Here Comes Negromancer for September 2010

Welcome to Negromancer, the rebirth of my former movie review website as a movie review and movie news blog. I’m Leroy Douresseaux, and I also blog at http://ireadsyou.blogspot.com/ and write for the Comic Book Bin (which has smart phones apps).

All images appearing on this blog are © copyright and/or trademark their respective owners.

"The Back-up Plan" Needed Better Planning

TRASH IN MY EYE No. 72 (of 2010) by Leroy Douresseaux


The Back-up Plan (2010)
Running time: 106 minutes (1 hour, 46 minutes)
MPAA – PG-13 for sexual content including references, some crude material and language
DIRECTOR: Alan Poul
WRITER: Kate Angelo
PRODUCERS: Todd Black, Jason Blumenthal, and Steve Tisch
CINEMATOGRAPHER: Xavier Pérez Grobet
EDITOR: Priscilla Nedd-Friendly

COMEDY/DRAMA/ROMANCE

Starring: Jennifer Lopez, Alex O’Loughlin, Michaela Watkins, Eric Christian Olsen, Anthony Anderson, Linda Lavin, Tom Bosley, and Robert Klein

When the Jennifer Lopez romantic comedy, The Back-up Plan, opened in theatres back in April, I remember a few critics and commentators expressing the opinion that Lopez was too old to star in a romantic comedy. Of course, that is ridiculous… kind of. At 41-years-old (as of this writing), Lopez shouldn’t be playing ditzy 20-somethings who just can’t find Mr. Right.

The Back-up Plan, however, isn’t She’s All That or The Prince and Me, films in which the actresses playing the love interests were in their early 20s. Age of the actress shouldn’t be the issue. The issue should be the quality of the film, which is where The Back-up Plan has problems.

The movie is about Zoe (Jennifer Lopez), who after years of fruitless dating, has decided waiting for the right man is taking too long. Determined to become a mother, Zoe commits to a plan: to conceive a child through artificial insemination and goes through with it. That same day, Zoe meets Stan (Alex O’Loughlin), and though he annoys her at first, Stan starts to seem like a man with real possibilities. Zoe hopes that she does not become pregnant by the anonymous donor’s sperm just when she is finally meeting a guy with promise. However, when she learns that she is pregnant, Zoe has to come up with a back-up plan and hope Stan sticks around.

Part of The Back-up Plan is actually quite edgy. The script is pretty blunt about the dating game, pregnancy, and how having children can change a person’s life in ways that are beautiful and in ways that just drive a person freaking nuts. This movie is also frank about the not-so-pretty, bodily fluids part of conceiving, carrying, and birthing children. There is a birth scene in the second act that is gross and outrageous enough to be mesmerizing; it is a scene as good as anything in the Wedding Crashers and The Hangover.

Unfortunately, much of the movie, including the first hour, tries mightily to be a standard romance comedy and mostly falters or outright fails. It is as if everyone involved never realized that the edgy, gross stuff is what really resonates in this unconventional tale about two people whose relationships with the opposite sex are greatly affected by past traumas.

There is no point in talking about the acting, which is fairly good, because that is not what is frustrating about The Back-up Plan. The better part of this movie is that it is different, but the worse part is that it tries to be something it is not – a fluffy, childish romantic comedy full of giggles and silliness. The good stuff is worth seeing, and some viewers may even enjoy seeing potential keep shooting itself in the foot.

5 of 10
C+

Tuesday, August 31, 2010

Negromancer Bits and Bites: "Takers" Producer Will Packer Talks to AOL

I hadn't noticed this rising star among African-American film producers (producers of color, anyone?).  AOL's Black Voices "BV on Movies" blog has an interview with Will Packer, the producer of Stomp the Yard, Obsessed (with Beyonce), and the current #1 movie in North America, Takers, starring Paul Walker, Idris Elba and Chris Brown (among others).

