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Divertimento exemplifies art imitating life < Back Divertimento exemplifies art imitating life Amitice, 2020 31 minutes Director/Writer: Keyvan Sheikhalishahi Reading Time: 4 minutes 📷 : Used with permission, Amitice Divertimento Quiet Desperation Part 2 (4Y0FZPSB3YVBEXKX) 00:00 / 04:44 Ginseng Suspenseful and intense thrillers Coca Movies and TV shows about drugs or with disorienting presentations Reba Chaisson 2023-07-20 Unlike the video games from the early ‘90s, recent releases of games played on sophisticated, high tech, and dare I say high-cost platforms, contain more lifelike animations of artificial blood and guts than their predecessors. The characters aren’t real. But while research does not show that such games influence violent behavior, it does suggest that regular play of such games makes players less bothered by “violent or distressing images.” The burning question, then, is can games go too far in imitating real life? Keyvan Sheikhalishahi broaches this question in his 31-minute short, Divertimento , a story centered on the no-tech game of chess and solving a murder. Divertimento stars Kellan Lutz ( The Guardians of Justice (Will Save You) , The Twilight Saga - Breaking Down ) as Jonas Olsen, an uber-wealthy 40-something, who finds Cathy on a dark dirt road one night while riding in the back of his Rolls Royce. Played by Torry Devitto ( Chicago Med , Pretty Little Liars ), Cathy is well-dressed but disoriented and clueless about how she got there. Both, though, received invitations from Divertimento, a mysterious group, to join them at a castle to participate in a game to solve a murder. Jonas gets Cathy in the car, and they continue on the road to the event. The film opens ominously in the middle of a dark and eerie castle in France with about 30 “guests and souls.” All present at the event are serious and wealthy individuals in formal attire, who seemingly come together each year to challenge each other at chess. The women intently watch in support of their husbands as they compete against each other. In another instance of art imitating life, the scene reinforces the view of women as ardent supporters of their men, and of chess as a male-dominated activity . There is no dance or music at this gathering, only the occasional comment from an observer, making the space quiet, which allows for centering the chess match as the focal point. This is despite the invitation to spend the night playing a game to solve the killer of one of the guests. Divertimento feels like a play with the dark ambience of an Agatha Christie novel, combined with the disorienting sense of the 2010 movie, Inception , starring Leonardo DiCaprio. Divertimento gradually pulls us from a story about a game of murder into the center of a high stakes chess game, and back again. The whiplash mystifies us, as we get settled into one storyline only to have it shift to another. What we come to realize is that the chess pieces are representations of the members of the group, and that the fate of the guests is tied to the moves made by the game’s players. For members of Divertimento, chess, then, is a game that costs lives. Since we have become invested in Jonas, we feel as if we have a stake in him winning his match, particularly since he has promised his wife that it will be his last time attending the group’s annual soiree on their wedding anniversary. He tells her that he wants to beat Gustav again, insisting, “Just one more game of chess and it’ll be over.” When the outcome is not what Jonas planned, he accuses Gustav, played by Ola Rapace ( Skyfall , Valerian and the City of a Thousand Planets ), of cheating. The normally tamed gathering is disrupted by Jonas’s break in convention, inadvertently leading to tragic events. But should a game ever go this far? What’s beautiful about Divertimento is it leaves us to ponder this question for ourselves. Most short films consist of a very small cast, typically no more than five actors. And the stories often serve as teasers for feature films or television series. While Divertimento has the makings for a feature film, it is a complete story with a cast of more than 30 people. Its shortcoming is its lack of racial/ethnic diversity, which speaks to the tendencies of wealthy people to gravitate to those who look like them and share their passions and perspectives on a range of matters – including competitive chess. For broader appeal, the film could have benefited from a more diverse cast. Nonetheless, Divertimento is intriguing as its mystique, darkness, and silence pulls us into the story, as if we are being invited to be a part of the games. If you think you can handle perplexity and the intense feeling of high stakes, go for it. But try to stay upright as you do! Previous Next Sign-up for new reviews, exclusives, deep dives, and more First name Last name Enter your email here I agree to the terms & conditions Sign-up Thanks for joining us!

< Back Mr. Church sheds a light on what it means to be ‘family’ Cinelou Films, 2016 104 minutes Director/Writer: Bruce Beresford / Susan McMartin Reading Time: 7 minutes Mr. Church Lucky Me (TMVRAXX2NLYNIIVD) 00:00 / 07:45 📷 : Licensed from Adobe Stock Jasmine: Movies and TV shows with heart, positive vibes, and warm messages Sage: Movies and TV shows with low-key characters Reba Chaisson 2021-07-25 Sometimes Hollywood can shoot itself in the foot with genre categories. Perhaps because this film stars Eddie Murphy, Mr. Church is classified partly as a comedy despite being a purely dramatic story based on the writer’s own life, growing up in sunny Los Angeles. Set in the 1970s, the film depicts what was to be a short-lived working arrangement between a chef and McMartin’s family that blossomed into a long-term and meaningful relationship. Mr. Church is a little-known movie starring Eddie Murphy as the title character, in which he plays the reserved, personal chef of a young girl named, Charlie, played by Brit Robertson ( Under the Dome , Big Sky ) and her mother, Marie, played by Natascha McElhone ( Designated Survivor , Ronin ). Mr. Church reads literature, and he cooks with olive oil, cumin and arrowroot while enjoying the sounds of big band jazz music on the turntable. In addition to the 1970s backdrop of bus shelters, vintage public transportation, and the clothing of the day, Marie’s modest two-bedroom apartment is bathed in soft natural lighting that occasionally shines brightly through the windows, contrasting with the dark wood entryways and doors. This gives a cozy and simple family feel to the home that makes it inviting, almost as if Mr. Church was being welcomed into the space as a member of the family. Boundaries matter to Mr. Church though. While he makes subtle efforts at the outset to endear himself to the little girl who begrudgingly lets him cook for her and her mother, he makes it clear that his personal life is off-limits as her curiosity increases about who he is and where he goes when he is elsewhere. In response to her probes, he impatiently shouts, “You have me from morning to