Malik’s Movie Reviews Past & Present
Very sad and disturbing, but all in an entertaining way. Like the other nominated movies that are ‘based on a true story’, you can Google the real people and get all the broad strokes and facts of this story. The beauty of the dramatization in Foxcatcher is in the deadly three way relationship between the Schultz […]
So…this one’s not for everybody. The newest official Spike Lee Joint, ‘Da Sweet Blood of Jesus’ is actually a remake of ‘Ganja and Hess’, a cult classic blaxploitation flick by Bill Gunn (who gets a writing credit here). Much like the original, this film takes the ‘vampire’ character and uses it as a parable […]
We’re in full film geek season, so I’ll start the week by hyping up my favorite new podcast. While I don’t ‘agree’ with the title, W. Kamau Bell (of Totally Biased) and Kevin Avery came up with a GENIUS concept. Alphabetically, go through the IMdb of Denzel and argue/debate/fawn over why Denzel is one […]
Yikes… That’s a pretty good one word reaction to Gone Girl, right? Trading notes with my male friends, it’s definitely up there with Fatal Attraction and Unfaithful on that ‘Married Man Worst Fear’ list. What can I say without spoiling the film? If you’re a David Fincher fan, I can’t imagine you will be disappointed. I’m reminded again he’s on […]
So what does the genius Christopher Nolan do with his ‘blank check’? He makes a film that’s not quite on the level of 2001: A Space Odyssey. But honestly, what is? Interstellar is epic and ambitious and unique (especially in the current era of filmmaking). The McConnaisance is the headliner of this ‘near future’ tale of […]
Chris Rock’s best film so far. The comparisons to Woody Allen’s most popular films are appropriate for the most part. In this film, Chris plays an ‘alternate version of Chris Rock’: a hugely successful stand up comedian who’s successfully transitioned into mainstream Hollywood stardom. But as ‘Top Five’ starts, ‘Andre Allen’ doesn’t want to […]
She did it. That’s the simple but accurate description of what Ava DuVernay has accomplished with ‘Selma’. The (still criminally) short list of Hollywood backed films about black history, where black characters are actually the centerpiece of the story, has another worthy entry. From the opening sequence which contrasts King’s Nobel Peace Prize winning […]
Let’s start with something I retweeted this morning… Black women directors have been on a roll lately — Wash 👏🏾your 👏🏾hands👏🏾 (@FeministaJones) November 23, 2014 Yes…yes it is. Beyond the Lights brings Gina Prince-Bythewood back to the writer/director chair and it was well worth the wait in my opinion. The pitch is a classic Hollywood […]
First, the macro level: For my generation, we all looked up to Spike (with John and Reggie not far behind). and in those days, it’s fair to say we all had some form of a ‘hero complex.’ Without getting into a much bigger conversation about black leadership in America, what we grew up on […]
Whether you consider Nas too be overrated or one of the best lyricists in hip hop history, Time Is Illmatic is a great documentary that captures a specific moment in hip hop history and how the artist and the album influenced so many who came after it. The story proper begins with Nas’ father, who as […]
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