D.C.GIRL@THEMOVIES

ABOUT THE BLOG AND REDTAILS...

noreply@blogger.com (Ms☆Go) — Thu, 26 Jan 2012 17:01:00 +0000

Just a few notes today.... Foremost, this blog is not shutting down, though it has been awhile since I've posted.

New posts for the new year and possibly a new look is to come.

Now, I have to say a few words about the newest "black movie" and George Lucas' very correct assessment that Hollywood producers believe black films don't make money. Luscas' debatable writing and directing talents notwithstanding, the fact that even he, the king of independent billions funneled into the Hollywood system could not get major funding from the Hollywood mainstream for Red Tails indeed proves how valid the point, (having been raised time and time again by many folks) truly is.

I am pleased to have seen the trailer and avdertisements for this particular film being aired during mainstream TV shows that aren't necessarily, "black oriented", as this is an American story, for all.

No doubt, that is due to those aforementioned independent billions. The fact is this is still an anomalous situation.

Han Solo was supposed to be a brother, y'all until Hollyweird intervened.

Right now, this film is number two, but I can't begrudge the mainstream audiences for not wanting to see another history movie with heavy platitudes and cheesy proclamations.

...What I can do is celebrate the African-American-created Underworld series still going strong.

See, I'm always looking for that silver lining. :)

Until again, see you.

WUTHERING HEIGHTS, SHAME, BEING ELMO AND TARAJI P. HENSON VS. TV GUIDE

noreply@blogger.com (Ms☆Go) — Sat, 24 Sep 2011 19:55:00 +0000

The teaser for Andrea Arnold's Wuthering Heights has been released:

Here's a clip from a film I haven't mentioned here, Shame which is getting good buzz on the festival circuit and is about a pretty risque subject, sexual addiction.

This is Steve McQueen.

I'm not even going to lie, I posted this photo because of that awesome kilt.

Directed by Steve McQueen, pictured above, stars up-and-coming actor Micheal Fassbender and features Nicole Beharie, whom I have mentioned here before. She gets serious love for a recent interview in which she stated that her dream project would be starring in a movie based on Octavia Butler's work.

I think she would make a fantastic Anyanwu, but I have a feeling that Kindred is the novel, Hollywood is most likely to jump on first. McQueen in the director's chair for that project could be epic.

I'm always happy to see artists of color doing work outside of that narrow expected box, Hollywood is most likely to push. Congratulations to Tyler Perry for being the highest paid man in the film industry this past year, but I want more people of color of various artistic inclinations, especially those behind the camera to gain some mainstream attention, especially when their talents more than warrant that.

McQueen's previous work, The Hunger, also starring Micheal Fassbender, received a huge amount of critical and award attention.

His next feature, Twelve Years a Slave, starring the ever-magnetic, Chiwetel Ejiofor is definitely something I will be keeping an eye on.

The last bit I'm spotlighting is the documentary film Being Elmo, about noted puppeteer, Kevin Clash. Here's the exclusive trailer from indiewire:

If you want more of something different from the typically safe "colored" fare ( i.e. The Help, Madea's Big Happy Family), find out where these films are screening and go see them.

If they don't screen near you, let your local theater manager know that you would have liked to have seen these films in your area.

P.S. Taraji P. Henson recently tweeted her frustrations with having been almost completely left out of the promos for the new series Person of Interest and yes, I believe it was more than warranted. I saw the pilot, not bad, really. But I found it rather strange that while her name appeared second in the credits, right behind star Jim Caveziel, I haven't seen hide nor hair of her in any of the commercials or, as she tweeted, the TV Guide cover featuring the show:

"WOW!!!! TV Guide is NOT including me on the cover with my cast memebers [sic]........I am the female lead of a 3 member cast and I'm not included on the cover!!!!!! Do you see the shit I have to deal with in this business.....I cram to understand!!!!"

...props for the MC Lyte quotage

This is especially odd considering that she is the only actoress among the three leads to have both an Oscar and an Emmy nod. I have heard responses saying, well she's not as well-known as the other two. And my response to that is, "Is it any wonder?".

This is what I found when I googled "TV Guide covers."

...So white, I had to wear sunglasses to view it.

Given the huge numbers of black Americans with buying power who watch TV, you would think CBS and TV Guide would have made some kind of effort to clue that particular audience in to an actor who is very well-known to them.

...But, given TV Guide's response to Taraji's public complaint, that they never intended to feature her, money matters less than homogeneity.

THE HELP

noreply@blogger.com (Ms☆Go) — Tue, 20 Sep 2011 20:00:00 +0000

Yes, I finally got around to seeing it. ...No, I still didn't pay for it. That money went to Columbiana. Though, I am happy to see both films have done better than expected. For a minute there, they were the number one and two films in the country. Not bad for two very different films about black women, and yet another vote of confidence for producers to back many more diverse projects.

You know about my misgivings. I was terribly concerned about the possible "Disneyfication" of the serious issues that went along with being a black maid in those times.

What convinced me, however, was an interview I saw featuring Viola Davis on a primetime "news" magazine. She claimed to have approached the script with the same skepticism as I, and so many other black women might have. She sucked her teeth and "...had an attitude" as she put it, while reading it, but was won over.

...That was enough to intrigue me enough to give it a try.

I don't know if I've mentioned this here on this website, but a few years ago, I had the great privilege of attending a screening of Mother. This is film is another great powerhouse vehicle for a fantastic female actor, who should have had an Oscar nomination, and so much more attention for her role in that film than she got, Hye-ja Kim. The director, Joon-ho Bong was in attendance. Anyway, after the film screened, an audience member asked which American actors he would love to work with.

He named two, Toni Collette and Viola Davis. I would also love to see what he could do with those two, but alas, he does not like the studio system in Hollywood. He claimed that he would not have the same level of personal control he has in Korea.

...And sadly, I believe he's absolutely right.

Anyway, I'm getting off the subject. ...And that is Viola Davis, whom I respect as an actor and a person and for whom I gave this movie a chance.

