Joseph Kahn’s battle rap satire is a dish delish of sick burn served hot and heavy. Exuberant slashes of searing bars and ill rhymes punctuate this come-up story of an unlikely friendship broiling in the maw of an oft-unseen underground culture. Kahn’s electrifying feature takes down the hip-hop scene, collegiate PC culture and the unquenchable thirst for success detailing this underdog ascension to the throne and he does it with style to spare. Rap game cinema hasn’t burned this hot since Hustle & Flow with writer Alex Larsen (aka Kid Twist) borrowing from his own life and capacity for epically clever rebuttals to make this the crowd-pleasing Whiplash of rap battle entertainment. Get hyped! (A-)

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