Top 10 Historically Significant Black Films (Not According To Me)

Ok, here I is, lol. For those of you who like my blog, I am much, much, more active on Twitter (sadly) and my username is @BlkCinemaAtLarg. I guess I should put that on here, but I'm waiting for my new site design.

Anyhoo, while on the great twitterville I came across Entertainment Tonight's "10 Historically Significant African-American Films". And let me tell you, it was the best list I've seen so far from a mainstream outlet, which was surprising, cause I find ET about as deep and relevant to Blacks as Ryan Seacrest.

Here is the list:

Cooley High

Antwone Fisher

Ray

What's Love Got To Do With It

A Soldier's Story

Do The Right Thing

Eve's Bayou

Boyz N The Hood

A Raisin In The Sun

The Color Purple

This is a great list, admittedly. There are a couple on there though, that while I do think are significant, are not necessarily historical. In the Black community, maybe, but not universally, which I believe was ET's intended stance.

So I wanna talk about two a day, to kick off my theme weeks. I think I'll start with A Soldier's Story and Cooley High, since those two are grabbing me today.



A Soldier's Story

I agree with ET's assessment on this one. As a child who went to the movies with a father who was just as a voracious movie-lover as Ms. Invisibelle, I remember that this was the first post-70's drama that was well directed, well written, well photographed, and well acted. This was an excellent story that had elements of suspense, mystery, and drama. It addressed an array of factors; racism in the military, the pressure of even being in the military, and wearing masks to hide our true selves from others.

I was very young, but I was completely captivated by the story in front of me. It is also the first time I remember having on screen crushes; despite his personal life (that I found out about afterward), Howard Rollins was a very powerful and amazing presence, and for some reason I was drawn to a very nerdy-looking and bespectacled Denzel Washington way before he was really known for anything...I guess he was born with it.

This film opened up a door that relayed Black drama was just as compelling, intense, and brilliant as anything else that was out there in the 80's or any other decade. I think it's a shame that there are certain entities (that will remain unnamed) that will play "Soul Plane" ad nauseum as opposed to playing this even once.


Cooley High

What can I say about this film? For some reason I love everything about it, so I'm in agreement with ET. It is the only film that I have seen more than repeatedly next to "Friday", and I never get tired of seeing it. What Cooley High has is:

*A sense of nostalgia, even if you weren't alive or remember the time period

*Great music

*Characters that made you care

*Comedy and drama well-balanced--one was just as interesting and watchable as the other

*A very brief glimpse that, for at least one month, Lawrence Hilton-Jacobs was fine as hell

*A very brief glimpse that, for at least one month, Glynn Turman was not weird and creepy as hell

*Arresting wardrobe and on-point set design

*The breeding ground of the classic song by Boyz To Men "It's So Hard To Say Good-Bye To Yesterday"

*A coming-of-age story that was realistic and relatable

This film was testament that a very fine, touching, and universally Black story could be made on a relatively small budget. This film speaks to generations, and everyone from your grandparents to your grandchildren love it, and I really can't think of another Black film like that.

Tomorrow two more.

Where Da White Women At?

That really should have been the title of this film. What do you say about a movie that bills itself as the "Black" version of Warren Beatty's "Shampoo", yet has nothing in common with it except that a hairdresser has sex with his clients? A lot of sex.

"Black Shampoo" stars John Daniels (a Black Lou Ferrigno doppelganger), as "Mr. Jonathan", who apparently owns an upscale hair salon by the same name on Sunset Blvd. in Los Angeles, that supposedly caters to the elite. I say apparently and supposedly, because since this film seems to be made on about $26, we only see two rooms of this "upscale" salon that has a few chairs and a few ferns. And a couch in the back that would probably make a CSI black-light explode in disgust.


Mr. Jonathan must have been doing hair for a long time and had his fill, because we never see him actually styling one head. Oh, except in the opening credits, where it seems someone just washing your hair can give you the greatest orgasm you've ever had in your life.

Mr. Jonathan spends his day going from one white woman to the next, juking happily three to four times a day, either in the shop or making house calls. He does this while wearing his white hairstyling uniform, which looks like a gay male nurse's uniform, and never bothering to hit his peen with a lick of water in between trysts, not even with a moist baby wipe.


He hires a Black receptionist, and they go to dinner exactly one time, and decide they are completely and totally in love forever and ever. Well, I guess like they say, for Mr. Jonathan once you go Black, you never go back.

