Showing Tag: " black" (Show all posts)

REVIEW: When NASA Faces A Go / No Go Decision for John Glenn & the Friendship 7, Hidden Figures Working As Colored Computers Save the Day

Posted by James Brown on Saturday, January 21, 2017, In : 0.03% Wine Coolers 
Hidden Figures





Directed By: Theodore Melfi

Starring: Taraji P. Henson, Octavia Spencer, Janelle Monáe, Kevin Costner, Kirsten Dunst, Jim Parsons, and Aldis Hodge

History is told by those who wield the pen or the mic.  What we often remember is what we're told to remember over and over again by those in a position to tell it.  This is particularly true when it comes to the contributions made by African-Americans that have been vital to the success of the United States.  From the free slave labor...

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REVIEW: Taking the Crookeds With the Straights, Troy Maxson Builds Fences From Mr. Death & His Hell Hounds

Posted by James Brown on Friday, December 30, 2016, In : 0.00% Water 
Fences





Directed By: Denzel Washington

Starring: Denzel Washington, Viola Davis, Stephen McKinley Henderson, Jovan Adepo, Russell Hornsby, Mykelti Williamson, and Saniyya Sidney

"You got to take the crookeds with the straights."
-Troy Maxson (Denzel Washington)

The statement above is especially true when it comes to Denzel Washington's acting career as of late.  For every Flight with which we're enamored, we have to deal with a slate of films such as Safe House, 2 Guns, and The Equalizer.  There ar...

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REVIEW: Given Gangsta Grub, the Enclosure & the Ceasefire, The Next Cut At Calvin's Barbershop Gets a Little Real With South Side Chicago

Posted by James Brown on Sunday, April 17, 2016, In : 0.06% Beer or Wine 
Barbershop: The Next Cut





Directed By: Malcolm D. Lee

Starring: Ice Cube, Cedric the Entertainer, Regina Hall, Eve, Anthony Anderson, J. B. Smoove, Common, Nicki Minaj, Lamorne Morris, Deon Cole, Sean Patrick Thomas, Margot Bingham, and Tyga

It's been 12 years since the Barbershop franchise has been relevant.  It's safe to say that all of us thought the shop was closed for good.  However, Hollywood has a way of bringing things back from the dead.  Normally, I would give a list of attempts to revi...

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REVIEW: With Four Gold Medals, Jesse Owens Runs His Race Regardless of Jim Crow or the Third Reich

Posted by James Brown on Sunday, February 21, 2016, In : 0.03% Wine Coolers 
Race





Directed By: Stephen Hopkins

Starring: Stephan James, Jason Sudeikis, Jeremy Irons, Carice van Houten, Shanice Banton, and William Hurt

Simplicity can be elegance, especially when it comes to movie titles.  One-syllable titles are especially potent because they say everything and hardly anything at all.  Heat.  Ray.  Up.  These titles are short and sweet but convey so much.  There's no better example this weekend than the Jesse Owens biopic Race.  In the case of the period biographical pict...

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REVIEW: Inside Out of Riley's Mind With Core Memories & TripleDent Gum Commercials, Joy & Sadness Take a Fun Ride Through the Islands of Personality & Imagination Land

Posted by James Brown on Sunday, June 21, 2015, In : 0.00% Water 
Inside Out





Directed By: Pete Docter

Starring: Amy Poehler, Phyllis Smith, Bill Hader, Lewis Black, and Mindy Kaling

America could use a little happiness right about now.  With the atrocities that took place in Charleston, South Carolina this week, I'm certain that many of our hearts are heavy.  Regardless of what anyone in the media or the blogosphere says, racism and gun control are two of the crucial issues of our time.  The desire to pick up a gun and go kill black people is not a mental illn...
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REVIEW: Before the World Ends at Lollapalooza, Project Almanac's David Raskin Will Build a Halfway Decent Time Machine for MIT

Posted by James Brown on Friday, January 30, 2015, In : 0.06% Beer or Wine 
Project Almanac





