Two Scottish lads from Dundee conned the music industry by pretending to be an established Californian rap duo, bagging a record deal and appearing on MTV until their scam unraveled.

‘California Schemin’’ is a musical biopic about a Scottish rap duo from Dundee known as Silibil N’ Brains, who you’ve likely never heard of. That’s because their story remains relatively unknown unless you’re familiar with the documentary ‘The Great Hip Hop Hoax’, which tells how Gavin Bain and Billy Boyd pretended to be American in order to land a record contract. The film is directed by James McAvoy in his feature debut (he also appears as a menacing studio executive), and I found it to be a really entertaining and funny take on two guys quite literally faking it to try to make it.

It begins in Dundee at the turn of the century, during a period when hip hop was breaking into the UK mainstream, with American artists such as Eminem, 50 Cent and Dr. Dre dominating. At that point there were very few successful UK rap acts, but the demand and opportunity was clearly there, and Gavin and Billy were just two of many hopefuls chasing it. After an ill-fated audition trip to London ends with them being mocked for their accents and labelled the “rap Proclaimers”, they come up with a plan to convince the industry they are the kind of American act it wants.

The story itself gives the film plenty to work with, and McAvoy brings it to the screen confidently, supported by a strong young cast. Samuel Bottomley (Billy) and Séamus McLean Ross (Gavin) work well together as the central duo, while Lucy Halliday, who impressed in ‘Blue Jean’, is very good as Billy’s partner Mary. Alongside the rise-and-fall elements of the story, the film also explores how their deception begins to strain both their friendship and Billy’s relationship, as the pull of money, fame and the lifestyle they are chasing starts to take hold.

‘California Schemin’’ is a very entertaining film with a great story at its core, elevated by strong performances and assured direction from McAvoy. I enjoyed it a lot!

Rating: 4/5

Directed By: James McAvoy

Starring: Samuel Bottomley, Séamus McLean Ross, Lucy Halliday, Rebekah Murrell, James Corden and James McAvoy

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt29549490/