Gangsta Rap: The Glockumentary (2007) User Reviews

Spinal Tap, but with rappers

[jfgibson73 · 6/10 · 12 April 2010]

Every review of this movie seems like it has to compare this movie to CB4, and it seems like everyone is polarized--they love one and hate the other. For me, this was the one I enjoyed.

Another IMDb comment claims that the movie was written by an insider to the culture and lifestyle that the movie portrays. Some viewers might think that it reinforces negative stereotypes, and the characters are a bit over the top. But I thought it also had a gritty, realistic feel that added to my enjoyment.

If language bothers you, you should know that every sentence in this movie has the N word in it. But the slang is part of what I liked, in the same way that the dialog in Trainspotting was an exaggerated example of how people talk in Edinburgh.

The story is about some over-the-hill rappers who try to make a comeback. They seems to be patterned off of NWA, but in the universe this movie exists in, they acknowledge NWA, so they supposedly came up around the same time. Like I said, their lives are so exaggerated, the movie ends up being campy, but for me, it had just the right tone. Imagine a hardcore rap version of Spinal Tap, which this movies seems to have gotten its plot from (even recreating most of the situations and story arc). This is one that I will watch over again, and I really liked the original songs as well. I'm glad I found this.

Near literally Spinal Tap

[humplestump · 3/10 · 12 March 2024]

Okk went in expecting something mindless, wasn't expecting it to be essentially / mindlessly spinal tap - not just in premise; recycled jokes / near identical structure/plot points.. repeatedly I found myself watching scenes lifted exactly from the movie except with ever so slight variation because of the style of music/culture covered - srsly watch Spinal Tap and then This Movie back to back. I don't necessarily dismiss Gansta Rap based on this, I just don't fully understand the thought process of the writer / director. Why spend so much time working on a film that is obviously never going to outshine the original film that all this material is lifted from? Is it a love letter? Did he think people wouldn't notice? And furthermore, You've got the opportunity to make your own film, why not just spend a little more time making it Your Own?

BUT: I could see the appeal in doing somewhat of a "remake" of spinal tap, putting the artists in the same situations but having them react in their own ways (though sometimes the response is the same and only the wording has changed...), even though in my opinion it doesn't work 95% of the time.

I don't know. More than view this movie I tried to wrap my head around the thought process behind. Did the director make sure all of his actors had seen Spinal Tap first or did he pass the identical script outline as his own? Did he own it or lose sleep over being found out? I'll never know because as soon as I'm done writing this I'll probably never think about it again and I'm sure not gonna ask.

Recommend for fans of Spinal Tap who also like to watch Bad movies on purpose. Not a wholly Terrible film, not really anything special, but it exists in the same universe as You, Me, and Spinal Tap, so take that as you will.

I liked this movie a lot more when it was still called CB4

[ikabus · 2/10 · 10 February 2008]

or fear of a black hat... whatever. I am afraid 10 lines of text about this movie would be impossible. maybe a haiku...

I only wish I. could erase the memory. of watching this poop.

The jokes are recycled and hardly still relevant as gangsta rap has faded into mediocre messages of thug mentalities and misguided angst. Maybe if this film was a true parody its smacking of this same un-originality would fit but that seems to be only a happy coincidence.

Even Dian Bachar aka "little bitch" cant make this funny...

Gangsta Rap: The Glockumentary is to CB4 as Bad Boy is to NWA, what ice cube circa '91 is to ice cube circa '01.

Even Malibu's Most Wanted is better than this... avoid.

The worst ever

[nate505 · 1/10 · 11 July 2008]

This was the worst movie in the whole wide world. I would rather be in the desert without water than to watch this crap again. I think the acting was terrible, the plot was terrible, and it was just a bad movie all the way around. I think if parents wanted to punish their kids then this is the movie for them. I mean what kind of person could sit there and watch this. Any person that recommended this movie to anyone else has to be mental. I watched CB4 several times and that was a funny movie this one was just down right bad. Now that I've seen this movie I won't never rent or go watch another Damon "Cokes" Daniel movie again. Sorry Damon no offense to you just your Glockumentary movie.

Don't listen to CB4 comparisons, MUCH better!

