Unlocked | NM Short: Lil Internet's Notes on "Belly" (1998, dir. Hype Williams)

The first and only feature from famed music video director Hype
Williams (Missy Elliot, “The Rain (Supa Dupa Fly),” 1997; The
Notorious B.I.G., “Mo Money Mo Problems,” 1997; TLC, “No Scrubs,”
1999), Belly is a ‘90s crime drama set in NYC starring Nas, DMX,
Taral Hicks, Method Man, and T-Boz with cameos by Sean Paul, Method
Man and others. Upon its release, the movie was widely panned and,
due to its negative, violent depictions of young black men, the
Magic Johnson Theater chain even refused to screen it. But 25 years
later, Belly stands as a resonant distillation of its time, both
stylistically and sociologically. New Models chose to screen Belly
for the monthly NM x Trust Kino night in Berlin last week. And for
this event Lil Internet, a video director himself (Beyoncé, “No
Angel,” 2013; Diplo, “Express Yourself,” 2012; Iggy Azalea, “Mo
Bounce,” 2017) put together some contextualizing thoughts on Belly,
which he read IRL before the screening. He's adapted his notes for
this NM Short. For more: @lilinternet
https://soundcloud.com/lilinternet/dmx-prayer-monument-ambient?