Shownotes
Warren Beatty's 1998 political satire Bulworth gave us an audacious experiment: a white politician who ditches his teleprompter for freestyle flows and brutal honesty about America's political machine.
Topics discussed:
📸 A quick snapshot of this political satire
🎤 Where this fits in the hip hop canon
🎞️ Fun facts about this cult classic
💥 The impact this film had on politics
😱 Fan reaction then and now
Also check out:
Credits
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And remember:
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Transcripts
MC Warren B?
2
:For real?
3
:What happens when a suicidal senator decides he has nothing left to lose and starts
spitting truth through rap?
4
:Warren Beatty's 1998 political satire Bulworth gave us an audacious experiment.
5
:A white politician who ditches his teleprompter for freestyle flows and brutal honesty
about America's political machine.
6
:This is Hip Hop Movie Club.
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:The show for serious hip hop fans who want to deepen their cultural knowledge.
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:We've watched over 75 hip-hop themed films.
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:In this episode, we will tell you if this movie is bars or a bust.
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:We'll give you a quick snapshot about this film, talk about where it fits in the hip-hop
canon, a few fun facts, what kind of impact this film had, and what fans said about this
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:movie.
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:Bulworth takes us on a wild ride through campaign season with California Senator Jay
Bulworth,
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:whose disillusionment takes him and us on a wild ride, like I mentioned.
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:He not only breaks political protocol, but he's breaking the fourth wall of American
democracy itself.
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:In a world of focus groups and corporate donors,
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:all set to a hip hop soundtrack, still hits hard decades later, we see a unique and
thought-provoking film.
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:So let us dig into Bulworth.
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:Again, from late 90s, Warren Beatty takes on an interesting role, kind of unique.
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:And let's talk a little bit about the cast, key cast members.
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:thought it was interesting.
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:Warren Beatty is like a longtime actor, kind of taking some creative risks here.
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:He's an Oscar winner and could have gone either way because it could be seen as like
appropriation and maybe too controversial.
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:But yeah, it was really interesting.
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:And we all see Halle Berry and who else we see in this film guys?
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:This cast is stacked.
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:There's a lot of familiar faces, a lot of well-known accomplished actors in here.
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:I'm just gonna name a few of them.
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:We got my man Don Cheadle who plays the character played by Halle Berry.
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:Nina plays her brother, oh JD.
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:We got Oliver Platt who is Dennis Murphy who is Jay Bulworth’s
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:campaign manager.
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:Paul Sorvino who plays Graham Crockett who is uh He's like a head of an insurance company,
but he's also like one of these lobbyists.
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:I'm gonna leave it at that
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:You got Jack Warden and Isaiah Washington, Christine Baranski, Amiri Baraka, Sean Astin Tommy Jefferson Byrd, Wendell
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:Pierce.
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:Yeah, there's a lot of people in this movie like
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:people that are going on to do a lot of good things.
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:I was impressed with the cast and even someone like Sean Astin just plays like a
cameraman.
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:He's just a really minor bit part that could have played by anybody.
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:um Yeah, it's a star-studded cast and Beatty not only starred in it, he wrote and directed
the film as well.
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:Co-wrote it with Jeremy Pikser but anyway
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:Okay, yeah.
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:was really driving force behind this movie.
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:Yeah.
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:Where it fits in the hip hop canon.
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:You know, obviously he uses hip hop lyrics.
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:He gets involved with hip hop culture and.
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:It's that street narrative he's trying to relate to people, but just spitting the truth.
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:It's more of like a political satire than anything, than a true hip hop film.
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:But obviously there's a lot of hip hop elements in the soundtrack we'll get to, it's
phenomenal.
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:Yeah, it's like what would happen if politicians just had verbal diarrhea?
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:It's like what would happen?
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:And he just spills it all out.
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:The good, the bad, and the ugly.
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:Yeah.
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:Yeah, I mean, in hip hop canon, like it was released in ‘98 same year as Belly.
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:This is the outsider looking in perspective versus the authentic street narratives.