[datniggacheski · 9/10 · 18 February 2008]

This movie is what CB4 and Fear of a Black Hat wanted to be. Those films were obviously written by someone who was neither from or understood the "Gangsta" mentality, or the music industry. Although Gangsta Rap is not as prevalent as it was in the 90's, it's still here. 90% of rappers rap about guns and dope....i.e "Gangsta sh..", and 89% of them are as fake as the characters in this movie. This movie was written by two guys who are from that environment, one of them used to be a rapper himself so they know these characters intimately and it shows in the film.

Being from Los Angeles, I know and see these characters everyday where as in those other films there was no authenticity whatsoever. Most people from the streets who saw those other movie's thought they were both terrible, and were probably offended by them. You cannot as a filmmaker provide a commentary on something you know nothing about other than playing on stale stereotypes. Gangsta Rap goes beyond that. Murder Mike is my neighbor, Du-Rag is my cousin, Mama Rag is my ex-girlfriend's mother, these characters ring true.

In my opinion this film is both funny, and a relevant commentary on the state of Rap music today. Additionally, the group has an album of original music that's hilarious, but more importantly playable, where as the other two films I've heard it compared to sorely lacked in that department. Don't believe me, check out their video for "My Houseshoes" on youtube.

I enjoyed both the comedy and commentary. After renting this movie, I bought it online and also bought the album!

Take it from a Compton native

[jansmith-4 · 10/10 · 8 March 2008]

OMG, this movie is so funny. My brother rented it and we had no idea how funny it was gonna be. Old Gangsters trying to rap is funny enough in real life, but Murder Mike and Du-Rag really show how preposterous it really is. I keep hearing comparisons to CB4, and although there are obvious ones, overall I don't see it, they are two different movies. Chris Rock was not meant to be believable in his role in CB4, but in Gangsta Rap, these guys are believable. Ironically enough, Murder Mike is played by 6'5 Slink Capone who is by trade......a Gangster Rapper! He does a good job, I wouldn't even have known that he was a rapper turned actor if my brother hadn't told me. Me and my girlfriends have watched the movie 3 or 4 times, and we just bought the Gangsta Rap album on iTunes.

Pretty funny

[gmtkddqx24 · 9/10 · 8 March 2008]

I must admit, when it first saw this I thought it was gonna be crap, and a CB4 rip-off. Well i was wrong as it is funny, and although both films are about "gangster rap", the two films are different. In CB4, the characters were actually well to do and not from the ghetto at all. In this film, they are definitely from Compton and act the part. Definitely worth a look or two, especially at 420. In my opinion, Howie bell as "Du-Rag" steals the show. The music in the film is crazy, over the top funny. I just found out that "Gangsta Rap's" album is actually out on Delicious Vinyl and I plan to pick that up. Although it's meant to be a joke, I can play a lot of those songs up against any rap that's played on the radio right now!

funny and good music

[paulyork · 9/10 · 4 March 2015]

I thought this was an excellent mock documentary. Yes, it borrows liberally from Spinal Tap (some scenes are identical) but the music, script, direction, and acting were quite good. I ended up watching it several times and quite enjoyed it. The music is extremely well done. A lot of parts are funny, but esp. the part with "Momma Rag." I hope the filmmaker does a sequel to this.

What else? (this site wants me to write 10 lines for some reason). The love story was extremely well done (good acting), showing the tension between musicians and romance (a la John Lennon and Yoko Ono). The parody of the 'hardcore' gangsta persona was funny (Murder Mike flinching). I guess Durag is my favourite character. The failed aging musician theme is unfortunately all too real for most musicians in our culture, so it needed to be shown. Reminds me of the real life Spinal Tap, "Anvil" (a great documentary if you have the chance to see it).

Great movie!

[sreyelts · 10/10 · 10 August 2023]

Don't trust the critics, this movie is hilarious when it finds the right audience. Would totally recommend if you don't mind a little bit of 2000's type humor. Very well thought out movie and they even made an entire playlist to go along with it. I don't think the critics were a part of the targeted audience, which makes their reviews scuffed and I think that is why the movie didn't go too far. Image quality and sound may not be great but that is because it was from the early 2000's, that's another thing you can't let fool you with this movie. It is funny and well written. The story is good within itself.