‘Bolden’ is a brilliant biopic painting a poignant portrait of what Buddy’s life might have been like.
Kam Williams
Posted inArts + Culture, Movies
Elba makes directorial debut with gritty coming-of-age drama
Though slightly marred by a tendency to telegraph its punches, the coming-of-age drama marks Elba’s noteworthy directorial debut.
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Barry Jenkins directs beloved James Baldwin classic ‘If Beale Street Could Talk’
Kudos to Jenkins for crafting another compelling inner-city saga…
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‘Green Book,’ a moving dramedy that touches on a timely topic
Don Shirley (Mahershala Ali) was a promising prodigy whose formal training in classical piano began when he was admitted to Russia’s prestigious Leningrad Conservatory at the age of nine. Because he had the misfortune of being raised in Florida in the Jim Crow Era, it was very unlikely that his extraordinary talent would be appreciated […]
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‘Support the Girls’: A comedy with heart and grit
Written and directed by Andrew Bujalski (Beeswax), the film features many of the hallmarks of the low-budget genre on which the mumblecore maven built his career. The film effectively paints a poignant portrait of a day in the life of a humble, dedicated, working-class heroine just trying to make a buck.
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Black cop infiltrates Klan in thoughtful, fact-based dramedy
What makes the picture work is the way in which it mocks the small-minded Klan members’ racist attitudes and behaviors. It also juxtaposed that shameful chapter of American history with current events.
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‘Uncle Drew’ – geriatric legends relive glory days in hoops comedy
Rucker Park is home to the popular basketball tournament staged since 1950 on an outdoor court on 155th Street. Many promising prospects have honed their skills on the world-famous proving grounds en route to enviable NBA careers: Kevin Durant, Wilt Chamberlain, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Julius “Dr. J” Erving and Earl “The Pearl” Monroe, to name a few.
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‘Sorry to Bother You,’ a clever and provocative social satire
It’s impressed upon Cash during his training to “Stick to the Script,” if he wants to succeed. Plus, he gets a valuable tip from an African American colleague (Danny Glover) in the neighboring cubicle, namely, “Use your White voice.”
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‘Rampage’: Mutant monsters decimate the Windy City in old-fashioned horror flick
Hey, sci-fi fans, did you find it hard to stomach the sight of a human mating with another species in The Shape of Water, too? If so, have I got a movie that’ll wash the bad taste right out of your mouth. Call me shallow, but I much prefer this old-fashioned monster flick. Loosely based […]
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‘Chappaquiddick’: Damning docudrama revisits Kennedy cover-up
On July 18, 1969, Sen. Ted Kennedy (Jason Clarke) hosted a reunion in a rented cottage on Chappaquiddick, a tiny island just 150 yards off the coast of Martha’s Vineyard. The gathering was in honor of the Boiler Room Girls, a half-dozen women who had worked on his late brother Bobby’s aborted presidential campaign the […]
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Chadwick Boseman rises to the occasion as African King/superhero
Chadwick Boseman has already made quite a career out of portraying a variety of prominent African Americans, from football star Floyd Little (The Express) to baseball great Jackie Robinson (42), to Godfather of Soul James Brown (Get on Up) to U.S. Supreme Court Justice Thurgood Marshall (Marshall). The versatile actor’s efforts have been appreciated by […]
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Hanks and Streep co-star in Spielberg freedom of the press thriller
The Post is a picture fated to be compared to a couple of classic newsroom thrillers: All the President’s Men (1976) and Spotlight (2015). Like the former, it’s set in Washington, D.C. in the ’70s and revolves around an attempt by the Nixon administration to prevent the publication of incriminating information leaked to the Washington Post […]
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‘Three Billboards’ wins four Globes, but Oprah steals show
Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri emerged the early favorite in this year’s Oscar race after taking home a quartet of trophies in the Best Picture, Actress (Frances McDormand), Supporting Actor (Sam Rockwell) and Screenplay categories at this year’s Golden Globes Awards held Sunday, Jan 7. Meanwhile, Cecil B. Demille Award-winner Oprah Winfrey emerged as the […]
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Denzel delivers Oscar-quality performance as attorney with Asperger’s
Roman J. Israel (Denzel Washington) is a high-functioning savant on the autism spectrum who has been practicing law in L.A. for the past 36 years. The brilliant attorney has spent most of his career under the radar, writing legal briefs in a rear office for indigent criminal defendants, while his partner, William Henry Jackson, served […]
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‘Invisible Ink’ takes on institutional racism in corporate America
“It has always been a struggle for the relatively few African Americans in corporate America who do exist, and it is made all the more difficult because we tend to operate in isolation. We are nearly always alone, with no one to fall back on… as we deal daily with an unending stream of slights […]
Posted inBooks
‘We Were Eight Years in Power’ — a call for vigilance against history repeating itself
“For so much of American history, the fact of Black people is a problem… The demonstrable truth has been evaded in favor of a more comforting story… [But America is] a country trying to skip out on a bill, trying to stave off a terrible accounting… It’s clear to me that the common theory of […]
Posted inArts + Culture
‘My Grandmother’s Hands,’ an enlightening how-to approach to heal racial trauma
“For the past three decades, we’ve earnestly tried to address White-body supremacy in America with reason, principle and ideas — using dialogue, forums, discussions, education and mental training. But the widespread destruction of Black bodies continues. And some of the ugliest destruction originates with the police. Why is there such a chasm between our well-intentioned […]
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Courtroom drama recounts case argued by Thurgood Marshall proxy
Prior to becoming America’s first African American Supreme Court Justice, Thurgood Marshall (Chadwick Boseman) enjoyed a legendary legal career as a civil rights lawyer. While serving as chief counsel for the NAACP, he argued before the U.S. Supreme Court 32 times, most notably, the landmark Brown v. Board of Education case ending segregation in public schools. This […]
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Three families linked by tragedy in moving modern parable
Faith-based films ordinarily have limited appeal beyond the church community because most tend to be heavy-handed morality plays just preaching to the choir. A Question of Faith represents a refreshing change of pace, since it downplays the proselytizing in favor of character development and a compelling plot. This carefully-crafted, modern parable explores a timely mix […]
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New author gives ‘pretty powerful’ advice
“Pretty powerful is the understanding that, as women, we have the duality of both ‘pretty’ and ‘substance’ that can (and should) be maximized to achieve any success we set our minds to… While there are significant challenges along the way… we have incredible choice around how we utilize our appearance, coupled with our substance… This […]