10 Awesome Performances In Otherwise Awful 2017 Movies
5. Demetrius Shipp Jr – All Eyez On Me
Demetrius Shipp Jr, the star of Tupac Shakur biopic All Eyez On Me, bears such an uncanny resemblance to his real-life counterpart that at times it’s hard to believe you’re not actually watching the man himself. But there’s far more to Shipp’s performance that just surface similarities.
It’s obvious that Shipp has studied his subject intently and he nails the late rapper’s body language and mannerisms while perfectly capturing Shakur’s energy and outspokenness – a feat made all the more impressive by the fact that this is Shipp’s film debut.
What a shame then that the film let down both its star and its subject. Lacking in focus, the movie flits from life event to life event trying to cram in as much of Shakur’s life as possible rather than selecting a few specific and important milestones to concentrate on.
The result is a superficial mess of a movie biopic that fails to represent the complexity of its subject despite Shipp’s electric lead performance.