Bodied

Bodied (8/10)

Genre: Music/Drama

Director: Joseph Kahn

Cast: Calum Worthy, Jackie Long, Dizaster, Jonathan Park, Walter Perez, Shoniqua Shandai, Rory Uphold

Country: USA

Language: English

Year: 2018

Before I say anything else – Bodied is one of the best films of 2018. Although the film premiered at Toronto International Film Festival 2017 and also won the People's Choice Award, it was released worldwide exclusively YouTube Red and also had a limited theatrical release in 2018. It is one of those films that I have been waiting for a long time ever since I saw the first promo of the film, also due the fact that it was produced by Eminem along with Adi Shankar and directed by Joseph Kahn – the latter duo have already shown their charm in Shanker’s bootleg universe ‘Power Ranger’ film. 

Talking about the film, it is one of the best portrayals of the ‘Battle Rap’ scenes, which is like Van Damme's ‘Bloodsport’ arena, and not just Niggas in swanky outfits. The film also has some great humor that will unquestionably make you laugh. If you thought '8 Mile' had the best battle rap scenes, then get ready to be blown away. Honestly, I’m not much into Rap or Hip-Hop, but just like producer Adi Shanker said in one of his interviews that the film had a very ‘Raid Redemption’ kind of effect where you feel like kung-fu (or silat) the shit out of everyone - this one makes you ‘rhyme’ after watching it – I just can’t beg to differ. 

The cast consists of a lot of real-life battle rappers that makes it much more authentic and not phony and also features some amazing battle rap scenes with a mind-blowing finale. But above all, the film delivers a great message about freedom of speech that we seriously lack in today's society. In the present era, most of our discussions end up in an argument or even a fight, and that’s where it conveys the importance of the right to speech, where you can say the meanest thing about your opponent and still end up being friends – isn’t it great? 

The story is about a high school teenager Adam who is doing a thesis on the battle rap circuit ends up being a part of it. Joseph Kahn who has directed a ton of music videos for almost every popular music artist, as well as directed films like Torque, delivers the best film of his career so far.

 It is unfortunate that the film didn’t have a worldwide theatrical release, but it sure has cult status written all over it. Despite not being a professional battle rapper Calum Worthy did an amazing job as the lead. Real life battle rappers, including the iconic battle rapper Dizaster, groomed him for months as preparation for the role. The film’s excellent visuals, innovative editing, and sound simply make it a film that won’t fade from your memory anytime soon. If you haven’t seen it, or even heard of it, if you like rap or not – Bodied is a must watch.