenomenally succesful critically. I was probably more frightened about being dissapointed with it than any film i've ever watched but it just completely overwhelmed me and then some. Everything about Hustle and Flow works. Terrence Howard brings Djay to life emotionally with an outstanding and thankfully recognised stand out performance that achieved a deserved Oscar nomination. It is masterfuly directed by Brewer who's tight script and inspired setting creates the film's emotional unrestraint and mind blowing depth. If there are two things i've learnt from Brewer it's that he can sympathise even the most disturbed and unsettled characters and animate societies social outcasts and thats what I love that about him, and the film he's made here. A pimped out soundtrack, perfect performances and expectations met, in my opinion it's one of the most edgy and entertaining films of 2004.
  • jarobb3
    October 3, 2011
    jarobb3
    Excellent movie -- put Terrance Howard firmly on the map and gave Ludacris some acting street cred. Craig Brewer has a talent for animating the dark, forgotten corners of Americana.
  • cosmo313
    October 5, 2010
    cosmo313
    He made this before he made Black Snake Moan, but now that I've seen both of films, I am convinced of two things: 1) Craig Brewer knows the South, and 2) to quote a skit from Chapelle's Show, He "knows black people".

    While this film does present a familair story, it is not ex... read moreecuted in a totally cliched and formulaic way. It is gritty and raw (in places), but not so much so that it becomes exploitative. It's not a sugar-coated fantasy either. It's a really good mix of things, and its real strength is that it is very plausible and realistic.

    DJay is a Memphis pimp and drug dealer, but these are not his passions, jiust the things he does to get by. His real passion and dream is to become a rapper- something he discovered a talent for early on, but lost along the way. Brushes with his past, along with troubles with his women resurrect his dream and give him the fuel to make his dream a possible reality.

    Terrence Howard had plenty of roles before this (and is bound to keep on working for a long time to come), but this is his star making performance. His portrayal of the pimp and pusher transcends gritty caricature. He's rough when necessary, and has a heart of gold when needed, but it's more than cookie cutter bullshit. Djay is a complex character, and he's fascinating to watch, especially because Howard so brilliantly brigns him to life. This may mostly be a vehicle for Howard, but the supporting cast is likewise brilliant, and all of them bring something to the table instead of just riding on the coattails of the lead. I especially liked the roles filled by Henson and Manning. Parker is good, but those two are excellent. All of the haraters are real and fleshed out, and believable. There is a lot of depth and humanity on display. That sentence can sum up the whole movie, because, despite the subject matter and the world on display, this is a work of art, and not exploitative garbage. D.J. Qualls and Anthony Anderson are known for comedic roles, and while they do provide some humor here, they aren't jsut comic relief. They also provide plenty of drama and emotion to push things forward.

    There is a fair amount of subtext and depth with this film, but it's not heavy handed or preachy. There's bits of fantasy here and there, but it's mostly just a moving and absorbing slice of life tale about struggle, ambition, and hope. You don't really have to be familiar with rap music to like this film. It may help to like or appreciate(or at the very least tolerate) it though. You know this movie is mildly high brow when one of the songs ("It's Hard out Here for a Pimp") actually won a fucking Oscar. It shows that yes, ghetto life and rap music can be art and the subject of high culture entertainment. Some scholars may have an issue with the fact that a white man was behind this, and that somehow this movie may be trivializing a culture that's not his own, but that's not true.

    Man, I just realized that that last paragraph reminded me of my seminar paper on blaxploitation films I'm struggling to work on.

    Okay, enough rambling. Go see this. It's great stuff, and very worthy of viewing.
  • hobster1
    June 17, 2008
    hobster1
    Well rounded and complex characters that feel like the real deal. Terrence Howard is brilliant and the music is memmorable.
  • tsigur
    January 2, 2008
    tsigur
    Great character study and better than I expected (sorry Keith). Terrence Howard is great.
  • drago25
    July 28, 2007
    drago25
    I wasn't sure what I'd think of tis film, but I wanted to see it because of how highly it's been praised. I don't consider myself into the rap culture much, although I do listen to some, but Hustle & Flow creates its own fully vibrant world that really wraps you up in it. It take... read mores place in the south, and involves a pimp, Djay (Terence Howard), who finds himself in a position to fulfill his dream of being a rapper, and decides to do something about it. I can see how this would be an unsavory film for some people. The main character is a pimp, after all. But, in the end, this is a very honest film about a very true part of society that has fallen to the bottom rung of the socioeconomic ladder, and it tracks its characters with honesty and compassion and though they aren't, from a social standpoint, good people - Hustle & Flow makes you understand that sometimes you let yourself fall into a life you're not happy with because you have to in order to get by, and you have the power to change it, which is what they attempt to do. So if you can't tell already, I really liked this movie. Terence Howard turns in a powerful performance that makes me respect him a lot as an actor (he was one of the few things I liked about Crash). The director even gets good performances out of D.J. Qualls and Anthony Anderson, who are usually "Oh, that guy!" comedic fare actors. The directing is pretty good, and the music is fantastic. You will probably be as in to the songs as the characters are when creating them - "Whoop that trick - get 'em." JUstle & Flow is a very good film, I recommend it.
  • lewiskendell
    June 25, 2007
    lewiskendell
    Really makes you feel like you're in Memphis.
  • allan913
    March 7, 2007
    allan913
    Terreance Howard is sensational. A tour de force performance. He sets the screen a blaze with power, intensity, wit and stellarness. A gritty, riveting and memerising urban drama.
  • kpn666
    March 3, 2007
    kpn666
    Forget 8 mile - this is more raw and packs a whallop - one of the best dramas currently!
  • DrZeek
    March 1, 2007
    DrZeek
    Whoop dat Trick!

