Just Why, Hollywood?

Is this why they picked Terrence Howard to play Nelson Mandela in "Winnie"? I do see a resemblance, and for the life of me I see absolutely no other reason why they did.

Pretty flimsy excuse for casting someone to play such a monumental man...I don't believe he's up to the task. Exhibit A:




ps: why does he still have that quivering, crybaby voice thing going even in his atrocious south african accent? and why does jennifer hudson sound like count chocula?

Now THIS Is What I'm Talkin' Bout!

Usually it takes my beloved Mr. Howard (aka Terrence) to wake me out of my blogging beauty sleep, but even his laughable "Cleanse And Protect! You Gotta Wash Your Hands!" public fuckery campaign in Philly that takes his love for baby wipes to the next level couldn't wake me this time. I love you guys to death, and have wanted to share a bunch with you, but could not seem to put fingers to keyboard.

Until the very lovely Jez at "Shook" Magazine from in UK sent me this amazing 2 CD masterpiece "Can You Dig It? The Music and Politics of Black Action Films, 1968-75".

Oh. My. God. Let me tell you this--I was in a Radiohead stupor for the past 2 weeks--literally I have listened to nothing but Radiohead very single solitary day at home, at work, and in the car. Only a small miracle could have moved me from Radiohead and my blogging slumber, and that is what I consider this compilation--a small miracle. The gatekeeper of this blog, Pam Grier, graced the cover of the CD, piquing my interest, and I was absolutely hooked from the very first song--Roy Ayers' "Coffy". Need I say more? Well, maybe for the young folk I do, lol. But I don't think I can ever say enough about this spectacular collection.


Blacula, Black Belt Jones, Trouble Man, Cleopatra Jones...you name it, all the classics are here repped by some of the finest jewels in music; James Brown, Issac Hayes, The Impressions, Joe Simon, The Blackbyrds, Marvin Gaye...by the time I got to "Brothers Gonna Work It Out" by Willie Hutch from the classic Blaxploitation "The Mack", I was completely, thoroughly, and absolutely in love, lol. Did you know Sweet Sweetback's Theme was by Earth, Wind and Fire? I might have, but forgot--it's tidbits like that that make this even more of a treasure. All of my memories of these films came rushing back, and I was very grateful to the people behind this project for having the amazing foresight and what must have been a good deal of patience for licensing. I even loved the fact that they called it a homage to "Black Action Films" as opposed to Black Exploitation, or Blaxploitation, two terms I never really cared for.

I wish I could print the entire site here, but I can't--it might take you a while to read, plus it would take up about three pages of this blog...here is a bit more info (trust me, it will be the best gift to yourself you can possibly get all year, for reals!). Purchase and have one of your best parties ever!:

Can You Dig It?’ charts the rise of ‘Black Action Films’ from 1968-75. As well as featuring a double-CD collection of the stunning music from these films, ‘Can You Dig It?’ comes with a 100-page booklet, mini-film poster cards and stickers. For images, more info please call Karen or Angela on 020 7734 3341. Or email us on angela@soundsoftheuniverse.com or karen@soundsoftheuniverse.com

Here is the opening segment to the song "Brothers Gonna Work It Out", taken from an actual scene in "The Mack". Loves it.

Terrence Watch!: Massive Stupidity Edition

There are those in life that should never speak and keep a low profile, but for some reason seem to be unable to do it. O.J. is currently paying for his runningus mouthus, and Sarah Palin seems to be incapable of even slightly perceiving what a complete and total moron she is. Case in point, fighting a war of words with David Letterman, whose mind can run around the earth's equator five times before Palin's tiny bird brain can process a simple sentence. Will she ever learn? Probably not--arrogance is a treacherous thing.

The treachery of arrogance can lead to several things; like thinking that you are completely desirable to everyone in your path, or that you are a Mensa scholar with everyone hanging on to your every word as if it were gold. Or both. This same arrogance also apparently makes you blissfully unaware that you are an idiot; Palin, Trump, Spencer Pratt, Jon Voight, Republican head Michael Steele, Miley Cyrus...I can go on and on. But the only one that makes me really take notice is the one who always brings me out of my Blog Hiatus, my beloved Terrence Howard.

