We're 88Nine's Justin Barney and Milwaukee Film's Kpolly. We're buds, we like cinema -- we're Cinebuds.
This week we're talking about "Hustlers," and without spoiling too much, we loved it. We absolutely loved it. Read on and stream the episode below to find out why.
"Hustlers" is a fantastic movie. Let's just start there. Get it out of the way. "Hustlers" is great. Go see it. End of story. Now. Go.
Okay, let's get into it a bit. "Hustlers" is written and directed by Lorene Scafaria. This is her third full length release as a director. The movie is based on a true story and follows main character "Destiny," who is played by Constance Wu. Destiny is a stripper who comes up in New York in 2007. Things are good. Money is flowing. USHER IS THERE. Then, you know what's coming. The 2008 recession hits and it effects everything, including strip clubs. Destiny has a kid, she gets out of stripping. She hits a low. And then she needs money so she calls up her old friend Ramona, played WONDERFULLY by Jennifer Lopez. And they get into some stuff that they maybe shouldn't get into.
There are cameos galore. Lizzo is in this. Cardi B is there. Both leave you wanting more. The movie is grounded in a sense of place. It's about greed, family, friendship. Getting by day-to-day. We LOVED this thing. It took a world that we know nothing about and brought us right in. We loved the music, the acting, the direction, the craft, WE LOVED EVERYTHING. In the podcast we gush about the whole thing and go into detail about exactly what we loved. Check it out.