Black Film Critics Circle Choose "The Help" as the Best of 2011

When I posted my monthly welcome a few days ago, I mentioned that February was Oscar month.  It's also Black History Month.  How could I miss that? (Girl, he ain't nothin' but a Tom).  Anyway, this month I'll also post old reviews I wrote of Black Films.  In the spirit of Negro-centricness, I discovered another film critics of color group.

The Black Film Critics Circle (BFCC) was founded in 2010 and is a membership organization comprised of film critics of color from daily newspapers, weekly newspapers, magazines, radio, television and qualifying on-line publications.

2011 Black Film Critics Circle Awards:

Best Picture: "The Help"

Best Director: Dee Rees, "Pariah"

Best Actor: Olivier Litondo, "The First Grader"

Best Actress: Viola Davis, "The Help"

Best Supporting Actor: Albert Brooks, "Drive"

Best Supporting Actress: Octavia Spencer, "The Help"

Best Independent Film: "Pariah"

Best Adapted Screenplay: "The Help"

Best Original Screenplay: "Pariah"

Best Animated Film: "Rango"

Best Documentary: "Being Elmo: A Puppeteer's Journey"

Best Ensemble: "The Help"

Pioneer Award: Harry Belafonte

Rising Star Award: Adepero Oduye

Special Mention: "Attack the Block"

Top 10 Films (in order):
1. "The Help"
2. "The Artist"
3. "Pariah"
4. "Drive"
5. "The Descendants"
6. "Attack the Block"
7. "The Tree of Life"
8. "Hugo"
9. "The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo"
10. "Warrior"

Review: "Creepshow" is Still Fun (Happy B'day, George Romero)

TRASH IN MY EYE No. 165 (of 2005) by Leroy Douresseaux

Creepshow (1982)
Running time: 120 minutes (2 hours)
DIRECTOR: George A. Romero
WRITER: Stephen King (also partly based upon the short stories “The Crate” and “Weeds” by Stephen King)
PRODUCER: Richard P. Rubinstein
CINEMATOGRAPHER: Michael Gornick
EDITORS: Pasquale Buba, Paul Hirsch, and Michael Spolan with George A. Romero (segment “The Tide”)

HORROR/COMEDY/SCI-FI/FANTASY

Starring: Hal Holbrook, Adrienne Barbeau, Fritz Weaver, Leslie Nielsen, Carrie Nye, E.G. Marshall, Viveca Lindfors, Ed Harris, Ted Danson, Stephen King, Warner Shook, Robert Harper, Gaylen Ross, and Tom Savini with Tom Atkins

Inspired by the legendary E.C. horror comics of the 1950’s, director George A. Romero and international best-selling horror novelist Stephen King created the horror movie anthology, Creepshow. Five tales of terror: “Father’s Day,” “The Lonesome Death of Jordy Verrill,” “Something to Tide You Over,” “The Crate,” and “They’re Creeping Up on You,” make up the film, and a framing sequence (prologue/epilogue) bridges the five tales.

In “Father’s Day,” a family patriarch comes back from the grave (literally) on the seventh anniversary of his murder, by his daughter, Bedelia’s (Viveca Lindfors) hand, and he’s looking for his birthday cake. In “The Lonesome Death of Jordy Verrill, Jordy Verrill (Stephen King), a country bumpkin cursed by bad luck, finds a recently fallen meteor, and it affects shocking change upon Jordy’s body. In “Something to Tide You Over,” Richard Vickers (Leslie Nielsen) takes a gruesome revenge upon his wife Becky (Gaylen Ross) and her lover, Harry Wentworth (Ted Danson), but revenge is a two-way street and comes back from a watery grave for Richard.

In “The Crate,” Professor Henry Northrup (Hal Holbrook) takes advantage of a murderous ape-like beast found in a 150-year old crate to deal with his bestial nag of a wife, Wilma “Billie” Northrup (Adrienne Barbeau). In the closing tale, “They’re Creeping Up on You,” a wicked, wealthy man, Upson Pratt (E.G. Marshall) with a fear of germs and bugs gets his comeuppance when he goes against thousands of cockroaches.

Creepshow is delightful horror fun – a combination of thrills, chills, and cheese. Two of the tales, “Something to Tide You Over” and “The Crate” are excellent revenge tales, but all of the shorts capture the spirit of the old E.C. comics with their shock and surprise endings. Director George A. Romero (Dawn of the Dead) and screenwriter Stephen King knew exactly what they were going for and how to get it. Makeup effects artist Tom Savini ably creates the gruesome denizens that make this film sparkle, and the production elements are the finishing touch in capturing the right look and mood.