Directed By: Dean Israelite

Starring: Jonny Weston, Sofia Black-D'Elia, Sam Lerner, Allen Evangelista, and Virginia Gardner

It's Super Bowl weekend!  That means it's time for me to win some money on the big game.  That also means that no one cares about the movies this weekend with the possible exception of diehard aficionados such as myself.  As fate would have it on one of the quietest weekends at the box office historically, 2015 is a bit of déjà vu.  Three years ago, we had...
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REVIEW: For the Dignity of the Vote in Selma, Dr. King, the SCLC, & SNCC Negotiate, Demonstrate, and Resist to Outstanding Effect

Posted by James Brown on Friday, December 26, 2014, In : 0.00% Water 
Selma





Directed By: Ava DuVernay

Starring: David Oyelowo, Carmen Ejogo, Tim Roth, Lorraine Toussaint, Common, Giovanni Ribisi, Omar Dorsey, Andre Holland, Niecy Nash, Colman Domingo, Wendell Pierce, Tessa Thompson, Keith Stanfield, Stephan James, Alessandro Nivola, Cuba Gooding, Jr., Martin Sheen, Tom Wilkinson, and Oprah Winfrey

"A state trooper pointed the gun, but he did not act alone.
He was murdered by the brutality of every sheriff who practices lawlessness in the name of law.

He was murdered...
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REVIEW: Despite Some Engaging Blackjack, Roulette, & English 101, The Gambler Doesn't Quite Reach the F*ck You Position

Posted by James Brown on Friday, December 26, 2014, In : 0.06% Beer or Wine 
The Gambler





Directed By: Rupert Wyatt

Starring: Mark Wahlberg, John Goodman, Brie Larson, Michael K. Williams, and Jessica Lange

Some of you may know this already, but I'm getting ready for abdominal surgery in the next week and a half.  I'll be out of commission for some time and will be handing over the STMR reins to the Sober Film Chick for a while.  One of the many reasons for which I'm having the surgery so early in the year is so that I can make my annual trip to Las Vegas in late February...
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REVIEW: With Hammy the Bear, Hot Sauce, & Fry or Die Comedy, Top Five's Andre Allen and James Nielson Put Some Stank On It

Posted by James Brown on Saturday, December 13, 2014, In : 0.03% Wine Coolers 
Top Five





Directed By: Chris Rock

Starring: Chris Rock, Rosario Dawson, Gabrielle Union, Hayley Marie Norman, Karlie Redd, Rachel Feinstein, Kevin Hart, Sherri Shepherd, J.B. Smoove, Dan Naturman, Tracy Morgan, Cedric the Entertainer, and Whoopi Goldberg

Rigorous honesty is the best way to start out my review of Chris Rock's latest film.  I loved it.  I enjoyed the film so much that I'm going to reveal my own top five, which tells a lot about me.  I'm just going on gut instincts here.  My number ...
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REVIEW: Beyond the Lights, Noni Jean's Black Bird Is Freed At Last From Her Musical Cage By Officer Hero Kaz Nicol Despite His Fear of Flying

Posted by James Brown on Sunday, November 23, 2014, In : 0.03% Wine Coolers 
Beyond the Lights





Directed By: Gina Prince-Bythewood

Starring: Gugu Mbatha-Raw, Minnie Driver, Nate Parker, Danny Glover, and Machine Gun Kelly

You all are familiar with my less than positive sentiments on the state of the music industry today.  It's all about sex appeal, club playability, and the bottom line.  It's not about the music anymore.  It's not about showmanship.  It's not about the artistry.  Because of this, the industry is a shell of its former self.  While I could elaborate on the ...
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REVIEW: Dear White People, the Race Wars at Winchester University Showcase the Trouble with Pastiche's Blackface in a White Place

Posted by James Brown on Wednesday, October 29, 2014, In : 0.06% Beer or Wine 
Dear White People





Directed By: Justin Simien

Starring: Tyler James Williams, Tessa Thompson, Teyonah Parris, Brandon P. Bell, Kyle Gallner, Brittany Curran, Dennis Haysbert, and Marque Richardson