Well, I'm sorry to say those fears weren't completely unfounded. Despite the presence of black female acting powerhouses, including the woefully under-appreciated Cicely Tyson (also such a beautiful older woman), in addition to Davis and Spencer, (and some white ones too, Sissy Spacek and Allison Janey are also among my faves) it was still afforded that shiny technicolor glow. It was a glossed-over rendition of the struggles of black domestic workers in that time. "Retro" prettiness and the seemingly tacked-on happy ending (including a white couple 'rescuing' one of the maids), was tailor-made to sooth white guilt, not to paint to realistic a picture of what actually went on back then.

I think she might have taken this role for a couple of reasons. For one, it reaches to be more of a universal feminist film than a black one, meaning it splits time between the struggles of white women in those times and black.

I'm of two minds about that, because while I do love things that celebrate and delve into the sisterhood, in this case, coupling white women's issues with black women's from that time and in the manner that did, only placed their respective issues in a position that short-changed the harsher of the two experiences.

We hear about the horrible event that happened in Abilene's past, but we don't see it onscreen. Credit to Viola Davis for conveying the weight of it, despite the lack of the events being in the film. We see evidence of the challenges Spencer's character faces, but we don't see these depicted onscreen, either. This is an issue I see time and time again, in films with black supporting actors. We only see their lives in relation to white people, never as fully rendered with as many interactions with their own, as there when white actors are on the screen.

We do, however, see the issues weighing on some of the white women here, onscreen. This tactic minimalizes both, in my opinion. Making me roll my eyes at the attempt to seemingly 'equalize' the pressures white women and black women went through. Sorry, as much as women in general had to go through in those times, there's a big difference between being limited in social situations and constantly fearing for the lives and well-being of your own.

The only story-thread that did work, in my opinion, successfully bridging the gap between women of the two colors is Aibileen's relationship with the "unattractive" white girl she cares for. She constantly reassures this girl of her value, in the face of mother's neglect. I found this touchingly ironic, considering how unimportant, invisible, and undervalued Aibileen is treated in her day-to-day life.

I believe the other reason Viola Davis may have taken this role is because she knew what she could do with it. She knew what weight and gravity lacked in the script, she could convey with her acting, leveraging this, which I'm sure she knew would have broad cross-over appeal considering that safe "gloss", into a greater standing in Hollywood.

...And that she did, good for her.

The performances, are the only reason I give the film this rating. Mark my words, Viola Davis will get a Best Supporting Actress Oscar for this. You heard it here first.

PARENTS: I encourage parents to bring their children to this as in intro to a bit of history, that is rapidly being forgotten (I think this may be another reason, Viola took this role) due to our increasing discomfort with confronting racial issues from the past. However, I strongly advise supplementing the film with independent non-fictional reading, because just reading the original novelized form of The Help, considering the ending seen in the film, and given the actual real-life outcome...just seems like all kinds of wrong.

P.S. Emma Stone is billed as the star of this movie, and though she's serviceable, the real stars are indeed Octavia Spencer and Viola Davis. As for that Oscar predication, I just have a feeling the studio will promote her for the supporting actress category. I just hope I don't see another The Blindside situation here.

DRIVE

noreply@blogger.com (Ms☆Go) — Tue, 20 Sep 2011 20:00:00 +0000

Ryan Gosling is one of those actors who has established a reputation with me, in that pretty much anything he's in, I will watch. That's because the man always picks interesting projects and consistently brings his 'A' game to the material.

This film is no exception. Drive is a throw-back to those stark anti-hero flicks with silent brooding loners like Mad Max and Paul Kersey. Fearless, slick, cool, and minimal, it is the kind of vigilante 70's/80's style film-making that cares more about building tension, the visceral effect of abrupt violence, than catering to that broad youth market, quality be damned, which seems to be the priority these days.

No, this is a thoroughly adult film.

The car chase scenes are imaginatively done and I like that the film-maker clearly tried to distinguish his lead character as one who was very much not the simple "good guy." I'd love to go a little deeper into some interesting cinematic choices that drives *har-har* the point home, but I'll be moving a bit too deeply into spoiler territory.

My only issue is with the slightly 'too hip' sensibility of this thing. There's a lacking restraint in this filmmaker's style. The dead air-spaces would have been refreshing, but for his inability to pace his pauses properly. You can see that his intent is to allow this film to breathe, but the discretion to know when to say when, is something that will come with maturity. As it was, it breathed a bit too much, lapsing into too many moments of stretched-out awkward. One may claim that that is kind of the point, as Gosling's character was meant to be quite awkward in social situations. I understand that the audience is meant to feel that too, but for me, it was a bit much.

The casting of Carey Mulligan was also a bad choice, in my opinion. She's a wonderful actress, but she naturally exudes too much broad suburban naivety to be believable as the character she plays here. An actor who exudes more of genuinely "lived some life difficulties" feel would have been a better choice. I just didn't believe this woman had experienced being a single mom, at all.

I dug the synth soundtrack, but again it screamed tryhard-hipster, right along with the title font, the scorpion jacket, and even that daggone toothpick.

...But at least this is a semi-original idea, that's much to give credit for in today's recycled market.

It's good, but frustratingly full of pauses at all the wrong points. Still, it will likely be a cult classic.

PARENTS: No sex, but it is extremely violent. Keep the kids home.

THE PROBLEM WITH 21

noreply@blogger.com (Ms☆Go) — Wed, 14 Sep 2011 14:00:00 +0000

"Believe me, I would have LOVED to cast Asians in the lead roles, but the truth is, we didn’t have access to any bankable Asian-American actors that we wanted."

-producer, Dana Brunetti

*sigh*

Well Mr. Brunetti, you can't have bankable Asian-American actors unless you cast them in the first place. If you gave them just as much of a chance as you did Jim Sturgess (who hasn't proven himself 'bankable'either, by the way), then perhaps, there might be plenty of proven bankable Asian-American actors. I mean, all actors should have at least as much of a chance at winning a role as as any random schmuck who sits down at a blackjack table has beating his dealer, right?