    It could've been some lame rapper, rags to riches story, but instead it is a well thought out character study with good performances, some drama, humorous moments, and a look into the actual development of rap music.

    Terrence Howard, who has been in many movies... read more before but gets his big break here, is great as DJay, a pimp who decides to try an make it in the rap game, and have a more prosperous life.

    Armed with some old friends and his "employees" they go through the process of making a mix record and trying to get it into the hands of a former resident of their town, who has made it big.

    This movie works because it is grounded in reality. It feels authentic and uses somewhat strange characters and gives them issues to come over and goals to reach. It also helps that with all the drama there are plenty of humorous and touching moments in the movie, as well as the presence of Isaac Hayes and some good musical sequences.

    Key: Just because you got the bacon, lettuce, and tomato don't mean I'm gonna give you my toast.

View All Hustle & Flow Reviews

Critic Reviews

Richard Roeper
July 25, 2005
Richard Roeper, Ebert & Roeper

It's kind of a conventional story, but it's told in such a unique way and the locations in Memphis all feel very authentic. Full Review

Stephanie Zacharek
July 22, 2005
Stephanie Zacharek, Salon.com

Hustle & Flow suspends you in its spell of mood, of feeling, of climate. It's a pop picture that finds its richness in peeling down to the essentials of good storytelling. Full Review

Ann Hornaday
July 22, 2005
Ann Hornaday, Washington Post

Watching as a pimp, a pothead and a pregnant hooker play and sing in a makeshift bedroom recording studio, and becoming increasingly caught up in their determination and hope, it's impossible not to t... Full Review

Jami Bernard
July 22, 2005
Jami Bernard, New York Daily News

Unlikely as this may sound, Hustle & Flow -- about a low-down Memphis pimp who wants to be a rapper -- is the feel-good movie of the summer. Full Review

Terry Lawson
July 22, 2005
Terry Lawson, Detroit Free Press

Of course it manipulates us; most movies do. But it does so with such sincere, funky confidence that I loved just about every minute of it. Full Review

Robert Denerstein
July 22, 2005
Robert Denerstein, Denver Rocky Mountain News

Hustle & Flow has a heart that beats as loudly as the bass line on one of DJay's tracks.

Mick LaSalle
July 22, 2005
Mick LaSalle, San Francisco Chronicle

So much love went into Hustle & Flow that it almost glows with it. Full Review

David Edelstein
July 22, 2005
David Edelstein, NPR's Fresh Air

What's missing in this self-proclaimed story of redemption, though, is something other than a fairy-tale finale. It's the sense that the filmmaker understands the consequences of exploiting women even... Full Review

J.D. Considine
July 22, 2005
J.D. Considine, Globe and Mail

While the plot avoids the most obvious happy-ending clichés, it stays unnecessarily close to the pimps 'n hos mythology of crunk hits, and that's particularly discomfiting if you happen to believe tha... Full Review

Tom Long
July 22, 2005
Tom Long, Detroit News

Hustle & Flow is a celebration of crude aspirations, of raw art, of raunch and street and yearning and, beneath it all, family values.

Critic ratings and reviews powered by RottenTomatoes.com

Fresh (60% or more critics rated the movie positively)

Rotten (59% or fewer critics rated the movie positively)

Cast

More Like This

Click a thumb to vote on that suggestion, or add your own suggestions.

  • Get Rich or Die Tryin'
    Get Rich or Die Tryin' (83%)
  • 8 Mile
    8 Mile (74%)
  • Black Snake Moan
    Black Snake Moan (80%)
  • The Show
    The Show (14%)

More Movies like Hustle & Flow

Facts

No facts approved yet. Be the first

Hustle & Flow : Watch Free on TV

Hustle & Flow Trivia

  • What was Ludacris's rap name is the movie Hustle & Flow?  Answer »
  • Which actor had his car blown up in Road Trip, went to prison in The New Guy, and made rap music in Hustle & Flow?  Answer »
  • In which movie did Terrance Howard knock out Ludacris?  Answer »
  • You know it's hard out here for a pimp When he tryin to get this money for the rent For the Cadillacs and gas money spent Because a whole lot of bitches talkin shit   Answer »
More Hustle & Flow Trivia

Movie Quizzes

Create a Quiz |

All Quizzes

Video Clips

No video clips yet. Want to upload one?

Meet Other Fans

Add Hustle & Flow to favorites

Recent News

No recent headlines. Got one?

Recent Lists

Make a List |

View All Lists

Most Popular Skin

kpn666 Skin by kpn666
648 Profiles
Add to Profile

More Skins