Player Hating: A Love Story
Definition: Player Hating– Someone else is about to shine, and you’ll do anything to keep that motherfucker from getting his cheese — it can be as subtle as negative flow (lyrics) or as extreme as trying to clap (shoot) him. – Trent Bond, Half’s Manager and former NYPD Detective.
Player Hating: A Love Story follows Half-a-Mill and his Brooklyn crew, The Godfia Criminals, as they struggle to launch Milion, in an effort to attain money, success and recognition through music.Player Hating delves intimately into the lives of young “thugs”, and takes the viewer into an underground world of poverty, alienation, gangs, violence and music that most audience members have an inkling of, but few rarely see—unless they’ve lived it.
Player Hating REVIEWS
“With intimate handheld cinematography and a rough naturalism that matches her story’s tough urban environs, the director charts the ups and downs of Half-a-Mill and a few of his many crew members, all of whom boast loyalty to their violent neighborhood…” – Nick Schager, Village Voice
“Player Hating: A Love Story sidesteps any handwringing or moral pronouncements about the gun- and drug-saturated “thug life,” instead presenting an intimate portrait of this tight-knit group that speaks for itself…” – Sara Stewart, New York Post
“Player Hating: A Love Story captures a triumphant, yet bittersweet reality of the high price that many men pay to create a brighter future for themselves when no one is promised tomorrow. The movie may be a homage to both the inspirational and the grimey sides of Brooklyn but it has lots more to offer audiences no matter what side of the bridge or nation they’re from.” –Nicole Ayers, Birthplace Magazine
“Heartfelt! Hadleigh-West’s documentary about Crown Heights rapper Half-a-Mill, his crew, and their desperately poor milieu is less about the music biz and celebrity culture than it is about the economic and emotional war zone of the projects.”– New York Magazine
“Player Hating IS NOT just another hip hop movie. Maggie gained unprecedented access and insight into the reality of ‘thug life”, and I believe that this is going to be THE DOCUMENT of a time and place in American life.” -Peter Sprier, Academy Award Nominated Filmmaker and CEO of Rugged Entertainment
“I can only describe the documentary as raw and extreme! Grittiness at it’s finest but don’t take my word for it… I give much respect and credit to Maggie Hadleigh-West because for a white woman to be given such access to the hood means she has street credibility and not everybody has that.” -NYC Gossip Girl, Hip Hop Gossip Site
“Player Hater: A Love Story is one of the premier documents of the Hip Hop Age, and as such deserves a large audience, because it humanely holds nothing back. Absolutely nothing.” – Dean Treadway, Blogger, Filmicability
“What I found amazing about the film was how Maggie not only captured the lives of the individuals in this film, but got the ULTIMATE HOOD PASS in doing so. It’s a respect that takes years to be earned on the street.” –Jay Denson, Blogger Dabxblogger.com
“The filmmaker’s amazing access to the daily lives of a struggling Brooklyn rapper and his crew make for a sharp, funny, and surprisingly tender chronicle of hip hop at street level.” -Andy Markowitz Co-founder, MusicFilmWeb
“Maggie Hadleigh-West’s Player Hating: A Love Story is a documentary of undaunted courage, dispelling stereotypical thug life and revealing the core of human poverty. She calls the viewer to action by giving humanity to those among us who are tragically less fortunate.” -Taylor Barton, Singer / Songwriter
“Player Hating: A Love Story is a gut wrenching film that will give you a glimpse of the true trials and tribulations of Half-a-Mill as he’s trying to make it out of the projects were there is so much negativity, violence and death. This film shows you how prevalent the hate virus is in the black community and how it destroys people directly and indirectly.” – Pezo, Atlanta Radio Personality and Founder Make It Rain in the Hood & Poems Over Pistols