As it is, Asian-American actors don't even get invited to sit at the table.

That's like saying, "Oh, I would love to give you some apples, but alas I don't have any." when you have a whole orchard of apple trees in your backyard, that you simply refuse to pick.

...Especially when it's been proven that even when unknown Asian-American actors are cast in starring roles (see: Harold and Kumar Go to White Castle), the quality of the material and the abilities of the actors to carry the film matter so much more to that coveted successful box office total than the race of the leads.

I believe the lack of visibility of Asian-Americans in pop culture is probably the biggest contributing factor to the problematic perception of Asian-Americans as 'foreigners', even if they have a longer family history here and speak more perfect English than you do.

When you think of 'all-American' looks, you think of blonde hair and blues eyes, not because those featurs are actually more American, but because they have been promoted as such, and because that statement is repeated with such consistent frequency.

...Which is why I can't stand when industry insiders spout this kind of self-supporting racist crap. As if the biggest risk is hiring actors of color and not say, writing a horrendous script and/or not properly promoting quality material.

I don't know... Maybe they thought if they'd hired Asian-American actors, they'd have had to adhere to troubling stereotypes in order to make the characters appealing. ...Have them running around awkwardly saying "We go play casino!" otherwise, it wouldn't compute that they were actually ethnically Asian.

The actual person on which this is based, Jeff Ma, publicly supported the decision to whitewash, standing lockstep with the same tired racist line as the studios; that they had hired the best actor for the job regardless of color. He went on to actually state that he would have been offended if they had cast someone Korean or Japanese just to have someone Asian to play him..

...The desire to successfully assimilate into the dominant culture to the detriment of one's own is a powerful motivating factor that supports this world of mono-chromed wrong, but that doesn't mean that these influential Hollywood powerhouses can't turn around and step outside of that self-disparaging cycle.

I see Jeff Ma as just an example, a victim of our culture's success in this false propaganda, even to the point of this kind of pride in self-hatred, twisted into a virtue, in this man's eyes.

Still, I have hope. I have high hopes for the Shyamalan-Will Smith produced Jaden Smith sci-fi-vehicle, One Thousand A.E. All, Airbender sins would be forgiven for a high-quality sci-fi blockbuster starring people of color. I'm happy to see more directors and producers of color working with material that's outside of what one would expect for them. .

Ang Lee has made a career of simply producing quality material within and outside of his culture.

I'm also seeing fewer Soul Planes and more Shames (seriously, look out for this brother). Steve McQueen is also producing a slavery-centered feature starring Chiwetel Ejiofor called Twelve Years a Slave.

Yes, I have much higher hopes for this than for Tarantino's Django.

...But I digress.

21 ended up being a flop, right along with fellow white-wash vehicles, Airbender and Dragonball Z.

I hope Hollywood gets that message soon.

MORE ON WUTHERING HEIGHTS

noreply@blogger.com (Ms☆Go) — Sat, 10 Sep 2011 16:47:00 +0000

So, you already know I'm excited about the fact that this version of Wuthering Heights was made, that someone had the balls to cast what may be the first actor(s) of color in the role of Heathcliff, of all the adaptions made. ...Which shouldn't be ironic, considering the fact that the character is described as a "dark skinned gypsy" in the book, but because it's Hollywood?

Yeah.

It is.

The film was recently screened at the Venice Festival and so far, reviews are mixed. It's supposedly minimalist; has no score and has relatively little dialogue. In other word, very Terrence Malick-like, I'm guessing.

While there is no trailer out for it yet, a few clips have been released. Warning: this does contain some adult material.

In addition to the above, here's some footage of a recent press conference featuring the director Andrea Arnold.

I found the bit from actor Solomon Glave, who plays the younger Heathcliff, at around 1:53 into the video, particularly touching.

COLOMBIANA

noreply@blogger.com (Ms☆Go) — Sat, 27 Aug 2011 02:20:00 +0000

I had high hopes, but it ends up being yet another produced by a big-name, directed by a no-name bait and switch. Between this and Pitof's Catwoman I'm wondering if Hollywood has it in for would-be mainstream movies starring black women, where they aren't the white lead's bff or Tyler Perryed into downtrodden souls who need Jesus and good men.

Everything about this felt like an action movie vehicle typical in every way except in the behind-the-scenes effort, or I should say lack thereof. The script felt like a first draft that hadn't benefited from the tightening and intelligence of any subsequent drafts. The direction and editing almost seemed to purposely obscure every action scene with shaky cam and awkward cuts. Lines of dialogue along with the minor players' acting is B-movie awful. And all of this is undescored by a terrible soundtrack. Oh, and yet another fat-and-sassy black woman makes an appearance here.

Zoe, Cliff, and Lennie give it a good effort, but do not manage to elevate the material beyond unintentionally funny b-movie leaps of logic. At least, those moments are fun, with some creative setpieces. They would be moreso but for that dishonest PG13 rating and the terrible camerawork and editing. Should have been an honest R.

Between this and Hawthorne, Vartan might want to lookout for 'interracial guy' typecasting.

This gets a from me. Either support it purely to let producers know that they can also try to make nonwhite women mainstream leads without the old problematic types or wait for cable.

PARENTS: Its a neutered R-rated movie about on the level of that last Die Hard.

P.S. No, I haven't seen the The Help, but I hear Viola Davis and Octavia Spencer are excellent in it.

...Which means there will likely be another Driving Miss Daisy, Monster's Ball, Jerry Maguire situation. Wherein Hollywood rewards black actors only when the roles they play fit certain comfortable stereotypes.

In other words, you can even be a Denzel Washington, but you're not getting that Oscar for anything more than playing a thug-cop.

Regardless of Hollywood's continual rewarding of black stereotypes while ignoring much better roles, I hope Viola Davis, especially, gets that naked golden man. She already has plans to parlay her award into some positive steps behind the camera.

