The Players Club

In an ideal guided tour about freakishly bad movies from 1977 onwards, The Players' Club should deserve a stop. It's got a terrible storyline that, along with the not-so-subtle clinging onto (or blatantly ripping off) the tradition of blaxploitation, makes up for a trite, short-living revival of that genre. But also it's one of those bad movies that are so bad you can't take your eyes off of it. Watch out for the (so fake it hurts) catfight scene between the "good" stripper Lisa Raye and the "bad", lesbian, vicious, bleached blonde, whatshername stripper. The small part of Ice Cube himself as the stereotype bad guy and the obvious "you can make all the money you want, but don't let money make a slave out of you" message (you're gonna hear it so many times throughout the movie it's gonna ring in your head like a f***ing bell for hours afterwards !) top it all. Rent it, but only if you know how much it's gonna suck.

"An Ice Cube film"…Wow, that's already big enough. Not that Ice Cube is the biggest celebrity of the planet, but he is an actor I appreciate; too much. He is honest, simple; pure. He is a rapper, a musician who writes songs for films, and is good at it, besides being a low profile artist. Plus, he is a very good actor who does what he pleases and likes to and never disappoints. With the production company he has, he could have the highest ego, but he continues on doing his job.

In 1998, he got his chance to direct his movie; his first and only up to date. He wouldn't do the stupid gangster films the other rappers do because he takes the job seriously; so seriously he wrote his own neighborhood and people story, which is unexpectedly touching in its most impressive moments. He had done that type of film before, with independent man John Singleton, among others in that film I regret not seeing yet, "Boyz N' the Hood". Whether he got inspiration from there or not, I don't care, but the screenplay is his.

In his tale, where he also allows a role for him, we meet Diana (a powerful and gripping performance by Lisa Raye), a young girl and aspiring journalist with a lot of problems that drive her towards working on a strippers club, to get money and become Diamond. In Dollar Bill's (original Bernie Mac) club, "The players club", she is not the typical stripper, dancing with all the others; she has a special number, and some clients. Every day she deals with cousin Ebony (Monica Calhoun), who lives with her and has more than two times her problems; her unfaithful boyfriend and the different people in the club, including DJ Blue (a calm portrayal by Jamie Foxx), who likes her.

Like in any other story, these are not the only ones in Cube's vision…There are lots of them and each of them has their own thing that relates to another thing. However, Cube always keeps the story focused in its center point. His gift as a director (because he could have sucked) comes with the importance he gives to the camera. He has a desperate need to show things as real as possible, even if it is a fiction story, so his camera moves like eyes most of the times, like afraid of watching what's waiting on the other side, so the impact is harder when we seed alongside the camera. It is a very effective technique.

What is also captivating and remarkable, is how much of him we can see in the film. Like directors of the league of Scorsese or Oliver Stone, Ice Cube tries to makes us see what he sees. There are a few scenes with enormous violence; glasses that break, shootings, people hurt…We feel it, and it is hard to watch. I was thinking about Spike Lee, and how personal his movies are. I was shocked with the ending of "Do the right thing", but I understood it was just Spike Lee expressing himself.

I don't know what exactly the message Lee wanted to give was, I don't know what was going through his mind at the time, just as I didn't know what was Ice Cube thinking, so he could end up showing "The players club" in flames during the first frames of his movie.

This is basically a black, very superior version of "Striptease" and "Showgirls." It's not as sexy as "Showgirls," but what I really looked for was a better plot. This had one. LisaRaye gave an impressive debut performance as a college student trying to make ends meet. Bernie Mac can make the most dramatic piece of dialogue into stand-up comedy with his extraordinary vocal strength and stamina. I was very impressed with Ice Cube, his writing-directing debut, because, honestly, I didn't know he was capable. I like how he staged the scenes and built suspense. The great thing about it is that there is a considerable amount of violence, but no one is killed. For once, a black film where everyone lives. Another thing, this movie has the best, most vicious catfight I have ever seen.

Fair B quality movie depicting slice of black American strip club life in southern USA.Story is good social commentary on said lifestyle's evils and dangers but the movie suffers from a rushed directorial style and lackluster performances even by pro actors who have displayed better in the past.This was probabably caused by lack of directorial discipline on Ice Cube's part due to budget constraints.You can realy tell the veteran actors were not paid properly and just cruised along as a favor for Cube.Too bad for the movie's story was a good idea,setting up for great drama,action,comedy,sex,social commentary and entertainment much like the winning formula of SHOWGIRLS.I vote for a proper remake of this one!But as of now,avoid this movie unless you really want a peek into that lifestyle or are a big fan of any of the lead actors.Do not expect much sex scenes though for the focus on this one is social commentary......

This film is actually interesting at several levels. It is serio-comical so it has good contrast. Lisa Ray is delicious with her obvious attributes, mesmerizing eyes, and just perfect voice. Dollar Bill, the character played by Bernie Mac is simply funny.

To the extent that there is a theme, it is one of black exploitation by other blacks, the operative color being the green of money, and it was refreshing to see the absence of non-African Americans so that the themes and action were not framed within the usual, tired aria of white economic oppression, and rather the interactions between the characters are the focal point. The criminals portrayed with the guns are more cartoonish than not, yet the real and abhorrent predators become apparent as the ones victimizing Ebony.

Not an academy award winner, but good entertainment. Gets a 7 in my book.