Skip to content
Brick Wall Comedy
Brick Wall Comedy
Promotional art for American Hustle
Cover image credit: Promotional image via Prime Video

American Hustle

Katt Williams

2007 · 89 min

Half road movie and half live theater set recorded in Chicago.

Where to watch it(opens in a new tab)

or watch it free on YouTube (opens in a new tab)

Katt Williams builds this release around a firm rejection of mainstream Hollywood. Following the massive success of his previous television work, the comedian opens with scripted sketches of industry executives pitching him stereotypical movie roles. He passes on the fat suits and talking penguins, opting instead to pack his crew into a Cadillac and hit the road. The result is a hybrid format that functions as part travel narrative and part stand-up showcase. The journey ends at the Arie Crown Theater in Chicago, where Williams takes over for an extended set. He is entirely in his element, delivering the fiercely profane club material that cemented his reputation in the mid-2000s. The scripted segments feature sets from Luenell, Red Grant, and Melanie Comarcho, while the film sprinkles in cameos from Snoop Dogg, Ludacris, and Jeremy Piven. Critics noted the movie parodies at the top feel clumsy, but the live Chicago recording remains a fast-paced distillation of his stage persona.

The set list

2 bits

  1. Luenell performs stand-up comedy at a senior citizens home.

    Presented as a scripted road trip performance bit where she performs inappropriate material for an elderly audience.

  2. Making fun of Shaquille O'Neal's four-year-old son at his birthday party.

    Williams delivers an aggressive, observational routine recounting attending the party.

How it plays

Tone
Raw, crude, offensive, weirdly insightful, and energetic.
On stage
Cocky, confident, outrageous, defiantly politically incorrect, and unapologetically foul-mouthed.
Pace
Breathless machine gun, rapid fire, and manic delivery coupled with sharp timing and nuance.
About
Hollywood stereotypes and pitches, Life on the road, Underground comedy

What the critics said

Received positive marks for Williams's breathless, manic, and defiantly politically incorrect stand-up performance, though critics pointed out that the road-trip framing narrative was essentially an extended skit designed to pad his 50-minute set.

In the room: Energetic, open, and underground-style club atmosphere during the Chicago stand-up portion.

Summed up from reviews, articles and listings. Sources: en.wikipedia.org, allmovie.com, gibbon.tdslib.org, rottentomatoes.com, letterboxd.com, castfacts.com.

Backstory

Conceived as a response to Hollywood studios pitching stereotypical roles to Black comedians (such as wearing fat suits or doing broad movie parodies), leading Williams and his fellow comics to hit the road instead.

Details

Released
Runtime
89 min
Director
Brit McAdams
Topics
Before
The Pimp Chronicles Pt. 1 (2006)
After
It's Pimpin' Pimpin' (2008)

More from Katt Williams

If you liked this