It's always nice to see black people cooperating in production to get more diverse imagery out there.

PREVIEW: FRIGHT NIGHT

noreply@blogger.com (Ms☆Go) — Thu, 04 Aug 2011 18:01:00 +0000

The better Evil.

A product of today's self-referential culture, it is full of winks and nods to just about every popular vampire fandom and all the little gadgets and tricks kids and adults use these days. From Buffy's Scoobies and a panic room to sexting and Dark Shadows, a variety of pop-cult name-droppings were sprinkled through-out.

The primary cast handles the material well, striking a good balance between self-aware fun and the nastier bits (which for me, beyond crude language were lacking for an R-rated horror), with Ferrell and Tennant clearly having the most fun here.

I did think the back-story, which diverges from original was a bit tacked-on, but that is beside the point. This is a remake that exceeded my expectations, respecting the source (including a few easter eggs) while defining their own direction.

Though not topping the fun 80's cheese of the original, this gets a well-deserved from me.

PARENTS: The only thing that felt R-rated to me was the language.

P.S. Though it made a great one-liner, the silver thing applies to traditional vampires, too.

RED TAILS TRAILER

noreply@blogger.com (Ms☆Go) — Fri, 29 Jul 2011 22:01:00 +0000

This is the long developed (since 1988!) George Lucas project about the Tuskeegee Airmen.

You know how I feel about heavy-handed self-righteousness in 'race' movies, but I think George is approaching this as an Americana fanboy (hello, TIE Fighter scenes in Star Wars), as more an American story than a black one.

I'm not saying that race and the baggage that came with being the wrong color for the times, shouldn't be a part of it, but I think hindsight tends to make folks lean harder on those aspects than they need to (couldn't say much back then because, well, racism; and so it's bottled up until exploding like that deferred dream), ironically lessening the cinematic impact of it.

I believe in less is more.

If George Lucas can solve his stilted dialogue issues, that quality might make this a better film than expected.

Until then, there's always the excellent HBO movie.

WUTHERING HEIGHTS 2011, HEATHCLIFF IS BLACK, I REPEAT, HEATHCLIFF IS NOW, BLACK

noreply@blogger.com (Ms☆Go) — Fri, 29 Jul 2011 17:24:00 +0000

This is the official poster.

....

I see what you did there.

You guys know that I am pretty big on period films featuring people of color.

That's because for some odd reason, though we existed pretty much everywhere and in every time period (and context), the movies don't really reflect that.
...No, I'm serious.

So, people can STFU about THOR. We were everywhere... EVERYWHERE! BWAHAHAHAH!!!
*cough-ahem!*

Plus, I'm a period film fan, anyway. It would just be fantastic to be able to see people like yourself reflected in those eras, and not always in the background, you know? It can actually be about people of color without it being about some big epic racial struggle.

...Which is why I'm so excited about this. :)

It's the fact that Heathcliff can conceivably be black and so therefore, simply is.

That's what colorblind casting is supposed to mean. ...Not some janky defense for putting people in brown-face.

There's also the fact that the interracial element is a much bigger cross-over risk when it's a black guy and a white woman. *cough*whichexplainstheposter*cough*

In the film world, I've noticed that the trend is, if they do go there and they're leads, it's usually 'exotic' woman of color with a white guy. Heck, even Will Smith (arguably the biggest Hollwood star, right now) didn't go there until he was a good, fourteen films deep.

Anyway, period movie?

Check!

Starring a black actor, who doesn't have to say "Give us FREE!" ?

Check!

James Howson as Heathcliff.

Lush vistas, costumes, romantic angst?

Check! Check! Check!

I am soooo there!!

Even that punk-move on the poster can't make this gif any less relevant for me.

OMG I AM EXCITE!

Here's the imdb page. It's set for release in September.

YOU'VE SUNK MY BATTLESHIP!

noreply@blogger.com (Ms☆Go) — Fri, 29 Jul 2011 15:21:00 +0000

Yes, the teaser for the gameboard-based movie has been released.

Taylor Kitsch looks odd without his hair.

I noticed they downplayed any connection between this and the game to avoid eye-rolls and groaning, and up-played a Tranformers'-like Micheal Bayish feel.

They also downplayed Rihanna's involvement. I can't decide if that's because she's a singer or because she's not Taylor Swift.

I think it'll either be another Stealth or Pirates of the Caribbean.

We'll see.

CAPTAIN AMERICA: THE FIRST AVENGER

noreply@blogger.com (Ms☆Go) — Tue, 26 Jul 2011 21:00:00 +0000

I didn't expect much from this as a result of super-hero fatigue, but you know what? I dug it. I really liked Steve Rogers.

I've never known much or been big on Captain America, but what brought me around here was finding out just how unselfishly, humbly, giving this guy is just because that's what you're supposed to be. This, despite his initial physical hindrances.

He's just a genuinely good guy with a heart, who refuses to give up.

In this day and age, full of heroes who see their good deeds as a justification to be swaggering, smug, badasses or to get even in spectacularly over-the-top ways, that truly is something different.

It's something that I wish would make a full-fledged come-back.

This is a value that I think is sadly dying in this age of entitled jerkery. Nowadays, this kind of unpretentious giving of self, might be considered cheesy or ripe for mocking, in many circles. Such is the consequence of unrelenting media saturation. Folks have seen it all, and are now too jaded, know-it-all, or cool to simply be decent people just for the sake of being decent.

You're not entitled to anything for being what you're supposed to be. The title character here, got that.

It makes me wonder if we truly have permanently moved away from that sense of service for service's sake as a country, as a team working towards that greater good... So, many people are only out to protect their own self-interests, hindering everybody else's, in the process.

...Sorry, to go off on a tangent, but I watched Obama's speech last night and Boehner's rebuttal and it's on my mind.

