This popular HBO documentary follows four poets as they journey to the National Poetry Slam, where the winner will pocket a sizeable amount of money and claim the prestigious crown of Slam Champion. All the nervous energy and excitement of the four contestants--Beau Si, muMs da Schemer, Saul Williams, and Care Moore--are captured on camera by director Paul Devlin in some intense rhyming battles and bitter rivalries. A fascinating precursor to Russell Simmons's DEF POETRY JAM, SLAM NATION highlights the spoken-word poetry format as it blossoms and grows among a whole new generation of kids. The talent the contestants possess is self-evident throughout, and many of the subjects Devlin follows went on to bigger and better things, with Williams putting in a memorable performance in Marc Levin's SLAM, and muMs da Schemer appearing in HBO's OZ.
