Category: Movies
“Ma” tells the story of Sue Ann (Spencer), a lonely woman who befriends a group of teenagers.
For die-hard fans of the crime genre, “Bayou Caviar” might offer some appeal. There’s plenty of action and some very gory violence in the film.
This year two films set in the Caribbean won medals in the narrative film category. Both films were inspired by true events.
“We choose to go to the moon,” President John F. Kennedy declared in his famous 1962 speech at Rice Stadium in Houston, Texas. “We choose to go to the moon in this decade and do the other things, not because they are easy, but because they are hard, because that goal will serve to organize and measure the best of our energies and skills, because that challenge is one that we are willing to accept, one we are unwilling to postpone, and one which we intend to win, and the others, too.”
The film tells the story of Tyrel (Jason Mitchell), the sole black man who attends a raucous birthday party in the Catskills. “Tyrel” premiered in competition at this year’s Sundance Film Festival.
Amandla Stenberg gives another strong and emotional performance as Starr in “The Hate U Give.” Russell Hornsby who has been relegated to supporting roles for most of his career (his lead in the short film, “Milk and Honey,” a notable exception), has a career making turn as Starr’s father.
“Quincy,” a new documentary on entertainment legend Quincy Jones, premieres today on Netflix.
Hardwick and Good are fine in the lead roles. Under the steady guidance of writer/director Qasim Basir (NAACP Image Award nominated “Mooz-Lum”), the two leads give understated, but effective performances.
Amandla Stenberg gives a nuanced and emotional performance as Leyna. She continues to grow with each role and shows that she is one of the most promising actors of her generation. If her work here is any indication, she should have a seamless transition to adult roles.
NAACP Image Award® winner Omari Hardwick (“Power,” “Being Mary Jane,” and “Sorry to Bother You”) and NAACP Image Award® nominee Meagan Good (“Think Like a Man,” “Stomp the Yard”) star in Samuel Goldwyn’s “A Boy. A Girl. A Dream.”
Regina Hall (“Girls Trip”) shines in her first starring role as the manager of the “sports bar with curves.” Lisa’s totally relatable as she struggles to maintain a positive attitude through all of the day’s challenges. The diverse cast of women who service the mostly male clientele of Double Whammies are uniformly good and defy familiar stereotypes. Haley Lu Richardson (“The Edge of Seventeen”) stands out with her very energetic performance as one of the waitresses.
Academy Award® winner Mahershala Ali (“Moonlight”) and two-time Academy Award® nominee Viggo Mortensen (“Eastern Promises,” “Captain Fantastic”) star in Participant Media and DreamWorks Pictures’ “Green Book.” Inspired by a true story, the film follows Tony Lip (Mortensen), an Italian-American bouncer from the Bronx, who is hired to drive Dr. Don Shirley (Ali), a world-class pianist of African descent, on a concert tour from New York City to the Deep South in 1962. Because the South is still very much segregated at that time, they must rely on “The Green Book” to guide them to the few establishments that would accommodate African-Americans.
The latest film directed by Academy Award® winner Steve McQueen (“12 Years a Slave”) is “Widows,” a contemporary crime thriller set in Chicago. Co-written by bestselling author Gillian Flynn (“Gone Girl”), “Widows” recently had its world premiere at the Toronto International Film Festival.
The film was written and directed by Angie Wang and is based on her true story. The film works best when it uncovers the seedy side of the illicit drug trade.
Riley is furious and is determined to get revenge for the deaths of her daughter and husband. After hiding from authorities for months, Riley resurfaces with the determination to destroy everyone responsible for the deaths and the resulting miscarriage of justice.