By all rights, I'd consider this film to be pretty conservative in skew and yet, today's Republicans in congress bear little resemblance to the heroic symbol that I saw up there on that screen. They have absolutely nothing in common with the value of sacrificing whatever it takes of self, for home and country.

Captain America, simply isn't their super-hero anymore.

I think one of the reasons why he was on the lower-tier of known super-heroes; why he might have been considered "too boring" is because his values don't match-up with today's values, anymore.

...What real pride in our country means, literally fighting for the little guy.

That is sad.

As for other elements in the film, I thought the 3D was gimmicky (cool shield throws at your face, but with dark film quality). Chris Evans carried this very well, but there were too many montages for my tastes.

There's not enough development of Cap' and Red Skull (the best parts of the movie for me involved pre-formula Steve Rogers). Red Skull didn't really connect for me.

There are heaps of easter eggs for comicbook nerds and you already know to stick around after the movie, for the official Avengers trailer.

This gets a from me.

PARENTS: Did you read all that stuff I put up in the review about long gone values? Yeah. Please, take your entitled kids to see this.

P.S. On lead actress Hayley Atwell, it always nice to see a diversity of figure types getting work in Hollywood, especially when women are pressured to be hyper-thin.

But this right here blows my mind....

Everybody has a twin of another race

out there, somewhere.

OFF-TOPIC: CASTING MICHONNE...

noreply@blogger.com (Ms☆Go) — Sun, 24 Jul 2011 15:40:00 +0000

Just a quick update, because I saw this crap (I see you, MTV, lifting my pick and adding your own fail ones) and this amazing:

The producers have said that she'll show up in season three, but I have a feeling that Michonne might make an appearance on this season's finale.

...At least that's how I'd do it.

Anyway, to casting directors, Sherry Bialy, Craig and Lisa Mae Fincannon, and Sherry Thomas, one of these three women would be ideal in that role.

Aunjanue Ellis, N'Bushe Wright, and Tangi Miller

I wouldn't say anything, but for the fact that this happens enough to earn it's own entry over at TV Tropes. Just adding more common sense to the search results, here.

Though that MTV list is at the top of the google search, my picks are far superior.

P.S. Maggie!

THE AVENGERS TRAILER LEAKED AT THE END OF CAPTAIN AMERICA

noreply@blogger.com (Ms☆Go) — Sat, 23 Jul 2011 22:19:00 +0000

That's Thor, The Incredible Hulk, Iron Man, Black Widow, Hawkeye, Captain America, and Nick Fury, all assembled.

All of those little bits and pieces that you've seen in previous films culminates in this ultimate fanboy dream.

This is an impressive cast, and I don't just mean the characters (Sammy L, Robert Downey, ScarJo, Jeremy Renner, et al) .

Check the bootleg:

Oh, these brilliant production houses "leaking" trailers, but not really, so the bootlegs get more attention. All publicity is good publicity, so they say.

I'll replace this with a higher-quality official video, when it becomes available.

Until then, I must say it's looking good!

P.S. The Captain America: The First Avenger review will be up soon.

THE DARK TOWER MOVIE AND TV SERIES PLANS HAVE BEEN DROPPED

noreply@blogger.com (Ms☆Go) — Wed, 20 Jul 2011 19:49:00 +0000

obligatory reaction:

Yeah. Logistically (Jake being a kid through-out would be a problem) and stylistically (I could see disastrously badly rendered CGI lobstrosities) I just don't see how any real justice could have been done to the source material.

...But then again, they said the same thing about The Lord of the Rings.

And I liked who they'd picked for the roles so far, too. Javier Bardem and Naomie Harris would have been great in this....ultimately impossible undertaking.

Oh well, here's the source.

I wasn't too keen on Ron 'Beautiful Mind-DaVinci Code' Howard doing this, anyway. Nothing he's done suggests that his vision would have been anything, but boring and neutered.

THE AMAZING SPIDERMAN LEAKED TRAILER

noreply@blogger.com (Ms☆Go) — Tue, 19 Jul 2011 19:38:00 +0000

It's a bootleg, so it'll likely be down in a few hours. Catch it while you can!

EDIT: Here's the official trailer since the bootleg was taken down.

What a lack-luster teaser.

I wasn't overly-excited about this project before and now I'm really not. It's not enough that it fits with Hollywood's annoying habit of "rebooting" material that's less than ten years old, but it's yet another super-duper white dude.

...Nothing's wrong with super-duper white dude movies on principal, except that some variety would be nice, ya' know?

If they'd used say, John Stewart, The Green Lantern might not have failed.

Just saying.

I mean dang, not even Wonder Woman? If only that Martha Washington or Y: The Last Man project (Tracie Thoms would make a fantastic Agent 355) would get out of development hell...

HAVE YOU HEARD ABOUT LIFE ABOVE ALL?

noreply@blogger.com (Ms☆Go) — Sun, 17 Jul 2011 14:23:00 +0000

This well-reviewed South African film was released in NY and LA on Friday.

It has that one-two punch of being both foreign and nonwhite, so it will stay in limited release, but it will show locally here at Landmark E Street, on August 5th.

Here are the rest of the cities and showing dates.

P.S. The fantastic webseries, Awkward Black Girl is seeking financial support through Kickstarter. If you love the series and would like to lend a hand, you can do so through this link.

HARRY POTTER AND THE DEATHLY HALLOWS PART 2

noreply@blogger.com (Ms☆Go) — Sun, 17 Jul 2011 00:47:00 +0000

Yes. I'm a fan. I've been a fan since one fateful trip to the bookstore, back in 1999. The bookseller, bless him, recommended Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone, a good two years before Potter mania officially hit the States. I read that thing in one night, and I was off.

The thing is, I've never been a big fan of the films.

...And that's not because I'm some meticulous fan who wants everything onscreen exactly as it's on the page, as I imagined it. It's been because, aside from Ollivander in the first installment, the sharp left-turn that was Azkaban, and Imelda Staunton's Umbridge, among other small details (loved Rickman's consistency portraying Snape as the oiliest of oily divas) , it never quite had that movie magic that makes an entire film stick... That extra something-something that would distinguish the series as classic cinema, apart from the source material.