night. And what I do when I leave here is my time.” Interestingly, this adds intrigue to this aspect of the story and keeps the audience wondering as well: just who is Mr. Church? Where does he go and what does he do when he is not cooking for the family? These boundaries are typical of family boundaries. Indeed, the film’s feel and subject matter bring to mind another little-known work called, Under One Roof . Airing in 1995, the short-lived, weekly television series starred James Earl Jones, Vanessa Bell Calloway, and Joe Morton, in a story about three generations living under one roof in their two-story Seattle apartment building. The show contained tough conversations, gentle moments, and even heart-to-heart talks with a teenage foster son, Marcus, played by the late Merlin Santana, who struggled to adjust to being a part of the loving family of seven. It featured family meals together where kids wanted to sit next to their favorite people. It included a teenage daughter, coincidentally named “Charlie,” who had to be put in her place on occasion, as her mom reprimanded, “Don’t you walk away from me while I’m talking to you or you’ll be really buggin’.” And finally a husband insisting that his wife not feel guilty for going back to school and completing her degree: “Doing something for yourself doesn’t mean that you’re being selfish.” Not just limited to shared genes, a family’s binding elements include boundaries, checks, and balances. As with Mr. Church, Marcus is not related by blood in Under One Roof , but his range of interactions with family members signals yet one more connection to what becomes a long-held family bond. While unrealistic that a Black chef in a predominantly White, lower middle-class neighborhood would not have encountered some microaggressions while riding the bus or shopping for groceries, I was pleased by the absence of such scenes because of its bliss. Apparently, the filmmakers saw little need to interject language and sentiments of race into the film, likely because the exchanges would have detracted from the purity of the story itself. It begs the question, though, if a story should be presented with complete and accurate historical context, or if filmmakers have tacit permission to strip away extraneous but ugly information that can add noise to the film and disrupt its themes. The approach depends on what the filmmakers want to convey. Mr. Church is a story about family rather than history, revolution, or social transformation. Does the fact that the Black Power Movement and news around the Patty Hearst kidnapping are also occurring in California at the time mean that these events should be weaved into the film to keep the story authentic? Even though this would extinguish my bliss, I would argue that not doing so to some extent is problematic given the tumult of the period and the shared location—even if the scenes were limited to a passing television news report or the headline of a local paper lying around on a table. This would be sufficient to get a sense of the story’s context and provide some insight into Mr. Church’s thoughts and experiences. With these additional images, Mr. Church would not just be a man the audience admires because of what it sees, but he could also be a man the audience understands because of some of the experiences he lives and that continue to shape him. This is the depth missing from the depiction of Mr. Church that could have been filled not necessarily with lines, but with context. Perhaps though, containing the film’s scope to the relationship among the characters is fair. But even this falls a bit short. The story is heavily narrated by Charlie, who offers candid observations about Mr. Church: “I never once saw Mr. Church use a measuring tool, just his hand, fork and knife.” She even reveals resentments of her mother: “[Mr. Church and I] each had our duties. … My one and only job was to bathe Momma–and I hated it.” However, Charlie reveals very little about her social life. When she goes off to college and returns home for a break, the audience learns very little about her time on campus, which was the site of a great deal of social activism. What was life on campus like for her? Surely Mr. Church’s interest in jazz suggested a strong interest in Black culture. How can Charlie’s campus experiences not be shared with the person close to her, and whose life was likely affected by the social issues of the day? The absence of conversation creates a bit of a chasm in the story and disrupts much of its continuity–though, to be fair, not so much that it detracts from the story about the ties that bind. At a point in the film, Charlie says about Mr. Church, “People act strange around death. There are those who talk about everything but the person who died. There are those who only talk about the person who died. … And then there are those who say nothing at all–because they don’t have to.” Maybe this is the message the filmmakers seek to convey. While political and social climates typically serve as backdrops for film, stories such as this one about family are, or at least can be at times, insular. Respecting boundaries, saying nothing or very little at all, can convey volumes about what people mean to one another. Hmmm, sounds like family bonding. 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Fight Night: The Million Dollar Heist makes us reprioritize the gift of respect < Back Fight Night: The Million Dollar Heist makes us reprioritize the gift of respect Hartbeat Productions, 2024 50 minutes Creator: Shaye Ogbonna Reading Time: 9 minutes 📷 : Used with permission, Geoffrey Riccio http://www.riccioproductions.com/ Fight Night: The Million Dollar Heist Tell Dem 00:00 / 10:53 Barley Movies and TV shows with a lot of dialog Matcha Mysteries or whodunnits Reba Chaisson 2024-10-11 Years ago, I heard a caller on the radio say that sometimes we advocate for the wrong things. The context was R. Kelly’s arrest or trial, and some people were screaming injustice and others insisting he should be thrown in jail (Crickets on this issue now since the numerous documentaries.). I think about this because at times we misplace our priorities and afford respect to things probably best left unacknowledged. Shaye Ogbonna’s 8-episode series, Fight Night: The Million Dollar Heist , helps us to see this a bit more clearly. Based on a true story, Fight Night takes us back to 1970 when big afros and processed hair were popular at the same time, and the look wasn’t complete without plaid wool suits, platform shoes, and fake fur coats. Some of the coolest guys, or those who thought they were the coolest, added a cane for style. In the series, we even hear the ringing of landline telephones and catch visuals in restaurants and bars with coin-operated payphones. The all-star cast includes Kevin Hart as Gordon “Chicken Man” Williams, an individual who claims to know Atlanta “better than anybody.” Together with his business partner Vivian Thomas, played by Taraji P. Henson, Chicken Man hustles his numbers game to a trusted set of repeat customers and shops his party-throwing