Update.....

I know I haven't posted much in the past year (and I have been chastised repeatedly for it), and though I keep promising to come back for real, I really haven't.

I always think of things I want to post, almost daily, but I just haven't seemed to be able to do it. I finally realized that I just can't keep up with the Jones'. Which is to say, I don't really have the time, or any real incentive, to keep on all the film sites and alerts to post Black Cinema news every single, solitary day. But there are some very fine sites out there that can, and do.

As for me, I will be trying out something....weekly themes of sorts. I will be inspired to write about things that are in the news and at the theater, of course.....I have to. But I think if I stick to a theme a week, it'll make me post more, and then I won't get close to cursed out anymore, lol. I will also have a revamping of this blog design coming soon....it's past time.

Thanks guys, for sticking with me, even when you've seen the same crusty post day after day for weeks at a time. I'm on a mission to do better. In the meantime, you can peruse my other just as sometimey blog: Mantan In The City.

LOVE!!!


ps: the picture of melvin van peebles above has nothing to do with anything, but for some reason it came up when i googled "black cinema love" pics

Believe Red Riding Hood, Beware the Wolf

The famous fairy tale about a young girl and a big bad wolf in "Little Red Riding Hood", also known as "Little Red Cape", always had this kind of dark, gothic ambiance creeping within it. The best-known version of the story -- in which a wolf disguises

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The Green Hornet

PG-13 | 1 hr 48 mins | Action, Adventure, Crime Movie
Producer Neal H. Moritz spearheads this big-screen adaptation of the popular radio serial, comic book, film, and television series originated by Lone Ranger creators Fran Striker and George W. Trendle
Synopsis:
Britt Reid (Seth Rogen) is the son of LA's most prominent and prestigious media magnate and absolutely happy to keep a directionless existence on the party scene – until his father (Tom Wilkinson) mysteriously dies, leaving Britt his vast media empire. Striking an unlikely friendship with one of his father's more industrious and inventive employees, Kato (Jay Chou), they see their chance to do something meaningful for the first time in their lives: fight crime. They decide to become criminals themselves – protecting the law by breaking it, Britt becomes the vigilante The Green Hornet as he and Kato hit the streets.

Using all his ingenuity and skill, Kato builds the ultimate in advanced retro weaponry, The Black Beauty, an indestructible car equal parts firepower and horsepower. Rolling in a mobile fortress on wheels and striking the bad guys with Kato's clever gadgets, The Green Hornet and Kato quickly start making a name for themselves, and with the help of Britt's new secretary, Lenore Case (Cameron Diaz), they begin tracking down the man who controls LA's gritty underworld: Benjamin Chudnofsky (Christoph Waltz). But Chudnofsky has plans of his own: to swat down The Green Hornet once and for all.

Director: Michel Gondry
Starring: Seth Rogen, Jay Chou, Cameron Diaz, Christoph Waltz, Edward James Olmos, David Harbour, Tom Wilkinson

Movie Trailer The Green Hornet

When Aliens Starting the World Invasion in the City of Angel

Thanks to the success of “District 9”, “Star Trek”, and “Avatar”, 2011 is certainly going to be one heck of an alien invasion year! While you count how many alien-related flicks are due to invade your nearest cinema in the next 12 months, comin’ in March is one which

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My Take On The Busters *cough* Oscars...

OK, after months of speculation, the Oscar nominees have arrived. How many of you were satisfied with the lists?

I, for one, have stopped taking the Oscars seriously years ago; it is such an elitist and "inside" group, and we all should know by now that the politics involved have people winning awards that really have no business doing so. They throw out a bone every few years to someone that is Black, and it is always hailed and regaled as a "victory" to open doors, but afterward we are once again subjected to a few more years of complete and total white-washing. But it has gone beyond that...where are the accolades for Latinos? For Asians? For Eastern Indians?

Hollywood never, ever, EVER seems to understand that diversity makes life (and their lame awards show) interesting. Everyone remembers Monique winning last year, but can you name three others (be honest)?

There is an old saying that I have always remembered, taken from an ancient Chinese philosophy book, and it applies to the Academy in volumes:

"Diversity is actually an important and necessary ingredient, which adds creative spice to a group."

Film is universal! The stories told in ANY film are relevant to a good portion of the population, regardless of race. Until Hollywood and the Academy can get this through their heads, I am down with the mission of AFFRM. If you don't know what AFFRM is, please click here and support! And oh yeah, I will NOT be watching the show this year...cheers!


UPDATE: Please check out CNN's article on this issue...the comments over there are sincerely pathetic and sad, and will boggle the mind. I am convinced, more than ever before, that we are completely unsupported in Hollywood, and must step away from the studios and an intolerant audience in order to have a system that allows us to create and be heard. Racism in conventional Hollywood is apparently NOT disappearing anytime soon, and has zero interest in doing so: http://www.cnn.com/2011/SHOWBIZ/Movies/01/26/diversity.academy.awards/index.html

Shaolin: A Wonderful Balance of Action and Storytelling

Now, this is a real example about a director who can certainly learn some lessons from his past failures. Benny Chan, known as the maker of ‘blockbuster’ Hong Kong action cinema from “Big Bullet” (1996) to

