Review of Notorious B.I.G: Bigga Than Life

Introduction

Rap music, in one form or another, has been around for as long as I can remember. Ever since the days of the body-popping, freestyling, rubber-limbed performers on Top of the Pops, I can recall a regular showing of rap in the music charts. Usually containing some sharp political or social commentary (and the odd expletive), this musical genre appeals to all social classes – from the gangs in New York to the hooligans at your local comprehensive. But for those of use who are, shall we say, slightly more advanced in years, rap can often sound nothing more than a cacophony of mindless slang, accompanied by a ferocious bass line. But whatever your view on the subject, rap has become a way of life and a means of expression for millions of people and could in fact be considered as a modern-day form of poetry.

And there can be no doubting the sheer popularity of some of the stars behind the music. Names such as Buster Rhymes, Queen Latifah and Puff Daddy are commonplace in the charts and are treated as superstars by their legions of fans. But probably one of the most well loved and highly regarded rap artists is the subject of this disk - The Notorious B.I.G. (aka Biggie Smalls aka Christopher G. Wallace).

Biggie`s solo debut was in the spring of 1993 with “Party and Bullsh*t” which appeared on the “Who`s the Man” soundtrack. Later in 1994, he released the album “Ready to Die” which went platinum. That album included many hit songs including “Juicy”, “Big Poppa”, “Me and My B*tch”, “Warning” and “The What”. In June of 1995, Biggie released a maxi-single that contained two different remixes of "One More Chance" which originally appeared on the album Ready To Die. The single debuted at number one in the Billboard R & B Top 40 chart. Later in 1995, Biggie appeared on Junior Mafia`s “Player`s Anthem” and then again on “Get Money” and the “Get Money” remix in 1996. In the autumn of 1996, Biggie appeared on the Bad Boy Remix of 112`s “Only You”.

Then, on March 9th 1997, Biggie was tragically murdered after leaving Petersen Automotive Museum in Los Angeles, California.

Video

Just an average performance here with this full screen presentation. There is some grain and noise visible (as befits the documentary type filming), but nothing that detracts particularly from the happenings on screen.

Audio

Rap music is largely accompanied by some real bassy backbeats (man!) which should ideally suite the digital audio capabilities of DVD. It is a shame, then, that this disk is largely a missed opportunity owing to a fairly poor quality DD2.0 soundtrack. Throughout the presentation, there is some noticeable hiss but that said the vocals do manage to come across quite clearly.

Features

Not much on offer here, except for some pretty uninspiring static menus, and a few features on Biggie. There is a repeat of the title sequence, showcasing some of the sights and sounds of the world of Notorious B.I.G. (ad posters etc), a feature on the successful partnership of Biggie and Puff Daddy and lastly a good-while-it-lasts radio interview.

Conclusion

The biggest disappointment for me was the fact that this is an unofficial production and is therefore devoid of any audio (or video) examples of the work of Notorious B.I.G. For a disk that it supposed to be a tribute to the man himself, it is a travesty that none of his work is included. I guess that copyright restrictions are responsible for this shortfall in material.

All we get, unfortunately, are a collection of some unheard-of (for me anyway) rappers demonstrating their art. What struck me most about this is that they are hardly a good representation of the world of rap, but again I guess copyright issues meant that this was all the producers could hope to get.

For this reason I cannot recommend this disk to anyone but the most ardent rap fan, and even then it will probably disappoint. Which is a great shame, as rap is a way of life for many and Notorious B.I.G. was obviously a big man with a big talent and an extremely large following. What is apparent from this documentary, is that although he did involve himself early-on with drug dealing and got himself into some nasty assault charges, Biggie was keen to stop the bitter East Coast – West Coast rivalry that many attribute to his death.