I'm not hard core into hip-hop as I used to be but I do believe
Curtis "50 Cent" Jackson is the absolute real deal.
I remember when he 1st came out with the underground smash, "How
to rob" and thought he was funny as hell. That single is
in the movie by the way or at least in this draft.
I clearly remember the day when I moved to LA. The date was 11/06/2002.
I came off the plane and went immediately to the premiere of 8
mile in Westwood with my director buddy. My 1st ever-big deal
Hollywood premiere. Everybody and their mother was there. I remember
seeing that movie and predicting it would be huge. It was huge
all right and opened at $51 million that weekend. I'm here to
tell you folks that Get Rich or Die Tryin' (G.R.O.D.T for short)
will be just as big as 8 mile if not bigger.
G.R.O.D.T is a great script by a great writer. That great writer
is Emmy winner Terence Winter who has an incredible ability to
tell the stories of gangsta's and their lives. Who is Terence
Winter? What has he written? You might be familiar with his work.
He's the writer of The Soprano's memorable episode, "Long
Term Parking." That was the episode last season in which
they killed off Christopher's girlfriend Adriana for being a snitch
for the Feds and the episode that won Winter the Emmy.
50 cent has been getting a lot of attention in the media as of
late because his autobiography came out yesterday. I was intrigued
so I picked up the script and blazed through it. Winter captures
the essence and the characters of South Jamaica to a T! You would
have to be living under a rock if you at least didn't hear about
50's origins because they are well documented in the media. 50
cent plays himself in G.R.O.D.T as the main character MARCUS PHILLIPS.
Everything from 50's life is in this script with very few if little
dramatic license so there really are no spoilers. From the crack
dealing, to losing his moms at the age of 8, to living with his
grandmother, to discovering his ability for rhymes, to going to
jail, to becoming one of the best crack hustler's out there, to
being shot nine times, from recording his 1st underground single,
from pushing it out the back of cars, to the record deal, to the
Grammy’s. It's all there. If 50 cent wasn't real you would
have to invent him. G.R.O.D.T. on it's own is great even if 50
cent didn't exist. It should appeal to fans and non-fans a like
because it is told in a very Scorsese’s Goodfellas kind
of way. Marcus like Henry Hill narrates the story in Voiceover.
Here is the opening monologue.
MARCUS
(V.O) I read a story once where a man
walked into hell and the only way
he could get out was by not lookin'
back when he left. Turned out
temptation got the best of him and
he fucked it all up, had to stay
there forever. Well I was born in
hell and I'll tell you one fuckin'
thing. When my time comes? I
ain't lookin' back.
And with
that said we are in SOUTH JAMAICA - QUEENS, NEW YORK and we meet
Marcus and his crew inside a stolen Chevy surburban outside a
check cashing store. Marcus' crew is KERYL, ROMEO, BAMA, and TYRELL.
If you guys are seen the trailer it's the scene where Marcus and
his guys stick up the check cashing place. Afterwards we are taken
back to 1976, (the year Marcus was born, the same year as the
bicentennial) as Marcus' mom KATRINA, 15 is in an ambulance on
her way to the hospital to give birth.
MARCUS
(V.O) I never knew for sure who my pops
was - she never really talked about
him at all. She always told me I
was the immaculate conception.
I guess I liked that better than
the truth, which was probably that
he was some no-account nigga from
the hood.
Later Katrina,
now 19 busts her ass at Taco Bell.
MARCUS
(V.O.) It didn't really matter anyway -
with my moms around, I didn't need
no dad. See most girls her age
woulda gone on welfare, let the
government pay their ass, but
Katrina Philips wasn't about that shit.
At the
back of the Taco Bell, Katrina punches her time card and glances
at her shitty $89.00 paycheck.
MARCUS
(V.O.) She assessed her options, took to
the street, tradin' fast food for
fast money.
With that
said, Katrina, now 22 and blinged-out hustles on Guy Brewer Blvd
for TOPCAT, 28.
MARCUS
(V.O.) Time she was twenty two, she had
her own house and a brand new Buick
Regal -- for me, every day was
Christmas with my moms.
