Review: Bassett And Arquette Can't Save Mother/Son Comedy 'Otherhood'

There are thousands and thousands of books on parenting your baby, toddler, child, and teen, but not really a rulebook for what happens after they grow up. Adult parent/child relationships are complicated and are hard to navigate as parent and child become equals.  As representation in film becomes more diverse, stories of parenting those with and for those diversities will come to the forefront. Otherhood, starring Angela Bassett, Patricia Arquette, and Felicity Huffman, had an opportunity to do that. Instead of telling a nuanced authentic story of mother and son relationships with a black, Jewish, and LGBTQ perspective, what we get is a bunch of stereotypes and Angela Bassett trying her best. 

The plot starts out innocently enough; three mothers (Bassett, Arquette, Huffman) try to reconnect with their adult sons (Sinqua Walls, Jake Hoffman, Jake Lacy, respectively) after feeling abandoned by them. After receiving little more than a single text on Mother’s Day, the mothers collectively decide to ambush their sons in New York City. Arquette’s Gillian won’t leave Hoffman’s Daniel alone about settling down with a nice Jewish girl. Huffman’s Helen can’t help but heave her expectations of what a gay son should be onto Paul (Lacy) and Carol’s (Bassett) unresolved issues with her deceased husband is interfering with her relationship with her own son (Walls). 

None of the characters are likable. Sure, the sons are forgetful, busy living and navigating their own lives, but the film does little to establish the lives of the mothers. Besides a few throwaway lines about Carol working at a retirement home part-time and Gillian teaching piano lessons, there is no indication that any of these mature female character’s have a rich personal life and have an unhealthy obsession with their sons. This would make sense and even work if the film’s resolution had any effect but it doesn’t. The mothers are constantly crossing boundaries, not in a fun way, and the sons seem oblivious to their own disregard and disrespect towards their moms. It is kind of poetic to watch Felicity Huffman play an overbearing mother, constantly overstepping boundaries with her son, considering the actress’s own involvement in the college bribery scandal. However, despite this coincidence and Bassett and Arquette providing decent performances despite what they are given, Otherhood feels tired and overdone.

If Otherhood was made in the 90’s, it might have been at least entertaining, maybe even groundbreaking with its caricature of LGBT representation. Instead it seems trite, the relationships and characters based on troupes and void of any authenticity. 

Rating: 1.5 of out 5

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'Otherhood' Trailer: Angela Bassett, Felicity Huffman, And Patricia Arquette Are Moms In The Big City

Netflix is getting in on the female-driven comedies, following up on Amy Poehler's Wine Country with the new film Otherhood. Considering it comes from the producers of Sex and the City and Bad Moms, you probably have a good idea who the target demo for this is, and maybe that's for you. Maybe it's not. But it's got a cast led by Angela Bassett, Patricia Arquette, and Felicity Huffman, which is reason enough to give it a try.

Otherhood centers on a trio of middle-aged moms who, after being forgotten about on Mother's Day by their grown-up sons, take a road trip to New York to confront them. When they get to the big city these women are forced to confront their own lives and, of course, do some major partying.

Cindy Chupack, an award-nominated writer on Sex and the City, makes her directorial debut and co-wrote the script. Jake Hoffman, Jake Lacy, Sinqua Walls, and Heidi Gardner as co-star.

Here's the synopsis: For empty nesters, what’s the difference between letting your children grow up and letting them grow distant? This year, on Mother’s Day, feeling marginalized and forgotten, longtime friends Carol (Angela Bassett), Gillian (Patricia Arquette) and Helen (Felicity Huffman) decide to drive to New York City to reconnect with their adult sons, and in the process, they realize their sons are not the only ones whose lives need to change. A journey to relate becomes a journey of rediscovery that forces these women to redefine their relationships with their children, friends, spouses and most importantly, themselves.

Otherhood hits Netflix on August 2nd.

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Review: 'Mission Impossible: Fallout' Starring Tom Cruise And Henry Cavill