know-how to big-timers who visit the city, with its now growing Black population. Such big-time visitors include Samuel L. Jackson as Frank Moten, a lead member of the Black Mafia, heading to Atlanta to see the Muhammad Ali-Jerry Quarry fight. When Chicken Man gets wind of Frank’s plans, he offers to host an after-fight house party in Frank’s honor with hopes of being his go-to man whenever he comes to town. Unbeknownst to Chicken Man, a group of people led by Willie Black (Myles Bullock) and McKinley “Mac” Rogers (Sinqua Walls) conspire to stage a robbery of the event with plans to hold partygoers at gunpoint for hours while they confiscate their jewelry and money. Only Willie, however, knows that Frank and other members of the famed Black Mafia would be making an appearance. By the time his co-conspirators realize this, it is too late. Fight Night brings to mind A.V. Rockwell’s 2023 film, A Thousand and One , with its dated telephone technology and dark cinematography. Set in the 1990s and shot in New York City, the movie’s landscape consists of tenement buildings, subways, elevated trains, and crowded streets. Set a generation earlier, Fight Night ’s Atlanta setting consists mostly of single-family homes and no public commuter rail system at that time. Yet, the payphones and cinematography are quite similar. Indeed, an annoyance with throwback films is the use of cinematography so dark that it is often difficult to make out people and objects. But Fight Night ’s cinematographers, Joe “Jody” Williams and Michael Watson, strike a balance of tones and shades that allow the audience to appreciate what is happening on screen and who is performing the action. In Fight Night , Don Cheadle plays the upright Detective J.D. Hudson, assigned by his chief to protect Muhammad Ali during his stay in Atlanta. Symbolic of an individual fighting injustice from the inside, Detective Hudson has frequent run-ins with the racist Detective Mason, played by Ben VanderMey, who is known for abusing Black detainees and frequently calling Detective Hudson the “n” word — though not without pushback from Hudson who threatens to knock him to Kingdom Come. A military veteran, Hudson’s goal is to change things from the inside, which proves a challenge given the racist structure of the department. His White chief tolerates openly racist detectives like Mason, who once threatens to hang Hudson from a tree right in front of him. Hudson’s hope is to advance in his job to a rank where he can kick Mason off the force. It is clear that Hudson’s role in the series is meant to prove just how difficult it is to work within a system constrained by a lack of honor and courage, even if you are a military veteran who should be afforded at least a smidgeon of respect. When Chicken Man, the Black Mafia members, and other partygoers are forced to strip to their undies and sit on a cold basement floor for hours at gunpoint, Frank and his crew begin to suspect Chicken Man’s involvement. Other than surviving the ordeal, they begin to consider how they will rectify their humiliation. After all, who would have the gumption to rob the Black Mafia? In a meeting convened later, we learn that some of the members saw the robbery as an affront to their stature as mafia, so those who did this had to suffer public humiliation (death). Another member, Missouri Slim (David Banner), indignantly insists on revenge for being forced to strip to his underwear in front of a “bunch of [b****es].” Missouri Slim’s infantile concerns bring to mind the notions of pride and prejudice. Anyone, for instance, would be upset that someone with a shotgun robbed them of their dignity, pride, and sense of control over their lives. But what is it about the presence of women that makes Missouri Slim and men like him so incensed about stripping down to their skivvies? This seems to be not so much about pride but about prejudice and condescension. Looking at this from an opposing point of view demonstrates the problems with Missouri Slim’s perspective. During the robbery, Willie recognizes Vivian from her days as a stripper and forces her to dance suggestively in front of the entire group. Despite the threat of being shot, Chicken Man tries to halt it multiple times until Vivian insists he stop trying to protect her for his own safety. As she performs, Chicken Man’s body language and facial expression droop, conveying the depth of his concern for her and his regret in being unable to stop Willie’s humiliation of her. Chicken Man’s actions and emotional response contrast sharply with that of Missouri Slim’s. His complaint, in effect, dehumanizes the women, essentially rendering them insignificant and as having no value. I found his comment personally disconcerting and hurtful, but I also wonder why I should have expected anything different from someone who exploits women for a living. As noted earlier, the look on Chicken Man’s face is one of hurt and pain for Vivian when Willie forces her to dance. We see in another scene when Faye (Artrece Johnson), Chicken Man’s wife, learns from him about his relationship with Vivian. She is hurt but not surprised, admitting she “knew who he was before [they] were married.” Despite the news, she still trusts him. She still gives in to his insistence that he keep her and their children safe while he figures out how to convince Frank he was not behind the heist. Chicken Man’s behaviors and attitudes in contrast to Slim’s conjures thoughts of how respect works and the ironic ways it is doled out. Respect is a term that is sometimes conflated and even confused with fear. Frank Moten, Slim, and their counterparts are characters who build their wealth and reputation on murdering people, coercing women into sex work, and dealing in illegal drugs. They dress to the nines, gain access to powerful politicians, and live lavish, upscale lifestyles. Yet, everyday folks who encounter them preface their greetings with “Mr.,” a common sign of respect afforded to older men and men in power. Ironically, Chicken Man, while imperfect and a mover and shaker, is the most honorable man of the bunch. Like a Lannister ( Game of Thrones ), he always pays his debts when his customers win at the numbers games he sells. Despite the risk of death, he shows courage in standing up for Vivian when she is forced to do a humiliating performance in front of dozens of people. And he is honest with Faye about who he is and what he is doing before and during their marriage. Respect, though, is not afforded to Chicken Man. Even Detective Hudson harasses him and suspects him in the goings-on at the house party. Respect, however, is automatically afforded to the people who instill fear in others and they are revered for their criminal status. All of which suggests that sometimes our priorities are misplaced. One thing for sure, if it is driven by fear, the respect we give is vacuous, meaningless, and certainly ephemeral. I enjoyed this series, especially for its visual appeal with regard to the authenticity of the costumes and set design. Even the production design of Fight Night ’s opening makes us feel like we are in a time warp. The only element the series seems to be missing is Curtis Mayfield’s 1970 hit “Don’t Worry” to set it off. Indeed, you have to look really hard for any anachronisms in this exquisitely produced series by Dianne Ashford. Fight Night gives us not just a story but a cinematic experience with a thread about the irony of respect. 