Turns out that said receptionist is Mr. Big's ho, and ran away, and Mr. Big kidnaps her back. It is unclear what exactly Mr. Big does, but he always carries a briefcase, even at the pool, and exclaims once loudly that he has to make "some goddamn speech at some goddamn dinner". To address what, heaven only knows.



The rest of the film shows Mr. Jonathan trying to get his Black Queen back, but that is genuinely just filler for the sex scenes. What this film is really is soft porn, and not very good soft porn at that. It is worth a look just to see how ridiculous some films of the period were, and how producers would put "Black" in front of everything and anything just to draw in an audience. It is also quite a sight to see Mr. Jonathan walk around like a baby gorilla in a two sizes too tight hairdresser uniform, and the awful, stunning, unbelievable 70's stereotypes of the gay male hairdressers he has working for him. Truly riveting....they make "Men On Film" from "In Living Color" look like Terry Crews and Tiny Lister.


Ms. Invisible says check it out.

Unfortunately, the movie trailer seems to have disappeared from the internets, but here is the radio commercial trailer for it...dripping with innuendos:

Flashback Week: "Chameleon Street"

After watching a series of groan inducing "just why?" films like boiling hot mess "Armored" and the wretched "The Losers", it was quite refreshing to have a film like "Chameleon Street" thrown into the mix. Reader Tafari summed my current Black Cinema thoughts pretty well:

As for myself, the last good black movie I've seen since the fall of 2009 was Precious. Since then nothing good has been released. Thought about seeing the Funeral movie but decided to see Kick Ass instead and it was fucking AWESOME. So happy I followed my guts on that one!

Outside of Kick Ass, the only movie that I've seen since Precious and Avatar that I like/loved was Shutter Island. Everything else has been a total mess making me want my money back still.

What's a movie buff to do?

For reals! Now Chameleon Street isn't as much of a flashback as the others are in this series, since it was released in 1989, but it very much has the feel and tone of a Black film from the 70's. The difference is that instead of the foot to ass, get "the man" through violence films of the 70's, the main character uses his wits and resources to get by and through "the man".

It is the story of William Douglas Street, played by Wendell B. Harris Jr. (yes, he uses his full name at all times, lol) who, motivated by chasing the almighty dollar, finds himself assuming a number of different identities; surgeon, Yale student, a "Time" news reporter--all falsely assumed but accepted by everyone nonetheless. Everyone except his one weak spot and kryptonite, his self-involved wife. Though from humble beginnings, he is intelligent, has a razor sharp wit with a ton of charisma, and absolutely no time to suffer fools easily. This enables him to make the transitions, from jailbird to ultimately a political and social activist and everything in between, with ease.

While the budget limitations are obvious, and the transitions from one identity to the next can be a bit rough, I saw what the star/director was trying to do. It wasn't so much about the plot itself exactly, but was really more like a scathing observation of the hypocrisy and ignorance of America, and YT's ridiculous assumptions about Blacks and appearances. It also deftly handles the microcosms of Black male female relationships, and how difficult it can be to dedicate yourself to just one person. He had a lot to say, and he said it in this film....the narration is killer.

I have mostly seen Black men rave about this film--it seems to really resonate with them on some level for some reason. But this is what you would call a thinking person's movie; you can't just view it as is, you must see between the lines. It moves at a swift pace, and there are no spots in the film where nothing is happening, so you gotta pay attention. I recommend viewing with zero distractions, and zero expectations, and this movie will be thought about days afterward.


Read this in an article: "Instead of distributing the original film, studios wanted to make new versions with various actors. Harris remembers, “Each time it was given to a different person, it was given a different ambiance. For Wesley Snipes, it was changed into a kind of car chase movie. For Sinbad, it was changed into a kind of goof-ball character. For Arsenio, it was a hybrid of the two.” Will Smith also wanted to remake it, and has twice redone a scene from Chameleon Street where Harris solves a rubik’s cube to impress an employer."* Typical!!!

Also read this: "Harris shopped around many ideas in the 90s, including Negropolis, a version of ancient Rome where the emperor and ruling elite are all black and all the slaves are white. Roles were written for Oprah Winfrey as Cleopatra, Queen of the Nile and Cosmetology, Howard Stern as Alexander the Great and Harris as Canigula – Caligula with a ‘N.’"* Now that is a movie I wanna see!

Wendell B. Harris, Jr. is working on a sci-fi project as of late; I know that you readers have expressed multiple times how there is such a huge need for that in Black film. As such, whenever you hear or come into contact with his project, please do whatever you can to support!