When it comes to spy franchises Bourne and Bond get all of the credit…but should they? Tom Cruise’s Ethan Hunt and his IMF team(s) have lead us through 6 films in the last 22 years providing some of the most amazing stunt work and action set pieces ever committed to film. Sure, the MI films have been obviously influenced by the two B boys, Bourne and Bond, but if they keep the good pieces of themselves and add in the best pieces of the other guys, wouldn’t that make the IMF team the best of the bunch….you know, scientifically? Mission Impossible: Fallout is more of the same, usually that’s a laurel laid onto less then great movies but if the status quo was awesome, then the same is what you want. This time around we catch up with the latest incarnation of the team, comprised of Ethan (Cruise), Luther (the awesome Ving Rhames), and tech guy turned unlikely field agent Benji (Simon Pegg). Working from a tip they try to recover plutonium that is destined for the hands of The Apostole’s, an off-shoot of previous bad guy anarchist group, The Syndicate. They want to use the material to create three nuculear weapons and use them to tear down the current system and install a New World Order…you now, that old chestnut.  During the intercept Luther is taken hostage and Hunt sacrifices the mission to save Luther’s life, leaving the plutonium on it’s way to the wrong hands. Their only hope is to track down the Apostole’s contact, steal his identify and recover the plutonium. The CIA, miffed that the IMF dropped the ball, sends along their own hulky representative in August Walker (Henry Cavil). It should be obvious that they are not breaking new ground on the story structure of the modern spy/action film, they never really have, but we keep watching them, and here’s why.

Action. Action. Action. The Mission: Impossible franchise, at its core, is the most pure version of the modern popcorn action flick we have. It’s not self-aware, not politically charged with today’s issues, it’s a bunch of guys and gals doing things that look awesome in front of a background of world domination and explosions. Leading the charge as always is 56 year old Tom Cruise, 56, let that sink in. At a time in his life where most men are gearing up for retirement and fly-fishing Cruise is upping the ante and performing stunt work that he didn’t do in his 20’s. I don’t know that Fallout gives us the peak of his work, I think that still belongs to the Burj Khalifa jump he did in Ghost Protocol, but the stunt pieces here certainly go to the top of the list. Two in particular, first being a HALO or High Altitude, Low Opening, skydive…something generally only performed by highly trained special ops types, wherein the jumper leaps from a plane at upwards of 35k feet and lands in a small area. The second, less spectacular but still impressive rock climb on the face of flat cliff. The practical part of me thinks that in a world that we can make Mike Douglass look 25 for Ant-Man we could certainly go with having Cruise’s faced CG’d onto a professional. The other, more adventurous part screams “Carry on my wayward Cruise, do your thing!”. I don’t know how much it adds visually vs using a stuntman but the back knowledge of knowing it’s really him does add something to the feeling you get watching.

Past Cruise and his stunts you have newcomer Henry Cavill and his infamous mustache. Let me just say that it is SO glorious that I totally forgive the truly creepy CG face from Justice League. Cavil is an absolute unit. His character of August Walker brings a true physical presence to the screen, I’m not sure what it is about Cavil but he comes across bigger then Ahnold and Stallone, but with the grace of a Van-Damme…he’s the perfect 80’s action hero. He and Cruise have great on-screen chemistry, which I wish there was more of and while his character isn’t given much of a personality to work with he accomplishes his task and then some. The rest of the cast was just as good, I honestly do not have a bad word to say about anyone. Simon Pegg’s Benji is just as much a delight as all of his characters are, Alec Baldwin as the new IMF boss is a perfect fit and Angela Basset brings the appropriate ferocity to head the CIA side of things. The call backs to previous MI films were also nice to see, namely Michelle Monhaghan returning as Ethan’s estranged wife and a quick reference to the OG MI film’s antagonist, Max.

In terms of what you are looking for in a summer action flick there isn’t much to gripe about. Yes the story is bland and the characters could have been more fleshed out, but what matters is right on point. My issues really come in more with what the franchise is turning into as a whole. Each movie series needs its own gimmick, what sets it apart from the others. Mission: Impossible was always about the spy-craft of it all. Subterfuge, espionage, technology and baddassery all rolled into one. It seems that in their attempts to draw from Bourne and Bond they have forgotten part of what made these films awesome in the first place. The only real gadget that remains is the face copying tech, there isn’t a single other cool gadget in the film. Yes Bond is a place for gadgets but MI always brought stuff that felt like you were seeing behind a curtain at the real CIA, gadgets that were just as jaw-dropping as they were believable. Add to that there’s VERY little subtlety to anything they do and you have a film that feels less like it’s drawing inspiration from it’s competition and more like it’s morphing into a clone. This is a damning condemnation but understand that it’s more of a warning for the future. I don’t think it brings down the movie in entertainment value, but if it continues this way it will result in the franchise becoming a cheap carbon copy that serves as little more than a showcase for crazy stunts.

You’re going to see it…do I even have to tell you to? Mission Impossible: Fallout will deliver everything you are looking for in a summer blockbuster, I honestly don’t think a true action fan could leave the theater feeling less then satisfied. If you’re looking for true to form Mission: Impossible then you might be left wanting more, but even in that case it still delivers enough to be worth the price of admission.