Since I've been on hiatus, my darling Terrence has gotten engaged *sniff*, saved a baby bird from certain death in Beverly Hills (which miraculously made many news and blog outlets--kudos Baby Wipe publicist!), and recently had this golden nugget of wisdom for us lowly earthlings:

"I don't think President Obama has been that revolutionary in reaching out to ethnic communities. President Reagan did a lot for the black community that people don't realize."


Well, I must admit, I sure the f*ck didn't know that. Ol' Ronald sure was hiding it very, very well. You learn something new every day, yes? Maybe one day Terrence can share even more of his ethereal sage wisdom and let us know exactly what those things were. Until then, I'll watch the kids in deep East Oakland play with rocks instead of being in the after-school programs Reaganomics snatched away. Thanks once again, my Prince, for waking me from my blog beauty sleep! Back to my Billy Wilder marathon on TCM....

Sarah Palin's feet and toes at a recent appearance--speaks volumes, don't it? I think Dave was on to something about the "slutty flight attendant" look

When It All Falls Down....

I think I ruffled a few feathers not too long ago when I stated that "age was the enemy" on the post I did on Jimmy "J.J" Walker and Boy George, alluding to their rapid deterioration and alarming visages. Some said "It's not age, it's lifestyle!" True, that is a factor, but you can be the exercisinest veganist vegan, and it all hits the end of the road somewhere. I started thinking of this subject for several reasons...the first one being this:


That these two that practically anyone, at any time, at any place, would have smashed in the 90's end up looking like Michael Jackson's unholy apprentices. I just don't get it. NOTE TO HOLLYWOOD: Make a beeline to whomever works on Halle Barry and Jennifer Lopez and call it a day! Those two should be the only working plastic surgeons in the world. Period.



Yes, age is devastating, as was witnessed on the "American Idol" disco medley the other day. Much has been made of how "ancient" the guests were, but if any of the readers of this blog look like Freda Payne (67 in Sept), or Thelma Houston (63 in a yellow dress showing a massive amount of leg) at their ages, please let me know. As for KC of KC and the Sunshine Band....well, let's just say he is dealing with a numerous amount of the white man's burdens.





Another example of the perils of aging is the disappointing film I watched the other day, "Original Gangstas". I was very happy to live with the memory of the fine-ass (and I do mean ass) Fred Williamson, aka 'The Hammer' from the 70's, and this film was an unwelcome jolt of reality. It is a vengeance movie that brings together Williamson, Jim Brown (wearing this life's most unfortunate kufi to cover an even more unfortunate bald spot), Ron O'Neal (Superfly, looking like the cashier/weed dealer at your nearest bodega), Richard Roundtree (Shaft), and Pam Grier (Foxy Brown, with hair looking like it hasn't seen the working end of a flat iron for several decades). You would think bringing together the most iconic icons of 70's Blaxploitation would be the sh*t, but sadly, I was left wishing everyone would have just rested on their laurels, and all I wanted to do was hand out Restalyne and Ab Rollers to everyone involved :-(




But there are other things that can cause it to all fall down, most prolific being stupidity. Rapper/actor Xzibit is about to lose his house to foreclosure, after 100 years of "Pimp My Ride" and it's reruns. Terrence Howard is still whining about losing his part in "Ironman". Ummm....T? Everyone involved with this film has been a professional for years. You mumble, sleepwalk, and use your "quivering voice" at dramatic pauses, then proceed to jack your price up sky high? That is exactly why you are in some fucked up movie called "Fighting" with the other weirdest Black man in Hollywood, Roger Guenveur Smith, who is probably your doppelganger, and playing second fiddle to Channing Tatum, whoever that is. Maybe you can pick up where Wesley Snipes left off.

A loooong way from wearing Ironman's suit of armor, yes?



Stupidity coupled with being low budget is definitely the way to make it fall down. Idris Elba now refuses to do press junkets and attend the premieres of his masterpiece "Obsessed". Negro, you were on "The Wire". Did you even read the script for this POS? I'm assuming not, as it surely would have ended up in "the circular file" as my grandfather used to say--aka the wastebasket. Don't act all brand new now. What did you possibly hope to accomplish starring opposite Beyonce and Ali Larter, in a film that was produced by the dude that did "3 Can Play That Game?" Falling down, dude. Hard.



