My thoughts on Something From Nothing

My thoughts on Something From Nothing

It was definitely entertaining and easier to watch then some of the other films we've seen, still it was severely lacking a narrative structure. I would have preferred a chronological retelling of the history of Hip-Hop, tracing it's development through it's many distinct eras and an explanation of how its various sub-genres emerged. Instead, it offered a bunch of seemingly random interviews, grouped together geographically instead of chronologically. Many of the interviews were insightful, or at least entertaining, but they were lacking context. The artists that were interviewed individual significance to Hip-Hop was never explained. At times the film seemed to merely be a vanity project for director Ice-T, with excessive shots of him walking in slow-motion, or looking thoughtfully into the distance, while he spoke in voice-over. There were several notable artists that were not interviewed or even mentioned (though that may be because they refused to take part in the project). The film seemed to assume that the viewers already had a basic understanding of Hip-Hop and who the artists being interviewed were. Still, compared to many of the deadly-serious topics of the other films we've seen, it was nice to take in some light entertainment.