Rating: 4 Out of 5

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Watch Tom Cruise Make An Insane Jump In New 'Mission: Impossible-Fallout' International Trailer

It's funny and kind of disturbing how much the stunt that broke Tom Cruise's foot factors into every trailer for Mission: Impossible-Fallout. And yet here it is again in the new international trailer, kicking things off (no pun intended) as Ethan Hunt makes a dangerous leap from a tall building.

Turns out, Cruise was hurt on what was probably the tamest stunt of all, and if you don't believe that then you haven't seen enough Mission: Impossible movies. Cruise is always upping the ante, and this time he takes part in a crazy HALO (High Altitude Low Open) skydiving sequence that I guarantee you had the insurers sweating bullets.

Here's the synopsis for this the sixth installment of the high-octane franchise:  The best intentions often come back to haunt you. MISSION: IMPOSSIBLE – FALLOUT finds Ethan Hunt (Tom Cruise) and his IMF team, along with some familiar allies in a race against time after a mission gone wrong. 

Directed by Christopher McQuarrie and co-starring Simon Pegg, Henry Cavill, Rebecca Ferguson, Ving Rhames, Vanessa Kirby, Michelle Monaghan, Angela Bassett, and Alec Baldwin, Mission: Impossible-Fallout opens July 27th.

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Tom Cruise Suits Up For Action In New 'Mission: Impossible-Fallout' Trailer

With just two months left before Mission: Impossible-Fallout skydives into theaters, Paramount has released the new full trailer and it's full of the insane stuntwork we've come to expect from Tom Cruise and Co. With the footage debuting at roughly 3am they need that kind of action to keep guys like me awake.

Cruise's pal Christopher McQuarrie returns as director, but you'd never know it based on all the many ways he tried to kill him with some of these stunts. One, a skydiving spectacle over Paris, took over 100 takes and a year's worth of time just to figure out the logistics. Remember Cruise shattered his foot in one such action sequence, which set the film back nearly three months. You can still see that bone-breaking scene in this trailer as Cruise's Ethan Hunt leaps from building to building after some impatient urging by Benji Dunn (Simon Pegg).  Ving Rhames, Alec Baldwin, Rebecca Ferguson, Angela Bassett, Sean Harris, Vanessa Kirby, and Michelle Monaghan co-star, but it's the bruising Henry Cavill who looks like he may be more than a match for Cruise.

Here is the synopsis: The best intentions often come back to haunt you. MISSION: IMPOSSIBLE – FALLOUT finds Ethan Hunt (Tom Cruise) and his IMF team, along with some familiar allies in a race against time after a mission gone wrong.

Mission: Impossible-Fallout opens July 27th.

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Watch Footage Of Tom Cruise Breaking His Ankle In 'Mission: Impossible-Fallout'

Would someone like to let Tom Cruise know that he's 50 and not 30 anymore? Cruise was on The Graham Norton Show, where he revealed that the first trailer for Mission: Impossible-Fallout would debut during the Super Bowl.  Great, so there's a reason to watch the New England Patriots run over the Philadelphia Eagles. But Cruise had something else with him, some actual footage from the movie, and it was enough to have co-star Rebecca Ferguson cowering next to him.

The footage Cruise brought with him is something we have heard about before, because it shows the dangerous stunt that broke the actor's ankle.  The scene also had Simon Pegg and Henry Cavill not really wanting to look, and it's hard to blame them. It's a pretty gruesome shot, shown from multiple angles, and yep, it will be used in the movie. 

Mission: Impossible-Fallout opens July 27th 2018.  Check out a new image of Cavill's mustache and Angela Bassett below, too. 

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International 'Black Panther' Trailer Delivers Some Sick New Footage

Isn't it amazing that ten years since the creation of the Marvel Cinematic Universe we're going to get a 1-2 punch of Black Panther and Avengers: Infinity War? Shouldn't things be quieting down by now? Shouldn't we be getting bored of the superhero movies? But nope, Marvel won't let us and 2018 may be their most exciting year yet. While I'm reluctant to see too much of either of these films before they hit theaters, if the trailers are as good as the new international cut for Black Panther that's okay by me.

I don't know if they can ever hope to beat the first Black Panther teaser for just sheer jaw-dropping awesomeness, but this one comes close. For some reason the Japanese trailers are always better! The best thing about it, and everything we've seen from the film so far, is that it doesn't look like a comic book movie at all. It reminds me of Christopher Priest's incredible run on the comic, which didn't resemble your standard superhero monthly at all. It was part politics, part espionage, part history lesson, and yes, a little bit of beat 'em up action too. I see a little bit of all those things in Ryan Coogler's film and that is worth getting pumped over.