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Mr. and Mrs. Smith fuses relatability with escapism < Back Mr. and Mrs. Smith fuses relatability with escapism Amazon Studios, 2024- 45 minutes Creator: Donald Glover and Francesca Sloane Reading Time: 6 minutes 📷 : Used with permission, Alexander Kaufmann https://www.instagram.com/djanoidgfx Mr. and Mrs. Smith Hope Springs Internal (RLQDVWKEF6DHSGLT) 00:00 / 06:01 https://twitter.com/DjANOIDgfx https://jakaufmann.myportfolio.com/ Rosemary Movies and TV shows with intense action Oolong Movies and TV shows that make you laugh or involve physical activities like dance and exercise Chris Chaisson 2024-02-18 Numerous articles are written about the decreasing number of young people getting married (the median age of a first marriage has been increasing, per Forbes ). At the end of the day, there is a financial component to the institution of marriage that has muddied the waters for millennials and older Gen-Z members. Even with these shifts in trends and generational perspectives on marriage, marital issues will always be relatable to most of the country, as many have at least witnessed the ups and downs of marriage in their own households. For this reason, the most recognizable people in our culture typically have a spouse and possibly children. Their day-to-day celebrations and squabbles have mass appeal and can win hearts, as evidenced by top-selling gossip magazines and long-running shows about married couples and their families. This is the case even if their careers are not the least bit relatable. Such is the premise for the TV series adaptation, Mr. and Mrs. Smith . Adapted from the 2005 Brangelina blockbuster , as well as a lesser known 1996 TV series starring Maria Bello and Scott Bakula, Donald Glover’s newest project revolves around John (Glover) and Jane (Maya Erskine), two strangers thrust together by a secret organization to carry out spy missions with the cover of an arranged marriage. While they initially swear off anything physical and struggle to create chemistry, John and Jane eventually bond and forge a romance in the midst of their dangerous operations. Throughout the eight episodes, the audience sees the many phases of relationships play out: honeymoon, jealousy, exposed secrets, and differing long-term desires. Despite their work not being relatable, everything about their arguments and personality clashes feel like something most viewers have experienced firsthand. The overall theme of the series is that relationships involve a lot of hard work and communication, at times seeming even more difficult than the life-and-death situations of being a spy. In many scenes, John and Jane argue about their relationship while they are in imminent danger. Resolving their differences seems to be harder than fighting off bad guys, acquiring assets or tailing a moving target who is on to them. Just as in its aforementioned predecessors, the violence and suspense often seem trivial when superseded by the bickering of a married couple. Mr. and Mrs. Smith is an interesting study in how our perception of the elements in a movie or series can be relative to whatever else is happening on screen. Without John and Jane’s arguments, the action scenes could have the suspense of a sequence from The Bourne trilogy, a Bond movie, or a Mission: Impossible film. Imagine Matt Damon or Tom Cruise arguing with their significant other about who was supposed to take the garbage out in the middle of combat. Imagine the Benny Hill theme music playing while Daniel Craig pummels some henchman; it kind of overtakes the violence at hand. In an interview many years ago, comedian Chris Rock discussed how most household names of stand-up comedy are (or were) married. As funny as a single performer can be, his or her problems do not have the same relatability as someone with a family and a spouse to keep happy. While they can be very successful in the industry, they may not have the same universal fan base. Often, shows and movies present complete escapism or complete relatability. There may be a small thematic element of one in a movie that is about the other, but rarely do they contain a balance of both. Mr. and Mrs. Smith creates its humor by juxtaposing an up-and-down marriage (relatable) with the adventures of an international spy (escapism). It is hard not to giggle at the notion that when you have a life partner, nothing could make you put your petty squabbles aside, even the most dangerous possible situations. If you’ll argue with your spouse while fighting off a villain trying to stab you to death, when will you not argue with your spouse? When this series was first advertised, many people thought of the feature film and balked at the casting choices. After all, the film consisted of two A-list actors, both known largely for their sex appeal and action roles. Glover and Erskine are both known for comedy, with much of Erskine’s work coming in the voice-over world ( Bob’s Burgers , Big Mouth ). In fact, Paul Dano ( The Fabelmans ), who plays their next-door neighbor, is a larger movie star than either lead. I would argue this casting makes perfect sense, as both Glover and Erskine have the comedic timing to do a series that is ultimately based in humor. Their place on the totem pole of in-demand actors should probably take a backseat to their on-screen chemistry, which is pretty copacetic. A bird’s-eye view of the show could lead you to conclude that it is indicative of the disappearance of “movie stars,” precipitated by the takeover of superhero franchises. I would rather view it as bolstering the comedic vibes of the series, while simultaneously representing an interracial couple (black man and Japanese woman) that seldom appears onscreen. Having co-stars from underrepresented groups, each with comedic backgrounds, further illustrates how anyone’s relationship issues can be funny and relatable. As far as romantic spy thrillers go, most play it pretty straight, with Mr. and Mrs. Smith giving a rare comedic twist that foregrounds the relationship. Outside of the movie and series it is based on, the closest comparison to draw is likely the mid-90s thriller True Lies , starring Arnold Schwarzenegger and Jamie Lee Curtis. Like Mr. and Mrs. Smith , it consists of a spy trying to save his marriage and includes its fair share of humorous scenes. Donald Glover’s newest project drops the mundane, sympathetic problems of a rocky relationship into a world of gunfights and hand-to-hand combat, providing us a chance to relate and escape all at once. Previous Next Sign-up for new reviews, exclusives, deep dives, and more First name Last name Enter your email here I agree to the terms & conditions Sign-up Thanks for joining us!

