(film review) [STREAMING] - The Trial of the Chicago 7

 

I wasn't sure what I was getting into when I started watching this.  I had no idea about the cast, I had no idea about the story, I had no idea what it was all about and I just felt initially it was some Central Park Five "rip-off" of sorts and having not known this movie was based on a real thing that had occurred in real life, I was pleasantly taken aback once I got into the movie.  You see, I'm not an American and in school, they were quick to teach us about slavary, Christopher Columbus, Henry and his many women and a few plagues and the great fire of London, but not real life events such as the Tulsa Race Massacre, the Central Park 5 or The Trial of the Chicago 7.  In 2020, even more truths are being unearthed in media like films and TV series such as Lovecraft Country, so I do find it despicable that there are generations and generations of people, not only black, who do not know what has happened in history, because these events have been for the most part, undocumented.  I digress.

The Trial of the Chicago 7 centers around a group of 8 anti–Vietnam War protesters, Abbie Hoffman, Jerry Rubin, Tom Hayden, Rennie Davis, David Dellinger, Lee Weiner, John Froines, and Bobby Seale who were arrested in Chicago for conspiracy and crossing state lines with the intention of inciting riots during a Democratic National Convention in 1968.  Whilst the 7 defendants are being represented by William Kunstler and Leonard Weinglass, Bobby Seale isn't represented and Judge Julius Hoffman shows significant prejudice for the prosecution whilst there is also racial tension with Fred Hampton the Chicago chairman of the Illinois chapter of the Black Panther Party and other Black Panther members in the courtroom.  Whilst Abbie openly antagonises the court during the trial, many of the defendants are charged with contempt of court while they try to figure out who initially incited the riot on the hill.

I'm not going to lie, this film took a little while to grab me.  Maybe because I wasn't initially interested or the film didn't seem engaging, but once we were in the courtroom and jokes were flying along with the lunacy, I was fully engaged.  I felt like, if some of these things, reactions, comments and behaviours were verbatim, this trial was an absolute mess.  Although the "lead" of this movie was Yahya Abdul-Mateen II, the film was mostly joint carried by the ensemble cast with Sacha Baron Cohen as halfway through the movie, Yahya disappears and Sacha carries on.  Even to a point, even Eddie Redmayne takes a lot of the spotlight in the third act, or at least, that's when I realised it was him and he CAN talk properly, the other characters do come across as fillers.  It would have been nice to get a little backstory from all 8 of the defendants as it just didn't seem sufficient enough.  Some of the cast members, you couldn't really care about as the connection wasn't really there for me.

What I loved about the movie, whether historically accurate to the very last dot, was the depiction of the Black Panther Party and the fact Fred Hampton was in court sitting right behind Bobby as an assist.  It was lovely to see and also made me google Fred Hampton as I had no idea who he was although I had heard  of the name.  Considering there is a movie starring Daniel Kaluuya as Fred coming out at some point soon, this movie helped me to gravitate towards black activists and Revolutionary Socialists because this was and is unknown territory to me.  Yahya was great as usual, tell me of a time when he wasn't? And Sacha was also great.  The drama really got a little thick when you saw Michael Keaton and there was a scene when they were all in a room discussing and an argument broke out.  that scene was played out well, I just felt that maybe there should have been some more heavier moments.

A decent movie and worth the watch but not as gripping as I believe perhaps, I would have liked it to have been, but it does help you to understand what happened at that time, why and what the state of affairs were like in the late 60's.  The Protesting, the Vietnam War, the riots etc.  It's extremely difficult to sometimes take in these films and shows and not treat them as just fiction because they were not taught in school and hardily anyone would know about events like these, so for that reason alone, it is a must watch.

(trailer review) - Ma Rainey's Black Bottom

It was only the other day I found out about this movie.  Correction and let me rephrase, I heard about this movie possibly late last year or early this year, but it was only the other day I was reminded about this movie.  Technically I knew nothing about it other than Chadwick Boseman being in it as the last film he would do, but I had forgotten about that and when his death came, my thoughts were over-shadowed by my feelings of how we lost such a great man, what would happen to one of his most iconic characters, Black Panther and where do we go from here? So even if I did look to see what his last film may have been at that time, as I knew it wasn't Da 5 Bloods, I was caught up in his death for a few weeks so being reminded about this movie was a delight but also very bitter sweet.

Having now seen the trailer and having watched every episode of 'How to get away with murder', I have noticed the greatness in acting calibre that is Viola Davis, so from the jump, I knew this was going to be great.  The picture I saw promoting the film had me thinking that this will be a powerful performance and I may even cry.  But then I noticed Chadwick and that he also had a role in this movie (because I forgot right) and then I knew from that moment, I am likely to cry.  Watching this trailer had me a little emotional, but I will say, I am very proud to see these great actors together on screen and I really hope that a lot of people watch this Denzel Washington produced movie because it looks absolutely great.  Plus it is also a delight to see a number of black actors together in a project.  Having just finished Lovecraft Country, I soo welcome more and more black storytelling.