It's always been little moments that shone, like Harry seeing his parents in the Mirror of Erised and Buckbeak's flight. Never did an entire film just lift you up beyond what you would expect from having read the pages. Azkaban came close, but even that, while good, didn't quite knock it out of the park like I would have wanted.

There was never a Shawshank Redemption-level adaptation among the Potter films and I had hoped there would be at least one. *yes,yes, I know great expectations*

Often, certain turns in the books' plots were excised for time and flow, which is understandable, but the series' relationships suffered for it.

...And those absences are especially felt in this last. Most of the characters' finally coming together and/or dying just feels anti-climatic... There is no swell of your heart along with the music, because the build-up of the relationships through-out the films are uneven or completely shorted.

I say most, because there are a couple of exceptions, which I honestly believe had that impact because on the page, it had that impact. It would have, regardless.

But there's also a favorite moment from the book, which for me fell flat, precisely because (and this is a issue I've had with Yates, in particular, Dobby's big scene had the same problem) the way the scene is paced, was just wrong.

The energy is drained midway through, when it should have been a steady build. Some weird directional choices robbed it of the punch that would have warranted a good enthusiastic burst of emotion.

It should have been as awesome as this is.

...And that's pretty much how I felt about the majority of this movie. If it weren't for the fact that this is the last and I am a fan, having watched these kids grow up, I would've left the theater and just shrugged it off.

As it is, I am satisfied with the meal. I just wish it had more flavor.

P.S. As for the characters of color, Dean (wow! he got tall!), Kingsley, Blaise, Cho, and the Pavil twins put in their stray lines, here and there, but I was disappointed that Angelina didn't, at least, make an appearance.

You know, as much as I've not been a fan of Emma Watson's portrayal of Hermione, that character is notable for more than just being "the girl" among the trio. She's emblematic of so much under-dogging in general society and overcoming that, even moreso, I'd argue than Neville (who is my favorite).

She's a character who's been allowed to have a full emotional life, flaws and all; with anger, love, arrogance, et al AND capability while being both female and "a Muggle" (which you can swap out for race/special-needs/orientation, whatever invisible and/or crapped-on position in life) and she isn't punished for it.

That's rare stuff in books and especially in film, period.

P.P.S. Remember back when certain Christian groups were protesting against Harry Potter as witchcraft and thoroughly anti-Christian?

Ahh, fun times.

Funny that they're now quiet. :)

P.P.P.S Okay, yeah, I admit. This was me during certain moments during the movie:

I'm not completely jaded. Had me smudging the inside of my 3D glasses...

Which reminds me! The 3D isn't worth it, in my opinion. I just recall two commercials about how awesome IMAX is, the Warner Bro's label floating into my forehead, and bits of -err, ...someone or something floating around my face like singed toilet paper.

NEW LEAKED CLIP FROM COLUMBIANA

noreply@blogger.com (Ms☆Go) — Thu, 14 Jul 2011 22:00:00 +0000

A short clip from Zoe Saldana's first star vehicle, Columbiana, with French dubbing has been leaked:

It will be released a month early overseas, on July 27th, which means it'll probably be pirated before it's official release, like Thor was.

I just hope that doesn't hurt the bottom-line.

...Because as you know, if this movie tanks, in the eyes of Hollywood producers that will translate to "black women can't carry a crossover movie." and they won't give another sister a chance to carry a mainstream movie for years.

This, despite the fact that they keep hiring Jim Carrey, who hasn't been a bonafide box office draw in years, himself.

I'd argue that the recognizability (and relentless advertising) of the properties he's been involved with have brought in far more audiences, than his presence ever could. In fact, I think he ruined the franchise potential of Lemony Snicket's A Series of Unfortunate Events with his annoying Jim Carrey-mannerisms.

Yet, that somehow doesn't translate to "Jim Carrey can't carry a movie."

These same exceptional rules apply to many other actors, that you've probably grown just as weary of as I am (Julia Roberts, et al).

But not if you don't fit a particular aesthetic.

...I wonder why that is?

P.S. Friends with Benefits better not become a hit and make Justin Timberlake happen. Please, movie audiences, no. JT is only tolerable in small cameos with The Lonely Island.

P.P.S. FYI: Beats Rhymes and Life: The Travels of Tribe Called Quest had the highest per screen average this past weekend.

Meaning that though Tranformers: Darkside of the Moon took in the most money overall, that's probably because it's EVERYWHERE.

The Tribe Called Quest doc took in over $27,000 per screen, while Tranformers took in less than half that, at just over $11,000.

Here's the trailer:

You think Hollywood will finally get the hint that if you make sure good movies are screened everywhere, no matter how diverse, they will sell??

*sigh*

...Me neither.

If they didn't get it after Precious and Fast Five...

THE HOBBIT: AN UNEXPECTED JOURNEY PHOTOS

noreply@blogger.com (Ms☆Go) — Thu, 14 Jul 2011 20:50:00 +0000

I mentioned in the earlier post, that there really isn't a big original trans-generational classic adventure film from the new century for this generation.

...But, you know what? I take that back.

I think The Lord of the Rings series serves that role for this decade, just as Jurassic Park and The Matrix did for the 90's, Star Wars sequels and Indy series did for the 80's, and Jaws and Star Wars: A New Hope did for the 70's.

As for Avatar... Well, you know how I personally feel about that one. I truly hope that it won't be the closest I ever get to seeing people of color take center stage in a big epic blockbuster adventure.

I honestly don't think that film will have a long shelf-life unless the sequels go places that haven't been tread a million times before, but we shall see.

As for The Lord of the Rings, some photos from anticipated prequel The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey have been leaked:

That's Martin Freeman as Bibo Baggins

with a room full of dwarves behind him.

The rest of the set can be found here. I can't wait!

