On The Come Up : The Challenge of Fulfilling Your Potential Without Losing Yourself : Movie Review

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Staying true to yourself is the best role you can play

Talent is a very beautiful thing that sets us apart from the crowd. But it gets tricky when the talent is seen as genealogical and you're supposed to fill seemingly huge boots left by your predecessor and even exceed it. The journey then becomes a trip where you're a passenger in your own destiny while others take the wheel and turn you in directions they think is best route for you.

Many at times our life is taken away from us as our talent is used by family and friends to mould us into characters or versions of ourself that drives us away from our purpose and might eventually be detrimental to us on life's front. This they might do from a place of love and care based on the circumstances of the time.

On the Come Up is a movie about a young rapper who is tipped to fill the huge boots left by her legendary father. Bri (Brianna) played by Jamila C. Gray coming from a broken home who's father is late and mom is a healed junkie. Bri found that having talent is the easier part, but fulfilling its potential is where the real challenge resides.

Managed by his aunt Pooh (Da'Vine Joy Randolph), Bri set out to climb the ladder at Garden Heights by battling through the rings to gain the needed popularity in order to get a record deal. After choking on her first battle, the young rapper attracted the interest of star agent Supreme (Method Man) after she murdered Supreme's son Milez (Justin Martin) in her second battle.

Due to the worsening situation at home after Jay (Bri's mom) played by Sanaa Lathan, lost her job. Bri was forced to ditch her aunt Pooh and join forces with Supreme in a bid to earn some money and support her mom at home.

Things took a turn for the worse after the lyrics in her first single "on the Come Up" instigated a violent protest at her school, personal attacks on her from street gangs in her area and also led to misunderstandings with her friends and family.

The cast were fitting. Bri personified her character perfectly. The expression of emotions, the self carriage and her general behavior made her a natural fit for the role. Same thing could be said of Pooh who oozed a ghetto gangster's traits perfectly, aided by her huge nature, and Jay who though never played a junkie role in the movie, interpreted the struggling mom role well.

The cinematography perfectly depicts the suburban scenery of a ghetto with a retro feel. The conversations were simple and straightforward without unnecessary dialogue without any of the characters seeming to try too hard. It all seemed natural.

Another pro of the movie is the simplicity of the lines by the rappers especially Bri. The metaphors were kept simple and smooth to show that they're lines from a 16 year old. There were no complexities or show off on the side of the writer trying to show how good he is. He kept it simple and made it resonate with the girls age and style.

On the down side though, there was the scene at the beginning of the movie where Jay left Bri and ran off to wherever. There was no logical need for that scene. The fact that we were not shown her junkie days and when Lawless (Bri's father) was shot, means showing us that scene was inconsequential. The story could've just been told like the others in the movie.

The whole homosexual bromance between Supreme's son and Bri's bestie was needless as it contributed absolutely nothing to the movie or the storyline. It's definitely beginning to look like it's an agenda in Hollywood to promote homosexuality.

On the Come Up is a movie with messages on numerous fronts. First is the fact that you don't have to be anybody else but yourself in your journey through self actualization. It is okay to have idols and to tailor your style towards them, but it is pertinent not for you to lose yourself in a bid to achieve success and fame.

It also sends out the message of racism and the negative effects it has on the society. It is the experience that Bri had with the white security men at her school that motivated her lyrics on the Come Up single which proved detrimental to the psyche of young ones in the community.

This movie also laid out the problems and change process that most new rappers have to go through in order to hit mainstream. The vain idea of talking tough and encouraging drug use and thuggery in song lyrics is a menace that has led to the loss of many promising rappers who are forced to live the lyrics of their songs even when their personality doesn't match their lyrics.

This has led to the loss of many of them and I hope that the up and coming ones get to watch this movie and learn the simple fact that, the best role to play in the system of life is to be yourself. No one should pressurize you into being or saying what you're not or what you don't mean.

Because of the message it conveys, I'll rate the movie an 8/10. A good pastime for anyone, if you have the time to pass.

All Images are screenshots from the movie except the cover image

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