< Back American Fiction ventures outside the box of trauma-centered Black stories 3 Arts Entertainment, 2023 117 minutes Director/Writer: Cord Jefferson Reading Time: 6 minutes American Fiction Imaginative Play (9Y87OES1SQCQILFR) 00:00 / 05:45 📷 : Licensed from Shutterstock Chamomile: Family dramas Ginger: Thought-provoking movies and TV shows Chris Chaisson 2023-12-22 “Boyz in the Hood, Menace II Society, 12 Years a Slave, Roots, all have impacted me in profound and beautiful ways. They are parts of our story; they are not the totality of our story. So the idea sometimes if we tell these stories over and over again, the mainstream public thinks that that’s the totality of who we are. So when they meet somebody that doesn’t fit into that particular box, they tend to say ‘Oh you’re not like black black. You’re different; you know, you don’t talk the way black people talk.’ Really? ‘Cause I’m black, and this is how I’m talking. So the desire to see a plethora of our experiences, to have our humanity fully shared, is something that is not just good for us; it’s good for the world…” –Sterling K. Brown to Shanelle Genai of The Root . Directed by Cord Jefferson, American Fiction follows Thelonious ‘Monk’ Ellison (Jeffrey Wright, The Batman ), an ornery professor and novelist who returns home to the metro Boston area to visit his estranged family after being let go by his university. Monk finds himself disgruntled with the state of the publishing world, as the novels getting the most acclaim cater to tired stereotypes of how black Americans speak and behave, as well as the struggles they must overcome that are always tied to their skin color. Desperate to bring more attention to his own work, he pens a story perpetuating such narratives as a joke, hoping to prove a point about the need for stories not rooted in black trauma. Instead, his book, authored under a pseudonym with a criminal background, is embraced and bolstered by its publishers. This forces him to continue the charade, as the popularity of what began as a satirical work skyrockets. The above synopsis highlights American Fiction ’s “A story,” often referred to in sitcom circles as the “Big Lie.” This trope occurs frequently in such TV shows, where a character makes up a spontaneous lie to get out of trouble. The character then goes to greater and greater lengths to maintain the lie as more people become involved and the consequences increase tenfold. If you’ve seen any trailers for American Fiction , you know that this is mainly the premise that the film presents to entice viewers to the box office. The film plays up this comedic thread to much success, inducing several belly laughs from its audience with absurdist humor. For instance, Monk’s initial envy is sparked by the novel of a contemporary named Sintara (Issa Rae, Insecure ), whose bestselling book is entitled We’s Lives in Da Ghetto . Monk lends a similarly goofy name to his own work before upping the ante later in the film. While setting up this A story, the film very shrewdly brings in its more substantive B story: Monk’s complicated relationship with his family. Having a brother and a sister, played by Sterling K. Brown ( This is Us ) and Tracee Ellis Ross ( Black-ish ), Monk learns upon his visit home of family secrets, financial troubles, and health concerns. In the midst of being a frustrated novelist with somewhat petty gripes, he must process all of the new information and be the rock for his family, along with fostering his relationship with a new love interest. As it pokes fun at the prevalence of stories displaying black Americans as a suffering monolith, American Fiction simultaneously ushers in a tale that delivers exactly what the protagonist argues is lacking from modern storytelling. What elevates the film even further is its ability to push back on its own thesis. While the film highlights the dearth of more humane, multi-dimensional stories revolving around black characters, it does not dismiss the value of stories that exist within that monolith either. This becomes abundantly clear when Monk’s love interest utters to him, “Sooner or later, you have to realize that being unable to relate to people is not a badge of honor.” Ultimately, Monk’s disdain for the stories of his contemporaries is tied not just to his moral compass but also his elitism and insecurity. His works are not as popular as he feels they should be, and he criticizes others as one of many ways to shield himself from the pain of rejection. The inner struggle plays out again later in a heated conversation with Sintara about her novel. Naturally, this characteristic carries over into other areas of his life as well. Several subtler themes permeate the film, including how white guilt often operates in academic circles. The movie opens with Monk going back and forth with a white student who objects to covering a book with a racial slur in the title. She expresses her discomfort and disapproval of the word, and Monk replies, “If I got over it, you can too.” His blunt communication eventually prompts her to leave the classroom in tears, for which he is later held responsible. The scene pokes fun at the notion of valuing comfortability over honest discourse, a frequent occurrence in the discussion of social issues. Later on, as Monk pitches a ridiculous title for his book to publishers over the phone, they go along with it rather than pushing back or drawing a hard line in the sand. While the responses of these characters seem over-the-top, they are grounded in the reality of an unwillingness to offend resulting in naïve or disingenuous stances. A similar movie dealing with a frustrated writer’s quest for validation could be the earlier 2023 release You Hurt My Feelings , starring Julia Louis-Dreyfus. Her character is less scorned by the industry as a whole and more so by her supportive husband’s negative review. Another film with a like-minded premise is the 2000 stage play-adapted drama Chinese Coffee , in which Al Pacino and Jerry Orbach play unsuccessful writers who argue over the latest book that Pacino’s character has written. While neither deal with the larger scope of the publishing world, both, along with American Fiction , depict pretentiousness and resentment seeping into the minds of individuals in what can be a challenging, lonely profession. Already a Golden Globes nominee and festival favorite, American Fiction delivers on providing a less often-told story of black existence, while still including elements of more popular works. Its characters experience pain and suffering, but they also love, laugh and celebrate together. The film’s ability to show the full range of human emotion highlights the rarity of such stories. To Sterling K. Brown’s quote, such work benefits not just black audiences but all consumers. Previous Next Sign-up for new reviews, exclusives, deep dives, and more First name Last name Enter your email here I agree to the terms & conditions Sign-up Thanks for joining us!