But nobody has fallen as hard in my recent memory as this next one. I watched a bootleg (yes, I'm going to Heck) of "Single Black Female", which is without exception the very worst film ever made, ever. It looked like it was filmed on a 1999 Nokia phone, yet I was could not stop watching it. I was completely transfixed by it's unbelievable horribleness--I think I was hypnotized. Beyonce can make a thousand "Obsesseds" and it wouldn't even come close to the stench of this flick. It "stars" Farrah Something Or Other, who used to be in Destiny's Child, and obviously that will forever be the zenith in her life till the grave. Yes, age is no joke, but combine being stupid, low budget, AND talentless and there is nowhere to go but down. Behold:




So I stand corrected, age is not the only enemy, but it is still definitely in the top five!

F*ckery All Around Me...

I know my posting has been spotty. The truth is, I've finished a transition back to the Bay Area to be closer to my parents, and I miss L.A. terribly...I will probably have to have residences in both places to keep everyone happy, the main person being me.

The weather has been atrocious in the Bay; cold, rainy, windy--the kind of weather that puts me in a deep, grouchy funk, as I am very, very much a sunshine person. I think my blogging has been affected as well...but fear not--I have come out of my cave for a moment to comment on some of the f*ckery that keeps slapping me in the face, haha.


How can I not say anything about the severe and unmitigated f*ckery that is Samuel Jackson? After being the super-overexposed version of Beyonce in the movie biz, he seems to want to dare us to hate him. He has signed on to do 9, yes nine, yes IX more pictures as the character Nick Fury. Is there anyone in life we want to see that much? I would saw off someone's foot to get close to Dwayne The Rock Johnson, but even I wouldn't want to see him in nine freaking pictures playing the same character. Just boo!


Also on my grouch radar is Tyler Perry. I said to myself that I wasn't going to dedicate anymore space to his projects except for straight reportage, but gawtdayum, a movie version of "I Can Do Bad All By Myself"? What next--Stepin Fetchit on Parade? I mean, that play was all sorts of funny, but it puts the chitlin', fatback, and hog maws in chitlin' circuit.


Speaking of chitlins, for some crazy Black History f*ckery, check out Thembi's post on white (and Black) America's tributes to our so-called history and tastes. True WTF?!? shenanigans if you ever saw it!


I kept silent about Slickback's stupid statement about the Chris Brown/Rihanna debacle (my advice still stands to only speak through a publicist, Terrence), and it is even more stupid as he was arrested for the exact same thing a few years back.

But what is this that Chris Brown was to star with Fantasia as Harpo in the Washington D.C. stage play version of "The Color Purple" (which he has been dropped from)? Remember this line? "You told Harpo to beat me!" Ummmm...ironeeeee....


Just setting my grouch/disgust factor off the charts is Marlon Jackson's complete lunacy about building a slavery theme park, complete with golf courses, spas, etc., coupled with a Jackson family museum. How much do we really know about Marlon? I mean he has never really said much before....how do we know he might not have some mild form of autism or something like that? All signs point to it with an idea so stupid I can dedicate 3 posts to it.


And finally, just the type of f*ckery that wears one to the bone--why, Whoopi, why?


Not that her wardrobe of choice should be any surprise. Let's take a look at some of her other Oscars dress choices, yes?





Clearly this woman has never been introduced to, or been within a 50 mile radius of a stylist, ever.


Okay, rants over. Just to balance out my mid-winter crotchetiness is some good news. I will be starting a sort of West Coast version of Reelblack, showing screenings of yet to be released independant and rarely seen throwback films, along with talks with actors, directors, etc. this summer called "Black Cinema At Large". Those of you in the Bay are very welcome to hang with yours truly. Each event will be posted on this blog so stay tuned, and stay blessed :-)

Hello All....

Sorry I haven't posted in a minute, but Mama's been taking care of some serious bidness the past 2 weeks. I want to say thank you to the new folks that are following my blog...I have found some very interesting reads through the blogs that you have. Kudos!

I will do a few more posts before we wrap up this crazy, amazing year. But today I want to leave you with 2 videos, both that highly peaked my interest. The first I was gonna do independently as a "Terrence Watch!" until I found the second vid. Thank you reader Harlepolis for sending this to me....it is of Jamie Foxx on Big Boy's radio show talking about his experiences with my beloved, Terrence Howard. He absolutely destroys it as he imitates Howard and his special way of talking, and speaks on Terrence's ummmm..."unique" personality. Funny as hayall!