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Black Swan

R | 1 hr 50 mins | Drama, Thriller Movie
"Black Swan" sticks with the story of Nina (Natalie Portman)
Synopsis:
a ballerina in a New York City ballet company whose life, like all those in her profession, is completely consumed with dance. She lives with her retired ballerina mother Erica (Barbara Hershey) who zealously supports her daughter's professional ambition. When artistic director Thomas Leroy (Vincent Cassel) decides to replace prima ballerina Beth MacIntyre (Winona Ryder) for the opening production of their new season, Swan Lake, Nina is his first choice. But Nina has competition: a new dancer, Lily (Kunis), who impresses Leroy as well. Swan Lake requires a dancer who can play both the White Swan with innocence and grace, and the Black Swan, who represents guile and sensuality.
Nina fits the White Swan role perfectly but Lily is the personification of the Black Swan. As the two young dancers extend their rivalry into a twisted friendship, Nina begins to get more in touch with her dark side with a recklessness that threatens to destroy her.

Director: Darren Aronofsky
Starring: Natalie Portman, Vincent Cassel, Mila Kunis, Barbara Hershey, Winona Ryder
Movie Trailer Black Swan

Sacrifice: Showing that Chen Kaige has Clearly Lost the Touch

One of the most famous members of China’s Fifth Generation of film directors, Chen Kaige shot a signature in his career with “Farewell My Concubine” in 1993. The film taken home the grand prize at Cannes and successfully

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Romance of The Lost Bladesman of Three Kingdoms

Romance of the Three Kingdoms, written by Luo Guanzhong in the 14th century, is a Chinese historical novel describes a fascinating dynastic-cycle: the fall of the Han Dynasty under Emperor Ling due to the Yellow Scarves rebellion, the division of

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Recall the Next Paycheck from The Adjustment Bureau

Movie adaptations from novels or short stories by Philip K. Dick, who’s possibly one of the greatest sci-fi writers of all time, have generated over $1 billion in world-wide box office and ancillary revenue. Mixing surrealism, theology,

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True Grit

PG-13 | 1 hr 50 mins | Western movie
A 14 year old girl joins an aging U.S. marshal and some other lawman in chasing after her father's killer into wild Indian territory.
Synopsis:
Mattie Ross's (Hailee Steinfeld) father has been shot in cold blood by the coward Tom Chaney (Josh Brolin), and she is determined to bring him to justice. Enlisting the help of a wild, drunken U.S. Marshal, Rooster Cogburn (Jeff Bridges), she sets out with him -- over his objections -- to hunt down Chaney. Her father's blood demands that she pursue the criminal into Indian territory and find him before a Texas Ranger named LeBoeuf (Matt Damon) arrests him and brings him back to Texas for the murder of another man.

Director: Joel Coen, Ethan Coen
Starring: Jeff Bridges, Matt Damon, Josh Brolin, Barry Pepper, Hailee Steinfeld

Movie Trailer True Grit

A Better Tomorrow: Renewal Not Always Reinstate the Dignity

In 1986, Hong Kong crime action flick "A Better Tomorrow" has acquired international attention for director John Woo and redefined the Pearl of the Orient cinema. The story of a cruel twist of fate between two brothers later even initiating what

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127 Hours: Compelling Story of Survival and Reflection

Just like “The Fighter”, Danny Boyle’s “127 Hours” is also based on a true story which some peoples may already knew how the tale gonna end. But other than that, “127 Hours” would seem a more impossible prospect for a cinematic experience as the focus will

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The Fighter: A Boxing Movie with Oscar Written All Over It

Inspired by the remarkable true-life story of a champion welterweight boxer “Irish” Micky Ward and his erratic brother, Dicky Eklund, a former welterweight whose career was KO’d by crack, director David O. Russell’s affecting sports drama “The Fighter” done really

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Season of the Witch

PG-13 | 1 hr 38 mins | Thriller, adventure movie
Oscar winner Nicolas Cage ("National Treasure," "Ghost Rider") and Ron Perlman ("Hellboy," "Hellboy II: The Golden Army," "Sons of Anarchy") star in this supernatural action adventure movie
Synopsis:
a heroic Crusader and his best friend who return home after decades of fierce fighting, only to find their world destroyed by the Plague. The church elders, convinced that a girl accused of being a witch is responsible for the devastation, command the two to transport the strange girl to a remote monastery where monks will perform an ancient ritual to rid the land of her curse. They embark on a harrowing, action filled journey that will test their strength and courage as they discover the girl's dark secret and find themselves combating a terrifyingly powerful force that will influence the destiny of the world.

Director: Dominic Sena
Starring: Nicolas Cage, Ron Perlman, Stephen Campbell Moore, Robert Sheehan, Claire Foy, Ulrich Thomsen, Stephen Graham, Christopher Lee

Movie Trailer Season of the Witch

True Grit: Best in the Genre Since Unforgiven

Some people have wondered why Joel and Ethan Coen decided to remake the 1969 movie "True Grit" that starred John Wayne, especially since there have been so few westerns in recent years. When we see the new movie however, we’ll understand the Coens desire to do the remake. But for the

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Black Swan: Psychological Thriller at Its Most Unique Form

The legend of the Swan-Maiden goes back for centuries, appearing in differing forms in both eastern and western literature. Women who turn into birds and vice versa were popular themes, and the swan was particularly favored due to

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