< Back A Fall from Grace puts the matter of trust at center stage Tyler Perry Studios, 2020 120 minutes Director/Writer: Tyler Perry Reading Time: 5 minutes A Fall from Grace Rampant (18I3YMSBSMH3VNJU) 00:00 / 05:45 📷 : Licensed from Shutterstock Dandelion: Movies and TV shows with heavy subjects Ginger: Thought-provoking movies and TV shows Reba Chaisson 2021-07-25 A Fall from Grace is a contemporary film about an independent, older single woman named Grace, played by Crystal Fox ( The Haves and the Have Nots, Big Little Lie s), who falls in love with Shannon, a young charismatic photographer played by Mehcad Brooks ( The Game , Necessary Roughness ). Predictably, the fairy-tale affair ends when all hell breaks loose after their inevitable nuptials. The heartbreaking story is reminiscent of the 1990 film, Pacific Heights , with Melanie Griffith as “Patty” and Matthew Modine as “Drake.” The newlyweds invest their savings in a beautiful San Francisco apartment building and then struggle to remove Carter, a vile tenant played by Michael Keaton, who has wormed his way into legal squatter’s rights. In A Fall from Grace , despite Grace’s efforts to get Shannon out of her house and bank account, he unabashedly exploits his new legal entitlements, remaining entrenched and entangled in both. “What’s mine is ours” is twisted by Shannon into: “What’s mine is mine and what’s yours is mine too!” As with Patty, we can feel Grace's frustration and hopelessness. But A Fall from Grace takes a huge departure from Pacific Heights as its story unfolds. At center stage of the film is the matter of trust, which no written documents, legal contracts, and mutual understandings and sentiments can tightly wrap in a bow and make ironclad. While Spiderman has his “spidey” senses and Fred Flintstone “The Great Gazoo,” we only have our instincts, feelings–our hearts–as fallbacks, and we ultimately take giant leaps of faith based on these. When we are shaken like a rag doll because we were wrong, we feel foolish. But as Grace’s young lawyer intimates, taking the risk to trust someone only means we are human. Grace’s lawyer plays a key role in the film. At age 26, Jasmine, played by Bresha Webb, seemingly accepts her lot as the public defender with a specialty in plea bargaining, until she encounters her new client. Although even then, there are some problematic moments where she pouts and appears to lack any legal training at all. Also pivotal in the film are Phylicia Rashad as Grace’s best friend, "Sarah," and Tyler Perry as Jasmine’s jaded boss who demands nothing more of Jasmine than her legal expertise. Two-hour movies are rare today and what filmmakers make of the extra 20 to 30 minutes can be intriguing. A Fall from Grace is presented out of order, layered in like a puzzle and forcing the audience to figure out how and where pieces fit to make the story a full yarn. Here, the technique has the effect of inviting viewers into the weaving of the story. Guided through Grace’s narration of past encounters with Shannon, her confidences shared with Sarah, and then combined with Jasmine’s present-day investigation, the film unfolds into something we could have never anticipated. The level of suspense raises the story from something more than a simple, predictable drama to a story that pushes viewers to the edges of their seats. The Southern urban aesthetics of the film include large, old, picturesque homes pushed back from the street as if giving the audience room to breathe. The addition of dark hues draws the audience’s focus and has the effect of inviting viewers into the story. This setting, though, was disrupted with a single, isolated scene of Grace and Shannon having dinner at a diner that looked like a Checkers - yes, the fast food restaurant. The oddity was compounded by capping off the meal with the two drinking wine from stemware. During this moment, the film lost its aesthetic magic, its feel. Minus the distraction, I felt like I was in the room during the scenes at Grace’s home and being blanketed with a healthy dose of Southern hospitality. The warmth made it starkly apparent that Shannon did not belong in this space. Calling her "a fool" – and in her own home, he remarks that “A woman your age is low hanging fruit.” Speaking of age, a treat of the film is an appearance by Cicely Tyson. This is one of her last roles before her death in early 2021, at age 96. Reviewers talk a lot about aging as the subject matter of films (i.e. Book Club and perhaps Trouble with the Curve ), but seldom is the topic of age diversity in films broached. While the cast of A Fall from Grace is predominantly Black, age representations range from the youngest Millennials through the Greatest Generation, and all in prominent roles with significant on-screen time. And as for color-struck, this film is a step toward priming audiences to get over it! Several themes run throughout A Fall from Grace , most more overt than subtle. Among them: Youth is no excuse for lack of persistence. Skepticism is healthy. And at times, you have to trust somebody or you will end up alone. If you are in the mood for a contemporary and suspenseful story with a Southern feel, you might want to give this one a try. Previous Next Sign-up for new reviews, exclusives, deep dives, and more First name Last name Enter your email here I agree to the terms & conditions Sign-up Thanks for joining us!

< Back The Knife immerses viewers in a story about clear-eyed choices Iam21 Entertainment, 2024 82 minutes Director/Writer: Nnamdi Asomugha / Mark Duplass and Nnamdi Asomugha Reading Time: 5 minutes The Knife Escape Plan (EVYBJGSJJLNNPOWV) 00:00 / 06:09 📷 : Relativity Media Ginseng: Suspenseful and intense thrillers Ginger: Thought-provoking movies and TV shows Reba Chaisson 2025-08-22 In the Cup of Tea Critiques Podcast episode, “What is the Goal of a Short Film?”, we comment that many short films are not only standalone stories but also stories with strong, life-relevant themes. At 82 minutes, The Knife is not considered a short film. It is , though, a short feature that carries valuable life lessons despite its theatrical brevity. In case you’re unfamiliar, The Knife is a drama directed and co-written by former NFL cornerback Nnamdi Asomugha. Asomugha and Aja Naomi King lead the cast as Chris and Alex, respectively, a married couple with three children. The family recently bought a fixer-upper in a Towson County, Maryland neighborhood known for crime. A talented construction worker and the sole provider of his family, Chris spends his evenings and weekends renovating the home and feverishly preparing his oldest daughter’s bedroom, so she doesn’t have to share rooms with her slightly younger sister. All is well until Chris awakens one night to an intruder in his home. Melissa Leo of The Equalizer movie franchise is Detective Carlsen, the smart and affable cop with a nose for BS who insists throughout the investigation that “there is a process” that must be followed. As we learn through Detective Carlsen’s questions and our own observations of the family, the details uncover a complex narrative. I will admit that when it comes to dramas containing scenes of police interacting with Black people, I tend to expect unpleasant exchanges and the worst (or least helpful) outcomes. I anticipate that the police are going to get indignant or do something unjust that will raise my ire. But a brilliant plot twist occurs in The Knife that sharply changes the stakes in the movie early on. There I am, suddenly dropped into the deep end of the story, and forced to make a mental readjustment. It is fair to say that police dramas are intense on their own. In addition to the interrogations themselves, the environments in which police question people and the conditions under which they do so are stressful. As such, time and space can vary the intensity of a police drama. Darkness, for instance, is used quite effectively in The Knife . The home invasion occurs at night, a time when many of us feel most vulnerable, as evidenced by the fact that we check our door locks and set the alarm before