I wouldn't say that I was a fan of either Biggie Smalls or Tupac, but I was exposed to their music on a pretty consistent basis back during my clubbing years. Every nite club I hit, you could count on two things happening: Getting slapped by a hottie and a song or two of theirs moving people on the dance floor. Whenever I hear certain songs from those days by those two, a lot of memories come flooding back. It's crazy how long it's been since they were gunned down, yet it feels like it was yesterday.

As for the movie Notorious, I was never keen to watch this because I had it in my head that it was going to be shot and edited with the sensibilities of a rap video, which became a cliche as soon as everyone started using the same template. I really didn't want to spend 2 hours of my life watching, yet another 'rap' video. So, did the movie do just that? Well, there were a few spots that did go down that road, but for the most part the director stuck to the basic format of a movie.

The movie started out great as I settled in for what was sure to be a great film. Sadly, the more the movie went on, the more it tended to lose itself. I thought there were big chunks of the movie that was going way to fast from one scene to the next as if they had to squeeze as much information in as possible. Definitely felt rushed. I may know the music, but I can't say I know anything new of Chris Wallace, Aka Notorius B.I.G. (Jamal Woolard). Speaking of Jamal, he really was the only bright spot in the movie, other than Angela Bassett.

I would say that this is worth a Rent at best if you are interested in the whole West Coast / East Coast feud that links Biggie and Pac. I will say that Derek Luke as Sean Combs, aka Puffy Daddy was pretty good with the mannerisms I've come to equate with him.