This second one I saw while reading "On The Black Hand Side". It is of Etta James and Chuck Berry absolutely, positively KILLING it on some awards show. They show everyone, from youngest new jacks to the oldest heads, who the true royalty really is. Etta's talent is so huge, Bey can only dream at night of coming close...and Chuck is evidently quite the hype man.

You can see this reunion brought them back to the memories of their early days together...LMAO at Keith Richards of The Rolling Stones coming in on the end as if he were on the same level and caliber (or even deserved to be in the same room) as James and Berry.

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Chuck Berry & Etta James
Uploaded by Roselyne14

If you are not able to view the above video, click here: http://www.dailymotion.com/video/x4naj_chuck-berry-etta-james_music

This N' That....

Okay folks; please tell me you saw "Blackula" and "Scream Blackula Scream" last weekend on TV One. If not, for shame! :-)

I have a laundry list of things going on in Black Cinema--some of it good, some of it pure f*ckery.

First up this one:

Director John Singleton is no longer attached to direct the feature film adaptation of the 80s TV series “The A-Team,” according to Variety.

The filmmaker reportedly balked at Fox’s attempt to delay the long-gestating project for another year to allow more time for script development. The project had already been delayed multiple times due to script issues.

The Web site ComingSoon.net claims Fox is really pushing back the film to make room for an “Alvin and the Chipmunks” sequel. In either case, “The A-Team” release date has been moved from June 12, 2009 to June 11, 2010.

From IW: An A-Team remake with an underdeveloped script? Say it aint so! You know your movie is beyond tired when they push it back in favor of "Alvin & The Chipmunks 2". This is about the 99th project I've read about John Singleton starting and not finishing. 'What the problem is?' as Madea would say.


In other completely unnecessary remake news is this (thanks sergio!):

Having most recently played a dirty cop in "Lakeview Terrace," Jackson is set to star as a bad guy again in Columbia Pictures' remake of Berry Gordy's 1985 cult classic "The Last Dragon."

Jackson will play Sho'nuff, the Shogun of Harlem, a role played in the original by the late Julius Carry, whose spiel included asking ego-driven questions like "Am I the baddest mofo lowdown around this town?" Each time his gang of thugs answered, "Sho 'nuff!"

From IW: This one is co-produced by my fourth husband The RZA, which upon this news, may become one of my ex-husbands. At the very least, they should get Taimak to play Leroy Green again-he looks just as good as he did in 1985, for reals.



Speaking of Sergio and Samuel Jackson, here is Sergio's take on the upcoming movie "Soul Men" after viewing a preview screener:


'I saw Soul Men this morning at a screening and I'm sorry to say that it's shame that Bernie Mac is not around anymore because he'll never have another opportunity to make make up for the dreadful mess this film is.

It's an abysmal, unfunny, extremely tasteless movie that will stun you speechless when you see how bad it is. It's without question one of the worse films Ive seen this year, somewhere in the top three. There wasn't a single laugh or chuckle from the people in the theater when I saw it. Just stunned silence.

There's NO comic timing or pacing and dialogue, in which literally every other word is the F word, it's clumsy, awkward and just plain painful to hear. (Remember the really awful F word heavy dialogue in Eddie Murphy's Harlem Nights? Well this is just as bad or even worse) Bernie Mac is simply just plain not funny at all throughout the entire the film. I understand that he was ill while making the film and that could explain why he's somehow "off his game" in this film. Samuel L. Jackson literally just screams (as he usually does) his way through this film, yet another crappy film in his long list of crappy films that he's made in his career. And wait till you see the final big supposedly comic highlight towards the end involving Bernie, Jackson and John Legend. You (and the audience) will be astounded by how awful and tasteless it is.

Every cliche you've ever seen before about two old partners who can't stand each other but get back together (like The Sunshine Boys) are used but even more wretchedly than before. And of course there's the obligatory super nerdy white guy who wants to be cool to make black audiences feel superior to a white man because he "ain't got no rhythm".

And there's also this pathetic far-from-comic over stereotyped character of this would-be rapper/drug dealer in the film who appears in a couple of scenes who is SO painful to watch that I wanted to walk out every time he appeared in screen.

(One good thing in the entire film, maybe, for guys of my generation is a brief cameo appearance early in the film by the legendary adult film actress of the 70's and 80's Vanessa Del Rio but of course she wasted too)

What even bothers me more is while watching it is that once again I felt that black cinema is in very sorry state of affairs. Medicine for Melancholy excluded, if this is what we're getting then there just shouldn't be any more black films, period. I would be happy and content just watching comic book superhero movie.

