Derek Luke deserves a standing ovation. Without him, the movie would have been a complete waste. Jamal Woolard and Antonique Smith were good as well, but none of the cast could match the level that Derek Luke set as Puffy. Overall, the three really captured the essence of their characters, as we know them now and knew them then. But, the movie fell short of good characters aside from these three. The biggest disappointment being Anthony Mackie as 2Pac.
There must be a shortage of young, black, male actors because Mackie could not carry the essence of 2Pac. He does not physically resemble Pac, though he tried to, he couldn't capture the sense of poetry, serenity, and social consciousness that the world knows 2Pac for. Instead Mackie made 2Pac look irrational, paranoid, and just plain stupid. For that, Mackie should not be invited back to the hip hop movie world.
Lil Kim, played by Naturi Naughton (the girl who got kicked out of 3LW), was acted out beautifully, but the actual character was written a little over the top.
The biggest flaw of all is the fact that the movie had no interpretation and no real drama. It was a biopic without an opinion. There is no "theory" as to who could have been behind the shootings of 2Pac or Biggie, and I think people would have preferred to see that. Maybe George Tillman Jr. is afraid of repercussions if he expresses an opinion.
This movie missed the drama mark by miles. You will notice that as scenes are about to reach their dramatic peak, they are over. You basically wait and wait and wait for the real drama to occur, and you look up and the movie is over.
Overall, I'm happy I saw the movie at matinée price and not at regular price.
