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Tupac Shakur

Many unauthorized video titles have been released about the life of rap superstar Tupac Shakur. Tupac: Resurrection is the only one to be both executive produced by his mother, former Black Panther Af... read more read more...eni Shakur, and benefit from access to the MTV archives. The documentary is the feature-length debut for director Lauren Lazin, who has created several highly rated programs for both MTV and PBS. Using voice-overs, interviews, and other vocal tracks recorded by the late artist himself, the film explores his life, music, and death from fatal gunshot wounds in 1996. Includes rare footage, home movies, private photographs, and excerpts from his personal poetry, journals, and letters. During the making of the film, MTV reached out to his fan base by requesting submissions of Tupac memorabilia to be used in the film. ~ Andrea LeVasseur, Rovi

Flixster Users

87% liked it

11,321 ratings

Critics

78% liked it

86 critics

R, 1 hr. 55 min.

Directed by: Lauren Lazin

Release Date: January 22, 2003

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DVD Release Date: June 15, 2004

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Flixster Reviews (755)

  • bhobbs1985
    June 27, 2007
    bhobbs1985
    One of my favorite documentaries of all time. Even if you never listened too Tupac, or rap all that much, you'd still probably be interested in the story of his life, if you gave this movie a shot.
  • jorgeroman1
    May 27, 2010
    jorgeroman1
    Undeniably more faithful to how a biopic movie than others. 2Pac was one of the greatest Rappers out there, & I'm thankful I got a chance to meet this guy at the age of 6 (one year after I met Chris Wallace). I was a Compton boy.

    May his soul rest in peace.
  • michaelcorleone
    November 19, 2006
    michaelcorleone
    I enjoyed this movie a lot. An absorbing, unique documentary that really depicts how remarkable of a person Tupac was. And I don't even like rap music.
  • Dracula787
    February 7, 2009
    Dracula787
    A 2003 documentary about the life and times of rapper Tupac Shakur. What?s unique about the film is that while Tupac was alive he had given so many interviews that they were able to edit them all into a consistent narrative, as such the movie is entirely narrated by the film?s s... read moreubject even though he had been killed years before the film went into production. This easily could have been corny, but the filmmakers approached it with the seriousness of a historian. Also, the production values on this are great, for a movie that consists almost entirely of archival footage this must have had a relatively huge budget. The approach has it?s weaknesses, namely that Tupac is not exactly the most objective observer of his life and he doesn?t have the benefit of hindsight. I suspect that if he?d lived to look back on everything that?s here his narration would be pretty different. Still, this is a great and unique doc about a talented and fascinating person.
  • KLFilmmaker
    January 15, 2009
    KLFilmmaker
    A nice portrait the rise and death of Tupac Shakur.
  • alush1
    January 26, 2008
    alush1
    I watched this documentary,not knowing much about this man beyond his gangster rapper reputation.I am not a fan of gangster rap,but this young man was an amazingly intelligent,insightful tour de force.
    He did indeed have talent for his genre but more importantly,he had great ins... read moreight into society and politics.I learned a great deal from this film,and understand how his death resonated around the world. A modern day poet and social satirist-with lasting influence on his fans.
  • FanGirl
    October 18, 2006
    FanGirl
    I didn't want to see this movie but I had to watch it for a class. Unless you're already interested in Tupac, skip it.
  • brandankurtis
    January 16, 2011
    brandankurtis
    One never knows what to expect out of rock films. Going into Tupac: Resurrection, I half expected another mediocre blaxploitation groaner. The other half expected a gushy MTVish drool-fest out to promote the soundtrack artists, including current corporate media darling 50 Cent.

    ... read moreResurrection is neither. The producer is not some slick Hollywood mogul with no understanding of rap except as a source for making a quick buck. Instead, Afeni Shakur, the late rapper's mother, takes charge. As both executive producer and the dominant force in her son's short life, her personal agenda impacts every frame. Like all documentaries, this is an extremely one-sided account, and it is likely due to her input that the movie downplays the darker aspects of Pac's self-destructive downward spiral after his move to Death Row Records. Nor is the film harsh enough on Tupac's seemingly endless capacity for paranoia and irresponsibility.

    Fortunately, she also makes the crucial decision not to dwell on more tired hash-rehash of so called East Coast/West Coast rap war, which the movie clarifies as less of a reality than a media event. Nor does it choose to linger on the numerous rumors and conspiracies surrounding Tupac's murder.

