I knew my patience was about to be tested when the first line out of the protagonist's mouth was, "Bitch, shut the fuck up and get back in the car." And he was talking to his girlfriend. Pras and Ja Rule, the 'gangsta-rappers' who have made their mark in the music world, try their hand at acting in Loaded Guns.
Allegedly autobiographical, Loaded Guns is the story of a Brooklyn kid's drive to make it out of the slums as a rap star. Pras looks about twenty years too old for the lead role as Diamond, a drug dealer who rhymes in his spare time. Gage (Ja Rule), his loose cannon of an accomplice, will stop at nothing to advance his homeboy's career.
Right off the bat, they exchange automatic weapon fire with some Chinese underworld types when a deal sours. The high body count is all-Asian, as Diamond and Gage emerge with nary a scratch. Unaffected emotionally or legally by the mass murder, the boys head for the studio to 'lay' down rap tracks. And the movie merely moves on as though there are no consequences to gunning down a room full of people.
Pras' inability to emote is excruciating. Just a raised eyebrow, a sigh, anything to give a hint of what he's feeling would help. Make it look like he's taking it seriously. I hope he has a sense of humor about this, although he doesn't look like he does. Even when he's safely in the arms of his pregnant girlfriend, Diamond never even hints about his sadistic endeavors.
Pras doesn't get all the blame. The plot defies viewing comprehension. Writer/director Robert Adetuyi is responsible for the comical editing which has tons of glaring flaws, such as a battered and bloodied Gage one moment, clean as a whistle, the next.
And everybody in Bed Sty (that's the name of the slum) seems to be having a bad
hair day, perpetually. Watchable only if you are game to excessive profanity,
gruesome violence, brief nudity and simulated sex.