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:Like later on you get the more authentic hip hop biopics, like 8 Mile, Straight Outta
Compton and et cetera.
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:but it was really satirical.
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:Talking about hip hop authenticity, does it really portray the culture accurately, music,
language, fashion, et cetera?
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:I mean, he's a goofball when he raps, you he has no rhythm like your typical white politician.
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:But you do see a lot of hip hop culture in it because, he's in South Central and he's
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:Like I said, he's immersing himself in the culture.
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:So you see a lot of authenticity that way.
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:Right, and then he hangs out in the club and it's like, you know, DJ dancing.
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:Yeah, I mean, it's, I mean, the outside part where he's trying to fit in is pretty
accurate.
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:Mm-hmm
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:Yeah.
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:When he gets going, I feel like he was a surprisingly good lyricist.
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:I don't know how that happened.
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:Some long dormant oratory skills came through here, I guess.
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:Rapping is hard.
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:So to do it without really any training,
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:and on this crazy bender existential dread he has, I thought he was a decent lyricist, even though his rhythm, his flow is not great.
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:The words, yeah.
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:The content.
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:The lyrics was, yeah.
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:Yeah, definitely
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:You know, he's powered by the power of truth, I guess.
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:I mean, it seemed like he progressively got better at the beginning.
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:It was just really cheesy.
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:It's like, Nina, where's my Nina?
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:I haven't seen her, you know, like just so like, okay.
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:But then when he's really speaking to politics and like the, almost like he took a truth
serum and it just comes out.
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:Like you see like a Liar Liar with Jim Carrey, if you ever see that movie, like he just
cannot tell a lie.
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:And he's just going off, he's like, man, I'm in it for the, know, and he's using
ridiculous.
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:words and all about we don't give a crap about anybody and you don't help us and blah blah blah and this is all political machine
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:and it is just like wow you let your jaw drops like
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:oh my god like can you imagine if someone literally went up on a stage
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:and told it like it is and use no holds bar language
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:Yeah.
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:we're getting that now with the current chief executive, but it's not a really productive
or helpful kind of stream of consciousness he has.
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:Yeah, but the current leader is just spewing the same old, you know, it's the old boys
club type thing where this is
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:saying like, if you are being compromised and marginalized,
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:like this is literally how it is.
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:Like, listen, you don't support my campaign because I'm not going to help you because you
don't give me money like these big companies do and they're paying my salary and they're,
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:they got my vote.
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:I'm getting their vote because I'm making laws that will help their business and they're
making money off of me and blah, blah, blah.
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:Okay then.
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:And then just like, and people like you, you you probably don't have a job and blah, blah,
blah.
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:I'm like, wow.
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:It’s like Liar Liar mixed with School House Rock.
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:Yeah.
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:Seriously.
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:it with the captions on and I was just like, whoa.
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:I'm like, wait a minute.
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:wow.
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:I'm like nodding my head.
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:Like, wait a minute.
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:Whoa.
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:And it's crazy because I remember, I saw this in the theaters when it came out.
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:I didn't appreciate it back then.
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:I was like, yeah, I saw him rapping and everybody was laughing.
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:You really couldn't hear what he was saying.
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:I thought he was just being goofy and just trying to rap and just spitting a bunch of mumble jumble.
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:Fast forward to now and I'm watching it and I'm like, wait a minute, he was actually
saying something.
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:He was really saying something.
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:It wasn't just him going yo, yo, yo, yo, yo, yo.
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:For the camera, he was literally
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:He was laying it all on the line.
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:Like, I was just wow.
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:I was mind blown.
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:I'm like, man, I wish I could have watched, just like maybe
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:10 years ago, 15 years ago again, as opposed to waiting, you know, 27 years later to watch it.
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:You know?
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:27 years to watch it and I wish I hadn't.
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:And at the time I thought, this sounds corny.
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:This looks corny.
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:Like, oh, Warren Beatty, old white guy rapping.