SPIKE LEE IS DIRECTING THE REMAKE OF OLDBOY

noreply@blogger.com (Ms☆Go) — Tue, 12 Jul 2011 15:29:00 +0000

Epically disturbing revenge flick

According to The Guardian, Spike is finally expanding his repertoire and challenging himself by taking this remake on, thank goodness.

I am hoping that he'll keep the leads Asian, but considering that Will Smith was reportedly in talks to do this and likely having a good reason for turning down Tarentino's Django (possibly other obligations) I somehow doubt it.

This is what I meant when I said that we're playing the game the same way.

I hope I'm proven wrong.

If you can stomach disturbing films, Oldboy is one of the best. I highly recommend checking out the original.

THE DARK KNIGHT RISES TEASER POSTER

noreply@blogger.com (Ms☆Go) — Tue, 12 Jul 2011 03:46:00 +0000

I'm probably going to lose some of you on this, but I didn't think the The Dark Knight was all that great. It was too noisy and the climax, in my opinion, failed.

I think some people just remember Ledger's performance and forget about the flaws.

Admittedly, he was damn good, but the refrigerating of Rachel, the ludicrous moral dilemma on the boats, and worst of all, Bale's Batman voice all lost me.

I have a feeling Anne Hathaway may just blow people away as Catwoman. People forget, folks were nay-saying the same things about Heath Ledger as The Joker too, until the man died.

Here's the first teaser poster:

BLACK HOLLYWOOD: BLAXPLOITATION AND ADVANCING AN INDEPENDENT BLACK CINEMA

noreply@blogger.com (Ms☆Go) — Tue, 12 Jul 2011 00:20:00 +0000

Ganked from the the good folks over at Shadow and Act, there is so much truth in this documentary.

I don't know which is sadder, how true everything in this twenty-six year old documentary remains to this day or the fact that this is evidence that none of those in power care enough to even try to change.

...Not even when it's clear that it benefits the industry, both artistically and economically. I think the only difference is that now, some of us are doing the same things.

Seriously, WATCH IT:

DJANGO CAST AND A BLACK MONEYPENNY

noreply@blogger.com (Ms☆Go) — Sat, 09 Jul 2011 17:53:00 +0000

Let's start with Django: Unchained. A friend of mine let me know that Django has indeed been cast.

For those who haven't been keeping up, Django: Unchained is the latest feature film Tarentino is working on; notable for being about a subject no mainstream director has touched in years, black American slavery.

Based on the cult spaghetti western classic, Django: Unchained is about a formerly enslaved man turned bounty-hunter, who goes on a quest to rescue his wife from captivity.

Having read a draft of the script, I think it has potential, but my biggest personal issue with it is the treatment of the heroine's character, Broomhilda. Her own internal journey, thoughts, motivations, were neither made clear in the script nor articulated at all, even by her. She is only presented as "motivational sexual/love object". I want more of a sense of who she is as a human being worthy of saving, beyond just being the "hot black chick".

...And I truly hope Tarentino forgoes the easy, stereotypical "she's black and strong, therefore not subject to the human frailties of a real woman and can bounce back from anything", bullshit, that Hollywood likes to peddle.

Beyond her bare feet and likely, bare everything else, will you please, also show us her humanity? I feel like I see the same kinds of black women in every feature film. Give us an aspiration or personality that defines her as individual and not as simply the "the black woman"

...And, no having her speak a foreign language doesn't cut it, but telling us how she feels about knowing another language in a south where niggers aren't supposed to know anything would, got it?

I'd also like to see Django himself be defined more by how he interacts with others and less by how white people interact with him.

In other words, beef up the sense of narrative weight and importance of the title character.

The "nigger" issue has come up with a few black bloggers, with Tarentino's propensity to use that word and with what one might infer is his fondness for it, making some uncomfortable and suspicious of his enthusiasm for this project.

Because we've been burned and used so many times before in Hollywood, I believe we can stand in our own way on things like this. Because slavery is such a touchy subject, it's not documented nor discussed as much as it should be in American pop culture.

Both sides are wary of it, which is one reason I believe even black filmmakers haven't gone there to any great degree. And so we've all lost out on learning about an intregral part of what shapes American culture today.

...Especially, how black people and white people see themselves and each other. If we're unwilling to even look at the mistakes, we can't realistically ever undo it's effects.

Will Tarentino's white fanboy enthusiasm likely taint this with some cringe-worthy or offensive elements? Maybe. Probably.

But, I'm more happy to someone, ANYONE crack the untouchable seal on this subject in today's pop culture mainstream, than I am mad at who is doing it first.

For me, the final impact is more important than the initial motivations. I just hope the good outweighs the bad.

Here's the confirmed cast so far:

Jamie Foxx is Django.

Great casting here, in my opinion.

Samuel L. Jackson

Continuing to show loyalty and gratitude

for Pulp Fiction

Leonardo DiCaprio

Going against type and taking

on the heavy-duty villain role,

it will be interesting to see how that's received.

...And Christoph Waltz takes on the role of Django's mentor,

Dr. King Shultz (hopefully not a tacky MLK reference)

Rumored casting includes:

Broomhilda?

Kerry Washington, Keith Carradine, and Treat Williams round out the rumored casting and I have to say, it's interesting so far, to say the least.

Even in the ballsy 70's era, doing a slave movie could risk your acting career, like what I believe happened to Susan George.

This may be the first time an A-list cast has ever rounded out a movie with this subject matter. It'll be interesting to see how it is received.

Will it get the award-show and box office accolades of a Pulp Fiction or Inglorious Basterds or will it be another critical and audience ignored Grindhouse?

...Or will it be what I actually fear most (and I think is most likely) a cult-film that has white fans for the sketchiest, most wrong reasons, not getting and/or ruining whatever point there is or could be, like what happened with Dave Chappelle's show (*see the last paragraph) and Chris Rock's bit on "black people vs. niggas"?