Here's the synopsis:  Marvel Studios’ “Black Panther” follows T’Challa who, after the death of his father, the King of Wakanda, returns home to the isolated, technologically advanced African nation to succeed to the throne and take his rightful place as king. But when a powerful old enemy reappears, T’Challa’s mettle as king—and Black Panther—is tested when he is drawn into a formidable conflict that puts the fate of Wakanda and the entire world at risk. Faced with treachery and danger, the young king must rally his allies and release the full power of Black Panther to defeat his foes and secure the safety of his people and their way of life.

Starring Chadwick Boseman, Michael B. Jordan, Lupita Nyong'o, Danai Gurira, Martin Freeman, Daniel Kaluuya, Andy Serkis, and more, Black Panther opens February 16th 2018.

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New 'Black Panther' Trailer: Bow Down To The King

When people say Black Panther looks like the black event of the year, they aren't kidding around. From the casting to the first trailer to the incredible (and still unreleased) teaser shown at Comic-Con, director Ryan Coogler has embraced the Afrocentricity of the character. He's making a Marvel Universe film, but it's also separate from the others because of its blackness, and dammit that's just friggin' cool.

The latest trailer shows off some intense action, slick gadgets, and that amazing cast led by Chadwick Boseman. In the events following Captain America: Civil War, T'challa finds himself in the midst of a political scandal back at home in Wakanda. His throne is being threatened from all sides, but most promiently by his nemesis, Killmonger, played by Michael B. Jordan. As if Boseman and Jordan in the same movie wasn't enough, it also boasts Forest Whitaker, Danai Gurira, Lupita Nyong'o, Martin Freeman, Daniel Kaluuya, Angela Bassett, Andy Serkis, Sterling K. Brown, and more.

You gotta look quick to spot some of the surprises, but yeah, it looks like there are two Black Panthers running around with Killmonger donning a gold-plated suit of his own. Can February 16th get here already, please?

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Sally Hawkins Returns For 'Godzilla: King Of The Monsters', Angela Bassett Joins 'Mission: Impossible 6'

Turns out Ken Watanabe won't be the only one reprising his Godzilla role for the sequel, Godzilla: King of the Monsters. Sally Hawkins will be back as Dr. Vivienne Graham, and she'll be joined by Game of Thrones' Charles Dance, whose role is unclear. Michael Dougherty has taken over as director with Millie Bobby Brown, Kyle Chandler, Vera Farmiga, O’Shea Jackson Jr. and Aisha Hinds starring. Godzilla: King of the Monsters opens March 22nd 2019. [THR/Deadline]

There will be a new lady in charge in Mission: Impossible 6 as Angela Bassett has joined the cast. She'll play the new CIA director in the film since Alec Baldwin's character got a promotion at the end of Rogue Nation. He'll still be returning, along with Tom Cruise, Rebecca Ferguson, Simon Pegg, Sean Harris, and Ving Rhames, joined by other newcomers Henry Cavill and Vanessa Kirby. MI:6 opens July 27th 2018. [Deadline]

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Angela Bassett Joins Marvel's 'Black Panther' Cast

Y'know, I've been quietly hoping that the already-amazing cast of Marvel's Black Panther would find a way to include Angela Bassett, and they've gone ahead and done it.  I knew they were reading my mind. Deadline reports the veteran actress, who played Amanda Waller in Green Lantern a few years ago, has joined Black Panther as T'Challa's mother, Ramonda.

Bassett joins Chadwick Boseman, Michael B. Jordan, Lupita Nyong'o, Danai Gurira, Forest Whitaker, Winston Duke, Letitia Wright, Daniel Kaluuya, and Florence Kasumba in the film directed by Creed's Ryan Coogler. It's unclear how big of a role she'll have given the size of the ensemble, but even a small role by Bassett has the potential to have a lot of impact. In the comics, Ramonda was T'Challa's stepmother, having stepped in to take care of him when his birth mother died in childbirth. She was rarely around during his childhood, though, having been kidnapped and held captive for years while T'Challa thought she had run away.

Bassett was just seen reprising her role in the sixth season of American Horror Story, and came back for London Has Fallen earlier this year. Black Panther opens February 16th 2018.

