Greenes Please don't spend money on this.

YouHeart I gave it a 7.5 out of 10

Allison Davies The film never slows down or bores, plunging from one harrowing sequence to the next.

Sarita Rafferty There are moments that feel comical, some horrific, and some downright inspiring but the tonal shifts hardly matter as the end results come to a film that's perfect for this time.

politic1983 Sometimes, it's not always good to read too much about a film before you go to see it. When entering the cinema, I was already at the point of expecting a film with some good graffiti action, with a plot thrown around it. But, as the film went on, I became more and more disappointed.The plot is simple: Adam Leon starts with a clip from 'All City Hour', in which writers talk about tagging the Mets' apple at Shea Field, sorry Citi Field. Seeking revenge on a rival gang, two writers, Sofia and Malcolm, look to make a name for themselves by achieving this very feat. Needing $500 for a blind eye to be turned to gain access to the stadium, the pair take to the streets to try and hustle up the money.What follows is a two-day journey around the city in a similar style to 'Kids', as the duo repeatedly struggle to raise the cash. This is where my expectations went missing. What I'd read about the film made me expect a lot of graffiti, a bit of a tagging war and maybe a bit of Notorious B.I.G.. Instead, the film is more about the failings of the two leads – and for me, this is the film's failing.The two leads, Sofia, played by Tashiana Washington, and Malcolm, by Ty Hickson, don't particularly live up to their image: Sofia, while described by Malcolm as being hard and tough, spends a lot of her time naively getting scammed and played for a fool by people of all ages, with whiney shouting her only reaction; Malcolm, among fellow taggers, seems to command respect and sometimes fear, as if he got the juice – to use a Nineties phrase – though again spends much of the film foolishly, coming across as a bit of an idiot. Being that this is such a character- led story, it needed some stronger characters.Though, with this, perhaps Leon is trying to create more realistic characters, full of flaws and inconsistencies, making them seem like the ordinary idiots you know. With the cast and director not having the longest careers in film on their CVs, there is a slightly amateurish feel throughout, that gives it a charm, but also some drawbacks. 'Gimme the Loot' is not a bad film, and has its moments, though by the end it's not wholly satisfying and leaves one feeling of 'gimme a little more.'politic1983.blogspot.com

Melanie Martinsson What you can expect here is a very happy, upbeat yet disturbingly accurate depiction of how a lovestory in a graffitiwriting community works. Something to watch with your girlfriend :)Think; Realism with a happy soundtrack.I am seriously impressed with the acting talent and the direction here, not to mention the soundtrack. There are not that many Graff movies around, sadly. Let alone anyone that upbeat, save for this pearl right here. And as such this one pretty much automatically is up there with such other great Graff titles as Quality Of Life, and Bomb The System. Just got a tip about this very movie tonight actually, from one of my crewmates,and when it rains, it pours.Make it an indie flick at that. I hear It's crowdfunded??? Much respect to that. I am impressed, and hope forward to see more work from mr. Leon and the rest of the great actors/actresses in this movie.They really GET that awkward feeling when you are an awesome writer.... and you step into a room full of girls, where your behearted is also sitting at, you know?-MonstreOne, VSDL crew, Sweden.-

francishooks There's a great novel by Perceval Everett called Erasure in which a black academic, for his own idle amusement, writes a deliberately offensive and obnoxious "ghetto" novella peopled entirely by dreadful lowlife thieves and drug dealers. Predictably the book becomes a hit with white critics and audiences.This repellent film put me in mind of it. The 2 protagonists are a pair of obnoxious thieves and drug dealers. Not even 20 minutes has elapsed before the female character has stolen a kid's phone and the other is shoveling someone's goods into his pockets just minutes after being admitted to their apartment.But hey! It's okay, they are "charming" and "likeable" – they're graffiti artists so that makes them creative types so it's all okay! I'm not entirely sure but I think this is supposed to be a comedy. It isn't. The protagonists do nothing but bellow profanities at each other.Apparently the film was shot over 21 days. I would cry very few tears indeed if that fate befell everyone involved in this junk.

soncoman When most people think of foreign film, they think of films in a language they don't understand, locations they've never been to, actors they've never heard of, and stories unique to a specific culture. We often fail to acknowledge that there are places and cultures within our own borders that can be just as foreign to us as any Asian or European community."Gimme the Loot," which is playing at the San Francisco International Film Festival, is just such a film. Set in New York City's Borough of the Bronx (talk about a foreign land!) the film tells the story of Malcolm and Sofia, a "tagging team" that set their sights on the greatest "bombing" target in the history of New York graffiti. All they need is $500 to get access to the sight. And so the adventure begins…And that is just what this film really is – an urban adventure story. The story of two young people who set out on a trek and what happens to them along the way. If you're put off by the setting, or the language (which seems to have been scripted by David Mamet in the opening scene,) or the "Maguffin" of the graffiti bomb, please don't be. All those things are ancillary in this tale of the challenges in navigating the foreign land of inner city New York and what happens along the way. It's a funny, harsh, sweet, heartbreaking and oddly (though not unexpectedly) optimistic movie. For all the wrongdoing the couple perpetrate in their attempt to achieve their goal, you end up really liking the characters and kind of wishing they succeed.The two lead actors, Ty Hickson and Tashiana Washington, are terrific in their roles. While their inexperience shows through at times, for the most part they ARE Malcolm and Sophia. The director, Adam Leon, assured the Festival audience that they are both nothing like their characters ("Ty actually wears bow ties all the time.")Leon also had the advantage of having a former NYC tour guide work as his location scout, so the film transports you into parts of New York that you'd never get to see get to see on your standard city excursion. Shot on location over 21 days, every setting seems just right for this story.Special note should also be given to the soundtrack, which is absolutely what you would NOT expect for a story with characters of their age and environment. One would expect a plethora of hip hop or rap pulsing throughout the film, but be prepared for something just a little different.This is writer/director Leon's first feature and he's manages to deliver a film that, while small in budget, is big in heart. Well worth seeking out…www.worstshowontheweb.com