Directed by George C. Wolfe and starring Viola Davis, Chadwick Boseman, Colman Domingo, Glynn Turman, Michael Potts, Taylour Paige, Dusan Brown

(trailer review) - Animaniacs

I immediately thought about writing a review as soon as I saw this trailer.  I'm not sure if it is because it's the Animaniacs and I used to like the show when I was younger or what, so, I didn't even think about if it would fall within what I have been doing for the past year or so.  It's a new TV series.  It's a cartoon.  I guess I can.  And you know what? I'm happy!

There isn't much to say about this trailer, although I remember the Animaniacs when I was younger, may have watched a few episodes, but I can't especially remember being a die-hard fan.  Although I have a Wacko Bumper-Car Toothbrush stand somewhere...lol

The gags are there.  The Animation just looks perfect!  It's old-school but renewed without taking away the artistic integrity of the original drawings.  There were a few smiley jokes, like when Dot whacks the Warner Brothers with a huge mallet and says, "...I'm still a knock out", that made me smile.  But the two funniest moments from the trailer to me were, when Yacko (the one with the brown trousers/pants) swallows a handheld Tablet after being told it hold all the information he'll ever need (or something like that), he gets electrocuted and then starts talking about things that have progressed in pop-culture over the years since The Animaniacs stopped their run all them years ago.  Very Funny! But the kicker for me, was when Dot in an empty looking room says "turn on the black light", the light switches on and the seemingly empty room is now seen with plenty of black people partying.  HILARIOUS!!!  I'm not going to lie, at first I thought it was a racist joke, but I very quickly understood the cleverness of the gag.  I did make sure to replay that bit a few times to see if there were any troublesome stereotypes, but it was great. I laughed until tears every time I rewatched it.  Needless to say, I'm going to find a way to watch this as it is on Hulu...sigh!  Poor England and our lack of programming unlike our cousins in the US.

(series review) - Lovecraft Country

I heard about this show and I don't know what I was doing/watching at the time (many things I'm sure), but for some reason I got onto this show well late and spent a couple days binge watching to catch up.  The show started in August and I'm sure I got into it mid-late September after I kept hearing how good it was.  And were the stories true? Yes and definitely YES!!!

You see, this show is about a man named Atticus Freeman, a Korean war veteran who arrives in Chicago to see his family.  He is given a letter which is from his missing father asking him to travel across Jim Crow America to find out about his heritage.  Upon this journey, as well as trying to avoid racist attacks from white America, Atticus, his uncle George and George's friend Letitia, set on a road trip that leads them to hidden societies, family secrets, monsters and legacy that will change Atticus' life forever.  In the mix of all of this, Atticus's Aunt Hippolyta and Leti's older sister Ruby also end up having their own adventure and self discovery among other things that eventually leads into Atticus' future.

As the show goes on (without going into too much spoilers), the show weaves in a lot of real life issues and events in society which happened in the Jim Crow era of America.  Touching on the Tulsa Race Massacre, the death of Emmett Till.  They also weave in real life people such as entertainer Josephine Baker and the Dahomey Amazon.  But although they weave in these historical events which are very heavy handed emotionally at times, there are some real lighthearted moments that bring fun and joy to the season.  It's amazing to see the resilience of Black people at this time and how they still get on with life despite everything which is going on.

The show developed by Misha Green is 10 episodes at around an hour long each and soo much things are placed into every show with soo much information that flows at a rapid pace.  It doesn't necessarily feel rushed, there is soo much to unpack so you do need to pay attention as Lovecraft is definitely not a background show.  Every episode has something to say and a message that relates to the here and now.  I really felt for a specific character in this show which was acted out soo well.  But the general theme with the character and the character's story-arch, is generational and is definitely something that continues in our world today. 

The show is also based on the Lovecraft novel and takes advantages and liberties where necessary to keep the mystery of specific characters and some of the story plot, but for the most part, it does follow the novel.  How the first episode starts shows an Atticus walking through trenches in the war and the longer he walks, the more things you start to see and it get's crazier and crazier.  The first 5 minutes of this show is a snippet of how insane the show will get.

This show isn't necessarily for all ages and all types of viewers though.  It is very important for both white and black people to watch.  Not only does it shine a light on the Jim Crow era, racial tension and how white people treated non-white people, especially black people at this time, but maybe it is something we can all learn from as I stated earlier, every episode has some type of message.  Umbrella Academy touched on 1963 America and the Watchmen TV series touched on the Tulsa Race Massacre and if it wasn't for these shows shining the light on this time in history, I personally along with many many others would have never known about these events as they are not taught in school.