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:This sounds like a bad idea, but it definitely has more nuance than that.
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:Yeah.
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:Absolutely.
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:Yeah, I was reading that it was filmed in South Central, so that gave it some
authenticity.
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:ah It had real artists in it.
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:Lauryn Hill was in it briefly, I thought.
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:That's what I saw I didn't catch it.
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:But I read that and.
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:I thought I saw Greg Nice.
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:When we were in the club, there was a DJ who was spinning Greg Nice.
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:I knew that was Greg Nice right there, but I didn't see him in the credits anywhere.
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:I'm like, that was him.
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:That was definitely him.
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:I've met him face to face.
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:That was him.
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:And it was around that time too when I met him, maybe like a few years prior.
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:like but nah it was was good though yeah
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:Yeah, the fashion like when he at the end when he put on um he had like I guess like a
tracksuit and he put on like almost like a doo-rag I'm like, all right.
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:It was kind of funny.
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:It was costumey like I was picturing almost like Will Ferrell because Will Ferrell, like I
kept picturing him that he kind of looked like him a little bit.
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:I was comparing him dressed in that scene to, was that Bringing Down the House?
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:When Steve Martin went to the club.
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:I was like, wait a minute.
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:Is this like where he got that idea from?
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:Hahaha!
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:that's funny.
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:When he gets jacked by those young kids too, that was a pretty intense scene.
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:He kind of, I guess, defused it a little bit with the ice cream and but yeah, yeah, for
sure.
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:flip the script and he just happened to be in the right place at the right time too.
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:You know, when the boys in blue pulled up.
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:Yeah.
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:There's never a senator around when you need him.
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:Right?
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:Finally.
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:Hahaha!
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:That's right.
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:If you want to dive into the soundtrack a little bit, uh but you heard Ice Cube, Public
Enemy.
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:I loved their use of 100 Miles and Running by NWA that matched the scene so perfectly
because he's like running away from media and he's falling and he's on a chase.
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:That was perfect.
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:Yeah.
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:that was perfect.
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:Perfect placement.
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:Yeah.
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:And Cypress Hill’s, Insane in the Brain, they played that a little bit following that
scene.
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:That's always a good one.
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:But yeah, the soundtrack was good.
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:think it did pretty well on Billboard as well.
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:Ghetto Superstar came out of this.
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:Yeah, it did, yeah.
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:It went platinum. Yep.
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:It went to 15 on the billboard top 100 chart.
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:I was never a big fan of Ghetto Supastar, but it was a humongous hit.
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:It definitely was.
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:It was very overplayed.
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:Yeah, god, was played to death!
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:Ugh. Like this song again?
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:Ugh.
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:Hehehehe
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:mean, that's back when The Box was on So people just kept requesting it.
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:Ha ha ha ha ha ha ha!
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:Again?
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:I wonder if a song like that would do well, the same kind of song would do well now that
you can just watch videos on YouTube and you don't have to beg and plead with MTV or The
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:Box to show you a video, you can just get it yourself.
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:Yeah.
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:I mean, it's got the catchy hook with the Islands in the Stream, you know, yeah, I think it would do pretty well.
195
:It's catchy.
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:The whole new generation hears that melody.
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:But Dr.
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:Dre and LL Cool J had a song Zoom on here, Method Man, KRS-1, Prodigy, The Bulworth, oh sound, sound, you know, there's by the titles, title track, I should say.
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:Cappadonna, so you got.
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:star-studded soundtrack.
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:Yeah, everybody's on it, Eve, Mack 10.
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:It's like, wow, the Black Eyed Peas, Cappadonna. Yeah.
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:Definitely a solid sound track.
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:Yeah, very solid.
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:When you have Public Enemy, Dr.
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:Dre, Wu Tang, you can't go wrong, Cypress Hill, LL Cool J, all those guys,
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:Yes, forgot Can-I-Bus is on here too, yeah.
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:Even Can-I-Bus was on this.
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:So I was reading about like a weird choice for the score.
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:Ennio Morricone?
