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Big Boi and Andre 3000 (Antwan A. Patton and André Benjamin) of Outkast star in this spectacular rendering of the Prohibition-era South, envisioned as an all-black universe populated with gangsters good and evil. Andre's soulful piano player Percival works as a mortician by day, and at night tinkles the ivories at an enormous speakeasy where his best friend Rooster (Big Boi) sings/raps to the raucous crowd's delight. Soon, however, the establishment's owner is knocked off by a backstabbing flunky (Terrence Howard as the scene-stealing baddie) and Rooster inherits the reins along with massive debt. He sees his salvation in the form of star singer Angel Davenport (and so does Percival), as the two explore their artistic and romantic potential together. The whole affair reads like a Moulin Rouge for black folks, and it's well done despite some rather incongruous effects and animation. The musical numbers are irresistible in their absurdity, with the exception of André's maudlin finale, and support is well-provided by Patti LaBelle, Macy Gray, and Ving Rhames.