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Review: 'London Has Fallen' Starring Gerard Butler, Aaron Eckhart, And Morgan Freeman

This will come as a surprise to absolutely no one, but there aren't any shades of grey in London has Fallen; not an ounce of nuance anywhere. A sequel to 2013's surprise action hit, Olympus has Fallen, the film is an action-packed bloodbath more jingoistic than the last. The bad guys are more plainly evil than ever, and America unquestionably on the side of what's right. But those turning up to watch Gerard Butler mow down scores of foreign terrorists didn't pay for subtlety, anyway, so why fix what clearly hasn't been blown up?

With prior director Antoine Fuqua having moved on to detonate stuff elsewhere, the directing duties fall on Swedish helmer Babak Najafi (Easy Money 2), who adds a few flourishes to the steady barrage of bullets and broken bodies. Undeniably a throwback to the action movies of the '80s (Why hasn't John McTiernan directed one of these yet?), London has Fallen sees the bad guys stepping up their game, moving on from blowing up the White House to destroying all of London. Butler is back as Secret Service agent Mike Banning, but now he's facing a threat bigger than another terrorist attack: fatherhood. Banning and his wife (Radha Mitchell, relegated to the sidelines again) are expecting their first child (Banning demands a bulletproof crib, naturally) and he intends to retire from active duty for a job much safer. Naturally, he doesn't get the chance when chummy President  Benjamin Asher (Aaron Eckhart) is called to London to attend a funeral for the British Prime Minister, who died suddenly. Think it goes smoothly? Then maybe a tutorial on "Action Movies 101" is in order, because of course it doesn't.

For a film that somehow has four writers credited, much isn't put up for debate. The story actually begins a couple of years earlier as arms dealer Aamir Barkawi (Alon Moni Aboutboul) is the target of a U.S.-sanctioned drone strike. The attack doesn't kill him, but it kills his family and friends who were attending his daughter's wedding. Was this attack justified in any way? You think London has Fallen takes time to debate the morality of such things? Barkawi is a bad guy, that's enough.  Years later, Barkawi gets his revenge big time as the funeral is a perfectly orchestrated trap. Even the Queen's guard are in on the plot, brandishing assault weapons and killing the German chancellor right on the street. Explosions decimate London's greatest landmarks as other world leaders in attendance are picked off with ease. The attack is devastating beyond description, the carnage incalculable; yet not quite on the level of the interminably long White House attack from the first movie.

Of course Banning manages to save the President's life, because ultimately he's an indestructible caveman, built on pure American swagger. Butler is much better suited to roles like this, delivering snappy one-liners full of four-letter words and dripping with sarcasm, than any of the terrible romantic comedies he's attempted over the years. Whatever one thinks of Butler, when he's savagely sending his foreign foes to "Fuckhead-istan" it's hard not to hoot for the ass-kicking he's delivering, all in the name of keeping America safe. The film gathers one of the year's best ensembles, Morgan Freeman, Angela Bassett, Melissa Leo, Jackie Earle Haley, and Robert Forster, to sit around in a command center doing an awful lot of nothing. The same goes for new addition Charlotte Riley as an MI-6 agent Banning turns to for help. At first it seems she's going to be a welcome dose of estrogen-fueled badassery, but ultimately she's forgotten for long stretches as Banning racks up an epic body count.

Yeah, it's simplistic, politically incorrect, and more than a little dumb if thought about too much (or even a little), but these kinds of action movies are like a window into a time when this genre was Hollywood's most popular. Things have changed considerably since then. London has Fallen will undoubtedly offend some with its archaic politics and blatant stereotypes, but it's hard not to smile when Banning, in full Schwarzenegger mode, yells "Get to the chopper"! Those who get the reference are who the film is meant for, and if they're lucky London won't be the last place that has fallen and needs saving. 

Rating: 3 out of 5

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Review: Spike Lee's 'Chi-Raq' Starring Nick Cannon, Teyonah Parris, and Samuel L. Jackson

The next time someone uses 25th Hour as an example of how great Spike Lee has been, please remind them that was 2002.  And while that film remains a vital, dramatic look at post-9/11 America it is also the last time Lee has done anything of real cultural significance as a feature. Films such as Red Hook Summer and She Hate Me have tried, but were either too corny or too preachy to be effective, while Lee's for-hire work has also suffered. Lee has courted a ton of controversy for his latest effort, Chi-Raq, and it's in that controversy that Lee has regained the fire and passion that spurred his early career. Despite a tone that wobbles out of balance on occasion, it works as a stinging indictment of the gun culture and corrupt law enforcement system that plague this country. Something got Lee real mad, and when he's mad he's real good. 

