Drake in a frame from his new short film: Will fans forgive him?

The reviewers have spoken, and the message to Drake is “keep your day job!” His new short film, entitled Please Forgive Me, is a 21-minute movie shot in the South African township of Soweto, inspired by his new album “Views.”

Please Forgive Me starts with a rich mystery man offering Drake’s girlfriend (played by Belgian actress Fanny Neguesha), $1 million for a night of sex. The enterprising young duo opt to take his money and run.

Please Forgive Me was scored by Drake’s long-time producer, Noah “40” Shebib, and directed by Anthony Mandler, whose credits include a longform video for video Lana Del Rey, Tropico, and videos for Rihanna (“Diamonds”), Taylor Swift (“22,” “I Knew You Were Trouble”) and Selena Gomez (“Come and Get It”).

Drake released the film exclusively on Apple Music, which has a content deal with the Canadian artist, and has been pursuing a strategy of original material to satisfy existing subscribers and lure new ones. The approach seems to be working: Drake’s “Views” has become the first album to notch one billion streams on Apple Music.

As to whether the film bridges Drake’s transition to screen startdom, TheVerge writes: “the short is entertaining, but Drake isn’t a very credible action star.”  (Other sites were less charitable and called it “embarrassing.” Well, that can be entertaining, too.)