Whether you know it or not, you’ve probably seen at least one work from director Joseph Kahn, whose formidable track record of instantly recognizable music videos includes such Grammy-winning shorts as Eminem’s “Without Me” and Taylor Swift’s “Bad Blood.” And speaking of artists known for their public feuds, Kahn’s new film “Bodied” will have bad blood to spare as it immerses us in the verbal brutality of urban battle rap.
READ MORE: ‘Bodied’: Joseph Kahn Crafts A Visually Dynamic Rap Battle [TIFF Midnight Madness Winner]
With Eminem himself on production duties, comparisons to the similarly themed “8 Mile” are inevitable, though Kahn’s film reportedly regards its abusive freestylers with a more satirical eye. While ‘Bodied’ is the director’s first feature-length project since 2011’s less-than-beloved “Detention,” early reception suggests that Kahn has drawn on his music video experience to deliver a finely stylized reflection of these culturally sensitive times. Indeed, The Playlist’s own review praised the film’s battle scenes for their “scorching visual excitement,” as well as lauding the work for its thought-provoking insights on topics of race, poverty, masculinity, and politics.
As you might expect for a movie produced by Marshall Mathers, the main character of ‘Bodied’ is a scrawny white boy who becomes an unlikely partaker in his local rap scene. Calum Worthy of “American Vandal” fame stars as Adam Merkin, a progressive grad student who develops a competitive spirit while writing his thesis on the use of the N-word in rap battles. Jackie Long from “ATL,” meanwhile, assumes the role of Adam’s mentor Behn Grymm, and Rory Uphold adds an aggressively woke voice to the discourse as Adam’s uptight girlfriend Maya.
The rest of the cast includes a mixture of veterans and non-professional actors, including Dumbfoundead, Walter Perez, Shoniqua Shandai, Charlamagne tha God, Dizaster, Hollow da Don, Debra Wilson, and Anthony Michael Hall. Kahn shares writing credits with battle rapper Alex Larson, aka Kid Twist.
“Bodied” hits theaters November 2 via Neon Studios. The film will be available on YouTube Premium on November 28.
