For a long time I have heard the value of Netflix. I just never believed the hype. As a huge fan of music I was mildly curious to see how a show that costs ten million dollars an episode would turn out. The recent defunct show ‘Vinyl’ had failed to tell the 1970’s story with guts.
I believe if that show had stuck to telling the music and label stories it would have found an audience. Even more so it tells a story that Christians can sink their teeth in.
‘The Getdown‘ has guts.
Baz Luhrmann and a team of collaborators — Oscar-winner Catherine Martin, legendary MC Nas, Grandmaster Flash, Pulitzer-winning playwright Stephen Adly Guirgis, and hip-hop historian Nelson George — have created a music-driven drama that documents the emergence of a new art form. Set in the late 1970s, when New York was at the brink of bankruptcy and disco was dying out, the rise of hip-hop is told through the lives, art, music and dance of a group of young people in the South Bronx.
For many of us who lived here in New York City, we remember the darkness of that time. We remember the blackout and Son of Sam. We remember the battle for Mayor. We remember thinking that we were stuck, hot and stifled. ‘The Getdown’ does paint that picture accurately.
It also ventures into what redemption looks like.
The characters brim with expectation and struggle. The main character Ezekiel “Zeke” Figuero, is a smart, resourceful teen, brimming with untapped talent and unrequited love. He is determined to make his mark in the world. He is in love with Mylene, but she wants to leave the Bronx and all the ugliness and pain. Mylene Cruz, a tenacious girl with an incredible voice who dreams of becoming a disco star, a dream that is far outside the realm of her fiercely religious background.
These two are the perfect examples to explain temptation and moral corruption.The sense of right and wrong . . . is so delicate, so fitful, so easily puzzled, obscured, perverted, so subtle in its argumentative methods, so impressionable by education, so biassed by pride and passion. Zeke meets the morality struggle each day. He is the Aaron of his group.
Zeke make choices based on survival. Mylene makes her choices based on desire for a better life. We have seen her character come from a religious family and shelf what she believes to seek fame. They both are in a world of constant struggle.
Struggle builds character. Often the moments in our life we are most proud of are the ones where we overcame adversity to accomplish something worthwhile. Do something that pushes you to your limits and beyond. Nothing will make you feel more unstoppable than revealing to yourself that you are capable of far more than you ever imagined. They both learn quickly that they have to make choices and force change. This is something we need to brig forward.
Moving forward, any time you experience a win, stop and celebrate it. This will drive your brain to keep taking the actions that led to the pleasurable emotion.
Yes, there is mild violence, language, substance abuse and sexual content. I still think this is a great teaching moment for Christian parents to follow and engage in.