Get Rich Or Die Tryin’
Paramount Pictures
Starring: Curtis “50 Cent” Jackson, Adewale Agbaje and Joy Bryant
The Verdict: 50 Cent’s semi-autobiography is gritty and provocative, but lacks in terms of classic quality.
3 of 4
For all the hype that’s been surrounding 50 Cent’s foray into acting with his semi-autobiographical motion picture debut “Get Rich Or Die Tryin’,” one would think it was the second coming of “Scarface,” but for a new generation. Unfortunately, this is only partly true.
“Get Rich Or Die Tryin'” tries earnestly to come across as a gritty street drama about the trials and tribulations faced by a gangster named Marcus (Curtis “50 Cent” Jackson) who, after his mother Katrina (Serena Reeder) is murdered, turns to drug dealing to survive on the streets of Queens in New York City. The movie succeeds in its aim to make viewers feel Marcus’ pain, but too many subplots make the movie feel too inconsistent to keep any real emotion flowing past one scene.
To his credit, 50 Cent is not a bad actor. Though he pales in comparison to seasoned vets such as Bill Duke, Marcus’ kingpin, and Viola Davis, Marcus’ grandmother, for his first movie, he holds his own pretty well. But when working with a story that is basically your life story, it should come naturally, right? It turns out some of the most emotional scenes that should have been the easiest for 50 to pull off seem the most forced. He battles throughout the whole movie with trying to genuinely act and, at the same time, shows no emotion whatsoever, which is what Marcus has been taught to do since he started dealing drugs at a young age.
After his mother is killed, Marcus turns to drugs and learns the hard way about how to survive on the streets. He is incarcerated numerous times for possession of drugs, and ends up being exiled from his family, who have repeatedly tried to straighten him out. He rounds up Antwan (Ashley Walters), Justice (Tony Kittles) and Keryl (Omar Benson Miller) to form his own street gang.
They soon get introduced to the kingpin of New York crime, Levar (Bill Duke), who, after Marcus remarks that Levar is like a god, responds: “Son, I am God.” His proteg‹¨ Majestic (Adewale Akinnuoye-Agbaje) soon takes Marcus under his wing and teaches him the ways to make it rich in the game. Ongoing fights between the Columbians, led by Raoul (Walter Alza), and Levar’s gangs result in bullet-riddled cars, public shootouts and the paralyzation of Antwan.
In the meantime, Marcus catches up with childhood friend Charlene (Joy Bryant), who eventually gives birth to Marcus’ son. After another drug bust, Marcus winds up in jail again, accented by an X-rated shower scene fight that will surely be the focus of most viewers’ post-movie discussions. In jail, he meets Bama, a country boy from North Carolina who sees potential in Marcus’ rapping abilities and becomes his manager once out of prison.
Majestic propositions Marcus to join the family again, but Marcus’ refusal doesn’t sit well with him, and a war begins between the two parties that ends up becoming fodder for Marcus’ rhymes and fuel for Majestic’s hate for Marcus. The ending, which becomes hurried and seems somewhat unfinished, is too good to spoil, and it’s the one time 50 lets his guard down and shows unashamed emotion.
What hurts the movie more than anything is the attempt to try to plug in scenes of Marcus rapping to keep up that particular plotline when it’s not vital to the movie as a whole. The love story between Marcus and Charlene doesn’t get enough screen time to become palpable. The movie focuses on too many aspects of Marcus’ life with too little screen time to fully develop any understanding of their importance.
What does come through brilliantly is Marcus’ struggle from being a poor, drug-hustling gangster to becoming a celebrated rapper who escapes drug life and winds up on top of his world. And the fact that Marcus’ story is based much on 50’s own life makes it all the more painful to watch and wonder how anyone could’ve survived such heartache and misery.
As for the music, the two songs repeated throughout the movie are instant hits that sum up Marcus’ life in their two titles, “Hustler’s Ambition” and “Window Shopper.” The few times Marcus is shown rapping are like watching behind-the-scenes footage of one of 50’s recording sessions. It’s full of candid moments that make Marcus all the more enjoyable to watch through the process of finding words to fit his troubled emotions.
“Get Rich Or Die Tryin'” seems to accomplish two things. First, it serves as a warning to those interested in following Marcus’ career path, and second, it serves a gritty reminder of what life is like on the tough streets of New York, where you have to do what it takes to survive, even if that means killing someone else. Levar even offers a sage observation to his men: “Violence only begets more violence, but it does not beget more money.”
Which is why the title rings so true for the lives of Marcus and his fellow gangsters. They only know two things: money and death. So they strive for one, but they are always weary that the other is right around the corner.