"California Schemin'"
Samuel Bottomley and Séamus McLean Ross in “California Schemin’,” from Magenta Light Studios

"California Schemin'"

Debuting director James McEvoy stages a wild and crazy true story about two Scots lads who fake their way into rap stardom.

By Peter Travers

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★★½ (2½ out of 4)

Scottish hip hop sounds like a contradiction; think of a young Sean Connery in a rap battle with Kendrick Lamar. Hilarious, right? But not always in “California Schemin’”—a true story of fakery, money and betrayal in the music industry based on two Dundee lads, Gavin Bain and Billy Boyd, whose accents got them laughed out of auditions. Solution? Fake their way to the top as California rappers Silibil N' Brains, a ruse that won them a record deal, appearances on MTV and tour dates with Eminem and D12. Then their cover was blown.