Could not find a trailer, so here is a scene from Chameleon Street:



Some comments from Harris, and a scene from the film about "good hair":






*source: filmakermagazine.com

Old School Flicks 101

Hey all. I think I'm finally over my twitter obsession and can get back to blogging. Well, that's not entirely accurate. I know I said I wanted to start blogging regularly as a tribute to David Mills, but the biggest truth is that I've been uninspired. Yes.

There hasn't been a Black film this year that I've been excited about or in anticipation to see. I think I want to see them, then when they actually come out, I'm like "meh", and go about my business. Cases in point, "The Book Of Eli", with its overdone to death premise, "American Violet", "Death At A Funeral" (fine-ass James Marsden nonwithstanding), and don't even get me started on "Why Did I Get Married Too" or "Law Abiding Citizen". The one film that I was really looking forward to--"Brooklyn's Finest" was a major disappointment of epic proportions. I just watched "New Jack City" for about the 20th time yesterday, and it was still more gripping and compelling than Brooklyn's Finest.

And what is to look forward to? "Just Wright" with King Latifah and Common in a "romantic" relationship? Gimme a freaking break! To be fair, YT cinema hasn't been all that fantastic either--just saw a screener of "Chloe" with Liam Neeson and Julianne Moore, which was like an extremely watered down "Fatal Attraction" seen through fogged up glasses.

To be honest, the only Black films that have excited me lately are actually all from the archives. I know that some follow this blog to check on the latest happenings, but around here I kinda just write about what I'm feeling at the time. What I've been feeling are some fantastic films from the 70's, which I think are a must see for everyone, Black or non. And some not so fantastic ones that I think some should just flat out view to see the sheer nerve of some producers and directors in the 70's.

Each day I will talk about one of these films; "The Spook Who Sat By The Door", "Chameleon Street", "Mandingo", "The Legend Of Nigger Charlie" and the amazing and freaking fantastic "Ganja And Hess", a jewel of a film by a country mile.

So tune in once a day, every day, for the rest of the week and I will have some films on here that you can learn about, or if you've already seen them, discuss with me (I love, love, love your comments). A huge thanks to those who have stuck with me, and to my new followers who have come on board though I've been seriously M.I.A. See you tomorrow!

Oh, How I Miss Thee, Isaac Hayes...

Okay, so I just watched "Truck Turner" for the umpteenth time. Why? Yes, the plot is wholly ridiculous, and unbelievable, but the fact that it is so ridiculous is what makes it watchable to me. It also has a pimp with the worst perm in history (Yaphet Kotto is a pimp as well). That makes me watch, and also the fact that Nichelle Nichols aka Uhura (whose birthday was this week, she's 77) was going around calling everyone "nigga" like she was saying it for the first time. It sounds terrible....but ol' girl was looking great in her forties, yes?

But I really like it because of Isaac Hayes. He just had so much charisma...he was not good looking in any conventional sense at all, but was a master of smoothness, game, and charm. And that voice! He also seemed like a good guy with a genuine sense of humor...I am still lamenting his passing, and when I read who was at his funeral last year, it looked like a who's who list of Hollywood and music; he was obviously loved by many others as well.

For your viewing pleasure--"Truck Turner"--please catch it on cable this month and in January or below...I read that a new Truck Turner is in development--why does Hollywood insist on screwing with perfection?

The trailer:

How Bout Some Trailers?

Okay, regarding my last post--I thought Darktown Strutters would be interesting based on it's premise, but I must say I did not love it. At all. Any movie that randomly has The Dramatics pop up in a jail cell in full costumes doing a full performance with Temptations-like choreography gets a huge side-eye from me. Why were movies that weren't dramas in the 70's so effin weird? I know it was a time of rampant drug use, and a lot of films from that decade were hard evidence of that...from "Tommy" to "Heavy Traffic" to "Darktown Strutters" just to name a few--they were just so disjointed, so horribly edited and all over the place with zero cohesiveness. *sigh* Thank goodness for Fred Williamson...

Anyway, let's view a few trailers, yes? These films at least have a linear storyline, but let me know if you find them interesting (personally I can't wait to see "Brooklyn's Finest"). I will get around to writing about the zillions of films I've seen in the past month and a half.

