Smoke, Mirrors, and Rappers

TI is starring in a new movie with Big Boi. Trina guest starring on Desperate Housewives. Ludacris is on Law&Order. wow. I'm so excited. You ask me this whole rapper=actor thing is getting out of hand.

It works for all the companies involved. Think about it. You have a record label and a "hot" rapper. What better way is it to promote your artist to millions of people than to get them in a role (however small) in a movie or on a tv show? If you are the tv producer or movie producer, what better way is it to add to the buzz of a tv/movie than to attach the name of a "hot" artist to it (however small their role actually is)? If you are the "hot" artist, they are paying you a nice sum of money to recite some words. How could you say no to that?

Its the consumer that gets f#%ked over in the end. Once you get into adding buzz to a movie, making your movie "hot", you take away from the time spent making your movie GOOD. I go to movies to be wowed and entertained. I go to get away from the world and for 2 hours live in the movie. I go to see good actors with a good script and a good director come together and make magic. I go to see a GOOD movie.

What did Nelly add to "The Longest Yard"? Was 50's ode to himself "Get Rich or Die aTryin" even worth watching? Did Eve really qualify to be in "Barbershop"? Let's not talk about Ja Rule and the string of utterly worthless flicks he's unleashed on the masses.

People might try to stick up for their people. I hear your arguments. Ludacris was in "Crash". Well...the movie didn't exactly hinge on Luda. The script was superb and the direction was flawless. A trash can could've robbed Sandra Bullock and the movie would win an Oscar. It had Don Cheadle and Terrance Howard in it for God's sake. Let's not confuse making a movie good and not f#!kin up a movie.

I just don't like, what seems to be, this laziness taking over movies. Let's not go out to do a talent search and bank on a no-name, up-and-coming actor that might end up being the next Denzel, or the Halle Berry. Let's not go find that superstar in waiting that has a passion for the craft and true talent. Let's get that guy with that song out and put him in the movie. That's guaranteed money. It doesn't matter if the movie is good as long as we get that money.

Don't try to hustle me. Don't use smoke and mirrors and famous people to distract me from your horrible movie. The opportunity to see a famous person dressing up and reciting a few lines is not enough to get me to go see a movie. Let's get back to quality please. Keep these suck ass actors/rappers off the movie screens.