Next time I see a film with the credits: "Directed by Malcolm D. Lee" I'm heading for the hills.'

From IW: Ummm...dang. I'll reserve judgement until I see it (won't be paying tho). I'm seeing it cause of Isaac Hayes and the association with Malcolm Lee, whose career is starting to look a little dicey, at the very least.


Speaking of dicey moves, there is an online petition to get rid of The Cheadle in "Ironman" and bring back Baby Wipes Howard. Yes, really. If you want to see it, or heaven forbid sign it, you can click HERE.


In non-Black Hollywood news, I am really sad to see that Joaquin Phoenix has decided to quit acting for good. I saw "We Own The Night" last night, and really enjoyed it. It was a great cops and criminals action/suspense thriller, in which he co-starred with Robert Duvall and Mark Wahlberg. With so few real actors around, and folks like Robert Duvall and DiNiro getting older, it is sad to see someone like Joaquin leave, while Marky Mark keeps making movie after movie. I've always found that dude so wooden, and he looks and acts exactly the same way in every single film he's in. *sigh*


In other news, Elijah Kelley seems to be venturing from his brand new career in acting to writing/directing already. After getting rave reviews in "Hairspray" and landing a role in one of the supposed 3 biographical films of Sammy Davis, Jr. (what happened to those anyway?) he debuts with a project called "Who Killed Bishop Brown". It is described thusly:

'A scandalous romp filled with church politics, sexual tension and the untimely death of Bishop Brown. Kelley capitalizes on a style of filmmaking that has become very popular in the black community - a combination of drama, comedy, music, and morality.

Okay, here is the deal. Tyler Perry is to aspiring young black filmmakers what Quentin Tarrantino was to young white filmmakers a decade and a half ago. You can see Perry's influence throughout "Who Killed Bishop Brown." The dialogue, filmmaking and even casting choices mimic Perry’s production style.

“Who Killed Bishop Brown” is full of self-righteous dialogue, preachy messages and clumsy blocking. But it also features realistic characters and an ability to connect with the audience in a way put them in, in this film with Christian overtones.'




From IW: I'm sure Sergio will be thrilled to read this. Above is the trailer for it.....by the way, I got the info about the film from a site I discovered called "I Love Black Movies" which is filled Black Cinema movie reviews from folks that pretty much dedicate their lives to Black film and it's offshoots. It is definitely worth taking a gander, imho.

Another interesting blog worth wondering over to is IWBCAL commenter Camille Acey's "Adventures in Wheelville". In it she chronicles her life and times of being a former Brooklyn chick and now currently a one year resident of Radovljica, Slovenija (?!). Loves it.

Please check out my homie schlomie pop culture writer Michael G. Gonzales' co- project, "The Southernist". On it he describes his experiences with such elegant and intricate delicacies as chitlins and grits, haha!



Speaking of Mike G., he wrote this great comment on my post about Fred Williamson making Black Caesar:

[black caesar] is one of my favorite flicks; and the soundtrack is killer. i interviewed fred once and he told me james brown was mad, because he wanted to play the lead.

reminds me of when i read that originally, mgm wanted to cast sammy davis to play shaft...now, picture that.

From IW: James Brown as Black Caesar and Sammy Davis Junior as Shaft? I think God was directly involved in bypassing those two calamities, for sure.


And finally a huge big up to Reelblack's Michael Dennis winning CNN's IReport Film Festival. He says:

'I would like to personally thank everyone who viewed and voted for our film, which follows my grandmother's trek to vote for Barack Obama in the 2008 Pennsylvania Primary. It's been an amazing run. Since debuting at Fancypants Cinema and on Reelblack TV, we've been invited to screen in festivals in New York, LA and Charlotte, NC. The film will also screen the week of October 28 on BET-J's BLACK STORIES (along with Philly filmmaker Bianca White's short). All the comments are appreciated but there's so much more work to do. I chose the title The 13th Amendment to remind folks that there wasn't always a time when all Americans had the right of freedom. One of our greatest privileges is the Right To Vote. Please do it on November 4.'

From IW: Right on. If you'd like to see the short, you can view it HERE.