I say the show isn't necessarily for all ages due to the horror themes as well as the gore and other frightening imagery you will see.  But I'd say, if you can, try your best to stomach it and push through because the show is excellent.  Very well acted from ALL cast members.  Music was superb and the costume department didn't miss a beat.  The special effect were really good for the TV show and I'd only hope, now that its is done, possibly the team behind this can get a second season out, JUST as good as this season.  A lot of people will really appreciate it.

(series review) [STREAMING] - The Boys: Season 2

So last year, we were taken aback by two major superhero TV shows.  You would have thought the world had Superhero Fatigue, but in all honesty, us superhero content lovers simply are not tired from the movies and many other TV shows there is out there, but we do want something different, something a bit more edgy, something more adult and we got it with Umbrella Academy season 1 and The Boys season 1.
Having looked into my crystal ball or having been told by a future version of myself that had travelled back in time, I knew to take up reviewing TV series and trailers because the year 2020 was going to be a colossal mess.  I only took that up around November of last year so, with that said, this review will be a little longer just to recap the events of season 1 which came months before I started.  I will try not to give away too many spoilers for those who still have not watched.

The world of The Boys is set in a world where Superheroes are real.  They are the ultimate crime fighters who do the jobs the police are unable to do or not quick enough to get to.  The main Superheroes, 'The Seven' are corporately run by a company called Vought who govern the Supes and all their actions.  They often tell the supes which crimes to stop and handle all media and media coverage to ensure every superhero is portrayed in a positive light.  Not a bad thing when your PR is handled, but when a supe accidentally runs through a young woman named Robyn, Hughie's girlfriend and tries to cover it up, Hughie is approached by William Butcher who gets Hughie on his side to help him take down the company Vought and all their Superheroes.

William Butcher has a personal vendetta against Vought and their superheroes, especially the leader of The Seven, The Homelander.  The Boys (the series title name) refers to a group of people led by William (Billy) and consist of Mother's Milk and Frenchie.  As The Boys discover that Vought may be behind some nefarious activities involving a formula called 'Compound V' they find on a supply run carried out by the Supe known as A-Train, The Boys do their best trying to take down Vought and expose their foul play.  Hughie meets a lady named Annie and they begin to form a friendship, but when Hughie kills a Supe and other incidents start to occur with members of The Seven and they begin to come to light, all hell breaks lose and The Seven start to close in on The Boys, including Annie, who is also a Supe.

As Billy Butcher gets closer to achieving his now life long mission of taking down The Homelander, Billy gets confronted by a revelation which reinforces his new motivation and pushes him in a new direction whilst still trying to take down Vought.  An organisation called 'The Church of the Collective' poach The Deep by way of Eagle the Archer and they proceed to try and help The Deep with his problems but things become increasingly difficult when a new member of The Seven named Stormfront enters, who is an instant hit with the fans of The Seven pushing The Homelander aside.  Whilst Stormfront has her own past, with help from The Boys, Billy continues to try and expose Vought for their crimes and with the introduction of a newer and younger Supe, heads start to explode as Billy gets closer and closer to the truth which leave The Boys in a head-on confrontation with not only the new and very powerful Stormfront, but also, The Homelander.

I've tried my upmost to try and keep this review as spoiler-free as possible and with the nature of this show, it is difficult as there is soo much going on at any one time with different story-arcs for characters and the situations presented.  A few flashbacks here and there and whilst you might think one person is the main enemy, another rears it's head, then another, then another.  In some cases you are routing for the bad guy and in other cases, the "good" guys seem just as bad as the bad guys with parallels that mirror specific characters, almost identically like, you are to choose the lesser of two evils.

There is a lot of character development with a lot of the characters as the seasons go on whilst some characters remain a mystery.  Season 2 also introduces a host of new characters with background stories that further the plot and over-arching story arch that pushes The Boys into season 3 and beyond.  The acting is superb by Karl Urban, Jack Quaid and Erin Moriarty, but the prize goes to Antony Starr, hands down, as a very complex character with lots of layers.  Whilst other actors such as Laz Alonso and Chace Crawford is also great supporting cast, the delivery of their characters along with the main cast help push the story along with ushering along the completely absurd scenes and situations in the show making them seem more credible and at times, grounded.  The secrets, the lies, the mystery, it is ALL there, but most of all, this show is NOT for the faint hearted.  The blood, the guys, the profanity, it is all there.  If you want something different and more adult which is up your comic book alley, the The Boys will definitely be for you.