6 of 10
B

Monday, October 31, 2005

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Board Game, "Candy Land," to Become Adam Sandler Movie

Sweet! Adam Sandler to Play “Candy Land”

Columbia Pictures, Happy Madison and Hasbro Team Up to Bring the Classic Game to the Big Screen

CULVER CITY, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Columbia Pictures, Happy Madison and Hasbro, Inc. (NASDAQ:HAS) are in final talks to develop Candy Land, a live action movie based on the bestselling Hasbro board game with Adam Sandler attached to star, it was jointly announced today by Doug Belgrad, President of Columbia Pictures, Hannah Minghella, President of Production for Columbia Pictures, and Brian Goldner, Hasbro President and CEO. Kevin Lima (Enchanted) is attached to direct the project for the studio with Sandler and Robert Smigel are in talks to write the screenplay.

Commenting on the announcement, Belgrad said, "Candy Land is more than just a game. It is a brand that children, parents and grandparents know and love. The world of Candy Land offers an extraordinary canvas upon which to create a fantastical, live-action family adventure film with a larger than life part for Adam. We are thrilled to partner with Hasbro and Happy Madison on this project."

“The creative talent on board for this movie is amazing and we are excited to bring alive the world of Candy Land for kids and families everywhere,” Goldner added. “Sony/Columbia has been a wonderful creative partner as we develop another of our games, Risk, for the big screen. We are looking forward to working with Sony/Columbia and Adam Sandler and his team at Happy Madison Productions on this film.”

Candy Land is one of the most beloved and best known games of all time. Created in 1949, it has been played by generations of families. In the game, players go on a magical journey through fantastical lands made of candy, sweets, and ice cream: the Peppermint Forest, the Gum Drop Mountains, and the Lollypop Woods. Along the way, players encounter such iconic characters as Princess Frostine, Lord Licorice, Mr. Mint, and King Candy.

The project will be produced by Goldner (Transformers) and Hasbro’s Senior Vice President and Managing Director of Motion Pictures, Bennett Schneir (Battleship) along with Happy Madison Productions. At Columbia, development of Candy Land will be overseen by Sam Dickerman.


About Sony Pictures Entertainment
Sony Pictures Entertainment (SPE) is a subsidiary of Sony Corporation of America, a subsidiary of Tokyo-based Sony Corporation. SPE’s global operations encompass motion picture production, acquisition and distribution; television production, acquisition and distribution; home entertainment acquisition and distribution; worldwide television networks; digital content creation and distribution; operation of studio facilities; development of new entertainment products, services and technologies; and distribution of entertainment in more than 142 countries. Sony Pictures Entertainment can be found on the World Wide Web at http://www.sonypictures.com/.

Hasbro, Inc. (NASDAQ: HAS) is a branded play company providing children and families around the world with a wide-range of immersive entertainment offerings based on the Company’s world class brand portfolio. From toys and games, to television programming, motion pictures, video games and a comprehensive licensing program, Hasbro strives to delight its customers through the strategic leveraging of well-known and beloved brands such as TRANSFORMERS, LITTLEST PET SHOP, NERF, PLAYSKOOL, MY LITTLE PONY, G.I. JOE, MAGIC: THE GATHERING and MONOPOLY. The Hub, Hasbro’s multi-platform joint venture with Discovery Communications (NASDAQ: DISCA, DISCB, DISCK) launched on October 10, 2010. The online home of The Hub is www.hubworld.com. The Hub logo and name are trademarks of Hub Television Networks, LLC. All rights reserved.

Come see how we inspire play through our brands at http://www.hasbro.com/.

Review: Craig, Ford are Cool Cowboys in "Cowboys & Aliens"

TRASH IN MY EYE No. 10 (of 2012) by Leroy Douresseaux

Cowboy & Aliens (2011)
Running time: 118 minutes; MPAA – PG-13 for intense sequences of western and sci-fi action and violence, some partial nudity and a brief crude reference
DIRECTOR: Jon Favreau
WRITERS: Roberto Orci and Alex Kurtzman, Damon Lindelof, and Mark Fergus and Hawk Ostby; from a screen story by Mark Fergus and Hawk Ostby, and Steve Oedekerk (based upon the Platinum Studios graphic novel written by Scott Mitchell Rosenberg)
PRODUCERS: Johnny Dodge, Brian Grazer, Ron Howard, Alex Kurtzman, Damon Lindelof, Roberto Orci, and Scott Mitchell Rosenberg
CINEMATOGRAPHER: Matthew Libatique
EDITORS: Dan Lebental and Jim May
COMPOSER: Harry Gregson-Williams