This has been a very interesting couple of weeks in cinema.  Last week, we had the jazz drama Whiplash, a film very personal to me that reminds me of my foray into the world of percussion years ago.  As it stands, I have another film very personal to me in a very different way in this weekend's Dear Whi...
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REVIEW: In If I Stay, Juilliard-Bound Cellist Mia Must Choose Between Her Nasty Bruises Rocker Parents & Her Willamette Stone Boyfriend Adam

Posted by James Brown on Sunday, August 24, 2014, In : 0.06% Beer or Wine 
If I Stay





Directed By: R. J. Cutler

Starring: Chloë Grace Moretz, Mireille Enos, Joshua Leonard, Stacy Keach, and Jamie Blackley

“Here's the secret baby.  If you live, if you die, it's all up to you.  So whatever fight you got in you, you gotta pull it out now.”
-Surgeon (Uncredited)

I was able to dodge The Fault In Our Stars earlier this year.  I have no interest whatsoever in depressing, melodramatic YA adaptations like this.  The sole intention of a film of this nature is to tug at the hea...
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REVIEW: In Born Dead Biopic Get On Up, James Brown Does Right by Himself & Pays the Cost to Be the Boss

Posted by James Brown on Saturday, August 2, 2014, In : 0.03% Wine Coolers 
Get On Up





Directed By: Tate Taylor

Starring: Chadwick Boseman, Nelsan Ellis, Dan Aykroyd, Viola Davis, Keith Robinson, Octavia Spencer, Brandon Mychal Smith, Jill Scott, Tika Sumpter, and Craig Robinson

As you all know, I share a name with the subject of the recently released musical biopic Get On Up.  Having the name James Brown comes with a certain responsibility — to endure a lifetime of singing, shouting, and dancing at the most unexpected times in the most unexpected places.  For instance...
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REVIEW: About Last Night – Kevin Hart Plays Lando Calrissian To Michael Ealy’s Vader In This Sexy Romantic Comedy

Posted by SoberFilmChick on Tuesday, February 18, 2014, In : 0.06% Beer or Wine 
About Last Night
SoberFilmChick




Directed by: Steve Pink

Starring: Kevin Hart, Michael Ealy, Regina Hall, Joy Bryant, Adam Rodriguez, and Paula Patton

Kevin Hart is without question the comedian of the moment.  With sold out arenas for his comedy tour across the country, a hit television show on BET, and his appearance in every movie trailer imaginable, Hart is clearly riding high.  2014 has already started out with a bang for Hart with his hit movie Ride Along, which has grossed $116 million dome...
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REVIEW: In a Ride Along Full of 126s, Black Hammer Kevin Hart Shows & Proves That He's Unfortunately Unlocked the Platinum Level

Posted by James Brown on Saturday, January 18, 2014, In : 0.09% Cocktails 
Ride Along





Directed By: Tim Story

Starring: Ice Cube, Kevin Hart, John Leguizamo, Bruce McGill, Bryan Callen, Tika Sumpter, and Laurence Fishburne

Kevin Hart seems to be everywhere.  He was in This Is the End and Grudge Match last year.  He's done several stand-up comedy tours all over the country over the last several years.  He's got two big romantic comedies this year with About Last Night and his follow-up to Think Like a Man.  Strangely enough, he's even been on ESPN lately.  All of this po...
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REVIEW: Tyler Perry’s A Madea Christmas – Time For Madea To Retire

Posted by SoberFilmChick on Sunday, December 15, 2013, In : 0.12% Hard Liquor 

A Madea Christmas
SoberFilmChick



Directed by: Tyler Perry

Starring:  Tyler Perry, Anna Maria Horsford, Larry The Cable Guy, Chad Michael Murphy, Tika Sumpter, Eric Lively, Alicia Witt, Lisa Whelchel, Kathy Najimy, and JR Lemon

Enough is enough.  Tyler Perry’s popular cross-dressing grandma Madea has been through too much.  She has had a reunion, weddings, been to jail and has even been involved with the witness protection program.  Now, in Tyler Perry’s A Madea Christmas, she is involved wi...