Review: "Why Did I Get Married?" Finds Laughs in the Drama of Married Life

TRASH IN MY EYE No. 10 (of 2008) by Leroy Douresseaux

Tyler Perry’s Why Did I Get Married? (2007)
Running time: 118 minutes (1 hour, 58 minutes)
MPAA – PG-13 for mature thematic material, sexual references, and language
DIRECTOR: Tyler Perry
WRITER: Tyler Perry (based upon his play)
PRODUCERS: Tyler Perry and Reuben Cannon
CINEMATOGRAPHER: Toyomichi Kurita
EDITOR: Maysie Hoy
2008 Image Awards winner

DRAMA with elements of comedy and romance

Starring: Tyler Perry, Janet Jackson, Jill Scott, Sharon Leal, Malik Yoba, Richard T. Jones, Tasha Smith, Michael Jai White, Denise Boutte, Lamman Tucker, Keesha Sharp, and Kaira Whitehead

Why Did I Get Married? is the fourth Tyler Perry film in a little over two-and half years and Perry’s third directorial effort. Perry’s tried and true formula of inspiration, friendship, prayer, and God is evident in every moment of Why Did I Get Married?, and Perry’s continues to improve as a filmmaker.

Eight married college friends reunite for their annual retreat to an exotic locale. This year the retreat is a beautiful Lake Leland home in the snowy mountains of Colorado. Best-selling author and popular psychologist, Patricia (Janet Jackson), and her successful architect husband, Gavin (Malik Yoba), share a tragedy that may tear their marriage apart if the two ever decide to be open about it. Rising attorney Dianne (Sharon Leal) is career driven, but her supportive husband, Terry (Tyler Perry), is fed-up that his marriage is sexless and that the couple has only one child. Angela (Tasha Smith) and Marcus (Michael Jai White) argue all the time. The final couple is Shelia (Jill Scott), a sweet woman troubled by body-image issues because of she is way overweight. Her weight issues are exacerbated by her emotionally abusive husband, Mike (Richard T. Jones), who has actually brought his barely-secret mistress, Trina (Denise Boutte), on the retreat.

The friends expect fun and relaxation on their retreat, but when the secrets and lies come pouring out, friendships and marriages seem broken beyond repair. Then, Sheriff Troy (Lamman Tucker) comes to the rescue.

Tyler Perry’s “Black gospel theatre” stage plays are loud, raucous, and preachy, and the ones that Perry has adapted to film retain much of their spell-the-message-in-capital-letters charm. Not all of the acting is good Janet Jackson as Patricia and Sharon Leal as Dianne love to act it out loudly and, thus, are a bit too over the top. Still, Why Did I Get Married? works. You’ll find yourself pulling oh-so hard for the downtrodden and mistreated (especially Shelia), and loving it when the villains get their comeuppance (especially Mike). There’s plenty of reason to call up giant belly laughs or even howl with laughter (thanks to the delightful scene-stealing Tasha Smith as Angela).

The message here, as it always is in Perry’s work, is believe in yourself and never believe that God has abandoned you. Well, then, thank God for Tyler Perry – for making fine, entertaining films like Why Did I Get Married? with this simply, but too true message.

8 of 10
A

Thursday, February 28, 2008

NOTES:
2008 Image Awards: 1 win: “Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Motion Picture” (Janet Jackson); 3 nominations: “Outstanding Actress in a Motion Picture” (Jill Scott), “Outstanding Motion Picture,” and “Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Motion Picture” (Tyler Perry)

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

2010 Emmy Award Winners

Here, are the nominees and winners of the 62nd annual Emmy Awards, held Aug. 29, 2010. Winners are in bold letters and have the word “WINNER” next to their names:


DRAMA

Outstanding Drama
Lost
Breaking Bad
Dexter
Mad Men WINNER
True Blood
The Good Wife

Outstanding Actress In A Drama
Julianna Margulies (The Good Wife)
Mariska Hargitay (Special Victims Unit)
Glenn Close (Damages)
Kyra Sedgwick (The Closer) WINNER
January Jones (Mad Men)
Connie Britton (Friday Night Lights)

Outstanding Actor In A Drama
Jon Hamm (Mad Men)
Kyle Chandler (Friday Night Lights)
Bryan Cranston (Breaking Bad) WINNER
Hugh Laurie (House M.D.)
Michael C. Hall (Dexter)
Matthew Fox (Lost)

Outstanding Supporting Actor In A Drama
John Slattery (Mad Men)
Aaron Paul (Breaking Bad) WINNER
Martin Short (Damages)
Terry O’ Quinn (Lost)
Michael Emerson (Lost)
Andre Braugher (Men Of A Certain Age)

Outstanding Supporting Actress In A Drama
Sharon Gless (Burn Notice)
Christine Baranski (The Good Wife)
Christina Hendricks (Mad Men)
Rose Byrne (Damages)
Archie Panjabi (The Good Wife) WINNER
Elisabeth Moss (Mad Men)