Terrence Watch! Number Veinte

First Ironman and now this. What in the random heck?

'Oscar-nominated actor Terrence Howard allegedly assaulted composer Tex Allen in a backstage beatdown as they worked together on Broadway’s “Cat on a Hot Tin Roof” last winter, according to a lawsuit. Now Allen, a jazz pianist and the brother of Debbie Allen - who directed the play - is demanding $5 million for his alleged fat lip, according to court papers. Allen claims the alleged assault ruined his music playing. The suit alleges that Howard confronted Allen while he sat at the piano at around 2:30 p.m. during a Jan. 24 rehearsal at the Walter Kerr Theatre and punched him repeatedly in the face and head.'

From IW: What is really going on when you have beef with the piano player of a Broadway play? Damn, that dude is so special. I suggest he calms down, stat, before he finds himself in Lindsey Lohan territory.

Reader Reviews....

Ya know, there are two new releases out there that are of interest and/or curiosity to more than a few, but for some reason I can't get up the gumption to deal with either of them, even for my own blog. The first one is Bygbaby's (yes, him again, lol) review of "Traitor" starring The Cheadle:

This past weekend, while on vacay, I decided to head to the movies to check out Don Cheadle’s new flick “Traitor”. Up until now, I thought everything Don touched turned into gold because he is just that good, but in the case of “Traitor” Cheadle’s touch did not produce gold, it produced brass. As a matter of fact, it produced a brass dildo that fucked me out of $10.50.

In “Traitor” Don had an OK performance in general but the movie overall was a piece of shit. Well, piece of shit is a little harsh, so let me just say that it was not worth the $10.50 that I shelled out for it. Maybe if I paid the twilight price of 5 bucks I would have better feelings about it.

The story line was focused but yet disjointed at the same time. The start of the movie had no tie to the story in a cohesive way. The characters were not developed at all & they popped out of nowhere & disappeared as quickly as they came. Looking back, I still have no clue who Don was, what team he actually worked for, or anything else.

The only thing that I walked away with from the movie was a feeling that border patrol agents are stupid (yes I know it is a movie but also in real life), Jihad is not a good name for a domestic pet, and Muslim extremists are angry & dangerous as hell. There was very little else to walk away with. And basically, this is the type of movie that you rent from Blockbuster when they are out of the really good movies.

I really don’t have much else to say about the flick except that I want a partial refund.

From IW: Damn, Byg, tell us how you really feel....the second is a review of my beloved Terrence Howard's new CD. I know I really should have written this, but damn, I don't wanna listen to that sh*t! This is from Bef of O Hell Nawl!. Very short and sweet, but I'm sure she said it all....

Man I wish y’all could have seen my face when I first listened to this CD. I was all kinds of confused.

I really don’t know what to say about this CD other than it was some hot buttery funky garbage!

Well let me clean that up a little….musically it was some really nice jazzy/folk type music but vocally and lyrically it was just NOT the business.

I need for Terrence to stick to what he calls “acting” and stop the shannigans of trying to be a singer.

UPDATE: Ms. Marvalus from "The Marvalus View" left me a comment that she reviewed Terrence's CD on her blog....cruised by and it definitely gave me a laugh:

Dear Terrence,

When I saw you playing the guitar in “Best Man,” I was so impressed. Your guitar skills are off the chain! You have magical fingers, so when I heard that you were putting together a CD, I was a little excited. You see, I’m a fan of yours. Even through your crazy ass, from the left interviews and even through the Hustle and Flow flow (I never want to hear you try that again), I was right there with you. You are an amazing actor, and you light up a screen.

Today, I listened to your new CD. Fortunately, I didn’t rush out to purchase it. No, I signed into my Rhapsody account (which I pay for monthly) and pulled up your new release to give it a preview to decide if it was worth my money. It is not. I barely made it through the first song before deciding to go and listen again to the Eric Benet CD. You see, there is a difference between singing at home, and putting it on wax. Sometimes you need to let shit go. You shoulda just let this one go, baby. I admire you for fulfilling a dream, if that is what you are doing by putting this CD out. But I beg of you, don’t make this your focus. Because the music will never be what you are about. Your rawness and passion that you exude on the screen will never come across in your music the way you imagine it to. You, honestly, cannot sing. And as hard as you try to push harmony through your vocal cords, it does not work.