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REVIEW: Black Nativity – Great Music, But This Langston Hughes’ Musical Is Thin On Substance

Posted by SoberFilmChick on Saturday, November 30, 2013, In : 0.09% Cocktails 

Black Nativity
SoberFilmChick




Directed by: Kasi Lemmons

Starring:  Forest Whitaker, Angela Bassett, Tyrese Gibson, Jennifer Hudson, Mary J. Blige, Vondie Curtis-Hall, Nas, and Jacob Latimore

Black Nativity should have been the perfect storm for movie magic.  It stars a heavy lineup of Oscar winning and nominated actors, including Forest Whitaker, Jennifer Hudson and Angela Bassett.  Black Nativity is set during the holiday season, it revolves around Christianity and family, and is based on a La...


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REVIEW: The Best Man Holiday – A Shirtless Morris Chestnut And Friends Still Have It After “15” Years

Posted by SoberFilmChick on Sunday, November 17, 2013, In : 0.06% Beer or Wine 

The Best Man Holiday
SoberFilmChick




Directed by: Malcolm D. Lee

Starring: Morris Chestnut, Nia Long, Taye Diggs, Terrence Howard, Sanaa Lathan, Regina Hall, Harold Perrineau, and Eddie Cibrian

2013 has been touted as the year of the African American film renaissance.  I am not quite ready to go that far, but it has been an absolute delight to see so many films with African American actors and actresses in lead roles meet critical and/or commercial success.  This year, films like Fruitvale S...


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REVIEW: 12 Years a Slave, Solomon Northrup Brilliantly Plays the Fiddle as Georgia Runaway Platt to Survive Until Freedom is Opportunity

Posted by James Brown on Saturday, October 19, 2013, In : 0.00% Water 
12 Years a Slave





Directed By: Steve McQueen

Starring: Chiwetel Ejiofor, Michael Fassbender, Benedict Cumberbatch, Paul Dano, Paul Giamatti, Lupita Nyong'o, Sarah Paulson, Brad Pitt, Alfre Woodard, Quvenzhané Wallis, Dwight Henry, and Adepero Oduye

In a review two months ago, I wrote about how filmmakers are taking us to school this year.  With films like Fruitvale Station, Lee Daniels' The Butler, and even 42, we've gotten a healthy dose of black history from Hollywood.  We've arrived at our fi...
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REVIEW: The Butler Is the Tale of Two Faces Needed to Survive — the Subversive Black Domestic Cecil Gaines and Freedom Rider Louis Gaines

Posted by James Brown on Saturday, August 17, 2013, In : 0.03% Wine Coolers 
Lee Daniels' The Butler





Directed By: Lee Daniels

Starring: Forest Whitaker, Oprah Winfrey, Cuba Gooding, Jr., Terrence Howard, David Oyelowo, Vanessa Redgrave, Mariah Carey, Robin Williams, Melissa Leo, James Marsden, Minka Kelly, Liev Schreiber, John Cusack, Alan Rickman, Jane Fonda, Alex Pettyfer, Yaya DaCosta, Colman Domingo, Aml Ameen, Orlando Eric Street, Nelsan Ellis, Alex Manette, Lenny Kravitz, and Jesse Williams

Filmmakers are taking us to school, and black history is front and center t...
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REVIEW: In Fruitvale Station, Oscar Grant Tragically Doesn't Get the 30 Days Oprah Recommends to Form His New Habits

Posted by James Brown on Saturday, July 20, 2013, In : 0.00% Water 
Fruitvale Station





Directed By: Ryan Coogler

Starring: Michael B. Jordan, Octavia Spencer, Melonie Diaz, Ahna O'Reilly, Kevin Durand, and Chad Michael Murray