Outstanding Guest Actor In A Drama Series
Beau Bridges (The Closer)
Ted Danson (Damages)
John Lithgow (Dexter) WINNER
Alan Cumming ( The Good Wife)
Dylan Baker (The Good Wife
Robert Morse (Mad Men)
Gregory Itzin (24)

Outstanding Guest Actress In A Drama Series
Mary Kay Place (Big Love)
Sissy Spacek (Big Love)
Shirley Jones (The Cleaner)
Lily Tomlin (Damages)
Ann-Margret (Law and Order: Special Victims Unit) WINNER
Elizabeth Mitchell (Lost)


COMEDY

Outstanding Comedy
Glee
Modern Family WINNER
Curb Your Enthusiasm
Nurse Jackie
30 Rock
The Office

Outstanding Actress In A Comedy
Lea Michele (Glee)
Tina Fey (30 Rock)
Toni Collette (The United States Of Tara)
Julia Louis-Dreyfus (The New Adventures Of Old Christine)
Edie Falco (Nurse Jackie) WINNER
Amy Poehler (Parks And Recreation)

Outstanding Actor In A Comedy
Larry David (Curb Your Enthusiasm)
Alec Baldwin (30 Rock)
Matthew Morrison (Glee)
Steve Carell (The Office)
Jim Parsons (The Big Bang Theory) WINNER
Tony Shalhoub (Monk)

Outstanding Supporting Actor In A Comedy
Chris Colfer (Glee)
Neil Patrick Harris (How I Met Your Mother)
Jesse Tyler Ferguson (Modern Family)
Jon Cryer (Two And A Half Men)
Eric Stonestreet (Modern Family) WINNER
Ty Burrell (Modern Family)

Outstanding Supporting Actress In A Comedy
Jane Lynch (Glee) WINNER
Kristen Wiig (Saturday Night Live)
Jane Krakowski (30 Rock)
Julie Bowen (Modern Family)
Sofia Vergara (Modern Family)
Holland Taylor (Two And A Half Men)

Outstanding Guest Actor In A Comedy Series
Mike O’Malley (Glee)
Neil Patrick Harris (Glee) WINNER
Fred Willard (Modern Family)
Eli Wallach (Nurse Jackie)
Jon Hamm (30 Rock)
Will Arnett (30 Rock)

Outstanding Guest Actress In A Comedy Series
Christine Baranski (The Big Bang Theory)
Kathryn Joosten (Desperate Housewives)
Kristin Chenoweth (Glee)
Tina Fey (Saturday Night Live)
Betty White (Saturday Night Live) WINNER
Elaine Stritch (30 Rock)
Jane Lynch (Two and a Half Men)


REALITY

Outstanding Reality Show Host
Ryan Seacrest (American Idol)
Phil Keoghan (The Amazing Race)
Tom Bergeron (Dancing With The Stars)
Heidi Klum (Project Runway)
Jeff Probst (Survivor) WINNER

Outstanding Reality Show Competition
Project Runway
Top Chef WINNER
The Amazing Race
Dancing With The Stars
American Idol

Outstanding Reality Program
Antiques Roadshow
Dirty Jobs
Jamie Oliver’s Food Revolution WINNER
Kathy Griffin: My Life On The D List
Mythbusters
Undercover Boss

VARIETY, MUSIC, COMEDY

Outstanding Variety, Music, Or Comedy Series
The Colbert Report
The Daily Show With Jon Stewart WINNER
Real Time With Bill Maher
Saturday Night Live
The Tonight Show With Conan O’brien


MINISERIES OR TV MOVIE

Miniseries Or Movie
The Pacific (HBO) WINNER
Return To Cranford (PBS)

Outstanding TV Movie
Endgame (PBS)
Georgia O’Keeffe (Lifetime)
Moonshot (History)
The Special Relationship (HBO)
Temple Grandin (HBO) WINNER
You Don’t Know Jack (HBO)

Outstanding Supporting Actress In A Miniseries Or Movie
Kathy Bates (Alice)
Julia Ormond (Temple Grandin) WINNER
Catherine O'Hara (Temple Grandin)
Brenda Vaccaro (You Don’t Know Jack)
Susan Sarandon (You Don’t Know Jack)

Outstanding Supporting Actor In A Miniseries Or A Movie
Michael Gambon (Emma)
Patrick Stewart (Hamlet)
Jonathan Pryce (Return To Cranford)
David Strathairn (Temple Grandin) WINNER
John Goodman (You Don’t Know Jack)

