Synopsis
"Notorious" is the story of Christopher Wallace. Through raw talent and sheer determination, Wallace transforms himself from Brooklyn street hustler (once selling crack to pregnant women) to one of the greatest rappers of all time: The Notorious B.I.G. Follow his meteoric rise to fame and his refusal to succumb to expectations - redefining our notion of "The American Dream."
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Cast
- Jamal WoolardChristopher 'Biggie' Wallace
- Derek LukeSean 'Puffy' Combs
- Naturi NaughtonLil' Kim
- Anthony MackieTupac "2Pac" Shakur
- Antonique SmithFaith Evans
- Angela BassettVoletta Wallace
- Marc John JefferiesLil Cease
- Sean RinggoldSuge Knight
- C.J. WallaceBiggie (age 8-13)
- Dennis L.A. WhiteDamion 'D-Roc' Butler
Recommendations
- 88
Chicago Sun-Times
A good film in many ways, but its best achievement is the casting of Jamal Woolard, a rapper named Gravy, in the title role. - 83
Entertainment Weekly
Notorious makes the death of Biggie Smalls look like a tragic mistake, instead of the outgrowth of a culture devoted to selling the fantasy of who's the biggest man. - 80
Newsweek
Though there was little surprise by the end--how could there be?--Notorious,' a movie about the life and death of rapper Christopher Wallace (a.k.a. The Notorious B.I.G., a.k.a. Biggie Smalls, a.k.a. Biggie), still managed to stun, unsettle and move me. - 70
The Hollywood Reporter
For a man apparently making his first film, Woolard carries the movie like a pro. Cross your fingers that this is no fluke, for this guy could be a real comer. - 70
Variety
A rock-solid biopic with a foolproof rise-and-fall storyline and a warmly nuanced performance by Jamal Woolard. - 63
Rolling Stone
It's the spirit that Biggie Smalls, born Christopher Wallace, put into inventing himself and his music that ignites Notorious, a biopic that sees the flaws in the man but can't help accentuating the positive. - 63
Philadelphia Inquirer
It's an engaging enough story, crisply told, and the lip-synced music scenes in the studio and on stage are brought off in high style. - 58
The A.V. Club
Notorious suffers from biopic-itis, that regrettable tendency to reduce complicated lives to a greatest-hits assemblage of melodramatic highs and agonizing lows.
