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3 1/2 Stars

Jamal Woodard portrays the title character in a charismatic and dead-on performance. In this thoughtful and often spellbinding film that looks into the tragically short life of rapper NOTORIOUS BIG. Even if you’re not a fan of the music, the behind the scenes process of creativity and industry politics is fascinating. Only drawback is that it suffers from trying to pack too much detail into 2hrs. This is the rare film that could actually benefit from an additional twenty minutes. A scene in which B.I.G. comes up with his first hit is worth the price of admission alone. One of the best films of 2009.

Director: George Tillman Jr.
Stars: Jamal Woolard, Derek Luke, Angela Bassett