Rapping with Shakespeare ( 3. October 2007, 09:19 by Erik) ~ By Mike Bottorff

Broken families, poverty, and gang membership all exert interrelated influences on a community. If you have any doubt of this, Michael King’s documentary, Rapping with Shakespeare, provides sufficient evidence.

This film examines the intersection of people and culture at Crenshaw High School, which is located in one of south central Los Angeles’s most dangerous neighborhoods. Fortunately, King does not focus on violence, truancy, or drug trafficking. Instead, he illuminates the lives of a few students, teachers, administrators, and community members struggle to cope with a difficult environment.

Because the film does not follow a specific narrative thread, its emotional weight comes largely from atmosphere and context. This is difficult approach, but Rapping with Shakespeare succeeds with relative ease. It reminds us of frailties in the human condition, that people still struggle in this world, and that we can draw inspiration from all those who face similar challenges, even William Shakespeare. But most of all, it reminds us there is no limit to the human spirit and what it can achieve.

Rapping with Shakespeare
90 min feature
Directed by Michael King
Playing Sunday, October 7
8:00 pm at the School of the Arts Theater
Filmmaker will be present