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<title>ATL review (2006) T.I. - Qwipster's Movie Reviews</title>
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<blockquote>
  <p align="center"><img border="0" src="header.gif" width="386" height="69"></p>
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      <p align="center"><font face="BellGothic"><b><font size="5"><i>ATL </i>
      (2006) / Comedy-Drama</font></b></font></p>
      <p align="left"><font face="BellGothic"><b>
      <font face="Century Gothic" size="1">MPAA Rated: PG-13 for drug content, 
      language, sexual material, and violence<br>
      Running Time: 105 min.<br>
      </font></b></font><font face="Century Gothic" color="#ff0000" size="2">
      <br>
      </font><font face="Century Gothic" size="2">Cast: T.I, (Tip Harris), 
      Lauren London, Jackie Long, Keith David, Evan Ross, Albert Daniels, 
      Mykelti Williamson, Big Boi (Antwan Andre Patton), Jason Weaver, Khadjiah, 
      Malika, April Clark, Bone Crusher (Wayne Hardnett)<br></font><font face="Century Gothic" color="#ff0000" size="2">
      Director: Chris Robinson<br>
      </font><font face="Century Gothic" size="2">Screenplay: Tina Gordon Chism</font></p>
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  <i>
  <img border="0" src="atl.jpg" align="right" hspace="10" vspace="10" width="400" height="270">ATL
  </i>(its name derived from the abbreviation for Atlanta, Georgia) tells the 
  story of several young African-American high school students from the poorer 
  side of town in the last year of school before going out into the &quot;real 
  world&quot;.&nbsp; There's the talented Rashad (rapper T.I.'s debut performance) 
  and his little brother Ant (Ross -- Diana Ross's son), whose parents were lost 
  in a car crash, leaving them to be raised by their ornery uncle George 
  (Williamson,<i> <a href="slevin.htm">Lucky Number Slevin</a></i>).&nbsp; They 
  are friends to Esquire (Long), who needs to get a letter of recommendation to 
  have a chance at getting to a good college.&nbsp; New New (London)<i> </i>is 
  the girl Rashad falls for, but she might end up hurting him in the end, but 
  not as much as Ant when he turns to a life of fast money as a drug dealer.&nbsp; 
  They like to go to the local roller rink to blow off steam, but with all 
  that's going on, their friendships seem to be fated for a collapse.</p>
  <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-autospace: none" align="left">
  Although the storyline is a bit muddled, <i>ATL</i> has just enough good 
  moments to eke out a modest recommendation for those interested in the subject 
  matter.&nbsp; While at its core, the film is a coming-of-age film, it never 
  really plays as one.&nbsp; Mostly, it's a series of interconnected scenes in 
  the lives of several young men, covering such things as peer pressure, 
  acceptance, drugs, sexuality, and being proud (or ashamed) of where you come 
  from.&nbsp; It's about many things, but not really about any one thing in 
  particular, which does make it a very unfocused effort that had the potential 
  to be much more.&nbsp; </p>
  <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-autospace: none" align="left">
  Tina Gordon Chism (<i>Drumline</i>) builds her script on the original story by 
  Antwone Fisher (yes, the same one that wrote the screenplay for the film that 
  bears his name), with a good ear for the lingo and attitudes that represent 
  the area.&nbsp; The characters are likeable, but drawn with broad strokes, 
  mainly serving a purpose as archetypes that each represent a conflict within 
  the community.&nbsp; Although all of the main characters are basically good 
  people, they each succumb to common pitfalls in order to try to climb out of 
  their existence.&nbsp; Esquire sees himself as getting out of the ghetto, 
  while New New tries her best to be seen as from it.&nbsp; Ant sees the ease by 
  which he can get the money that has been causing the other members of his 
  family to always break their backs, while Rashad has an inner fire that has no 
  direction, threatening to burn him up from the inside out.&nbsp; The grass 
  always seems greener on the other side, and with so many around trying to be 
  something they can never be, it's hard to know just who you are.&nbsp; In the 
  end, you either learn to find your own path, or you get swallowed up by the 
  city, becoming more entrenched in a trapped existence as each day passes to 
  the next.</p>
  <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-autospace: none" align="left">
  Music video director Chris Robinson certainly has a talent for the visual 
  components, and the overall vibe, atmosphere, and dramatic punch feed off of 
  the energy he provides through his energetic editing and visual effects 
  components tossed in to frame each scene.&nbsp; He knows what works visually 
  and what doesn't, as well as what music will work best for each scene, 
  bolstered by a solid soundtrack featuring mostly local Atlanta artists 
  (including T.I. himself).&nbsp; The only downside to Robinson's technique is 
  that, while he certainly performs well when shooting the good times and a 
  party atmosphere, his capturing of the direness of the city streets and the 
  day-to-day drama leaves a bit to be desired.&nbsp; Although there are serious 
  themes running throughout <i>ATL</i>, they sometimes are glossed over in a 
  fairly sitcom fashion.&nbsp; Even moments where life and death are on the line 
  never really seem to hold the gravity they should, perhaps because the 
  characterizations aren't very deep.</p>
  <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-autospace: none" align="left">
  Somewhere in this mish-mash of interesting ideas, visual energy, and resonant 
  themes, a truly good movie yearns to come out, but never quite does.&nbsp; 
  There are a handful of scenes that save the picture from being completely 
  vacuous, mainly dealing with Rashad and his inability to understand why his 
  family and friends always seem to sell themselves short in order to have the 
  semblance of getting ahead.&nbsp; Perhaps if the film had concentrated more on 
  introspective elements, such as Rashad and his internal difficulties in 
  growing from a boy into a man, instead of constantly distracting us with side 
  stories -- Esquire's quest for the path to success, New New's fence-sitting 
  between the ghetto and the mansion, Ant's seduction into materialism, and the 
  roller skating competition that never really materializes -- it would have 
  been a more compelling movie about Atlanta's lower class areas, and the ups 
  and downs of life there.&nbsp; I suppose when a music video director is making 
  his first film, his natural inclination is to never linger too long in sullen 
  contemplation before kicking out another jam for our ear holes or flashy party 
  montage to catch our eye.</p>
  <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-autospace: none" align="left">
  Like the hip hop music that comes from the city of Atlanta itself, <i>ATL</i></font>
      <font face="Century Gothic" size="2">is vibrant, catchy, and easy to take 
  in, but it seeks to entertain more than inspire. For a film exploring heady 
  issues surrounding class struggles, it doesn't always traverse the best 
  avenues to its destination. </p>
  </font>
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<font face="Century Gothic" color="#3366FF">
<b>&nbsp;Qwipster's rating</b></font><b><font size="2" face="Century Gothic" color="#3366FF">:</font><font color="#3366FF" face="BellGothic">
</font>
  </b><font face="BellGothic"><b>
<img src="star.jpg" border="0" width="12" height="12"><img src="star.jpg" border="0" width="12" height="12"><img src="star.jpg" border="0" width="12" height="12"></b></font><img src="emptystar.jpg" border="0" width="11" height="12"><img src="emptystar.jpg" border="0" width="11" height="12"><font face="Century Gothic" size="2"><br></font><b><i><br></i>
  </b><font face="Century Gothic" size="2">
  <i>�</i>2007 Vince Leo</p>
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