Forget all of the Chicagoans who haven't seen the movie yet still feel the need to complain; Chi-Raq doesn't minimize the Windy City's gang violence problem. Using music, satire, and dashes of broad comedy, Lee and writer Kevin Willmott make an impassioned plea for societal and cultural change. And no, it doesn't excuse African-Americans for the part they have to play, but calls on them to take responsibility as shepherds of that change. The way it makes these points is inconsistent, but the message holds firm throughout.

Based on Aristophanes' Greek comedy "Lysistrata", the film draws greater inspiration from Liberian activist Leymah Roberta Gbowee, who encouraged women to withhold sex from their men in order to bring about peace. Teyonah Parris (seen recently in Dear White People) play Lysistrata, a sexy and curvy Chi-Town girl dating a local rap thug meaningfully-named Chi-Raq (Nick Cannon) because of his gang ties and penchant for gun violence. Lysistrata doesn't care about any of that; she's too far in lust to see anything beyond what's immediately in front of her. But after her man becomes the target of a rival gang (led by a wonky eyepatched Wesley Snipes) and the young daughter of a nearby mother (Jennifer Hudson) is gunned down in the crossfire, Lysistrata begins to wake up. With the encouragement of a stoic neighbor (Angela Bassett) she rallies the women with a cry of "No peace, no piece", to deny their men sexual pleasure until the violence stops.

"In the style of time, 'Stophanes made that shit RHYME!", shouts a jubilant Samuel L. Jackson as Dolomedes, our flamboyant guide/Greek chorus through. The screenplay does indeed use rhyming verse throughout, and initially it proves problematic in establishing a firm perspective because it's so distracting and out-of-place in the gritty, blood-soaked streets of Chicago. But it also adds a certain fairy tale quality that bolsters the film's ironic nature. That said; Chi-Raq is best when it sets aside the obvious attempts at humor and goes straight for the gut. John Cusack shows more fire than he has in years as Reverend Mike Corridan (based on a real-life person), who delivers a searing plea to the people of Chicago to hold their politicians and the legal system accountable. Not just about gun violence, the film encompasses a number of hot-button issues such as the for-profit prison system, police violence, and corrupt politicians. The #BlackLivesMatter movement is referenced repeatedly, and so is culturally-ignorant Presidential candidate Ben Carson who would rather blame his own people than deal with issues substantively. Often backed by Cannon's powerful anthem, "Pray 4 My City", Chi-Raq has an urgency and immediacy that Lee's films have lacked for far too long.

Interestingly, it's when dealing with the subject of sexual power that the film loses its way. Lysistrata is an intensely sexual figure and knows it, flaunting that power in the faces of horny and pig-headed men who challenge her. This includes an inept military, with Lysistrata seducing an aging, racist general one of the film's weirdest and least necessary turns. It also includes a men's club of chauvinists (led by the underrated Steve Harris) who come across as oversexed frat boys rather than enlightened challengers to the ladies' plot. There's no ideological counter to what the women are doing; everyone on the opposing side are presented as idiots, which may be what Lee and Willmott were going for but it does them no good in making a well-rounded case. And that is what Chi-Raq is aiming to do, when all is said and done. Tying sex and violence together through humor is an ambitious task that the film never quite pulls together. 

With everybody from Isiah Whitlock Jr. (delivering his infamous "Shiiiiittttt" to overlong effect), Roger Guenveur Smith, Harry Lennix, Dave Chappelle, La La Anthony, and D.B. Sweeney making appearances. Lee has emptied out his Rolodex in putting together one of his largest ensembles yet. But it's Teyonah Parris and a surprisingly effective Nick Cannon who stand tall throughout, navigating the film's many narrative shifts effortlessly. While it may be necessary to keep Lee's recent filmography in mind when putting Chi-Raq in proper context, it's the most obvious proof that the director is inching his way back into top form. 

Rating: 3 out of 5

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New Trailer for Spike Lee's 'Chi-Raq' Locks It Up

Spike Lee is going back to his roots in more ways than one with Chi-Raq, his controversial (to those who haven't seen it) film tackling the issue of gun violence, not just in Chicago but across the country. While the subject is a tough one and fully in Lee's wheelhouse, the satirical approach he takes is similar to what he pulled off with Bamboozled. While there are sobering, hard-hitting moments, Lee often uses humor and music to get his point across, and you can see elements of that in the latest trailer.

Starring Nick Cannon, Teyonah Parris, Wesley Snipes, Jennifer Hudson, D.B. Sweeney, Harry Lennix, Steve Harris, Angela Bassett, John Cusack and some hilarious narration by Samuel L. Jackson, the film is partially based on the Greek comedy Lysistrata. But it also draws inspiration from Liberian activist Leymah Roberta Gbowee, who encouraged women to go on a sex strike to help facilitate peace.