heading to bed. Darkness brings fear and uncertainty. The Knife also makes effective use of location. While likely a budget decision, the entire film is shot in Chris’s and Alex’s home, which is eventually transformed into a crime scene. A space that symbolizes comfort and peace is then occupied by strangers in uniform, who strip Chris, Alex, and their children of the freedom to move about, express themselves as they choose, and even to speak freely in their own home. The struggle over control of this space increases the tension in the film. Finally, all the events occur when the family is normally sound asleep in their beds, making the entire process surreal and disorienting. So, the conditions brought about by time and space heighten the intensity and intrigue of this story, making the family’s fear palpable and the police officers’ intentions questionable. I was exposed to Gramscian theory during graduate school—you know him, Antonio Gramsci, the Italian theorist who wrote in the early twentieth century. While he unapologetically acknowledged how prevailing ideas influence our thinking and lead us to accept life as it is, he also emphasized that agency plays a role in our circumstances. In other words, sometimes we act in ways that make things worse for ourselves. He suggests that even though so much is out of our control given ideology, bureaucracy, laws, police power, etc., we can still make clear-eyed choices that help us control our own destinies. While I generally agree, I’ve been doing a lot of thinking and living since graduate school. What Gramsci’s theory doesn’t account for are the emotional elements people experience, like panic and desperation, when they suddenly find themselves amid consequential entanglements that can spur a fight-or-flight response. To what degree can we be clear-eyed when we are in a situation that doesn’t offer the time and space to be clear-headed ? When we’re not clear-headed, what we have is confusion, chaos, and disorder rather than an opportunity to use agency to make a clear-eyed choice. In such situations, it is more likely this results in a mistake in judgment with potentially unintended consequences. The Knife does a laudable job of driving home these very points. Hmmm, perhaps the filmmakers critiqued Gramsci too. The Knife is an intense film with high stakes. It gives us pause, makes us dig deep, and forces us to consider the choices we make, as well as the constraints around those choices. Crawling inside ourselves for this introspection is probably one of the most important things we can do, since it is likely to sharpen our judgment and lead to fewer grave errors. And who would have thought such a profound message would come in a package as small as an 82-minute theatrical release. 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< Back Beau is Afraid stays surreal from beginning to end A24, 2023 179 minutes Director/Writer: Ari Aster Reading Time: 5 minutes Beau is Afraid Feast (JUPMOPH6SNVDEVIS) 00:00 / 04:51 📷 : Used with Permission, Agustin R. Michel https://www.instagram.com/agustinrmichel https://twitter.com/AgustinrMichel https://www.behance.net/agustin_rmichel Yarrow: Movies and TV shows about illness or set in hospitals or similar medical institutions Chamomile: Family dramas Chris Chaisson 2023-05-17 Creating a fantasy-based universe in a script can give writer/directors a lot of leeway. Often, they spend the first 15 or 20 minutes providing a boring, grounded reality familiar to the audience as a basis for comparison. Think of Jumanji , which both begins and ends with our basic modern-day existence. In the middle portion of the movie, we see lions, stampedes, and David Alan Grier in a cop uniform. However, some filmmakers go wire to wire with the fantasy, never letting the audience catch their breath. Ari Aster chooses this path in his newest psychological horror-drama Beau is Afraid . Joaquin Phoenix ( Joker ) plays the title character, a middle-aged therapy patient suffering from anxiety who tries to make it home to visit his mother, Mona (Patti LuPone, Summer of Sam ). In a true case of Murphy’s Law, several unforeseen circumstances prevent Beau from catching his flight home, some of which are quite surreal. For instance, as Beau tries to drift off to sleep the night before, a neighbor slides notes under his door asking him to stop playing his music so loud. This confuses Beau, as he is not playing any music at all. After a few notes and some banging on the door, the neighbor proceeds to blast his own stereo as payback, taking Beau off of his sleep schedule. Upon the realization that he will miss his flight, he calls to inform his disappointed mother of the situation. He later calls her back and a delivery man picks up, telling Beau that he has discovered Mona’s lifeless, mutilated body while making his delivery. Beau determines that he must find a way home immediately to either find his mother or mourn her passing, leading him through several perilous situations. Ari Aster’s three-hour odyssey feels like an extended fever dream at times, as it occurs from the hallucinatory perspective of Beau. As with other psychological horror films (for instance, Aster’s very own Midsommar ), the audience does not know what is happening in the “real world” and what is in Beau’s head. Aster plants several seeds from scene to scene that create a sense of dread in the audience. For instance, Beau’s crime-ridden neighborhood consists of violent vagrants that he could run into at any point in time. His own apartment has a large spider loose somewhere, shown to the audience when Beau first arrives at his unit. Ultimately, what’s real to him is real to us, and the ominous surroundings and situations make the audience relate to Beau’s unease. Loneliness heavily contributes to Beau’s anxiety, as he has no trusted friends to guide him back home. In many odysseys, the central character has a confidant or protector, such as Samwise Gamgee in the Lord of the Rings trilogy. Beau has no such support system. Everyone he comes into contact with is either hostile towards him or just untrustworthy. This even includes Roger (Nathan Lane, The Birdcage ) and Grace (Amy Ryan, Birdman or (The Unexpected Virtue of Ignorance) ), the couple that nurses him back to health after he gets stabbed and hit by a car. Beau not only lacks a friend but also a romantic partner, as he still yearns for his first love from childhood Elaine (Parker Posey, Dazed and Confused ). The befuddling surroundings he finds himself in (the forest, a stranger’s home, an unsafe neighborhood) could only be made more comforting with a friendly, trustworthy face, which he does not come across until the final act of the movie. As several perverted, scary and violent moments occur throughout Beau is Afraid ’s 179-minute runtime, the audience is not grounded in any type of reality. Thus, Aster’s fantasy-riddled style emulates that of contemporaries like Darren Aronofsky ( Black Swan ) and Charlie Kaufman ( Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind ), who often hold the audience’s head under water from beginning to end and never let them up for air. For some, this style creates a much more enthralling film with no limitations on what the audience will see. Others may view it as a cop-out, allowing the director to depict the most absurd and vulgar goings-on with no consequences, defying any sort of cause-and-effect chain. The side of the fence you fall on will determine how you feel when the end credits roll. In spite of the aforementioned Aronofsky and Kaufman comparisons, the film Beau is Afraid reminded me of the most was an early 2000s film directed by Stephen Spielberg: A.I. Artificial Intelligence . Though the main character was a robot as opposed to an anxiety-ridden 40-something, both characters embark on dangerous quests to gain the adulation of their mothers, with menacing antagonists standing in their way. Previous Next Sign-up for new reviews, exclusives, deep dives, and more First name Last name Enter your email here I agree to the terms & conditions Sign-up Thanks for joining us!