First up, Chris Rock's remake of "Death At A Funeral", with Danny Glover, Tracy Morgan, Zoe Saldana, Martin Lawrence, and my next husband, fine ass James Marsden.. I've had the original on Tivo for the longest, but still can't get myself to watch it....I would like to see the original before viewing this one with a Black cast-I'd like to see if they made it any different--or better:




Then we have this one, which is not really a Black film, but Sanaa Lathan (down with the swirl once again) was tweeting about how "proud" she was of it. When I first read about this film a year ago, it also got the side-eye from me, and after viewing this trailer, it now has a bigger one; Michael K. Williams from "The Wire" nonwithstanding. I dunno...:




I will be working with the publicity team on this one, so expect to see more about this film--hope you likey, at least for the novelty of seeing Wesley Snipes with back-length cornrows..."Brooklyn's Finest" (Michael K is in this one too, as well as The Cheadle, who I always like a lot more in crime thrillers):




Btw, here is a clip from Darktown Strutters; watch at your own risk (and yes, that is Roger Mosely...the chick is actually the first Black Bond girl for you trivia buffs):

TIVO ALERT! You want to see this...really!

Hey guys: will be back later today--wanted you all to please, please Tivo this if you can....thanks Dennis from Reelblack!

TIVO ALERT

DARKTOWN STRUTTERS ON TCM TONIGHT! Greetings!
Turner Classic Movies' UNDERGROUND series shine the spotlight on two long neglected musical comedies from the blaxploitation era. At 2am, they will air DARKTOWN STRUTTERS (1975), which is filmmaker Mike D's favorite guilty pleasure movie from the 70s. At 3:45 they will screen THANK GOD IT'S FRIDAY, a miserable film which featured Donna Summer in her acting debut, and won an Oscar for the disco classic "Last Dance." Between the two films, they will screen a rare featurette starring Redd Foxx about the making of his feature film, NORMAN IS THAT YOU (1976).

From IW: Here is the trailer for "Norman Is That You?" with Redd Foxx and Pearl Bailey. How do you think this movie would fly if it were made today?

For Halloween: "The Black Exorcist"....

I've heard of this movie, "Abby", aka "The Black Exorcist" (not to be confused with "The Blaxorcist") for years, but have never been able to find it. I've learned you can watch some very classic and rare Black films online (though I can't say where, I don't want them to be taken down). If you snoop even a bit, I'm sure you can find them.

So I watched "Abby", and it is an absolute miracle that they did not get sued by anyone and everyone associated with "The Exorcist". Made in 1974, it was snapping on the heels of the original. But maybe once they saw the film, and how horribly ridiculous it was, they probably just sucked their teeth and kept on stepping. Carol Speed's laughable demonic "possession" and preschool lip-syncing is source of hilarity, as well as making the viewer indulge in much lip twisting and head shaking at the scenery chewing performances.

William Marshall, better know as "Blacula" (who would have absolutely been my husband had I been of age in the 70's), tries to keep the proceedings above middle school stage play level, but unfortunately, fails miserably. The 4th rate acting, paper thin plot, mangled editing and cinematography, and rip-off storyline are beyond saving. But I say watch it anyway, just to see what Black horror films were about back in the day. This is the synopsis from IMDB:

"A possession film about a marriage counselor who becomes possessed by a Demon of Sexuality, when her father in law, an Exorcist, freed it while in Africa. He returns home, along with his son and a policeman to perform an African Exorcism on her."

Alrighty, then. Here is a sampling:



UPDATE: Just read this from You Tube...

Obscure 1974 blaxploitation "Exorcist" rip-off flick from Kentucky-bred zero budget auteur William Girdler ("Grizzly"). Warner Bros sued over the similarities, and the movie was quickly withdrawn from circulation shortly after its release. Jesus, what a bunch of killjoys! Starring blaxploit regular Carol Speed as Abby, and co-starring William Marshall - esteemed African American stage actor, Mr. "Blacula", and future "Pee Wee's Playhouse" King of Cartoons (one of 'em, anyway). The movie may be no great shakes, but it beats the hell out of 99% of the leaden Italian "Exorcist" rip-offs that followed and where were the damn lawyers then, huh?

Movies Revisited: CB4

This is a cross-post from my resurrected blog "Soul Sis-Star Reviews":

Do you remember a time when people still wore Jheri Curls? When women loved Allen Payne with a passion? When Chris Rock had his original teeth and crack body, and looked like he had 15 cents to his name? When Stoney Jackson was still occasionally working (Theresa Randle too)? When Charlie Murphy was not even close to being as funny as Eddie? When Khandi Alexander looked 20 years older than she does now? When no one knew who Deezer D was (nothing's changed on that one, btw)?

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.

Transformations....