Chi-Raq is Amazon Studios' first major release and opens December 4th.

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New Trailer for 'London Has Fallen' Serves Up Tea and Bullets

When two similar movies are released around the same time, generally only one can survive. That was certainly the case a couple of years ago when Olympus Has Fallen and White House Down went toe-to-toe, both films centering on a special agent who risked his life to stop a terrorist attack against the President. The surprise was that the less starry film won out, and now the sequel, London Has Fallen, is ready to go guns blazing.

This time around, Gerard Butler's heroic Secret Service agent Mike Banning is across the pond where the British Prime Minister has died mysteriously, and a plot to kill all of the world's top leaders has been revealed. Perhaps someone should start investigating Banning since trouble seems to follow him around?  Banning will get some actual help from President Asher (Aaron Eckhart) this time; not that he really needs it.

The original cast of Morgan Freeman, Angela Bassett, Melissa Leo, Radha Mitchell, and Robert Forster are back, along with Jackie Earle Haley, Charlotte Riley, Sean O'Bryan, and more.  Antoine Fuqua has replaced behind the camera by Babak Najafi, but it would be impossible to tell the difference.

London Has Fallen opens March 4th 2016.

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Spike Lee Takes On Gang Violence in First Trailer for 'Chi-Raq'

It's been a lot of years since Spike Lee has had a film that was relevant to the awards season. Could that be about to change? Lee has partnered with Amazon Studios for his latest film, Chi-Raq, which has already stirred up some controversy between the director and Chicago mayor Rahm Emanuel. But in a surprise move, the film will be getting a theatrical release courtesy of Roadside Attractions and Lionsgate, and an even bigger surprise is that it will be this year, which is why the first trailer is here now.

Starring Samuel L. Jackson, Nick Cannon, Wesley Snipes, Jennifer Hudson, Teyonah Parris, D.B. Sweeney, Harry Lennix, Steve Harris, Angela Bassett, and John Cusack, the film is a modernization of Aristophanes' Greek play “Lysistrata”, in which the women held back sex to stop the men from their warring ways. Lee has tweaked the plot to center on Chicago's skyrocketing murder rate. Here's the synopsis:

Chi-Raq is a modern day adaptation of the ancient Greek play “Lysistrata” by Aristophanes. After the murder of a Child by a stray bullet, a group of women led by Lysistrata organize against the on-going violence in Chicago’s Southside creating a movement that challenges the nature of race, sex and violence in America and around the world.

Hard-hitting social commentary has always been where Lee is best, and this trailer looks like it could find him back in form. However, the same could have been said for some of his previous efforts that missed the mark, so we'll just have to wait and see. Chi-Raq hits theaters and Amazon Prime on December 4th.

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Spike Lee's Amazon Film 'Chi-Raq' to get Oscar-Qualifying Run in December

Netflix won't be the only streaming service looking to score an Oscar later this year. Amazon is looking to get in the game as well, and they're banking on Spike Lee's Chi-Raq to be the film that brings home the gold.

After months of speculation, Amazon has officially picked up the Chicago-based film and will release it in December for an Oscar-qualifying run. With the announcement comes confirmation of the cast, and sadly no it doesn't include Kanye West in any capacity. Based on the Greek play, Lysistrata, the film stars Teyonah Parris (Dear White People) as a woman who goes on a sex strike to protest black-on-black gun violence. The original story had the woman convincing other females to join her in that protest, causing friction between the genders. The rest of the cast consists of the previously revealed Samuel L. Jackson, Jennifer Hudson, John Cusack, D.B. Sweeney, Wesley Snipes, and Nick Cannon, along with Harry Lennix, Steve Harris, and Angela Bassett. Dave Chapelle, confirmed by Lee just last month, isn't mentioned in THR's report so maybe he'll just have a small cameo.

After its theatrical run Amazon will move the film over to Amazin Prime in 2016.

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First Trailer for 'London Has Fallen' Takes the Action Across the Pond

In 2013 a pair of rival action flicks about attacks on the White House hit theaters fairly close to one another. The first was Olympus Has Fallen, directed by Antoine Fuqua and led by Gerard Butler. The second, and seemingly more viable as a franchise was White House Down with Channing Tatum and Jamie Foxx. While the latter film made more money overall, it was the former that performed considerably better here in the U.S. and cost less, which is why we're getting a sequel in London Has Fallen. And if the barely-changed title tells you to expect more of the same, the first trailer is here to prove it.