----------------------------------------

Moving on to Miss Moneypenny, Naomie Harris will be taking the role in the next Bond movie.

I know the people who cast her likely think people like me should be happy about this, but I can't help but think that they may have replaced Samantha Bond because of her age, which would be perpetuating one -ism to "correct" or make appearances to correct another.

I can almost see the casting director patting him or herself on the back for "forward-thinking" in casting Naomie Harris and I honestly think this role is far beneath where Ms. Harris ought to be in Hollywood, right now.

Still, I'm sure she'll turn the role out, like she always does.

P.S. For those who've read the script, how much do you wanna' bet Tarantino casts himself in the role of one particular buyer?

BLACK AND BEHIND THE SCENES

noreply@blogger.com (Ms☆Go) — Tue, 05 Jul 2011 22:18:00 +0000

For the most part the limits of visible black Hollywood have been the singers, the actors, the dancers and comedians, the rappers, the sports players and occasionally the directors.

You don't hear about those black artists who are involved in the technical aspects of film-making. There is no black equivalent, in terms of fame on our cultural landscape of a Stan Winston or Mel Blanc.

I think this continues to be the case, not only because black people in these fields are still relatively rare, but also because these fields don't get much shine, period.

So, here's my attempt to shine a light on some of those black folks behind the scenes who are doing the things that you might not have known that we also do.

These are the names I've known and/or have managed to find with a little research and some lucky surfing and googling. :)

YVONNE MUINDE

matte painting

Industrial Lights & Magic and WETA

credits include: Star Wars: Revenge of the Sith, Fantastic Four, Water Horse, The Day the Earth Stood Still, Narnia: Prince Caspian, 30 Days of Night, Eragon, Happy Feet, The Lovely Bones, and Avatar

ELIZABETH COLUMBA
storyboard and matte painting
credits include: Romeo + Juliet, One Hour Photo, Everything is Illuminated, Waist Deep, The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford, Stigmata, Next Friday, and A Single Man

JAMES PARRIS
visual effects and animation
credits include: The Lion King, Daredevil, Mulan, Snakes on a Plane, The Road to El Dorado, Pocahontas, Tarzan, Spiderman, X2, I Robot, X-Men: Last Stand, and The Curious Case of Benjamin Button

DAN HASKETT
animation
Best known for designing Belle and Ariel...
credits include: Raggedy Ann and Andy: A Musical Adventure, Animalympics, The Fox and The Hound, Ferngully: The Last Rainforest, The Pagemaster, The Little Mermaid, Beauty and the Beast, and Toy Story

KEVIN CLASH
Best known for puppetry and/or voicework for Splinter, Sam the Eagle, Clifford and of course, Elmo
voice actor and puppeteer
credits include: The Great Space Coaster, Sesame Street, The Jim Henson Hour, Muppet Treasure Island, Follow That Bird, Labyrinth, and Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles

clips from the documentary about his life, Being Elmo

CREE SUMMER
actor, singer, voice actor

best known for Penny (Inspector Gadget), Elmyra (Tiny Toons Adventures), Kida (Atlantis: The Lost Empire), and Foxxy Love (Drawn Together) and just about every 80's and 90's cartoon character you can think of.
video interview about working on Drawn Together

FLOYD NORMAN
animator
best known for being the first black animator to work at Disney
credits include: Sleeping Beauty, The Sword in the Stone, The Jungle Book, Mulan, Monsters Inc, Toy Story, Dinosaur, and The Hunchback of Notre Dame

Here's the link to his organization for children, Afrokids.

JOHNETTA BOONE
costume designer
credits include: Beloved, For Richer of Poorer, Runaway Bride, Hearts in Atlantis, The Replacements, Along Came a Spider, Syriana, Jane Austen Book Club, Cadillac Records, For Colored Girls

TERRENCE BLANCHARD
soundtrack composer
best known for Malcolm X, Mo' Better Blues, and The 25th Hour (still my favorite soundtrack)

RUTH E. CARTER
costume designer

credits include: School Daze, Do The Right Thing, What's Love Got to Do With It?, Crooklyn, Amistad, Shaft, Serenity, Black Dynamite, and Abduction

LAFAYE BAKER
stuntwoman
co-founder of the Diamond in the Raw Foundation for at-risk black girls
creadits include: Showgirls, Seven, Set It Off, Con Air, I Still Know What You Did Last Summer, Fracture, Angels and Demons, and The Green Lantern
ActionFlickChick has a great interview with her, here.

KYM WASHINGTON
stuntwoman
credits include: Fright Night, What's Love Got to Do With It?, Die Hard With a Vengence, Hannibal, Along Came a Spider, The Manchurian Candidate, War of the Worlds, The Interpreter, and Live Free or Die Hard

A few years ago, a documentary was made about black stuntwomen called Hollywood at its Best.

Here's the trailer.

REMI ADEFARASIN
cinematographer
credits include: Sliding Doors, Elizabeth, Band of Brothers, About a Boy, Elizabeth: Golden Age, The Haunted Mansion, Match Point, In Good Company, Amazing Grace, Little Fockers, and Cold Night of Day

CALVIN BROWN
actor and stuntman
considered one of the first recognized black stuntmen in Hollywood
credits include: I Spy, Mission Impossible, Across 110th Street, Blank Check, and New York Minute

He speaks here about the Black Stuntmen's Association.

A few honorable mentions include Leo Sullvian, Kevin Peter Hall, Keith David, April Washington (much nerdy love for this) and Phil LaMarr.

There are many more that weren't mentioned here, so if you know any others that I missed, please leave a comment. :)

P.S. If the show comes back, I hope to see some people of color on next season's Face/Off.

P.P.S. Spike Lee needs to just stop talking. ...And that financing excuse is some B.S. (hello, Moon and Paranormal Activity).

Humble and challenge yourself, Spike.

Go in some less predictable creative directions (floating dollies, sketchy female characterizations, abstract metaphorical endings, you trying to act) and maybe people will start properly honoring your films, when you make them, again.