American Pimp

I saw this last night and was surprised at how much I liked it. I have my own opinions about whether prostitution or pimping is wrong, but this documentary helped me understand why pimps pimp. Obviously there is something about pimping that keeps them in the game - money, sex, power etc. I never saw it from their perspective before. The interviewers did an amazing job of getting these guys to talk openly about what they do. I also enjoyed the colourful personalities some of the pimps have.

The Hughes Brothers look into the world of pimping in America. They interview pimps and `ho's' from New York, Hawaii and all over the USA. Pimps share about how they came into the game, what they do, how they are perceived and what they are needed for among other topics.

I have watched many documentaries into the sex industry and have seen good and bad ones. The best ones are objective and they let the bad side and the good sides of any subject just come out without forcing the point or judging them. Louis Theroux is one of the better ones at this – he has done documentaries on pimps, porn and hip hop and has simply let his subjects talk – basically feeding them the rope as they want it till they eventually hang themselves without even knowing it!

With the Hughes Brothers attached to this documentary I had hoped it would be this type of thing. So I wasn't surprised when it started out glamorising the life. But I waited for the film to show me something that would hang the subjects on the bad sides of their lives. Even when the pimps talked about beating girls etc they were allowed free reign to defend themselves and were never pushed for details. Are they trying to be ironic I wondered? But no, instead the bad sides is only skated across when you compare to how much screen time is sent defending and glamorising the lifestyle.

The pimp life can't be too difficult to expose as cruel and exploitative can it? But here this documentary manages to do neither. Women are interviewed but only in the segments where their contributions are used to defend or support the glamorised version of events. But when the pimps talk about beating girls – no girls are there to put their side! Likewise I would like to hear more girls talk about how they feel to have the one man in their life called them `b*tches' all the time and taking their money.

The pimps all come out of it well despite being honest at times. The fact that all but one of the pimps are black made me wonder if it is only a black thing in America. Maybe this is the reason for the Hughes brothers bias – they are middle class and maybe their guilt makes them believe their `brothers' when they say `it was my only way up' etc. They manage to be so in awe of their subjects that they fail to bring anything of value out of this film. I know they must have been being careful not to judge or look down on their subjects, but their approach simply allows the pimps to talk – so do you really think we're going to get a full and honest picture about this business?

Overall I gained nothing from watching this and at best it bored me. The pimps simply talk game to cameras for 90 minutes and at the end of it I felt that they had been allowed to used me just like they use their `b*tches'. I expected more from the Hughes brothers.

This movie showed that PIMPS are not that mean. Sure, they beat women, don't give them a CUT of the take. The never murder though. At least, not that we KNOW OF. I loved the way these PIMPS talked. They were all like SITCOM people. It was really intense. So intense, that in some scenes you had to wonder of Bernie Mac was going to jump into the ROOM and yell something about how he wants to make a PIMP TV show. Alibaster Jones from KING OF THE HILL is a legendary pimp. He was played by SNOOP, who claims to BE A PIMP. He also played HUGGIE BEAR who is a very funny PIMP.

Good flik!

if you are a fan of blaxploitation films, american pimp is a must. it's got all the style and pimp ass swagger of all of those films, and on top of that it's hilarious (think ike turner). to top it all off it has about as good a pimpin soundtrack as there is with james brown "the boss" one of my favorite songs. while i don't think this film if perfect or works on every level (the white pimp?), it surely did not deserve the lashing it received at the hands of many critics. this was the most entertaining hour and a half so far this year. preferable to all of the condescending bull**** that hollywood puts out each year about black people (can you say green mile? how bout remember the titans?) well thats a whole other story. please see this film, it will entertain and enlighten you to what it means to be a real pimp.

8/10

As it is with the priesthood, so it is with the pimp game-many are called, few are chosen. I unequivocally recommend "American Pimp" to those select few "squares" who seek to broaden their knowledge of "the game". It should also be required viewing for all "players" or erstwhile "macks". Quite often, documentaries inevitably reveal the filmmaker's personal views, at which point the myth of objectivity dissolves. Not so with the Hughes brothers dissection of pimpology. Most if not all myths surrounding these gentlemen of leisure are exploded within the flick's first few frames. It doesn't matter how much the Hughes brothers show you- it's obvious they've just scratched the surface. If the pimp game was Disney World, all of us squares would be snapping Polaroids on a tourbus rolling past the parking lot. And there is an ironic symmetry in the knowledge that both square and pimp are outsiders to each other's worlds, overlapping through hoes, cash, and the law. Pleasure is the business of a gentleman of leisure, and a suitcase full of classic tunes on the soundtrack smoothly transports one into the life of "yac" and custom-fitted suits. But for all the glory, there is also exile and regret. The inclusion of archival film and television footage is strategic and precise, lending an historical perspective to the Pimp of the Now. Wake up and smell the cologne. Pimpin' ain't no joke.