Save for incoming director Babak Najafi, pretty much everybody involved with the first film is back for another bloody, explosive battle between the good guys (the U.S. naturally) and foreign terrorists, only this time it takes place across the pond. Butler returns as Secret Service Agent Mike Banning alongside President Asher (Aaron Eckhart) who must stop a deadly plot to kill the world's most powerful leaders, unleashed during the funeral for the British Prime Minister.

So if you dug the first film and its "Die Hard in the White House" vibe, then London Has Fallen looks to provide more of that, only on a much bigger platform. Look for it to hit theaters on January 22nd 2016.


Premier trailer : London Has Fallen avec Gerard Butler (VO) by Filmosphere

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First Trailer for Angela Bassett's Whitney Houston Biopic isn't So Bad

The words "Lifetime Original Movie" come with a certain low level of expectation, or at least they should. There have been enough terrible biopics aired by the network that viewers should know what they are in for. And yet, as we saw in the recent case of the film on late R&B singer, Aaliyah, her fans thought it would...well, not be the total piece of crap it turned out to be. Clearly they haven't been paying attention. So there has been just as much concern over Lifetime's upcoming film on Whitney Houston for a number of reasons, but now that the first trailer has arrived it doesn't look all that bad.

Simply titled Whitney, the film has rising star Yaya DaCosta in the title role, and she's one of the reasons for optimism. She doesn't look like Whitney Houston, then again she doesn't have to, but her performance does appear to be a confident, strong one. The singing, of which there does seem to be plenty, is performed by Deborah Cox. Arlen Escarpeta stars as Whitney's husband, Bobby Brown, with the film centering on their troubled relationship. Houston's friend and Waiting to Exhale co-star, Angela Bassett, is making her directorial debut and she doesn't seem to be pulling any punches, which may be why the singer's family isn't happy about it. They should be happy she isn't out to make some sensationalist piece of crap like some other directors would have.

Whitney will air on Lifetime January 17th.

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Yaya DaCosta Alafia is Whitney Houston in Angela Bassett's Biopic

When Angela Bassett decided to make her directorial debut on a biopic of her late friend and Waiting to Exhale co-star, Whitney Houston, it made perfect sense that someone close to the singer would do it. The only question was if she would find an actress talented enough to fill Houston's shoes and meet what are probably Bassett's lofty expectations. But the search didn't last all that long as model/actress Yaya DaCosta Alafia is Bassett's choice to play Houston.

Yaya, who got her start on America's Next Top Model before making the move to acting in 2005, will star in the Lifetime Original Movie currently titled Whitney Houston. Yaya has been building up her resume quite nicely over the years, appearing opposite Mark Ruffalo in The Kids Are All Right, while also securing roles in Tron: Legacy, Mother of George, and Lee Daniels' The Butler. She'll be seen next in Rob Reiner's And So It Goes starring Michael Douglas and Diane Keaton.

The film is penned by  Shem Bitterman and Larry Sanitsky (both of Lifetime's Betty & Coretta) and will cover Houston's tumultuous relationship with Bobby Brown and the early successes of her career. Houston met Brown in 1989 when she was 26 years old and at the beginnings of her amazing career, which was threatened by her volatile marriage three years later.

Still no word on who will play Brown in what promises to be an extremely showy role, like Laurence Fishburne in What's Love Got To Do With It showy. This could be a star-making turn for Yaya, one that earns her Emmy nominations and greater attention from Hollywood.

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Angela Bassett to Make Directorial Debut on Lifetime's 'Whitney Houston' Biopic

If there's a perfect choice to direct a film based on the tumultuous life of Whitney Houston, it may be Angela Bassett. The actress was close friends with Houston, co-starring with her in Waiting to Exhale, and they had a relationship that went beyond just the movie. And Lifetime apparently agrees because they've just set Bassett to helm their upcoming Whitney Houston biopic.

Bassett will make her directorial debut on the network's original film, which will center on the rocky, comedic, and self-destructive relationship she had with fellow performer, Bobby Brown. Shem Bitterman (Betty & Coretta) wrote the script that will chart their first meeting when they were both at a career pinnacle, through to their troubled marriage and her time as a model, actress, and singer. No word on who will play Houston, or if Bassett is considering the role herself. Says Bassett on the project...

“I have such regard for both Whitney’s and Bobby’s amazing talents and accomplishments, and I feel a responsibility in the telling of their story. Their humanity and bond fascinates us all.”

Unfortunately, what most people will remember them for is the drug use, reports of abuse, and of course the humiliating reality show they were a part of that exposed their troubles to the world. Hopefully Bassett can help turn perceptions of them around a little bit. Lifetime plans to air the film in 2015. [Deadline]

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