I'm sitting here watching "Car Wash"...dang, that soundtrack was fiyah, for reals! It's so interesting to see folks as they were 30 years ago...Antonio Fargas played the sweetest gay flame to a tee, Bill Duke was the young rebel, and The Pointer Sisters were the joint. Did you know that Joel Shumacher (director of The Lost Boys, Batman Forever, etc.) of all people, wrote this movie? By himself. He also wrote "Sparkle" and the screenplay for "The Wiz". Who knew?

There are many transformations that happen in 30 years, some for the better...some well....ummm, you know, not so hot.

Black film has gone through both extremes--the "not so hot" downgrades from the 70's with the Ice Cube legacy (see the upcoming film "Lottery Ticket" with said Cube and Bow Wow, and any "Are We Whatever Yet" films), and the upgrades being the new class of thoughtful Black films, i.e. "Medicine For Melancholy".

Saw a couple of pictures in the past few days that are prime examples of the upgrades and downgrades from the 70's.

Remember Freddy "Boom Boom" Washington? Remember Cochise? He was so fiiiiiine in "Cooley High", sexy, sexy, sexzay. To be fair, Laurence Hilton Jacobs was severely compromised even in the 90's; he chased after my redbone girlfriend for the longest, and she never even gave him the time of day....there were many more traces of Joe Jackson (whom he played in the "Jacksons" mini-series) than Cochise by that time. Here he is today--call me mean, but I'm sorry, it's disturbing.


On the other end of the spectrum is super super-model Iman, who called Michelle Obama "not a great beauty" (btw, I disagree). Well, if being a "great beauty" means wearing blond plastic Barbie hair against your dark African skin, with a couple of (or more) surgical facial procedures, along with wearing foundation lighter than your natural skin tone, she may have a point. Either way, still much better than 1975, yes?

This N' That

I have just come out of a "Throwback Heaven" stupor. TV One is just all about the Black Cinema, and today I watched the Blaxploitation flix "Three The Hard Way" and "Friday Foster". I have been meaning to write about the evolution of Pam Grier for some time, as she was a singularly awful actress back in the day and has come to something a lot more substantial. But what did that matter in the 70's when you looked like Pocahontas with perfect clear skin, white teeth, a small waist and perfect big tits (all before the boon of plastic surgery)? Not a lot, I tell ya, and not too much has changed in 3 decades. I will do a proper post eventually, as she is the gatekeeper of this blog. Here is the trailer:



The same with "Three The Hard Way". I'm sure at the time this was an explosive movie of Black Power and puttin' foot to ass on "the man", but now one is just bemused. And though it was directed by one of my faves, Gordon Parks Jr., the plot and actions scenes are wholly ridiculous at best. It is the story of some Aryan/Nazi power group that has invented some type of poison that kills only Negroes. It looks like Kool-Aid, so I guess that was smart. The target cities? D.C., Detroit, and Los Angeles and their water supply. All they needed was NY and Oakland and 99% of the Black population would have been goners.

Jim Brown stomping around saying he has to find "his woman" (who the bad guys kidnapped) seems positively caveman and archaic now, as well as Jim Kelly mowing down a whole police force that have guns by just shouting "OU-EEE!" and karate chopping and kicking. I really didn't pay attention to how they were taking everyone out with simple handguns, while the bad guys outnumbered them 10 to one and had machine guns, cause I was hypnotized by Fred Williamson's ass. I could eat breakfast, lunch, and dinner on that thing...haha!


Check out TV One tomorrow. Though they showed the hot (but watchable) garbage that is "Trois 2, Pandora's Box" today, tomorrow they have Maya Angelou's "Sister, Sister", starring Diahann Carroll ("Claudine)", Rosalind Cash ("Uptown Saturday Night"), and Irene Cara ("Fame") as sisters dealing with interfighting, jealousies, and baggage. Also offered tomorrow is "Funny Valentines" starring what seem to be favorites of this blog's readers, Alfre Woodard and Loretta Divine. It is directed by Julie Dash, who also directed the wonderful "Daughters of the Dust", and is described as this : "A woman returns to her home town to sort out her troubled marriage and finds new happiness in the rekindling of a broken friendship with her cousin."


Now on to a few things. Have any of you picked up on the podcasts over at Tambay's "Obenson Report"? Interesting discussions going on over there on Black Cinema--the last one featured up and coming director Pete Chatmon. Did you know that Jackie Robinson was in the 761st battalion, which is the subject of one of Chatmon's film? Jackie is an icon of inspiration for reals, for reals. Go on over to his blog and click on the links to listen.


