Opening at a party in Los Angeles in March of 1997, The Notorious B.I.G. (Jamal Woolard) is enjoying the evening at a after party hosted by Vibe magazine and Qwest Records at the Petersen Automotive Museum. He is surrounded by friends that include Faith Evans, Aaliyah, Sean "Puffy" Combs. As they head back to the hotel in the early morning, they stop at a red light and Biggie's cousin Lil' Cease, (Marc John Jefferies) flirts with some women outside on the streets. A black Chevy Impala pulls up to their GMC Suburban and we see someone inside fires a single shot at Biggie. The film then jumps back to the beginning of Christopher Wallace’s childhood in the 1980’s. We see the early years of being a trouble kid in school, writing his early raps to eventually selling crack and going to jail for two years.
Notorious is a strong honest look into a flawed but talented human being. Much like the biopic Ray, the filmmakers try to give us an inside look at the real person without sugar coating it. Christopher Wallace aka The Notorious B.I.G. was a major talent that tried to escape his past that unfortunately wouldn’t let him go. Along the way to the top he has children with multiple lovers and makes some enemies as well. With the East Coast-West Coast rivalry in full bloom, Tupac is murdered in Las Vegas. It is only a matter of time that before The Notorious B.I.G.’s fate is dealt it’s final blow.
Now available on Blu-ray the well made biopic is offered in both the theatrical version and the special Unrated Director’s Cut. If that isn’t enough, they have included a ton of bonus material for you to enjoy as well.
First up we have a digital copy of the theatrical release of the film so you can take it with you on your MP3 player wherever you want to go. There’s a BD-Live feature that allows you to watch Playlist Trivia that also allows you to instantly purchase tracks on iTunes. Kind of a cool feature and you just have to already have an existing account and only works with the theatrical version for some reason. There are two commentary tracks one with irector George Tillman, Jr., Co-Screenwriter Reggie Rock Bythewood, Co-Screenwriter Cheo Hodari Coker and Editor Dirk Westervelt and the other is with Biggie´s Mom Voletta Wallace, Biggie´s Co-Manager’s Wayne Barrow and Mark Pitts. Both are informative and take different approaches to their commentary. The first commentary focuses on the film and the making of it whereas the second is more on the person and the accuracies of the film. BonusView: Life After Death: Making Notorious Picture-in-Picture feature option is also only available on the theatrical version and allows you to watch little vignettes on Biggies life. You can also just chose the Play All option and watch them all that clock in almost thirty minutes. There are several featurettes that include Behind the Scenes: The Making of Notorious, I Got a Story to Tell: The Lyrics of Biggie Smalls, Notorious Thugs: Casting the Film, Biggie Boot Camp, Anatomy of a B.I.G. Performance, Party and Bullshit and The B.I.G. Three Sixty. If that isn’t enough there are ten deleted scenes that clock in at around ten minutes.
Notorious is a well made film about a very flawed human being. Director George Tillman, Jr. does an excellent job of trying to find the human within all the mistakes Christopher Wallace makes to get himself to the top. He may have died way before his time but in his short life he has left us a wealth of music that will live on forever. Whether you are a fan or just curious, Notorious is a look into the human condition.
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