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:Yeah, he's like an older Italian composer.
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:Like he was known for more classical type work.
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:Yeah.
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:To be associated with this film.
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:It was kind of odd.
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:Yeah.
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:10 minutes.
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:And other fun fact, I heard that the church scene was filmed like with an actual congregation.
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:They didn't really know what to expect.
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:They kind of just sprung it on them.
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:Get some candid reactions.
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:You
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:That's funny right there.
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:Mm-hmm.
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:There was supposed to be a sequel, Bulworth 2000, to spoof the 2000 presidential election, but it didn't happen.
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:And boy, we got to wonder what that would have looked like.
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:I mean, the actual real life story of the 2000 election was such a...
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:Such a farce as it was.
229
:You can't really top that.
230
:Hanging chads.
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:Gave us David Boies.
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:man.
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:So the influence of this film on hip-hop culture or mainstream views,
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:I don't think this gets discussed a ton, but I was reading that it has kind of a cult following among some
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:political junkies and film students because it's unique.
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:A unique concept, yeah.
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:those people who rank political movies put this like solidly in the middle, not in the top
echelon, but it's right there in the pack.
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:uh I've read things about Obama
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:wanting longingly to go to Bulworth and just talk like how it is and not be held in by the constraints of politics.
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:Could you imagine?
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:If you like that Key and Peele skit with the
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:Obama anger translator.
243
:oh
244
:I mean, Obama should have done that like in his last week in office or something like just
like, all right, I've held this in this entire time, but this is how the political machine
245
:works.
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:And nobody's really looking out for you guys.
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:Like it's all about the big business and the top 2%, you know.
248
:Yeah.
249
:it's great fodder for memes.
250
:uh Some of the rap scenes, they do surface from time to time.
251
:can get Warren Beatty saying like nappy dugout and stuff like that.
252
:And he picked up pretty quickly.
253
:You're talking about Jimmy?
254
:I know what you're talking about.
255
:Oh man, those scenes are funny.
256
:my goodness.
257
:Yeah.
258
:Talk about Arsenio's Jimmy and stuff.
259
:Wild ride, would recommend this one.
260
:Yeah, the descent into Madness was really fun.
261
:What more could he do?
262
:Because it gets wilder and wilder.
263
:it's a little bit contrived but it was very entertaining.
264
:like, wow, he's really going for it.
265
:He's really doing it.
266
:And the thing about his character, he actually started off as a decent politician on a path to do the right thing.
267
:can hear that, you can even look at the pictures that lined his office.
268
:They were all like civil rights leaders and activists and politicians who were known for
standing on the good.
269
:Yeah.
270
:And he even talked about when he was younger, you know, running into Huey Newton, of the
founders of the Black Panther Party and how that changed his life.
271
:And he always wanted to, you know, go give back to the community.
272
:somewhere along the line, you know, special interest groups, got into his
pockets and they're not going to give you the money for nothing.
273
:You
274
:in this movie, the biggest one that they showed was the insurance companies.
275
:And they had a hold on him to the point where he actually started going conservative on a
lot of issues.
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:And his whole political stance was shifting because they were in his pockets.
277
:you could tell he was stressed.
278
:He was going crazy in the beginning.
279
:Like the whole early scene they showed him in the beginning, he was going...
280
:like off the deep end right there.
281
:It was tragic to see that, but at the same time, that tragedy pushed him to actually end up speaking truth and enlightening the masses.
282
:You have that weekend research project.
283
:Weekend research project.
284
:Oh man.
285
:It's interesting to see no filter.
286
:um It's a social experiment.
287
:Yeah, it's interesting to see.
288
:I like it.
289
:It did well, more or less uh sentiment wise, 6.8 on IMDb, 77 % on Rotten Tomatoes, 3.4 out of five on Letterboxd.
290
:Ebert gave it three and a half stars back in the day.
291
:He made a good, interesting point about how, if you remember Howard Beale on Network, that
film, that Sidney Lumet film, where he's like, I'm mad as hell, and I'm not gonna take it
292
:anymore.