Later,
Katrina argues over her spot on Guy Brewer Blvd with a Lionel
Richie lookin' motherfucker SLIM. Topcat mediates between the
two and rules in favor of Katrina setting up the inevitable.
Katrina then drops off Marcus at her mother's house.
MARCUS
(V.O) Though Katrina had her own crib,
a lot of time I stayed with my
grandparents and my eight aunts
and uncles -- shit, some of them
niggas weren't much older than me.
Katrina
has a discussion with her mother, Marcus notices, she has to leave
but not before she says goodbye to Marcus. He asks for an Atari.
Katrina goes back by herself to her house out in Long Island on
page 10, which is our inciting incident -- her murder.
MARCUS
(V.O.)
Turned out I never did get that
Atari -- Katrina didn't show up
that Saturday. That was the day
they found her body. Just like that,
my mom's life ended. Life as I
knew it ended too. With my grandpa
on disability and eight other kids to feed,
shit like Atari was a thing of the past.
We then
see Marcus going to school where he becomes friends with CAMERON
who he defends from bully KENNETH. Marcus smashes Kenneth in the
face with concrete.
MARCUS
(V.O) Over the next few years, I made
a reputation for myself with the
other kids. And in the hood,
reputation is the cornerstone of power.
At Value
World Shoes, Marcus, now 12 sits with Grandma who buys him sneakers.
MARCUS
(V.O) The problem with a reputation's
you gotta live up to it -- and
it's hard lookin' fly wearin'
Pro fuckin' Keds.
Marcus
begs Grandma for Adidas. She's not having it. A dejected Marcus
runs into Topcat who asks him how he is doing. Marcus wants his
Adidas and with that Topcat takes him shopping and not only get
him his Adidas, but a starter jacket and a fat gold chain. They
go to McDonald's and Topcat talks to Marcus about his deceased
mother Katrina. There Marcus gets his Call to Adventure. Topcat
wants Marcus to deal for him.
TOPCAT This is a big opportunity little man,
you sure you can handle it?
MARCUS Hell yeah.
For the
next 3 years, Marcus works his ass off on Guy Brewer Blvd slinging
crack rock. He eventually meets LEVAR CAHILL.
MARCUS
(V.O) In the New York coke trade, not
even the Colombians were bigger
than Levar Cahill. Fuck, that nigga
was the New York coke trade, the
gangsterest nigga there was. I went
home that night in a daze, I mean
meetin' Levar Cahill was like meetin'
a movie star, even better. I still wasn't
thinkin' straight when I left for school.
Marcus
gets careless and busted by school security for bringing crack
vials in his backpack. He gets arrested. He goes to court. His
grandparents are at the proceedings and Marcus gets off lightly
because it is a first offense. His grandparents read him the riot
act back at home and ask him about his future.
What's at stake for Marcus?
TOPCAT You can stand on the corner, hustle
crack and have enough money for a
Mercedes in six months...
Or you can bust your black ass,
go to college for 12 years and maybe
have enough left over for a down payment
on a Ford fucking escort.
What does
Marcus decide? The following excellent Crossing The First Threshold
scene ends act 1 on page 27.
INT. MARCUS' APARTMENT - BEDROOM - DAY
With his back to the camera, wearing a brand new track suit,
Marcus finishes dressing, lacing up his sneakers.
MARCUS
(V.O.) Truth is getting caught did do me some good.
CLOSE ON
his hands as he puts on some jewelry.
MARCUS
(V.O) Now that it was all in the open, it forced me to
decide who I was and who I wanted to be.
He clips
a beeper on his waist, slips a .380 in his pocket.
MARCUS
(V.O) At the end of the day,all things considered...
The adult
Marcus, 18, turns and looks directly INTO CAMERA.
MARCUS I’m a fuckin' hustler, baby.
There
you have it. Eventually we see how he gets into rap, the other
obstacles he faces, and how he overcomes them to becoming a Grammy
nominee.
The script was hot and the movie will be too. A gangster movie
in line with Goodfellas and Casino. I give it 4 stars for a job
well written by Mr. Winter. Can't wait when it hits the theater
this November. Coming up for my next script review, and from the
writer of 8Mile Scott Silver, we have another movie biography
about a certain...PLAYBOY.