Race and equality have been at the forefront of the American psyche for the last week or so.  With George Zimmerman being acquitted after killing 17 year-old Trayvon Martin, a long overdue conversation about what it means to be a black man in America may finally be getting started.  That conversation looks to be focused on a variety of topic...
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REVIEW: With Peanuts, Chocolate Kennedys, & Moby Dick Day, Tyler Perry Presents Some Strange Peeples

Posted by James Brown on Sunday, May 12, 2013, In : 0.09% Cocktails 
Tyler Perry Presents Peeples





Directed By: Tina Gordon Chism

Starring: Kerry Washington, Craig Robinson, David Alan Grier, Diahann Carroll, Tyler James Williams, and Kali Hawk

Tyler Perry Presents Peeples is the most ostentatious title for a movie I've ever heard in my entire life.  I understand that producer Tyler Perry wants to associate his name and his brand with the film to fill theaters around the country.  He's trying to make some money.  I completely get that.  However, that doesn't mean ...
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REVIEW: For the Love of the Mets and Graffiti, Gimme the Loot is All About Malcolm and Sophia Bombing the Apple at Shea Stadium

Posted by James Brown on Saturday, April 27, 2013, In : 0.00% Water 
Gimme the Loot





Directed By: Adam Leon

Starring: Ty Hickson, Tashiana Washington, Zoë Lescaze, Meeko, Sam Soghor, and Joshua Rivera

The New York Mets have an interesting tradition for celebrating home runs.  Whenever a player knocks the ball straight out of the park during a home game, a giant apple rises out of Shea Stadium with the Mets' logo front and center.  The apple rising is a pivotal moment in any Mets game and presents an interesting opportunity to claim some fame for those who are bol...
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REVIEW: Mr. Rickey Helps Number 42 Jackie Robinson Control His Temper and Go Home Sweet Home on the Baseball Field

Posted by James Brown on Friday, April 12, 2013, In : 0.06% Beer or Wine 
42





Directed By: Brian Helgeland

Starring: Chadwick Boseman, Harrison Ford, Christopher Meloni, Jud Tylor, Alan Tudyk, Lucas Black, Jon Bernthal, and Nicole Beharie

Jackie Robinson is one of the most iconic athletes of the 20th century.  It's 2013.  It's been 66 years since Robinson began his historic rookie season with the Brooklyn Dodgers, and we're just getting our first feature film in my lifetime about his incredible journey.  Well, it's about damn time.  Sure, we had the film The Jackie Rob...
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REVIEW: In Evil Dead, the Intervention for Drug Addict Mia Seriously Backfires, and the Evil Book Takes Withdrawal to New, Bloody Lows

Posted by James Brown on Friday, April 5, 2013, In : 0.09% Cocktails 
Evil Dead





Directed By: Fede Alvarez

Starring: Jane Levy, Shiloh Fernandez, Lou Taylor Pucci, Jessica Lucas, and Elizabeth Blackmore

We lost a true legend this week.  Roger Ebert, the man who invented modern film criticism and one whose works I've read for years, has passed away.  He will definitely be missed.  While we'll never get the chance to hear his thoughts on the films of tomorrow, his words are just as relevant today in an era of remakes and adaptations.  This is definitely the case for ...
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REVIEW: Temptation: Confessions Of A Marriage Counselor – If You’ve Seen The Trailer, You’ve Seen The Movie

Posted by SoberFilmChick on Saturday, March 30, 2013, In : 0.12% Hard Liquor 

Temptation: Confessions Of A Marriage Counselor
SoberFilmChick


Directed by: Tyler Perry

Starring:  Jurnee Smollett-Bell, Lance Gross, Robbie Jones, Kim Kardashian, Brandy Norwood, and Vanessa Williams

When I first saw the movie trailer for Temptation: Confessions Of A Marriage Counselor, I thought it revealed too much about the film’s plot.  From the movie preview alone, I could see that the lead character is a woman who is tired of being ignored by her husband. She is tempted by a rich exe...