I look forward to your next movie. I will gladly pay to see you on the big screen. But the music? Miss me with this…

A fan,

M

Terrence Watch! No. 19

This almost brought me out of my blogger beauty sleep. Almost. By now we are all used to Terrence doing/saying something completely ridiculous/perplexing/weird/hellastupid.

All I can say is, what personal karma did you garner in hell that not only would Terrence Howard be your husband in this life, but he is a stalker too? Just damn. To wit:

“I wrote that song as a stalker. It was raining, and I was sitting there in front of the house, watching her come home from a date after we were divorced. I was imagining what she did on this date, and watching her giving him a kiss. I went home and wrote this song.”

- - Slickback Ivanhoe speaks about spying on his ex-wife Lori McCommas in a ‘New York Times’ interview about his forthcoming album, Shine Through It

From IW: Even creepy Diana and creepy Evan "LaMichael" Ross looked creeped out by him...spot the expressions...is Diana crying?

pic spotted on fresh's blog

Terrence Watch! Part 18

This from loyal reader cdnyc07 aka nic:

It appears the raging Lothario we've all come to know as Terrence Howard is off the market! (At least for the minute.) The actor has set his eyes on aspiring actress Leasi Andrews, an Angelina Jolie-a-like with a pout that drives men wild.

The Iron Man star flew the bombshell to Ischia, Italy, along with his three children earlier this month to attend a film festival. "Leasi was over the moon when he invited her," said a source close to the duo. Imagine how she felt when Howard climbed up on a local bar's stage and began serenading her. (Howard's debut album is released on September 2.)

"He was telling Leasi how much he loved her, and how beautiful she was. He even asked her to marry him," said a witness. But the bombshell has her reservations, and perhaps rightly so. We've watched Howard eye-fuck a stunning Gwyneth Paltrow at an Iron Man screening, going so far to actually lick his lips and utter "Damnnnn," right to her face. And we were there at another fete when he practically forced his number on a 19-year-old actress, quipping, "I know how to make things happen," before winking like a scumbag.

"Leasi knows he's a flirt. And she's playing this cautiously," said a friend of the lass. Howard is rumored to have given her a ring for her recent birthday, over July 4th, but the stunning gal is being tight-lipped about what the band symbolizes. Andrews was previously dating Lawrence Bender, producer of An Inconvenient Truth, with whom she had a child.

From IW: LMAO that they are taking this "romance" seriously. His track record is pretty dismal--you hear about some chick exactly once with him, and never hear about her again in association. My take? Come on out of that deep, dark closet, Terrence, where it also seems like you get your hair cut.

PS: Eye f**king Gwyneth Paltrow? Dude!

pic spotted on blacksnob

Random Movie News....

Okay, your favorite movie bloggin' slacker actually has some movies news. But first--I saw the trailer of Spike's "The Miracle Of St. Anna". Wowzers. It looks epic and amazing--hope it turns out to be. If it is, hopefully this will be the beginning of new things for Black filmmakers; going outside of the tired, tired ass Hollywood ethnically cleansed system, and getting the money amounts that match their creativity and vision. Kudos Spike...there was a time that I never imagined I would say that about him, but he actually proved to be worthy of all the hype he generated when he first arrived on the scene. Here is one version of the trailer:

Thanks so much to Sergio who keeps feeding me information, despite my lack of blog posts as of late. He sent me this...could Spike's film be generating some actual interest that we existed before the 1970's?

Yesterday's AP story on George Lucas's Red Tails, which is in pre-production, focused on the Tuskegee Airmen who will be the subject of the film, revealing that John Ridley is writing the script. There's been some speculation that Lucas might be returning to the director's chair.

According to Lucasfilm, Lucas is NOT directing Red Tails. As originally reported by Variety, he is an executive producer, with Rick McCallum and Charles Floyd Johnson producing. (Variety first mentioned the project back in 2006.) Ridley is writing. No other attachments yet, they say.

They have not started talking to distributors and aren't yet talking about their plans for financing. Lucas could pay for the whole thing out of his own pocket and barely miss it, but that doesn't mean he will.

Like so many other projects, they will push production back if there is a SAG strike.
And for those who are asking if a story about World War II airmen facing racism might appeal to a certain Lucas pal named Spielberg, known to have made movies that touch on African-American history and the Second World War now and then, be assured, we checked with Lucasfilm and he's never been involved with the project.

