Idlewild (film) - Plot Summary

Plot Summary

Percival (3000) and Rooster (Boi) have been good friends since childhood. However, as they grow up, they each begin to live separate lives. Percival works at his father Percy Senior's (Vereen) morgue preparing dead bodies during the day, and works at a local club called Church (owned by Ace (Love)) at night playing the piano. Rooster grows up and involves himself in gambling, partying and business deals; he also gets married to Zora (Williams) and has a family. In addition, Rooster also works at the Church club as a performer. Another performer at the club is Taffy (Gray) who is a drunk, loudmouth, jealous diva, who is slowly falling out of the limelight.

One night when Rooster shows up late to the club, due to an argument with his wife Zora, everyone becomes upset and rowdy including gangsters Spat (Rhames), Trumpy (Howard), Ace and Rose (Paula Jai Parker) who have a business deal with the club and Rooster. Finally Rooster shows up and performs; Rooster, Spat, Trumpy and Ace talk about their deal. Spat wishes to get out of the business of rum-running, and is willing to sell out to Ace. Meanwhile, backstage, a singer from St. Louis named Angel Davenport (Paula Patton) comes into the club and starts to complain about her train ride and her contract with the club; Angel also begins to flirt with Percival.

Rooster and Rose have sex in a car in a warehouse until they hear people coming into the warehouse, Rose jumps out of the car, gets dressed and confronts Spat, Trumpy and Ace who have just arrived. Rose then runs off, Trumpy then shoots and kills Spat and Ace in order to get the business for himself and eliminate the only witness he knew about.

The following day Percival receives his boss Ace's body at the morgue and begins to insult him. Soon after Angel comes to visit Percival at the morgue and they begin to talk. Meanwhile Rooster runs into Trumpy while taking his family shopping and Trumpy explains that the debt owed by Ace is now his problem. He has to come up with this money by selling "hooch" or liquor at Church bought from Trumpy's "suppliers". Rooster goes to Rose's house to warn her of danger, but she is already packed up and ready to leave. As Rose drives away in a taxi, she is being watched by one of Trumpy's henchmen (However this henchman tells Trumpy the wrong information about what he saw).

Meanwhile Rooster begins to have more problems at the club, and forces Angel to sing. Angel then has a flashback of how she stole the real Angel Davenport's (LaBelle) identity, and begins to show fear about singing onstage. However Percival gives her a song that he wrote for her to sing. At first she shows stagefright and is booed at the club, but then she gets into the song and the crowd goes wild, and Percival and Angel fall in love. Angel tells Percival how she plans on doing a concert in Chicago, and then traveling the world.

During a storm, Percival is playing the piano in the attic of the morgue, while Angel lies on her bed thinking about him, Angel runs over to the morgue to be with Percival, and the two have sex. Roosters's wife Zora gets tired of his cheating and moves with their children to her mother's house. Angel finds out that she got the deal in Chicago and persuades Percival to go with her, but he refuses, since he wants to stay and take care of his father.

The next morning Angel wakes to find out that Percival knew that she wasn't who she said she was, and reveals that her real name is Sally B. Shelly and finally persuades him to go to Chicago with her.

Rooster devised a plan to buy liquor from two bootleggers that are well known to him, GW (Nunn) and his partner. This allows him to bypass Trumpy's absurd prices and make a much bigger profit. One day, Rooster is making his rounds to pick up hooch from GW to load in a hearse borrowed from Percival, when he sees a car on the road that seems to be stuck. He approaches the car to see an old woman, Mother Hopkins (Tyson), and her grandchildren. Mother Hopkins tells Rooster that he is an angel and gives him a bible. Rooster walks into the old abandoned house of the two bootleggers and sees that GW's partner is killed and GW is being beaten to the point of death by Trumpy's henchmen.

Rooster is caught and brought to Trumpy, and GW is shot and killed. There is a fight between Rooster and Trumpy's henchmen. Rooster is shot but not killed due to the bible in his jacket and drives away in the hearse. However Trumpy pursues him and shoots at him. Rooster escapes into the Church club, and soon after Trumpy arrives at the club. Before going to Chicago, Angel and Percival decide to make a stop at the Church club, Rooster and Trumpy have a dramatic fight in the club and shots are fired by Trumpy. Everyone in the club panics, and just when Trumpy is about to shoot Rooster, Trumpy is shot and killed by Percival.

Percival then notices that Angel has been shot and runs to her aid. However Angel dies soon afterward and Percival begins to grieve. He then tends to her and prepares her for burial, dressing her up in a wedding gown and slipping a ring on her finger, implying that he was planning on marrying her. Afterward, Percival attempts to commit suicide by hanging himself in his room, but is interrupted when Rooster rings the doorbell. Percival is consoled and gives Angel's Chicago bound ticket to Rooster, who is then reunited with his wife and children. Percival then begins to make records and tour in clubs throughout America and becomes famous. The film ends with pictures of Percival, and Angel in her coffin hung next to a picture of Percival's mother in her coffin at Percival's house.