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Biggie and Tupac
Director:
Nick Broomfield
Feature
length: 103 minutes
Extras:
Additional Scenes, Director’s Commentary, Nick Broomfield Follow-Up Interview,
Notorious B.I.G. and Tupac Shakur Discographies
Languages:
English Stereo
Subtitles:
N/A
Packaging:
Keep Case
Chapter
Stops: 24
Sound:
Stereo Sound
Year
of Theatrical Release: 2002/DVD Release: 2003
Home
Video Distributor: Optimum Releasing and Razor & Tie L.L.C.
MPAA
Rating: R
Reviewer:
Mark A. Rivera
I
remember hearing about the death of the Notorious B.I.G on the radio. I was
surprised. I am not a hip hop or rap fan, but sometimes a personality appears
that crosses ethnic lines and I really think that if Notorious B.I.G. AKA Biggie
Smalls AKA Christopher Wallace had not been gunned down he would have become a
much more accomplished star than I think anyone could have imagined. I thought
he had a great sense of humor in some of his songs and enjoyed seeing some of
his on camera interviews. In contrast I was never a fan of bad boy rapper and
hip-hop artist Tupac Skakur though there is no denying that he gave an excellent
villainous turn in “Juice.”
There
have been many rumors regarding the deaths of both artists and I have to admit
that until seeing this documentary I took them with a grain of salt. Documentary
Filmmaker Nick Broomfield, whose credits include “Heidi Fleiss Hollywood
Madam” and “Kurt & Courtney” probes into the circumstances surrounding
the deaths if Biggie and Tupac and raises some very frightening questions
regarding who was responsible. For whatever it is worth, even if you do not
think a conspiracy took out both rappers, the film makes a good point to show
that the investigation, for which no one has ever been charged, appears to be
very incomplete. Though Broomfield does not personally state or implicate any
one party for the murders, the documentary raises the possibilities that it was
organized crimes like hits with the LAPD and the FBI possibly being involved and
even suggests that the East Coast to West Coast rivalry was created to blanket
their murders if not undermine hip hop music all together. Personally the FBI
connection is never made clear and there clearly seems to be a code of silence
surrounding these cases that suggests that something happened, but we may never
know the facts for sure.
Various
bodyguards, friends, rap artists, and an amiable detective who left the LAPD and
has gone on a crusade to find the truth are interviewed. Perhaps the most
touching individual in the documentary is Christopher Wallace’s mother. She is
not only an educated woman, but she seems like the salt of Earth when it comes
to her personality. One cannot help but feel for her in this documentary. I
think Biggie’s mother is a jut a sweet lady who is not unlike a lot of mothers
out there and rightfully has a concern to find out why her son was gunned down.
There
are 15 additional videotaped scenes as well as an interview with Nick Broomfield
(13:40), who also provides a feature length audio commentary track and an
introduction voice comment for all of the additional scenes. Biographical
information and discographies for the Notorious B.I.G. and Tupac Shakur as well
as biographical information for many of the people interviewed in this
documentary are also included.
The
main menu is animated with animated transitions to standard interactive still
frame menus and all are easy to navigate. See this movie and draw your own
conclusions. Look for “Biggie & Tupac” now on DVD-Video.
©
Copyright 2003 By Mark A. Rivera
All Rights Reserved.
Buy This DVD Now By Clicking On The Text Link Below!
Biggie and Tupac