Speaking of new-jack directors, Dennis Dortch (whose interview with me will be up in a few days) has a site up that consists of his Black & Sexy merchandise...tees, boy shorts, etc. are to be had, along with the amazing soundtrack from the film. Get you a piece my Black and sexy readers (you YT's too!, haha). Click HERE to see his stuff.


Are we ready for a new generation of Wayons? Hmmm...I dunno, as this generation is still grating the nerves a bit---i.e. "Dance Flick". Saw this on Black Film Academy:

'The prolific Wayans clan has begun to turn out a second generation of multihyphenate comic performers. UTA has just signed Damien Dante Wayans — nephew of filmmaker Keenen Ivory (”White Chicks”) — for representation in all areas, and Craig and Damon Jr. are set to co-star in Damien’s directing debut, “Dance Flick,” a Paramount comedy to be released May 22.

Damien is a co-writer (along with Craig, Keenen, Shawn and Marlon) and executive producer of the movie as well. Older-generation siblings Shawn, Marlon, Kim and Keenen all appear in the film.'

From IW: Alrighty then. At least the genes aren't bad in the looks department in that family....can't speak on the comedic one tho.


Have seen this trailer floating around the blogs---it is a documentary of the life of Mike Tyson. His life really needs to be a straight up soap opera, for real. I wonder if Jamie Foxx is still going to play him in a biopic as was rumored last year? Here is the trailer:




There seems to be an interest in things Henry Lennix these days. I never paid that much attention, one way or the other. I remember him as being very low key in the "The Five Heartbeats" and not much else. But based on the posts and comments on "Must Love Movies" ruminations "Roger Guenveur Smith vs. Harry Lennix" and "The Black Snob" who writes "I Suffer for Harry Lennix's Art" (and also turns it into an absolutely perfect commentary on the state of Black Hollywood and it's actors--to read click HERE), he definitely has a fanbase. Maybe the light skin-ded dudes are making a comeback. Hollywood, are you listening? Of course you aren't.



And a very, very heart felt thanks the beautiful Naturally Sophia (ATLians stand up!) , and the only person that I know that watches more movies than me, Reel Whore (I love his blog). They awarded me with the Kreativ Blog Award and The Dardos Award, respectively . The Dardos Award is given for "cultural, literary, and personal values in the form of creative and original writing. These stamps were created with the intention of promoting fraternization between bloggers, a way of showing appreciation and gratitude for work that adds value to the Web". Of course you are supposed to give these awards to others, but....yes...I'm slacking again. What I can say is that when I get these, they positively make my day; there is nothing quite as great as being recognized by your blogging peers---Thank You So Much!!!




PS: Thanks to all of those who have started following my blog in the past few days...don't think I haven't noticed and read your blogs as well :-)

Adventures In Palookaville...

There was this guy that I used to date back in the day, Thomas Monagham (very Irish, right?). I use his real name, cause if he ever happens upon this blog I would be very glad to see/hear from him.

Anyway, Thomas and I met on the subway in New York. Actually he just really mashed on me and charmed me to death in just 5 minutes (till my stop), so I just had to see him at least one more time. He was an actor, and on our first date we went to a Greta Garbo Festival. I wasn't really into it at all at first, but then I actually really enjoyed it.

Thomas was always showing me new things in film, and he was very much the actor in style and looks in the vein of the holy covenant of the Mickey Rourke (when he was hot), Gary Oldman (when he was hot), Eric Roberts (when he was hot), and Sean Penn (when he was hot) mold, and he really exposed me to the works of all four actors. So when I saw 3 movies starring each one of them over the weekend, it led me to think of him and compelled me to post about them.


First up was "State Of Grace", which I had always mistakenly thought was a military film. Not at all. It's Penn as a deep undercover cop from Hell's Kitchen who comes back to his old neighborhood, with his old gangster cronies (including Gary Oldman), and basically has to be a rat fink.

Man, Sean used to be hot to death--I could see why Madonna married him. He wasn't handsome in the traditional sense, but the way he wore his hair, the way he dressed, even the way he smoked; his bad boy swagger was off the meters. The movie was pretty much a by numbers crime story, but Oldman and Penn are so charismatic it keeps you transfixed. There is a beautiful juxtaposition at the end between NY's famous St. Patrick's Day Parade, and Penn's bad ass high-noon style showdown, all in slo-mo. Rent it just to see that sequence alone.


I also rewatched "The Pope Of Greenwich Village", which I hadn't seen in years, starring Mickey Rourke and Eric Roberts. For those of you that don't know, there was actually a time when Eric Roberts was a much bigger star than his sister, Julia Roberts. How the mighty have fallen. It was a bit distracting to look at him sometimes, cause they look so much alike, but I digress.