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< Back Opportunity combines an anti-hero with unusual villains Morris Hill Productions, 2024 96 minutes Director/Writer: Rusty Rehl Reading Time: 5 minutes Opportunity Hope Springs Internal (VG1KXOOFFBESR7C9) 00:00 / 05:40 📷 : Used with permission, Morris Hill Productions White: Movies and TV shows that make you laugh, or involve urgency, like chase scenes or other physical activity Ginkgo Biloba: Youthful, lighthearted, and fun movies and TV shows Chris Chaisson 2024-12-02 When watching a story unfold, we often adopt the perspective of the character most central to it. Generally, they have basic decency or some relatable quality, while the antagonistic force is motivated by greed or a general desire to harm. However, sometimes we can be in the thick of a story and say, “Wait a minute, who is actually the jerk here?” Anti-heroes are a mainstay in cinema and a good way to shake up the routine. Rusty Rehl’s debut feature Opportunity provides us with just such a character. Opportunity revolves around Patrick, a down-on-his-luck thirty-something living out of his van while trying to buy a house. He is “roughing it” somewhat unnecessarily, as he has savings but simply refuses to rent. In order to secure a loan, he agrees to pull off a theft for Jared, a mischievous businessman, by breaking into the home of a well-connected accountant named Tim to do so. With his friend Donnie’s help, he pulls it off. But when Tim discovers his identity, Patrick goes on the run, and a cat-and-mouse game ensues with a group of Mormon gangsters in pursuit. Patrick’s mindset may be head-scratching to some viewers yet make perfect sense to others. Who would choose to live out of a vehicle on principle when they have the funds to put a roof over their head? Patrick sidesteps the question when Donnie poses it to him early in the film. He seems preoccupied with the down payment on a home but nonchalant about the other costs of home ownership. In addition to being stubborn, Patrick’s obliviousness to the costs of owning a home perfectly illustrates immaturity and naïveté, respectively. The younger we are, the more idealistic we tend to be about our life and career goals, overlooking the forest for the trees. Patrick’s nomadic propensity speaks to an anti-establishment mentality, which makes him forego the most common-sense option that presents the stability he needs at the moment. Though not the sharpest tool in the shed, Patrick’s friend Donnie is loyal to the end. Donnie seems far more invested in their friendship than in his not-so-monogamous relationship with his girlfriend Julia, who loathes Patrick. Julia, whom Donnie also financially supports, has dictated to Donnie that she is free to see other people but he is not. This nugget sticks in Patrick’s craw, and leads to arguments between him and Donnie. As in most friendships, each has to point out the other’s blind spots, but they fall on deaf ears more often than not. Other than Patrick’s and Donnie’s squabbles, Opportunity ’s comedic relief stems from its anomalous villains: a group of well-mannered, articulate, Bible-pushing Mormons who have their hands in crypto. They comprise a perfect villain for a crime comedy, as they are not nearly as intimidating as the gangsters we typically see in the media. They are always professionally dressed, never use profanity and speak politely even amidst altercations. By contrast, Patrick consistently name-calls and uses vulgar, hostile language every time he encounters them. This is a characterization frequently used in screwball comedies; our “hero” behaves like a bad guy and our bad guys behave like heroes. Consider Animal House , where the protagonists are troublemakers who destroy property and the “villain” is the dean trying to hold them accountable. When Patrick and Donnie break into a safe and steal a computer device containing a virtual crypto wallet, the gangsters go after them while also trying not to tarnish their public images. Patrick and Donnie go to their tech-savvy friend Tony, who works in IT for Jared’s accounting firm. Reluctant to get involved, Tony repeatedly denies them entry to his house until they insist and shove their way past him. Again, Patrick and Donnie exhibit off-putting behavior despite being the duo we’re conditioned to root for. Tony figures out the value of what they have stolen before kicking them out of his place. The rising action of the film inches toward a violent climax between Patrick, Donnie, Jared and the gangsters, who all at times seem like disorganized stooges. Once the dust has settled, the audience is left wondering who actually was in the right. We can use the adage that “desperation compromises judgement” to explain Patrick’s actions. For Donnie, we can conclude that loyalty can pull us into all kinds of calamities. And as for Tim and the gangsters, we can surmise that they just want their property back. Ultimately, this is how comedy suspends our disbelief. In the same way we watch Vin Diesel drive out of a skyscraper window into a nearby skyscraper window and accept it as plausible, comedies convince us to be on the side of a criminal protagonist who is perpetually mean-spirited, even to his companions. In terms of plot, Opportunity may bring to mind the Coen Brothers hit No Country for Old Men , where a hunter steals a large sum of money resulting from a drug deal gone wrong and winds up in the crosshairs of a psychopathic killer. Clearly, Rusty Rehl’s feature takes a far more light-hearted tone, but both present a main character with compromised morals and cat-and-mouse games erupting in violence. 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