Salient

Clash of the Titans

By Haimona Peretini Gray | 7 Jul, 2008

Over-polished, undernourished could describe many things in this city, its people, its politics, but its art forms have always stood out against this, until now. Clash of the Titans is a decent enough documentary about the underground Wellington hip hop scene, covering the Wellington championships, with interviews strewn throughout.

But the lack of insight from the interviewees makes their input only useful as a tool to further the plot, and talk of “street cred” remains unelaborated. Then one of them said “jump around, rub your titties” and, to be honest, I stopped listening. These are also framed against the dark clichéd brick-lined walls and graffiti-infused streets ala New York that are cringe-worthy at best. The polished nature of the cinematography takes away from the documentary and gives it a dishonesty that isn’t fair on the rest of the film.

Painfully trying to create an ‘attitude’ that’s at best dishonest, and at its worst falls into all the unfair stereotypes of modern hip hop as lazy and unimportant. The rhymes are varied, there are some talented battle MC’s in this town but their lines fall into sexist, violence laden slurs that are just pathetic.

The attempt at trying to highlight a little known local music scene is valiant but its over-stylised look and lack of depth leave it as a film for only the die-hard.