Outstanding Lead Actress In A Miniseries Or A Movie
Maggie Smith (Capturing Mary)
Joan Allen (Georgia O’Keeffe)
Dame Judi Dench (Return To Cranford)
Hope Davis (The Special Relationship)
Claire Danes (Temple Grandin) WINNER

Outstanding Lead Actor In A Miniseries Or A Movie
Jeff Bridges (A Dog Year)
Ian Mckellen (The Prisoner)
Michael Sheen (The Special Relationship)
Dennis Quaid (The Special Relationship)
Al Pacino (You Don’t Know Jack) WINNER

WRITING

Outstanding Writing For A Comedy Series
Glee - "Pilot"
Modern Family - "Pilot" WINNER
The Office - "Niagara"
30 Rock - "Anna Howard Shaw Day"
30 Rock - "Lee Marvin Vs. Derek Jeter"

Outstanding Writing For A Drama Series
Friday Night Lights - "The Son"
The Good Wife - "Pilot"
Lost - "The End"
Mad Men - "Guy Walks Into An Advertising Agency" WINNER
Mad Men - "Shut The Door. Have A Seat"

Outstanding Writing For A Miniseries, Movie Or A Dramatic Special
The Pacific - "Part Eight"
The Pacific - "Part Ten"
The Special Relationship
Temple Grandin
You Don't Know Jack WINNER

Outstanding Writing For A Variety, Music Or Comedy Series
The Colbert Report WINNER
The Daily Show With Jon Stewart
Real Time With Bill Maher
Saturday Night Live
The Tonight Show With Conan O'Brien


CREATIVE ARTS EMMY AWARDS
Saturday, Aug. 21, 2010, trophies were handed to the winners of the creative arts Emmys, which honor technical and other achievements:

Voice-over performance: Anne Hathaway , "The Simpsons: Once Upon a Time in Springfield," Fox.

Commercial: "The Man Your Man Could Smell Like: Old Spice Body Wash."

Animated Program: "Disney Prep & Landing," ABC.

Nonfiction series: "The National Parks: America's Best Idea," PBS.

Music composition for a series (original dramatic score): "24: 3 p.m. - 4 p.m.," Fox.

Music composition for a miniseries, movie or special: "Temple Grandin," HBO.

Choreography: "So You Think You Can Dance," Fox.

Casting for a drama series: "Mad Men," AMC.

Casting for a miniseries, movie or a special: "The Pacific," HBO.

Casting for a comedy series: "Modern Family," ABC.

Costumes for a miniseries, movie or a special: "Return to Cranford (Masterpiece), Part 2," PBS.

Costumes for a variety-music program or a musical (more than one award possible): "Jimmy Kimmel Live: Episode 09-1266)," ABC; "So You Think You Can Dance (Top 12 perform)," Fox; "Titan Maximum: Went to Party, Got Crabs," Cartoon Network.

Costumes for a series: "The Tudors : Episode No. 408," Showtime.

This PDF from Emmy.com is the official winners' press release and list the names of all trophy recipients.

Review: Tyler Perry's First Top Notch Drama, "Daddy's Little Girls"

TRASH IN MY EYE No. 98 (of 2007) by Leroy Douresseaux

Tyler Perry’s Daddy’s Little Girls (2007)
Running time: 95 minutes (1 hour, 35 minutes)
MPAA – PG-13 for thematic material , drug and sexual content, some violence, and language
WRITER/DIRECTOR: Tyler Perry
PRODUCERS: Tyler Perry and Reuben Cannon
CINEMATOGRAPHER: Toyomichi Kurita
EDITOR: Maysie Hoy

DRAMA/ROMANCE with elements of comedy

Starring: Gabrielle Union, Idris Elba, Louis Gossett, Jr., Tasha Smith, Gary Sturgis, Tracee Ellis Ross, Malinda Williams, Terri J. Vaughn, Cassie Davis, Sierra Aylina McClain, China Anna McClain, and Lauryn Aylina McClain

In the romantic drama, Daddy’s Little Girls, impresario Tyler Perry leaves behind Madea, the character that made him so rich and famous, and steps into the background to act as writer/director/co-producer. The film features a rarity in American film, the working class black father who is totally dedicated to his children, and with this subject matter, Perry makes his best film to date.

