Presented by Rich-Heape Films and narrated by James Earl Jones, “Black Indians: An American Story”, digs deep into both black and red roots to find a common link between the two peoples who struggled against great oppression, discrimination and disenfranchisement. Winner of the Cine Golden Eagle, Aurora Gold Award and the Omni Intermedia Award, the documentary goes above and beyond as an informative journey into the past where the struggle of racial identity, acceptance and the desire to uphold tradition is taken to the forefront.This one hour extensive exploration of those African Americans with Native ancestry is revealed in personal…
Browsing: Film Reviews
In two lines from Persian poetry, Rumi tells us, “I am the polo stick; you are the ball. Wherever I hit you, you will go; but wherever you go, I have to follow you…” It’s not a perfect translation, but filmmaker Ramin Bahrani gets it right in transforming our pre-fabricated notion of the “pushcart man” into “Man Push Cart”This one-of-a-kind cameo illuminates for us that there is something worse than the disappointment that life promised more, or the burdens that keep a person grinding onward as the days pass from one bad cycle to another. And that is the even…
When <b>Julie Gavras</b>, writer-director of <b><i>Blame It on Fidel</b></i>, was ten years old, her family was vacationing in Mexico while her father, Costa-Gavras, Oscar-winning filmmaker of <i>Z</i> (1968), was making <i>Missing</i> (1982), based on the true story of an American journalist who disappeared during Pinochet’s coup d’état in Chile. “It was my political awakening,” Julie Gavras has said. “Observing my father on the set, I learned what a military junta was… and I started understanding politics.”So when she adapted Domitilla Calamai’s 2006 novel, Tutta Colpa di Fidel for the screen, she decided to focus the story (originally set between 1968…
The film begins by introducing Ben Wade, a notorious outlaw and Dan Evans a rancher who after a drought is struggling to sustain his family. In order to make some money Dan offers to help take Wade to Yuma, where he will be imprisoned and hanged. At first glance there is no reason why these two should have anything in common and far less get along. As the film develops the bond between the two men transforms from one of adversaries to one of camaraderie. James Mangold’s 3:10 to Yuma is a remake of the 1957 film of the same…
Director Ten Shimoyama takes us back to 1614 feudal japan with a twist. Labeled as part of the chambara film genre, in the midst of turmoil, blades move with the swiftness of quicksilver, shaken and shuriken take flight toward their intended targets. During the early time of the Tokugawa shogunate or Edo period (1603-1868), the main players in our story are the two warring factions of the Shogun’s feudal espionage agents, known by many names: kusa, ninja, kage no mono, shinobi. During this new time of peace just after Japan’s warring states period, these two powerful clans are pitted against…
As if we really needed another remake, here comes HAIRSPRAY, the latest release by New Line Cinema. But no rolling of the eyes here, director/chroeographer Adam Shankman dazzles with flawless revival of the John Waters cult classic that spawned the 2002 play. At the center of it all is newcomer Nikki Blonsky, who stars brilliantly as Tracy Turnblad, the wide-eyed optimistic teen from Baltimore in the racially segregated sixties. With her non-WASPy surname, pleasantly plump figure and a whole lot of soul, this is one girl with flavor. She and her pigtailed sidekick Penny Pingleton (Amanda Bynes) live for “The…
Have you ever been put to the Question? If you do not know what I mean by this, then watch Goya’s Ghosts. For those of you who have answered “yes”, then I shall treat your tortured body and soul to a nice dinner and complimentary massage at some overly priced day spa. In this relaxed environment, we can then discuss the evils of the Catholic Church during the Spanish Inquisition (1476–1834). I cannot imagine, the terrible torture that many “heretics” had to endure in the heat of the “holy purge”. I only know, that if it is half as bad…
If you think you’ve already been witness to the most dysfunctional wedding of your life, think again. THE WEDDING VIDEO, a new independent film by Runaway Productions, tops it all. Directed by Todd Wade and starring Christine Blackburn, Alan Wasserman, Jeff Kueppers, Chris Penzell (who also wrote the film), soap opera veteran Michael Swan (As The World Turns, The Bold and the Beautiful) and ‘80’s TV superstar Erin Gray (Buck Rogers), this movie takes everything we love to hate about the All-American Wedding and kicks it up to the zaniest level imaginable. THE WEDDING VIDEO premiered at The Art Theater…
Immensely gritty, and gruesome, “Nightmare Detective” delivers edgy cinema with chilling visuals to make your hair stand up on end. Dark drifter Kyoichi Kagenuma (Ryuhei Matsuda) has a unique gift, the gift to meld with an individual’s dream state and detect the source of their nightmares. With this amazing gift comes a price.We witness his feat to enter dreams at the beginning of the film where he analyzes a businessman’s nightmares about the daughter he never had. Considering this “gift” more of a curse than a blessing, Kagenuma finds himself suicidal. Getting caught up in the whirlwind of frightening dreams,…
<i>Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix </i>is the fifth installment in the series and by far the darkest to date. <i>The Order of the Phoenix</i> begins with Harry being teased by his bully cousin Dudley and shortly after both are attacked by a couple of dementors. As the film continues Harry and his friends, Ron Weasley and Hermione Granger are back at Hogwarts uncovering more secrets, getting into more trouble, and fighting two sorts of evil, the sadistic Professor Dolores Umbridge and the wicked Lord Voldemort. Like its predecessors most of the film takes place at Hogwarts but…