From IW: So Spielberg makes films that "touch on African American history"? I must have missed those--if anyone knows what they are, please let me know. And I'm not talking about some movies he made sprinkled with some Black characters that have lines, and are not imperative to the film.. That white perspective is something else, I tell ya...lets hope a movie about The Tuskegee Airmen is not told from one, like so many other Black stories.

To my ATLians: You guys are lucky. Spaghetti Junction is doing some thangs down there. On Monday, they have the 5th annual Black Women Film Festival...and folkses, it's free: check it:

Urban Film Review
DATE:6/23/2008 Monday, June 23rd

TIME: 7:00pm
LOCATION: Woodruff Arts Center,1280 Peachtree St NE, Atlanta, GA 30309

MORE: FREE! Arrive early, limited seating. Click HERE to RSVP

Call me crazy, but this sounds so effin' interesting to me--usually, I'm turned off on this kind of thing, but I am mildly fascinated by this concept. From reader Sienna:

Hi there

I don't know if I'm dating myself...but I remember when I used to watch the Family Feud back in the early '80s (when the host was Richard Dawson) there were so few black families on the Feud that when a family came on that looked like mine it was big news in my house.

Well times sure have changed. NBC is premiering Celebrity Family Feud next Tuesday at 8/7c and not only is Al Roker the host -- there are several black celebs and their families taking part: http://www.nbc.com/Celebrity_Family_Feud/

Teams include: Team Ice T (And where Ice T is, Coco surely follows), Team Symone (Raven Symone), and Team Mo’Nique (need I say more) and Team Fox (Vivica)
http://www.nbc.com/Celebrity_Family_Feud/video/#mea=265877

From IW: I was never into Family Feud...once I had it on in the background and it was on for 15 minutes before I realized that my own sister and assorted relatives were on it (no one bothered to tell me-WTF!?!), but I'm tuning in to this, for sure.

Reader cdnyc07 sent me this nugget from my beloved, Terrence Howard:

The Iron Man star, 39, has a brutally honest take on love. "I'm the most arrogant person you'll ever meet, and any woman I date has to know that," he says. "Life is too short to pretend that you're okay with somebody when you're not."

From IW: Just one more reason why he's the man of my dreams. Btw, Terrence, you might want to bring that down a peg or two....let us marinate in the picture from my Terrence Watch! Part Six:

And over to this:

Speaking of Terrence, thanks to the wonderful Villager, aka Wayne Hicks at the go-to Black news and happenings blog, Electronic Village. He awarded me with the "Share The Love Award". He said this:

'Invisible Woman, creator of Black Cinema At Large - A very creative sister with experiences, perspectives and commentary on all things related to Black folks in television and movies. I haven't quite figured out if she loves or hates Terrance Howard!'

From IW: haha--listen Villager, let's put it this way--don't ever look for a wedding invitation from the two of us in your mailbox! The "Share The Love" origins are this:

The 'Sharing The Love' Award, was created by Blogger Crystal at “Memoirs Of A Mommy” blog, in honor of donor who saved her one month old’s life a year ago. Crystal’s son Noah celebrated his first birthday thanks to someone who gave the gift of life.In Crystal’s own words, here are the rules of the Share the Love Award:

“Share this award with all those blogs out there that you love. All the people who make you smile. All those that make you laugh. All those that make your day. All those that leave uplifting comments on your blog.

All I ask, is that you include a link to this post with the award and ask your recipients to do the same. I created this award in Honor Of The Donor That Saved Noah’s Life. I share this award with those of you whose love and friendship have enriched my life and made my world a better place.I hope by passing this award around the blogging world we can all help raise awareness of the need for Organ Donation.”

From IW: Duly noted.

And finally, here is a prime picture of the lovely Jamie Foxx back in the day. Enjoy the scenery while sipping your favorite martini...cheers!

Terrence Watch! Part 17

I'll be back this weekend ya'll to post and answer your comments.....really, I swear!

Until then, here is a little clip of my beloved talking about his new CD--I'm sure it'll be what's hot in the streets!*


Shine Through It Interview from ColRec on Vimeo.



*insert sarcasm here

Terrence Watch! Number Sixteen

'Man, the more I hear myself talking, the more I think I might be certifiable.'

-Terrence Howard*

From IW: Ya think?

*thanks nic for the info; to read more from this "certified" interview, click HERE