stars as Edgar Dinero, a young man from the streets of Puerto Rico who gets tangled between the thug life of his neighborhood and the beat of his neighborhood. On that path Edgar encounters disruption among his crew men, while falling in love with an uptown girl from whom Dinero must conceal his strong ties with the violent neighborhood underworld. Dinero's first studio recording in New York City doesn't go well reflecting he has no energy, and sounding like he hasn't eaten. The uptown girl shows up in NYC and then he begins making strong recordings. Multiple gunshot scenes happen throughout the movie, in Puerto Rico and in New York City. The movie was mostly shot in the Barriada Morales, a marginalized community, that reflects thug life in Caguas, Puerto Rico. Other places where filming took place were at Puerto Nuevo, in San Juan, and in New York City.
Cast
Daddy Yankee - Edgar "Dinero"
Maestro - Jeico
Katiria Soto - Soribel
César Farrait - Wichy
Angélica Alcaide - Natasha
Norma Colón - Edgar's mother
Norman Santiago - Matías
Rafael Acevedo - Matías's partner
Welmo E. Romero-Joseph - Leo
Rey Pirín - Javier
Pepe Fuentes - Don Joaquín
Moncho Conde - Popó
Gringo - Angelo
Eric Rodríguez - Wito
Alexandra Cheron - Carolina
Glory - Tata
Zojaira Martínez - Ana
Julio Voltio - Himself
Eddie Dee - Jay
Friend Zone Guy - Gazoo Star "El Jamón"
Pedro Prez
Promotion
Soundtrack
A soundtrack was released, featuring music by Daddy Yankee written only for the film. The soundtrack, however, does not include the film score, composed by Sam FISH Fisher. The soundtrack features four singles "Pose", "Somos de Calle", "¿Qué Tengo Que Hacer?", and "Llamado de Emergencia". The music derives from Daddy Yankee's typical reggaeton style.
Home video
Talento de Barrio was released in the United States, Canada and Puerto Rico on November 25, 2008 on DVD and Blu-ray Disc formats. The film is featured in Spanish and is subtitled in English on both the DVD and Blu-ray Disc versions.
Reception
The film had positive reviews in Puerto Rico. On Rotten Tomatoes, Talento de Barrio has received negative reviews, garnering 0% approval. V.A. Musetto of New York Post said in his review for the film: "Reggaeton star Daddy Yankee holds his own in his big-screen acting debut, Talento de Barrio. Too bad he's saddled with a generic script, based loosely on his own life". Monika Fabian of Time Out New York said: "Just as reggaetón is a fusion of hip-hop, reggae and traditional Puerto Rican rhythms, Talento de Barrio is also a mixture, albeit a woefully derivative one, of 8 Mile, Menace II Society and Carlito's Way."