Rick Ross nailed it, for sure. And so did J-Lo. Day by day, we all are hustlin’ for various reasons: some noble, some, well, terrible. The movies have a proud history of great stories about hustlers, small and big. Below are 6 examples across many decades of hustlers. Eventually, we’ll be adding J-Lo’s Hustlers into this group, by the way, but it’s not quite one of the 6 yet.
Would Rick Ross approve of the hustlin below? Read on to find out…
Pool shark takes a decent playing novice under his wing in hopes to swindle money from gullible billiards players.
Would Rick Ross approve?
On title alone, hell yeah!
Why the movie’s good…
Martin Scorcese never seemed like a guy who would be sequel hunting, but here he found a great one. In The Hustler (1961), Paul Newman was the hot young talent taking on Jackie Gleason’s pool shark. In this one, Newman, talented thespian that he is, plays the aging shark, trying to teach a young Tom Cruise the ropes and rules of the game. The brilliance of this story is that while we are supposed to be focusing on Tom Cruise’s growth as a con artist, Scorcese slowly shifts the movie’s perspective to Newman’s Fast Eddie Felsen, and his realization that his life is in a rut, and he’s lost his competitive edge. Scorcese’s direction gives the movie a specific style and edge, finding fun juxtaposition in the seedy locations with the classy way Newman and Cruise go about their business.
During Prohibition, a trigger happy bootlegger slowly rises up the ranks of the Chicago(?) crime syndicate.
Would Rick Ross approve?
A booze running gangster? True that. Title also a title of a pizza joint? Double true!
Why the movie’s good…
MWRRRAW See? I shot him round the back SEE????? Edward G. Robinson became a superstar after he took on this role, essentially a version of Al Capone. The story jumps all over the place, but Robinson holds the fort by creating a legendary spin on the gangster vernacular. In movie history, this was the first time the sound of bullets could be heard onscreen; for American cinema, the first of many…
Low level twentysomethings in New York try to work their way into the sweet life, whatever that may be.
Would Rick Ross approve?
Hard to tell. I think Ross would be a fan of the general hustlin these guys are doing, but the movie is about their failures and flaws, so, probably not that.
Why the movie’s good…
This movie is “almost got there” Martin Scorcese: he’d perfect this story with Goodfellas years later. Even though it’s not transcendent cinema, I mean, come on, it’s Martin Scorcese, so you know the movie’s gonna be riveting to watch. In part because this movie turned Harvey Keitel and Robert De Niro into superstars, and probably landed De Niro the Godfather II Vito Corleone part. De Niro in particular is electric here, a volcano of falsely earned bravado at the expense of an equally good Keitel, playing the decent man trying to do right by everyone he cares about. In true Scorcese fashion, the movie hits you by the end that there’s a lot of action that leads to nowhere because no one knows a better way to do anything.
African-American detective uncovers layers of crime when the daughter of a shady local businessman is kidnapped.
Would Rick Ross approve?
What kind of question is that? Of course Rick Ross would dig it!
Why the movie’s good…
Of the blaxsploitation films out there, there’s many reasons this is one of the longest lasting and best. The opening sequence establishes this movie’s cool credentials immediately: Richard Roundtree, standing tall, walking through the dirty NYC streets with his badass theme song playing behind him as he gets to the gritty work of detectiving. Add in a decently constructed story, a few interesting characters, and some fascinating discussions on race relations in the US, and you’ve got yourself a rip roaring romp, kicking ass until its time to make love to the ladies. SHAFT!!!
Famous story of the leader of merry men, who stole from the sleazy rich of England and gave to the poor.
Would Rick Ross approve?
I think Ross would just be confused. He’s probably in favor of what RH is doing, but the British level of manners and lack of guns might be a head scratcher for him.
Why the movie’s good…
Joy emanates from every pore of Errol Flynn’s Robin Hood, and the movie in general. Flynn’s swordfighting lives up to its legendary reputation here, as he flies around the screen like an acrobat. An early movie in color, this movie uses every color on the spectrum, making each scene pop, lavishly so. The story is also legendary for a reason, as the income redistribution Robin Hood proposes is a noble cause that brings about the wrath of the powerful, even still today.
An innocent, honest policeman figures out some of the rot and decay inside his own department, and considers doing something about it.
Would Rick Ross approve?
Ross would have turned this movie off immediately seeing the hustling was done by a cop. He also might have kept it on though if he was bored and really paying attention to what the movie was sayin.
Why the movie’s good…
Whatever was happening in New York in the 1970s brought out the best in hustling, from the crime side and the cop side alike. Al Pacino is fiery and excellent here as a man who wants to purge all the negative police activity out of the police department. Pacino’s performance ranges the gamut of emotions, from wide eyed innocent to jaded disinterest, to anger and disillusionment. Sidney Lumet also gives the movie a gritty, street level approach to the policework here, showing how unglamorous and brutal it can be, explaining the poor police behavior, drunk on power and wanting to get out of their day to day hellscape.