SCI-FI/WESTERN/ACTION

Starring: Daniel Craig, Harrison Ford, Olivia Wilde, Sam Rockwell, Adam Beach, Paul Dano, Keith Carradine, Clancy Brown, Walton Goggins, Abigail Spencer, Noah Ringer, Buck Taylor, Ana de la Reguera, and Raoul Trujillo

Cowboys & Aliens is a 2011 Western and science fiction movie. This alien invasion film is based upon a concept created by former comic book publisher, Scott Mitchell Rosenberg, who also turned it into a graphic novel. Cowboys & Aliens is set in the Old West and pits a group of cowboys and Apaches against invading aliens. Steven Spielberg is also one of this film’s executive producers.

The story is set in the Arizona Territory, 1873. A man wakes up and discovers that he is injured and also cannot remember who he is. He stumbles into the hard desert town of Absolution, where he learns that he is Jake Lonergan (Daniel Craig), a wanted outlaw. He meets Ella Swenson (Olivia Wilde), a mysterious woman who acts as if she knows Lonergan. Also coming to town is Colonel Woodrow Dolarhyde (Harrison Ford). Apparently, Lonergan stole a large cachet of gold from Dolarhyde.

Lonergan’s punishment will have to wait, however; alien aircraft attack Absolution and abduct several citizens. Dolarhyde leads a posse into the desert to track the ships, and Lonergan only reluctantly goes along. He is somehow connected to the aliens; so says the strange metal band around Lonergan’s left wrist.

Movies that blend the Western genre with science fiction, fantasy, or horror are box office and/or critical disappointments. The two best examples are the science fiction/Western, adaptation of an old TV show, Wild Wild West (1999) and the horror/Western, comic book adaptation Jonah Hex (2010). Cowboys & Aliens is not so much a sci-fi Western as it is an alien invasion movie set in the Old West. The film never pretends to be a Western. Cowboys & Aliens is about a group of people who live in a time different from our own fighting invaders the way Attack the Block is about people in a place different from what many of us know who are fighting invaders.

Like many action movies, I found the first hour of Cowboys & Aliens to be mostly a misfire. By the second half, when the movie focuses on what it is about, the technologically disadvantaged humans versus the technologically very advanced aliens, the story slips into the comfort zone of fights, pursuits, and escapes. And the movie is very entertaining when you just sit back and let the sci-fi stuff thrill you. Yeah, this movie doesn’t require you to do a whole lot of thinking.

The performances are pretty good. Cowboys & Aliens affirms once again that Daniel Craig is a leading man; his interpretation of Jake Lonergan as the man-of-few-words and stoic cowboy makes the character more interesting than the screenplay does. Still, the biggest surprise may be Harrison Ford. Col. Dolarhyde is practically a villain, but there are moments in which Ford subtly uses emotion and Dolarhyde’s prejudices to create a complicated character that engages the imagination.

Cowboys & Aliens is not a classic Western or even a classic science fiction movie. It is an amusing film – at least half of it is.

5 of 10
B-

Wednesday, February 01, 2012

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African-American Film Critics Association Picks "The Tree of Life"

The African-American Film Critics Association (AAFCA) is a group of African-American film critics that give various awards for excellence in film at the end of each year. The association was founded in 2003 by Gil L. Robertson IV and Shawn Edwards.

2011 African-American Film Critics Association Awards:

Best Picture: 1. The Tree of Life

2. Drive
3. Pariah
4. Rampart
5. Shame
6. Moneyball
7. The Descendants
8. A Better Life
9. My Week With Marylin
10. The Help

Best Director: Steve McQueen (Shame)

Best Actor: Woody Harrleson (Rampart)

Best Supporting Actor: Albert Brooks (Drive)

Best Actress: Viola Davis (The Help)

Best Supporting Actress: Octavia Spencer (The Help)

Best Screenplay: Ava DuVernay (I Will Follow)

Best Breakthrough Performance: Adepero Oduye (Pariah)

Best Independent Film: Pariah

Best song: Jason Reeves & Lenka Kripac, writers, “The Show” from “Moneyball.”

