Recent Stories
'The Big Cigar’ tells the wild story of Huey P. Newton’s fake-movie adventure in Hollywood
Long before “fake news,” “The Big Cigar” looks back to the time of a fake movie – specifically, one designed to provide Black Panther Party founder Huey P. Newton cover to flee America for Cuba. Yet what should be an enticing mashup of the civil-rights movement and Hollywood in the freewheeling ‘70s doesn’t entirely ignite, in a limited series whose underlying true story packs more of wallop than the finished product.
‘3 Body Problem’ should claim the throne as Netflix’s next sci-fi obsession
Series seldom arrive as nicely scaled for long (potentially very long) multi-season runs as “3 Body Problem,” a brainy science-fiction concept from a producing team – “Game of Thrones’” D.B. Weiss and David Benioff – whose last major venture shared similar attributes. Rapidly disgorging secrets, the eight-episode opening salvo effectively plants a hook for many more problems to come.
‘Road House’ bounces along on a wave of nostalgia in updating a guilty pleasure
The original “Road House” has long been the guiltiest of pleasures, a movie that seems to be in a perpetual loop on cable, with Patrick Swayze as the philosopher-bouncer immortalizing lines like “Pain don’t hurt.” A 35-years-later update brings some of that allure to Amazon, with Jake Gyllenhaal as the reluctant warrior toting a bit more baggage, in a film that’s equal parts entertaining, silly and wildly violent (not always in that order).
‘Ghostbusters: Frozen Empire’ sleepwalks through the old neighborhood in a warmed-over sequel
On the plus side, “Ghostbusters: Frozen Empire” doesn’t have to play coy about the inclusion of original cast members 40 years later, after having sought to keep that a surprise with 2021’s “Afterlife.” Yet having them around creates a very busy movie that lacks the emotional hook of its predecessor, while spending too much time on the wrong characters in a way that yields a rather lifeless, chilly affair.
Regina King outshines ‘Shirley,’ a narrow look at a trailblazing political legacy Originally Published: 22 MAR 24 08:00 ET Review by Brian Lowry, CNN (CNN) — Regina King’s spot-on performance as Shirl
Regina King’s spot-on performance as Shirley Chisholm outshines the movie devoted to the political trailblazer in “Shirley,” a laser-focused look at the first Black congresswoman’s 1972 presidential campaign that might have benefited from more biographical detail and less obsessing about amassing delegates.
‘Apples Never Fall’ grows from the twisty roots of a Liane Moriarty mystery
After “Big Little Lies” and “Nine Perfect Strangers,” author Liane Moriarty has graduated to the point where nearly everything she’s put on paper will likely be adapted for the screen, really just boiling down to execution. The latest, “Apples Never Fall,” provides a healthy dollop of “Big Little Lies” energy, thanks in part to an excellent cast headed by Sam Neill and Annette Bening.
‘The Space Race’ brings an out-of-this-world perspective to Black History Month
The annual influx of Black History Month programming yields an out-of-this-world documentary in “The Space Race,” which recognizes pioneers in integrating the space program, the resistance they faced and even the Soviet Union preceding America in sending a person of color into orbit. From the title to the execution, this National Geographic presentation has the right stuff.
‘God Save Texas’ offers three homegrown views of life in Lone Star State
Wedding the deeply personal to the political, “God Save Texas” turns three filmmakers loose on their hometowns, using their memories and current realities to explore the justice system, race and environmentalism through the complex prism of the very conservative Lone Star State. With Lawrence Wright’s book as connective tissue, it’s a pointed look at what director Richard Linklater calls “hometowns and the American consciousness.”
‘Bob Marley: One Love’ plays a bland, family-authorized tune
Despite offering Kingsley Ben-Adir the breakout role that has clearly awaited him, “Bob Marley: One Love” comes across too much as a licensed product, a family-blessed movie that avoids the detail (and potential rough edges) of an actual biopic to focus on one narrow slice of the reggae star’s too-brief life. It’s a dutiful addition to a recent wave of such biographies (see “Rocketman” and “Bohemian Rhapsody”), but a largely uninspired one.
‘The Space Race’ brings an out-of-this-world perspective to Black History Month
The annual influx of Black History Month programming yields an out-of-this-world documentary in “The Space Race,” which recognizes pioneers in integrating the space program, the resistance they faced and even the Soviet Union preceding America in sending a person of color into orbit. From the title to the execution, this National Geographic presentation has the right stuff.
