By Gardenia Zuniga-Haro
The first fifteen minutes of the movie are every man's fantasy performance although I have been to a few different gentlemen's clubs in San Francisco and neither performances I have ever seen compared to Ramona's opening act.
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| Ramona's opening performance for Hustlers was jaw dropping! (Photo credit-BARBARA NITKE/STXfilms) |
I get it, the film was portraying the life of Samantha Barbash which was a self made hustler in New York city but I felt it wasn't worth the hype.
I first heard of the movie while indulging on an episode of Wendy Williams where she mentioned a movie based on New York City strippers who scammed men was in production earlier this year. Little did I know it will be one of Jennifer Lopez most iconic performance besides the It's My Party Tour which I attended earlier this summer.
Back to the hustle, shall we.
The plot twist was unexpected for me since I thought the movie was going to be mainly about strippers pole dancing however, once the drugs came into scene, it was a whole new world.
I must admit, I felt Wu's performance was solid during the entire film. I felt her pain in some scenes as well as her desire to make more money. Part of me wanted to also be a hustler like her although I was expecting a much more pole dancing to be honest. Actually, I think Destiny (Wu) was only on the pole less than five times if she performed like Ramona.
Keke Palmers performed a gaugable performance (she created "The Gag" comment) that made me want to be one of her sisters and get guys drunk with her electric performance. Cardi B, well I get it, she wasn't going to outshine Ramona but I expected to see some pole sliding more than Lizzo who on the contrary I enjoyed and will attend her show if she even danced the pole like that again.
Oh wait, can I mentioned G-Eazy wasn't terrible but then, he wasn't as memorable. I expected more Gerald.
Wu's performance out shined Lopez because I connected with her emotions. She played Roselyn Keo as Destiny in which her performance was a solid A in my book. I expected more sexuality from Destiny in the lap dance scenes but then, Ramona (Lopez) was the star for that category.
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| Ramona ( Jennifer Lopez) and Destiny ( Constance Wu) both showed that strippers can also have a sisterhood. (Photo STX Films) |
Wu delivered what should be considered an Oscar worthy performance more than Lopez. Yes, Lopez delivered a worthy performance however Wu, I felt a connection with her performance. I felt as was in her shoes or should I say stripper shoes more than Lopez.
Lorene Scafaria did a great job directing since I felt as if I was a hustler too but the soundtrack was a bit too much for my taste in some scenes. The Christmas party scene was too long and cheesy. The cinematography was great throughout the film captivating you to be part of the hustlers lifestyle. Oh and the Usher scene made me wonder if that scene was before or after he caught the herpes situation, "allegedly". No shame although his scandal broke down a few months after I met him at another film festival in which his photographer tried to lure me into going to their suit to "hang out". No thanks! Also there were way too many songs that weren't necessary on some scenes that made me wonder if this will at some point become a musical.
Word on the street Barbash is coming after J.LO with a lawsuit for portraying her life story on this film without her consent, allegedly. Well see how that goes meanwhile, she is also about to spill a juicy tell all which might be juicier than the prolonged scenes, than I would rather read her book.
I do wonder if this movie will inspire the dancers that barely made tips last weekend go into a full hustler operation like Ramona and Destiny but in the meantime, I recommend it for girls night.
Hustlers is Worth the HYPE!
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| Fun fact about this film, your 'Hustlers' picture can be featured on their website and social media outlets. |
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