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REVIEW: Paranormal Activity Spoof A Haunted House Keeps Its Eye on Sex, Not Comedy

Posted by James Brown on Saturday, January 12, 2013, In : 0.12% Hard Liquor 

A Haunted House





Directed By: Michael Tiddes

Starring: Marlon Wayans, Essence Atkins, Cedric the Entertainer, Nick Swardson, David Koechner, and Dave Sheridan

Horror movies are bad enough on their own these days.  There's absolutely no need to make matters worse by making spoofs of these often horrible flicks.  It's absolutely pointless.  The only evidence I need to justify my position is that there is a Scary Movie 5 coming this year.  Nothing more needs to be said to make my case.  However,...


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REVIEW: In the Absolut Madness of Promised Land, Athena Dirties Up the Natural Gas Business

Posted by James Brown on Saturday, December 29, 2012, In : 0.06% Beer or Wine 

Promised Land





Directed By: Gus Van Sant

Starring: Matt Damon, John Krasinki, Frances McDormand, Hal Holbrook, Rosemarie DeWitt, Scoot McNairy, Lucas Black, and Titus Welliver

For all intents and purposes, this year is just about a wrap at movie theaters around the country.  There are no major new releases slated before the new year.  The Hobbit, Les Misérables, and Django Unchained should continue to rock the box office, and I'm willing to bet money on that.  With this in mind, I've decided...


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REVIEW: What You're Fixin' to Get in Bernie is Some Good Old Texas Charm and a Damn Good Comedy

Posted by James Brown on Saturday, May 19, 2012, In : 0.06% Beer or Wine 
Bernie





Directed By: Richard Linklater

Starring: Jack Black, Matthew McConaughey, and Shirley MacLaine

There's nothing quite like a small town, especially in the South.  Everybody is in everyone else's business like it's their job.  The townspeople think they know everything about everyone else.  Because of that, a man's reputation is everything.  Rumors and perception rule these cul de sacs.  Back in the 90s in a little town in East Texas named Carthage, a man named Bernie Tiede enamored the tow...
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REVIEW: Despite the Gender War, Think Like a Man Doesn't Hate the Player. It Just Changes the Game...For the Better

Posted by James Brown on Saturday, April 21, 2012, In : 0.06% Beer or Wine 
Think Like a Man





Directed By: Tim Story

Starring: Michael Ealy, Jay Ferrara, Meagan Good, Regina Hall, Kevin Hart, Taraji P. Henson, Terrence Jenkins, Romany Malco, and Gabrielle Union

Hollywood has decided to make this third weekend in April about love.  At their center, the two films headlining the box office this weekend are love movies.  The Lucky One is the latest romance drama to hit theaters, while Think Like a Man is the new romantic comedy.  Normally, I would say that having two romanti...
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REVIEW: Tyler Perry's Good Deeds – Not Too Bad

Posted by Mary Dieng on Saturday, February 25, 2012, In : 0.06% Beer or Wine 
Good Deeds
Mary Dieng




Directed By: Tyler Perry

Starring: Tyler Perry, Thandie Newton, Brian J. White, Rebecca Romijn, Jamie Kennedy, Phylicia Rashad, and Gabrielle Union

I will confess, I was not excited when I was asked to review Tyler Perry’s new film Good Deeds.  Not that I don’t like Perry (Mr. Brown aside).  At their core, his films tend to be about redemption and the triumph of the human spirit.  They are, however, often predictable, and the trailer for Good Deeds looked like a made-for...
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REVIEW: The Woman in Black Takes Us Way Back

Posted by James Brown on Saturday, February 4, 2012, In : 0.06% Beer or Wine 
The Woman in Black





Directed By: James Watkins

Starring: Daniel Radcliffe, Ciarán Hinds, Janet McTeer, Sophie Stuckey, Liz White, and Alisa Khasanova

Most scary movies these days just don't get the job done.  Ghost stories and old school thrillers have gone out of fashion.  We're left with remakes of 80s slasher flicks like A Nightmare on Elm Street and Friday the 13th that can never quite live up to the originals.  Alternatively, we get unnecessarily gory films that are tantamount to torture po...
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