Hearing Whitney Houston (even under the guise of playing a role) refer to her life as a “cautionary tale” is more than enough to give someone chills. It’s the most striking thing about the trailer to the singer/actress’s last role, in a remake of the 1976 cult classic “Sparkle.” The trailer premiered yesterday morning. The original film co-starred Irene Cara and Philip Michael Thomas, among others. This revision stars former “American Idol” champ Jordin Sparks, Derek Luke, and Cee-Lo Green, […]
movies
Spin Cycle: “The Hunger Games” Original Soundtrack
It’s the #1 soundtrack to the #1 movie in the land! Taylor Swift! Maroon 5! Kid Cudi! Check out what Brittany has to say about the “Hunger Games” soundtrack!
Pass the Popcorn: “Everyday Sunshine: The Story of Fishbone”
Documentaries that chronicle the rise, triumph, and inevitable fall from grace – and redemptive coda, if one is available – of an influential artist are often tricky propositions: VH1’s “Behind the Music” series pretty much cornered the market on this plotline early on, and subsequent efforts to subvert the formula either need to be either particularly innovative in style or to boast an interesting enough story to distinguish themselves. Take last year’s Pearl Jam Twenty, for example: an exemplary documentary, […]
The Viewfinder: “MIB 3” Trailer Round 2 – Holy Shiz-Nit!
When the teaser for vaguely anticipated threequel Men in Black 3 hit the web in December, I was… less than pleased . Little of what made the 1997 sci-fi/comedy cult classic (and very select parts of the 2002 sequel) so great – the chemistry between Will Smith and Tommy Lee Jones and a colorful supporting cast – was present in the teaser. If anything, the clip acted as a fearsome reminder of what another lauded fantasy/comedy franchise might look like were it to get to a third installment . What more can […]
Pass The Popcorn: How to Fund a Time Machine
Jay Cheel, director of “ Beauty Day ,” wants your money. Why should you fork over your hard-earned money to help this relatively unknown Canadian filmmaker fund a documentary based off an allegedly elaborate hoax about time travel? Well, if that intriguing rhetorical question didn’t do anything for you, take a quick gander at this Doc Ignite trailer for “How to Build a Time Machine“… Crowd funding is an interesting concept. It’s been all the rage as of late, with Tim Schafer’s Double Fine Productions raising over 600K in under 24 hours via KickStarter […]
Pass the Popcorn: “The Woman in Black”
A small part of me feels sorry for Daniel Radcliffe (at least as sorry as I can be for someone who, at nearly three years my junior, has already made more money than I will ever see). After starring in the monolithic Harry Potter series for a whole decade, it’s hard to imagine he’ll ever be able to break free from that iconic role. So when trailers began appearing for the new film The Woman in Black, I think everyone’s […]
Pass The Popcorn: The Found Footage Debate
“ Chronicle ” made 22 million last weekend in the U.S. domestic box office. That’s not bad considering it’s a film cast with relatively unknown actors and for a film released in the dead season of February. This is far more impressive when considering it cost only 12 million to produce the film. How did such a film get away with such a small budget and still bring in a large audience on its opening weekend? The answer can most likely […]
Pass The Popcorn: “Safe House”
Denzel Washington plays the bad guy once again in “Safe House.” Is this movie as good as “Training Day,” the movie that won Denzel his second Oscar? Check out our review.
Pass The Popcorn: “The Amazing Spider-Man” Trailer
Although my favorite super hero of all time will always be The Hulk, Spider-Man has always been where my heart is. He’s not rich playboy or a scientist or a God. The lure of Peter Parker is that he’s just an ordinary kid who had something extraordinary happen to him. Don’t we all wish that was our origin story sometimes? Anywho, billed as “The Untold Story”, The Amazing Spider-Man (Out July 3rd) looks to have some new twists and turns […]
A Much-Needed History Lesson: “Nice & Rough: Black Women In Rock”
I urge you to follow the Black Rock Coalition’s Facebook page . Not only is it important for us to preserve and extend our legacy, but they put together and promote some pretty cool stuff. Case in point… My buddy David Middleton often bemoans the lack of black female rock singers in contemporary music. The modern-day music industry has become so ingrained in formula that the thought of a sista belting to rock seems almost laughable, despite the fact that blues singers […]
Pass The Popcorn: Oscar Nominations (Pomp & Predictability)
It’s Oscar nomination time. Blake sizes up the choices, some of which are surprising, many of which are predictable.
Pass The Popcorn: Base Humor & the Decline of the R-Rated Comedy
2011 was not a good year for comedy. Arguably the best comedy of the year, “ Bridesmaids ” was, at its best, an adequate The Hangover -esque comedy for women and, at its worst, an unnecessarily long and meandering plot with a funny diarrhea scene somewhere in the middle (fecal-spoiler). The R-Rated comedy has had a checkered past, but now that the Judd Apatow-Renaissance is upon us (“ The 40 Year Old Virgin ,” “ Knocked Up “), the theater audience has been treated with some good and often great […]
