Turn It Up

Rap star Pras, also known as the least famous Fugee, has an incredibly charismatic stage presence, but it doesn't translate quite as well to film as, say, Tupac's. Playing aspiring rap star Diamond, who risks getting sucked into crime and violence courtesy of his hotheaded best friend Gage (Ja Rule), Pras only really comes alive onscreen when he gets behind the mic and starts showing some skills. That said, however, Turn It Up is a very stylish urban thriller, thanks in no small part to first-time director Robert Adetuyi, who drenches the scenes in shadows so strong they give new meaning to the term "black power." And Ja Rule proves to be an effective actor, although it must be said that he's playing the total gangsta rapper stereotype: a hothead who deals drugs, flaunts his "bitches," and is quick to point a gun at anyone who disses him. Thankfully, the film offers him up as an example of what not to do; it's a cautionary tale about black male responsibility, and if the bad guys are more interesting, hey, that's often the case in a large number of thrillers. Long stretches, between gun battles, of Diamond bonding with his formerly absent father (Vondie Curtis Hall) may bore youngsters with short attention spans, but ultimately prove to give the inevitable violence more power by giving a depth and humanity to the characters that might otherwise be neglected. And Pras' rhyming skills make the traditional tie-in soundtrack considerably better than most.