    Shakur and director Lauren Lazin wisely decide to let Tupac's voice carry the film. Lazin wisely refrains from using the masterful, propagandistic gimmicks of a Michael Moore documentary. There are no distracting interviews or massively-edited montages. As a result, the movie has a lyrical, sacred tone. History has mystified Pac as a martyr for West Coast gangsta rap, although during his lifetime he only released one such album. Few choose to remember that Death Row was the twilight of his life, that he spent the first half-decade of his career recording in the East where he grew up. It is here that the film takes its cue.

    Resurrection lays bare a magnetic, arrogant, charismatic spirit that immediately affirms why Pac remains one of rap's only true megastars. Though the film is not hard enough on how his growing obstinacy may have hastened his demise, it does not shy away from the controversy, the premonitions of death, the sex abuse conviction, and the inflated ego. The result is a well-drawn sketch of man aware of his genius but haunted by demons, a tortured soul navigating a realm more thuggish than he was at his core, a contradiction which plays as a general commentary on rap's manufactured images.

    This movie's production value alone easily outclasses nearly every other cinematic work that has ever pretended to be about hip-hop. It bears little resemblance to How High or Belly or to the shameless self-promotion of the vanity project 8 Mile, which was so sanitized as to kill any revelations it might have made about its star Eminem, the most high profile rapper to yet arise. I don't understand how someone could praise 8 Mile for its beauty and honesty (it isn't) and then criticize this film.

    By contrast, the sincerity of Resurrection solidifies Pac's reputation as `the only rapper that matters.' It shows why he is peerless and maybe the greatest artist the genre has yet produced: whatever can be said about his music, as an intelligent personality there is simply no one else in his class. He is so much more painfully relevant than all star rappers, and the sharpness of his observations on everything from politics to poverty leaves dust in the eyes of all his contemporaries. He represents a paradigm that has become all-too-rare in a musical form now dominated by cartoon images: a constructive rather than destructive point-of-view.

    A ball of contradictions, Tupac is finally much more complex and brilliant than most people would expect. People are uninformed and uninterested in hip-hop probably will get little out of this movie. Those who know will realize that the biggest tragedy is that not that Tupac died before reaching his full potential, but that other young black men with similar sensibilities rarely reach his level of visibility.
  • alphabull3
    May 16, 2010
    alphabull3
    Hip hop at it's finest! The story was dope and the fact that they used his voice to tell it was tight as hell to me!
  • InkTaster
    October 1, 2007
    InkTaster
    a great and powerful documentary put together seemingly the same way as "Last Days of Left Eye".....it shows every side of Tupac and all of his life from his childhood to his death.....it showed all his viewpoints and opinions on life and the system and the ppl around them....i d... read moreont have any CDs from Tupac and only know like 2 songs....and i h8 rap....but he was an amazing artist that died......its just sad watching this movie along w/ Last Days of Left Eye......seeing Tupac and Left Eye how they were...knowing they were already dead....sad movie yet inspiring

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Critic Reviews

Richard Roeper
November 17, 2003
Richard Roeper, Ebert & Roeper

It's amazing stuff. Full Review

Stephanie Zacharek
November 15, 2003
Stephanie Zacharek, Salon.com

It never addresses the problem that the more Tupac opens his mouth to explain what his music is or isn't about, and what role in society it is or isn't supposed to serve, the more obvious it becomes t... Full Review

Mike Clark
November 14, 2003
Mike Clark, USA Today

It's great to hear a person no longer with us captured so bountifully in interviews, talking and even bubbling about his friends, his legacy and his scrapes. Full Review

Geoff Pevere
November 14, 2003
Geoff Pevere, Toronto Star

[An] absorbing experience. Full Review

James Sullivan
November 14, 2003
James Sullivan, San Francisco Chronicle

Fans, of course, will devour this film, but there's plenty to chew on for the uninitiated as well. Full Review

Joe Baltake
November 14, 2003
Joe Baltake, Sacramento Bee

This film's title is accurate. Tupac Shakur is more alive than he's ever been -- and more endlessly fascinating than ever. Full Review

Roger Moore
November 14, 2003
Roger Moore, Orlando Sentinel

As poignant as it is informative. Full Review

Bob Campbell
November 14, 2003
Bob Campbell, Newark Star-Ledger

Intriguing but ultimately frustrating. Full Review

Jack Mathews
November 14, 2003
Jack Mathews, New York Daily News

A story of violence, and it's superbly told. Full Review

Liam Lacey
November 14, 2003
Liam Lacey, Globe and Mail

A strong film, with some genuinely revealing insights into the life of its charismatic and paradoxical subject. Full Review

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