Working class dad and mechanic, Monty James (Idris Elba) suddenly finds himself in custody of his three daughters, Sierra (Sierra Aylina McClain), China (China Anna McClain), and Lauryn (Lauryn McClain). However, his ex-wife Jennifer (Tasha Smith) is challenging Monty for custody, but he can’t let her take the children because she lives with Joseph (Gary Sturgis), a dangerous mini-drug kingpin. He finds help and later love in Ivy League-educated attorney, Julia Rossmore (Gabrielle Union), but their class differences and Monty’s criminal record threaten to tear them apart, and perhaps, cost Monty his children.

What makes Daddy’s Little Girls Tyler Perry’s best film to date is the strong character writing. Perry takes much heat from African-American critics of both his stage and screen work for dabbling in stereotypes. What he actually uses are familiar character types to tell stories that are moral lessons and parable about family values, and his audience can identify with both characters and the messages behind the film. The way he works is quite sly. On the surface, his plays and films as bawdy, working-class comedies set in black communities (urban, suburban, or rural), but after he gives his audience several acts of rowdy comedy, he leaps into his messages about family, community, and God. In fact, his characters often find solace and healing through these three institutions.

In Daddy’s Little Girls, Perry leaps right into the drama. Poverty, dysfunctional families, terminal illness, urban crime, social injustice (particularly in the legal system), and class prejudice are all topics Perry uses to build the screenplay for this film, and it works. Daddy’s Little Girls is both entertaining and uplifting. Of all his films, this one, more than the others, is directed at his core audience of conservative, working class African-Americans. To mainstream (read: white) American audiences, this may seem like a foreign film, but many viewers from working class backgrounds should identify with this.

If this film has one glaring fault, it’s that the script doesn’t give enough time to the daddy and his little girls of Daddy’s Little Girls. The film is mostly about the developing relationship between Monty and Julia, for which Idris Elba and Gabrielle Union respectively give fine performances. Tasha Smith as the big bad mama, Jennifer, adds spice, and Louis Gossett, Jr. as Willie, brings refined acting to this delightful and heartwarming message movie.

8 of 10
A

Saturday, June 23, 2007

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

Netflix App Offers TV and Movies on iPhone and iPod Touch

Netflix App Now Available for iPhone and iPod Touch

Free App Enables Netflix Members to Instantly Watch TV Episodes and Movies Streamed from Netflix to iPhone and iPod touch

LOS GATOS, Calif., Aug. 26 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Netflix, Inc. (NASDAQ:NFLX) today announced the availability of its free Netflix App for iPhone and iPod touch, allowing Netflix members on plans starting at just $8.99 a month to instantly watch a vast selection of TV episodes and movies streamed to their iPhone or iPod touch at no additional cost.

The Netflix App is available for free from the App Store on iPhone and iPod touch or at www.itunes.com/appstore/.

"Apple has changed the game for mobile devices," said Reed Hastings, Netflix co-founder and chief executive officer. "We're excited that our members can now carry Netflix around in their pockets and instantly watch movies and TV shows streamed from Netflix right to their iPhone or iPod touch."

The Netflix App delivers a high-quality viewing experience, a broad array of movie and TV choices and a clean, intuitive interface. It is available via both Wi-Fi and 3G networks. TV episodes and movies are conveniently organized into a variety of categories based on members' personal preferences, popular genres, new arrivals and members' individual instant Queues. Members can choose a movie or TV episode from any of the lists and just tap the innovative Multi-Touch user interface to watch instantly or to save the title for viewing later.

Additionally, users have the option of fast-forwarding and rewinding the video stream, and stopping at any time. When users want to start watching again, the video stream starts exactly where it was stopped, even on a different device capable of streaming from Netflix.

The Netflix App supports any iPhone or iPod touch device running iOS version 3.13 or later.


About Netflix
With more than 15 million members, Netflix, Inc. (NASDAQ:NFLX) is the world's largest subscription service streaming movies and TV episodes over the Internet and sending DVDs by mail. For $8.99 a month, Netflix members can instantly watch unlimited TV episodes and movies streamed right to their TVs and computers and can receive unlimited DVDs delivered quickly to their homes. With Netflix, there are never any due dates or late fees. Among the large and expanding base of devices that can stream movies and TV episodes from Netflix are Microsoft's Xbox 360, Sony's PS3 and Nintendo's Wii consoles; Blu-ray disc players from Samsung, LG and Insignia; Internet TVs from LG, Sony and VIZIO; the Roku digital video player and TiVo digital video recorders, and Apple's iPhone, iPad and iPod touch. For more information, visit http://www.netflix.com/.