Rourke and Roberts are cousins that get fired from a restaurant for Roberts' stealing. Roberts, though a complete and total airhead, comes up with a scheme to rob a safe, which they find out (too late) belongs to a mobster.

This movie has been a fave for many cause the characters are so memorable, and it is a real slice of New York life in the 80's. I say see it if you like films about New York, mobsters, and lovable losers.



I saved the best for last, which is Mickey Rourke as "The Wrestler". Holee sh*t this man can act. If you didn't know it was Mickey, you would swear you were watching someone's life. Since this is a Black Cinema blog, I won't go on and on the way I'd like to about this film.

Suffice it to say that between Darren Aronofsky and Rourke, there can't help to be some amazing sh*t. There is a scene where Rourke begins work as a deli worker in a supermarket, and for the couple of minutes before he starts his very first shift, it is just as taught, anxiety ridden, and fraught with anticipation as when he goes into a ring for a match. If a movie can convey that linear polarity, you know you have something very special before you on the screen.


The commonality of these films was that in the working class tribes of the Irish and Italians hoods and the Wrestling World, being loyal and working together came first and foremost. Before anything. And having dreams, and seeing them slowly die, and coming to the harsh realization that you may actually live out your days as a loser, compels people to do extraordinary and desperate things--some good, but a lot of it...not so much.

Here is the trailer for State Of Grace:



And for "The Pope Of Greenwich Village":






ps: if you don't know the term "palookaville", ask an old new yorker

Obscurities...

There've been some things floating around on my radar recently that came into view several times, and actually made your favorite slacker curious enough to investigate them further (something rarely done, haha).

First up is this dude Eamonn Walker that folks are talking about as Howlin' Wolf in Cadillac Records. I first heard of him when UBM said "he was like the Idris Elba of the 90's". I saw from Thembi that he was on "OZ", but I have reported on this blog that I never really watched that show, and why.

He does seem to be a good choice to play Howlin' Wolf, as he has the old school manly look about him, good to play someone from the southern back woods of the 40's and 50's like Wolf was. This role may propel him to the mainstream stardom that seemed to escape him, as I see he's done an awful lot of TV (and British at that) and not too much film. He was in "Unbreakable" with Bruce Willis and Samuel Jackson, but I don't really remember that....


The next dude is way more obscure...at least to folks born after 1975. I have been watching a lot of throwback movies on cable, and this dude kept popping up with his big bubblicious eyeballs..."Across 110th Street", "Gordon's War", "Body And Soul"...there he was, with his intense stares and super-dooper fly "threads"--always the bad guy putting foot to ass. Who was this guy, anyway? Well, it turns out his name is Gilbert Lewis, and he was also in "Cotton Comes To Harlem" and "Fort Apache The Bronx", two of my faves, tho not in prominant or memorable roles.

Just as obscure seems to be pictures of him from back in the day...I could only find the blurry one of him above, and even in that one he's in the background. He's done a lot of guest starring stints on TV, but guess what? He was "The King Of Cartoons" on "Pee Wee's Playhouse". I thought that was the dude from Blackula? Hmmm...maybe both of them played him. Someone on that show was obviously a Blaxplotation fan with a wicked sense of humor....high five!


And last on my current obscurity list is a film called "Proud". When Spike was going around talking ish while promoting "Miracle At St. Anna" he was saying how there were no films available about Black WWII heroes and their battles. Well, lo and behold, he showed Pete Chapmon's "761st" to his cast of "Miracle" for inspiration (?) and when I thought about it, there was also the movie about the Tuskegee Airmen, with Laurence Fishburne, Allen Payne, Malcolm- Jamal Warner, Andre Braugher, Courtney B. Vance, Mekhi Phifer, and Cuba Gooding, Jr. I believe that last time I looked, they were Black.


Then there's the film "Proud" which is being shown on cable all this month, with the plot described as this:

Lorenzo DuFau (OSSIE DAVIS) is a hero. As a World War II sailor, he helped save the world in 1944. As a black man, he had to fight to get in the fight -- yet his country ignores him ...

His son dismisses him as a failure ...

His grandson hardly knows him ...

Until late one night when he finally tells his grandson Larry (ALBERT JONES), and Larry's two college friends Kevin (ERIK LARAY HARVEY) and Marcus (JEFFREY NASH), about his ship, the USS Mason.