Best foreign film: Alrick Brown, “Kinyarwanda.”

http://www.aafca.com/

Review: "The Weather Underground" is Interesting, but a Little Dry

TRASH IN MY EYE No. 158 (of 2004) by Leroy Douresseaux

The Weather Underground (2002)
(film received its U.S. theatrical release in June 2003)
Running time: 92 minutes (1 hour, 32 minutes)
Not rated by the MPAA
DIRECTORS: Sam Green with Bill Siegel
PRODUCERS: Carrie Lazono, Marc Smolowitz, Sam Green, and Bill Siegel
EDITORS: Dawn Logsdon and Sam Green
PHOTOGRAPHERS: Andy Black and Federico Salsano
Academy Award nominee

DOCUMENTARY

Starring: Bill Ayers, Kathleen Cleaver, Bernadine Dohrn, Brian Flanagan, David Gilbert, Todd Gitlin, Naomi Jaffe, Mark Rudd, Don Strickland, and (narrator) Lili Taylor

Some people believe that not acting against violence is itself violence, and from this belief sprang the Weathermen. Their group, The Weather Underground, was a radical offshoot of the 1960’s anti-war student group, Students for a Democratic Society. The Weather Underground not only marched in protest, but they also rioted and bombed the offices of government organizations in an attempt to bring about a revolution in America. It was not about changing the American political landscape; it was about destroying it.

The Weather Underground is a 2002 documentary about the rise and fall of The Weathermen. The film earned an Oscar® nomination in the category “Best Documentary, Features” for directors Sam Green and Bill Siegel. The filmmakers interviewed former Weathermen and compiled those interviews with archival film footage of the Vietnam War, news broadcasts, and anti-war demonstrations. They also included readings of Weathermen letters, footage of 60’s and 70’s era interviews of the Weathermen, and photographic images of the original group and related subject matter.

The film is a sobering account of the group and its members, but the Weathermen, at least now, don’t make compelling characters, either in the present or in old film footage of the group. They’re certainly not as intriguing as, say, the subjects in fellow 2004 Oscar® feature documentary nominee, Capturing the Friedmans. The Weathermen (and Weatherwomen) actually don’t go into the kind of detail that would have really brought their story to life and given the film more life, likely because some of what they might say about their activities could still be used against them in a court of law. They are understandable secretive, but no matter how coy they may be, their hints aren’t really enough to pique interest in their former activities, and even less in what they’re now doing.

In fact, the most interesting things in this film are the accounts of the Vietnam conflict and The Weather Undergrounds quasi-spiritual and philosophical connection to The Black Panthers. When the film deals with the destruction of lives on both sides of the Vietnam conflict and the FBI’s murderous war against the Panthers, that’s when The Weather Underground is most passionate, a fatal flaw in the film, actually. Every time the filmmakers and editors move from the war and the Panthers to the privileged middle class whites who made up The Weather Underground, I found myself eagerly anticipating when the filmmakers would return to the war and the Panthers. Those parts of the film are great. Of course, the Weathermen’s story is very interesting, but it is ultimately told a little too dryly here for this documentary’s own good.

7 of 10
B+

NOTES:
2004 Academy Awards: 1 nomination: “Best Documentary, Features” (Sam Green and Bill Siegel)

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San Francisco Film Critics Choose "The Tree of Life"

The San Francisco Film Critics Circle (SFFCC) was founded in 2002 and is comprised of critics from Bay Area publications. Its membership includes film journalists from the San Francisco Chronicle, the San Jose Mercury News, the Oakland Tribune, the Contra Costa Times, the San Francisco Bay Guardian, SF Weekly, the East Bay Express, KRON-TV, Variety, and RottenTomatoes.com, among others.

2011 San Francisco Film Critics Circle Awards winners:

Best Picture
“The Tree of Life”

Best Director
Terrence Malick for “The Tree of Life”

Best Original Screenplay
J.C. Chandor for “Margin Call”

Best Adapted Screenplay
Bridget O’Connor & Peter Straughan for “Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy”

Best Actor
Gary Oldman for “Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy”

Best Actress
Tilda Swinton for “We Need to Talk About Kevin”

Best Supporting Actor
Albert Brooks for “Drive”

Best Supporting Actress
Vanessa Redgrave for “Coriolanus”

Best Animated Feature
“Rango”

Best Foreign Language Film
“Certified Copy”

Best Documentary
“Tabloid”

Best Cinematography
Emmanuel Lubezki for “The Tree of Life”

Marlon Riggs Award (for courage & vision in the Bay Area film community)
National Film Preservation Foundation, in recognition of for its work in the preservation and dissemination of endangered, culturally significant films

Special Citation for under-appreciated independent cinema:
“The Mill and the Cross”

http://sffcc.org/main/