293
:Mm-hmm.
294
:Mm-hmm.
295
:This Jay Bulworth was like, I'm tired as hell.
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:I'm not going to take it anymore.
297
:Yeah.
298
:Yeah.
299
:No, this is a fun movie.
300
:think given our current situation, it's a little more sad.
301
:It was like more plain satire and a comedy, but that's American politics for you.
302
:Right.
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:this,
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:movie actually kind of ties into my hometown.
305
:So the character, they gave him the character Rasta man, uh who the guy who was kind of
following, he would randomly pop up throughout the movie and speak some, give some kind of
306
:tidbit or something to Bulworth.
307
:That's played by Amiri Baraka.
308
:um
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:when he was alive, he was the poet laureate for New Jersey.
310
:I met him on several occasions in high school, but his son is Ras Baraka, the current
mayor of Newark.
311
:He's wrote a lot, but he doesn't have been in a lot of movies.
312
:I read that it was supposed to be Mario Van Peebles, but hey, think Amiri Baraka worked
pretty well here.
313
:Yeah, he worked really well.
314
:that's right, Helen Martin was in here too.
315
:That's right, Helen Martin.
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:Helen Martin.
317
:Can't forget Helen Martin.
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:irrepressible Helen Martin.
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:Yeah, she was great.
320
:Larry King cameo.
321
:Yeah
322
:The gag with George Hamilton was one of my favorite parts of this.
323
:hilarious, hilarious, hilarious.
324
:Yeah, that's George Hamilton.
325
:Yeah, and then he's running by and I'm like, that really was George Hamilton right there.
326
:was like, wait a minute.
327
:Yeah.
328
:from Roseanne, right?
329
:She was in it.
330
:In the van,
331
:With Wendell Pierce.
332
:Pierce Yep.
333
:I won't repeat his famous line, but yes, Wendell Pierce.
334
:m
335
:Michael Clarke Duncan was a bouncer at the club.
336
:I was like, look at big Mike.
337
:a lot of people in there.
338
:Stephen Baldwin was uncredited.
339
:Let's go around and give our ratings for Bulworth.
340
:Okay.
341
:Right.
342
:So Boogie, for Bulworth, would you bring this funky flick back or leave it in the vault?
343
:bring this funky flick back, absolutely.
344
:All right, DynoWright, Bulworth, bring this funky flick back or leave it in the vault.
345
:I am bringing this funky flick back.
346
:I will make it unanimous.
347
:We will bring this funky flick back.
348
:Really good political satire and relevant to this day.
349
:Almost too relevant.
350
:Eerily relevant. Yeah, too much, too much.
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:Thanks for tuning into the Hip Hop Movie Club Show.
352
:I'm Dyno Wright, filmmaker, designer, longtime hip hop fan.
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:And yesterday as we record today is September 30th.
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:Yesterday, September 29th, was the release date of one of my favorite hip hop albums of
all time.
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:Most Def and Talib Kweli Are Black Star, 1998.
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:Right on.
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:And today as we record is International Podcast Day.
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:So thanks to you guys.
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:That's awesome.
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:It's been quite a journey.
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:So I'm JB, eighties and nineties, nostalgia junkie, long time hip-hop fan And this is a
journey, journey which along the way will bring to you new color, new dimension, new
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:value.
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:You
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:Yes.
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:And I'm Boogie, a DJ, long time hip hop fan.
366
:And as I mentioned earlier, I actually saw this film in the theaters when it was released
and I didn't like it at all.
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:I really didn't.
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:But watching it 27 years later, I thoroughly enjoyed the film and its gimmicky raps that
Mr.
369
:Bulworth laid down.
370
:And remember don't hate pomegranate ends in a-t-e but it's not doesn't rhyme uh it doesn't rhyme it's it uh he fooled you guys pomegranate exactly yeah some people pronounce it that
371
:way
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:Second base Bugs Bunny.
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:Okay.