In the segregated Navy, with the vast majority of black men relegated to duty as stewards or laborers, DuFau and his shipmates were the only crew to take a warship into combat.

From IW: You can read the rest of the plot, as well as read the film blog and get inside information about the movie HERE. It also stars Denise Nicholas, Kidada Jones, and Keisha Whitaker (Forest's wife).


Madame Invisible may have to do some detective work and find some more Black war hero stories....

**Update**: Blacula did also play "The King Of Cartoons". His name is William Marshall....you're welcome. :-)

Random Movie News....

First of all, I must say welcome back to "The Obenson Report" and it's podcast. Tambay Obenson's blog was supposedly out of business, but I knew he'd be back! Please check him out for "serious" black film news, as well as his amusing perspectives on Black Cinema. His blog is all the things I wish I had the wherewithal to do....

On my last visit there, I see now that the classic "Hollywood Shuffle" is on Hulu. For the readers of this blog who were too young to see it the first time out, or those who never got around to it, you can view the full movie below, or go to Hulu. It is a must see about a struggling actor and his trials and tribulations in his personal life, and having to deal with playing stereotypes in Hollywood. It is also very funny.



Speaking of Hollywood Shuffle, I saw a movie about an actor with similar dilemmas over the weekend called "Premium". You may be able to catch it on cable this month--it is also out on DVD.

Dorian Missick, who I was not familiar with before, plays the struggling protagonist/actor, who is helplessly in love with Zoe Saldana. Unfortunately, Hill Harper is her buppie fiance, creating quite the love triangle.

I wasn't expecting much, so I was very surprised that it turned out to be a film about the subtleties and matureness of love, and how we don't always end up with the person we'd like to be with, cause love in and of itself is realistically not enough. It was refreshing to see the men appreciate Saldana for qualities other than her "big butt and a smile" to paraphrase Bell Biv Davoe, as we've seen in a thousand low budget Black films. It was also the first time I've seen Hill being all manly and acting with a real passion.

I have to say that Zoe Saldana is very much on my radar now; she is like a prettier, less hard, less grating, and more talented version of Jada Pinkett. There is a naturalness to her acting that is very intriguing...I think I may actually allow myself to be OK with her playing Uhura in the "Star Trek" remake, lol. Check the movie "Premium" out--which is written, directed, and produced by Pete Chatmon (kind of a hottie)--on a lazy Sunday afternoon.



Speaking of Pete Chatmon, did you know that he wrote and directed a film about Black soldiers fighting in WWII way before Spike's "Miracle At St. Anna"? It's called "761st". The synopsis is this:

The 761st Tank Battalion was activated on April 1, 1942, at Camp Claiborne, Louisiana and deployed to Europe, landing at Omaha Beach in France on October 10, 1944. Over the course of 183 days of continuous fighting (including action in the Battle of the Bulge) the "Black Panthers" became the first African-American armored unit to enter combat. With the motto "Come Out Fighting!" they faced racism at home and death overseas in a war for many freedoms they did not enjoy in America.

Sound familiar? I wonder if dude is ready to put foot to ass over the clamoring of Spike's film, while his gets completely overlooked. Kinda f'd up, imho.



I guess you've all heard that they are remaking "Fame"...I'm guessing to capitalize on the popularity of the High School Musical franchise. **yawn**




Got this from Sergio:

IW

After reading the comments about Tsotsi, like a dope I forgot to tell you this film I saw a few months ago Heart of Fire about a young girl's experience as a child solider in Eritrea, which I think BLOWS AWAY "Tsotsi". It's a German/Italian co-production made by a Italian director but it's awesome. [Hopefully] you'll mention it on your blog.

Duly mentioned...sounds really interesting. To read a bit more about it, click HERE.


Some questions...am I the only one who has zero desire to see "Twilight"? Am I the only one super curious to see how Taraji P. Henson does in "The Curious Case Of Benjamin Button"? Am I the only one who wonders why they keep giving that walking corpse Nicole Kidman work? Just askin'.




And finally, thanks ever so much (gosh, shucks) from my folkses at "The Marvalus View" and "The Happy Go Lucky Bachelor", who each gave me the "Uber Amazing Blog" award. You know, what can I say? I completely deserve it....I keed! It is an award for a blog that

inspires you
makes you smile and laugh
gives amazing information
is a great read
has an amazing design
and/or any other reason that makes them Uber Amazing

It's wonderful to know they feel about me the same way I feel about them. Thanks guys! :-) All of the blogs on my blogroll on my side bar I feel the same way about...so if you want to post this award on your blog, tell your readers I gave it to you!