NEVER DIE ALONE
Fox Searchlight Pictures and Contentfilm
Present a Bloodline Films Production

This Film is Rated "R"

Words by Shelby Jones

OK. Let's put this sh*t to bed. Rappers can be actors and some of them are doing well at the craft.  So anyone out there that wants to continue the non-sense of saying rappers should not star in a film, just chill and focus on what you need to be doing. Aiight? Now, to be fair, some rappers should never get screen time, but then again, some actors should never get screen time and definitely some of them should have passed on some scripts. Like Ben/Lopez (Gigli) or Costner (Waterworld). Hollywood has always grabbed musicians and made them movie stars - Will Smith, Elvis Presley, Sinatra, LL and now DMX. So don't hate the playa's, hate the game.

NEVER DIE ALONE is an interesting piece of work. Some of you will say things like, "deeeeaaaamn, that joint was the sh*t." I liked the film. AND REMEMBER THIS WHEN YOU SEE IT - IT IS NOT THE TYPICAL DMX action flick. This film is not the glossed out flicks of X's past, this film required DMX to actually dig a little deeper into delivering a character to screen. X plays King David. A ruthless, cold-hearted, gentlemen gangster seeking redemption for his heinous acts against humanity in the hood.  What King David encounters though is a crew of mahf*ckers that only want to see him in a pine box. The exploits of King David are uncovered by David Arquette (Paul), a wondering writer seeking authenticity by living in the hood and ordering drinks from a sassy-mouth bartender. Things are completely twisted in this dark world of drugs, sex, violence and bathroom romance. Being from a city where drugs, violence and bathroom romance occurs on a regular basis, I felt the film, believed the film and understood the consequences of what Goines was shooting for in his novel of the same title, NEVER DIE ALONE. The pace of the film is a bit slow in the beginning, but give it a chance and understand the message of the film. In the words of X, "do dirt, get dirt."

For all of you film buffs and film students out there, I strongly suggest you see this film. WHY? Because it was directed by Ernest Dickerson and Matthew Libatique is the Director of Photography.  If you don't know about Matty or Ernest, then you should GO TO www.imdb.com  and place their names in the search engine and learn something. Another reason to see the film today is that it was shot in 18 days and on a shoe-string budget.  For the average film-goer, they will not understand the look, feel or style of the film, but for those that know, it is a treat to see the final product.

X said, "what I will bring to the film industry is uncompromised REALISM." Personally, those are the films that make the cut for me. Real sh*it for real people that understand people like King David really do exist and some of them are not street-gangsters either. Some in corporate America use the same tactics to accomplish their mission which is to control their subjects.

Hey, X's character is named King David so what would you expect?

IN THEATERS NATIONWIDE MARCH 26