Main Cast: Dave Chappelle, Kanye West, Mos Def, Talib Kweli, Common, Dead Prez, The Fugees
Release Year: 2005
Country: US
Run Time: 102 minutes
MPAA Rating: R
Plot
In September 2004, comedian Dave Chappelle took a break from his immensely successful Comedy Central show to stage a free, unpublicized, all-star hip-hop concert in the Clinton Hill neighborhood of Brooklyn, NY. Inviting fans over the Internet, on the street, and even in his family's hometown of Yellow Springs, OH, Chappelle asked filmmaker Michel Gondry to document the event from its inception on through to the performances themselves. The result is Dave Chappelle's Block Party, a concert film that provides not only a sampling of the music on display that September, but also an intimate look at the comedian himself. Gondry's cameras tag along with Chappelle as he visits Ohio, recruits a university marching band to play at the show, and surveys the opinions of Clinton Hill on the show that's about to take place. Along the way, we're introduced to some the comedian's favorite acts, in rehearsals and on-stage: Dead Prez, Jill Scott, Mos Def, the Roots, Erykah Badu, Kanye West, and the surprise reuniting of the Fugees. ~ Michael Hastings, All Movie Guide
Review
This modest but intensely likeable celebration of hip-hop is smartly built around the warm, relaxed accessibility of Dave Chappelle's onscreen persona. Rather than simply build to and then show the concert performances in full, it cuts back and forth between Chappelle's preparations, backstage patter, and comic stream-of-conscious camera monologues. Some of the most amusing sequences take place in Ohio when Dave hands out tickets and interacts with local shopkeepers and pre-concert footage in which Chappelle acts is a go-between as both enthused fan and celebrity. Director Michel Gondry seemingly shares a whimsical propensity with Chappelle, but, besides the balloon letters springing onscreen during the opening credits sequence, his visual eccentricities are discarded for a straightforward cinéma vérité approach. The shooting of many of the musical performances feels like an afterthought and they aren't always shown in full, but highlights include a diva face-off between Jill Scott and Erykah Badu over the vocal hook in the Roots' "You Got Me," Dead Prez storming the stage to "Turn off the Radio" and "Hip Hop," and Kanye West's marching band-led entrance to "Jesus Walks." The only disappointment is the Fugees' slightly flat reunion, an anticlimax to a film that captures the sunny spontaneity (despite the rain) of a block party at its life-affirming best. ~ Michael Buening, All Movie Guide
Erykah Badu; Jill Scott; The Roots; Mark Chesnutt; Keyshia Cole; Chairman Fred; Fred Hampton, Jr.; Big Daddy Kane; John Legend; Martin Luther; Pharoahe Monch; Bilal; Kool G Rap; Andre 4000; Eugenia "China" Black - Back-up Vocals; Keisha Williams - Back-up Vocals; R.C. Williams - Keys; Braylon Lacy - Bass; Raphael Iglehart - Drums; Eric Greene - Drums; Burton Smith - Percussion; DJ Dummy - DJ; Stick Man - Dead Prez; M1 - Dead Prez; Miamouna Youssef - Back-up Vocals; Lauryn Hill - The Fugees; Wyclef Jean - The Fugees; Prakazrel "Pras" Michel - The Fugees; Jerry "Wonda" Duplessis - The Fugees; Donald Guillame - Drums; Leon Higgins - DJ; Greg "DJ Chaps" Dendy - DJ; Tiffany Phinazee - Back-up Vocals; Carla Duren - Back-up Vocals; Tariq 'Black Thought' Trotter - The Roots; Ahmir "?uestlove" Thompson - The Roots; Leonard Nelson Hubbard - The Roots; James Gray - The Roots; Kirk "Make Your Body Work" Douglas - The Roots; Frank "Knuckels" Walker - The Roots; Peter Kuzma - Keys; Dave Manly - Guitar; Valvin Roane - Back-up Vocals; Caroline Lee Johnson - Back-up Vocals; Leonard Harris - Back-up Vocals; Dexter Mills - Back-up Vocals; DJ A Trak - DJ; Adam Blackstone - Bass; Omar Edwards - Keys; Kevin Hanson - Guitar; Norman Jeff Bradshaw - Trombone; Matt Cappy - Trumpet; Chris Farr - Saxophone; James Poyser - Keys; Don Moore - Bass; Rudolph Walker - Drums; Isaac Ben Ayala - Piano; Craig Bailey - Saxophone; Tyren De'Armond; Jonathan Evans; Nicole Marie Evans; Alice Goguen; Robin Grundy; Mary Hall; Lisa Harbison; Anthony Jackson II; Leann Javins; Jeffrey A. Johnson; Jamon Lewis; Jonathan L. Lofton; Montez Morton; Craig Peterson; Bobby Robbins; David C. Roberts; Elinor Rossi; Jeffrey Tollette; Doris Totty; Jamila C. Totty; Aaron Wallingford; D.J. Wallingford; Alphonso Washington; Brian Milsapp; Central State University Marching Band; The Brooklyn Steppers - Bed-Stuy; Luz Grice - Bed-Stuy; Darren "Mr T." Hymes - Bed-Stuy; Lil' Cease - Bed-Stuy; Andrea Smith - Bed-Stuy; Arthur Wood; Cynthia Wood; Cody Chestnutt; Tiffany Limos; Freeway
Credit
Peter Zumba - Art Director, Robert Katz - Co-producer, Callum Greene - Co-producer, Doug Torres - First Assistant Director, Michel Gondry - Director, Sarah Flack - Editor, Jeff Buchanan - Editor, Skot Bright - Executive Producer, Greg Manocherian - Executive Producer, Doug Levine - Executive Producer, Willie "Cody" Armstrong - Hair Styles, Gayle Vangrofsky - Location Manager, Corey Smyth - Musical Direction/Supervision, Francesca Buccellato - Makeup, Carlos Omar Guerra - Camera Operator, Patrick Capone - Camera Operator, Chris Norr - Camera Operator, Bruce MacCallum - Camera Operator, David Smith - Camera Operator, Lance Bangs - Camera Operator, Peter Agliata - Camera Operator, Robert del Russo - Camera Operator, Ernie Jew - Camera Operator, Lauri Faggioni - Production Designer, Ellen Kuras - Cinematographer, Dave Chappelle - Producer, Bob Yari - Producer, Julie Fong - Producer, Mustafa Abuelhija - Producer, Brian Miksis - Sound Mixer, Jeffrey Livesey - Sound Mixer, Mark Roy - Sound Mixer, Paul Bang - Sound Mixer, Karl Wasserman - Sound Mixer, Nick Hammond - Sound Mixer, Chris Kellett - Sound Mixer, Gary Silver - Sound Mixer, Wim Tzouris - Sound/Sound Designer, JC Brotherhood - Special Effects Supervisor, Callum Greene - Unit Production Manager, Lance Bangs - Second Unit Director Of Photography, James Kirkpatrick - Additional Editing, Morris Flam - Gaffer, Mike Jackman - Post Production Supervisor, Samara Levenstein - Post Production Supervisor, Janice Williams - Production Supervisor, Maus Drechsler - Properties Master, Jonathan Wales - Re-Recording Mixer, Anthony V. Pettine - Script Supervisor, Amy Lynn - Second Assistant Director, David Van Slyke - Supervising Sound Editor, Mary Cook - Key Hairstylist, Anita Gibson - Key Make-up, Whitney Willard - Production Accountant, Valerie Pirson - Title Design
The film and its soundtrack are dedicated to the memory of music producerJ Dilla (James Dewitt Yancey), who died from lupus one month before the film's release. An incomplete version of Block Party was shown prior to its official release at the 2005 Toronto International Film Festival.
The film follows Chappelle during the summer of 2004, up until September 18, 2004, when he threw a block party on the corner of Quincy Street and Downing Street in the Clinton Hill neighborhood of Brooklyn, New York City. The film features nearby sites including the Broken Angel House in Clinton Hill, Brooklyn as well as areas in Bedford-Stuyvesant, Brooklyn. The film was produced before Chappelle's highly-publicized decision to walk away from a $50 million deal to continue his hit Chappelle's Show, and gained prominence after the announcement.
You Got Me - The Roots feat. Erykah Badu & Jill Scott
Born & Raised - Black Star (Mos Def & Talib Kweli)
All the songs were recorded live in concert, except "Born & Raised," an exclusive new studio track from Mos Def and Talib Kweli's Black Star. Many performances, including the Fugees' reunion performance, could not be included due to legal restraints with the groups' record labels.
Box Office and reception
As of July, 2006, the film grossed a total of 16.9 million dollars in the United States Box Office + DVD sales. It received a 91% approval rating at Rotten Tomatoes[1].