(trailer review) - The 355

*Insert 90's movie trailer voice* From the studio that brought you Jason Bourne. 

Unfortunately, this trailer feels lacking and I'm not quite sure what it is.  I'd like to see it but the trailer for Jason Bourne had more fighting in it I'm sure.  Or maybe it seemed more high-octane.  There was a small small explosion in the trailer and Jessica rapels down to the lower floor but, show me something cool like bigger stunts or more of that motorbike chase.  So essentially, Oceans 8 meets extraction and a touch of Mission Impossible.  The climbing on the outside of the building is definitely a call out to Ghost Protocol though and I like that.  I feel like saying from the studio that brought you Jason Bourne has skewed my view before I even started getting into it.

I just don't know.  I just don't want this to be a Charlies Angels as this definitely has potential and I'm loving the diversity, I mean, Lupita is black and British.  Representation matters.  It feels like I'm going to have a lot to say about this movie because it would seem Simon Kinberg the director, the last and only other film he directed was Dark Phoenix (X-Men movie), but he has helped to produce many other movies, some good some not so good and he's written for some movies I really liked like, Jumper, Mr. & Mrs. Smith, This Means War and Guy Richie's Sherlock Holmes, but also written for some duds.  We will see.

Also it's all good saying from the studio that brought you Jason Bourne, but it is the same studio that brought us Bourne Legacy, I mean, let's keep it real.

Directed by Simon Kinberg and starring Jessica Chastain, Lupita Nyong'o, Penélope Cruz, Diane Kruger, Bingbing Fan, Sebastian Stan & Édgar Ramírez

(trailer review) - The Witches

I can honestly tell you that I haven't the foggiest to, if I remember reading the Roald Dahl book 'The Witches'.  I remember 'The BFG' and 'Matilda', I may have even read 'James and the Giant Peach' but The Witches, not a clue.  I liked his books too.  However, having watched this trailer, it looks like the book may have been a fun read as this trailer looks really really good.

First off for me was Chris Rock, it sounded like him narrating.  I actually don't mind his voice as a Narrator as he has been in animation with voiceover work and he IS really good.  Secondly, Octavia Spencer.  Having just recently seen 'Ma' which was decent but sinister and with voice work in 'Onward' and 'Dolittle', she's really getting some good roles.  Thirdly, last but not least, Anne 'you silly woman, why did you go for the data!?' Hathaway (I'm only now slowly forgiving her for what she did in Interstellar), she is looking and projecting something amazing.  The way she looks and the way she is portraying the character, I didn't even know it was her at first.  With the slits at the sides of her mouth, the accent AND the baldness, her character is looking a lot different from the Angelica Houston version from 1990, THIRTY YEARS AGO! However, I do feel I saw this back then.

This film looks like it's going to be very entertaining, it's just a wonder as to when we will ever see anything in the cinemas as everything is either being pushed to streaming or pushed to 2021 because of this pandemic.  What I might also add, with Kenya Barris and Guillermo del Toro as joint writers with director Robert Zemeckis, this may be a well put together project, I mean the trailer looks excellent.  I did't even recognise Stanley Tucci.

Directed by Robert Zemeckis and starring Anne Hathaway, Octavia Spencer, Stanley Tucci & Chris Rock,

(trailer review) - Free Guy

(Original Trailer)

I remember seeing the first trailer to this almost a while year ago and it seemed cool, however with some really crazy and laugh out loud bits in it, not something that seemed amazing though, if you know what I mean.  It didn't show enough.  It gave me the impression of a man (NPC - Non Playable Character) in a game world (kind of like Wreck-It Ralph) and he has become a "Free-Thinker" and goes out to live a different life from the samey samey mundane world he's known to love but has now become bored of his role in it.

This trailer, 10 months later gives us just that little bit more.  More Lil Rel, more actual player dynamics, more action, more story and more comedy.  The part where he gets hit by the two cars is still hilarious.  The more I watch the trailer, it literally reminds me of a film version of the Grand Theft Auto game series by Rockstar and how sometimes in a lobby (or most times to be fair) it is actual pandemonium.  Low flying planes, players shooting and destroying everything including NPC's.  This trailer captures the carnage of GTA very well, even down to the car garage with all the cars lined up.  The music also hits well, again and I love the usage of the Star Wars man falling Wilhelm Scream (something used in over 400 films - but I've only ever know it from, Episode 4).  It also looks like a lot of thought has gone into this movie too, such as the blink and you'd miss it parody of Rocky (or Punch Out game), Van Helsing (or just a cowboy), a Kitana lookalike (from Mortal Kombat) and you see a ninja in the back ground from any game involving ninjas (maybe a Ninja Gaiden).  Ready Player One meets Wreck-It-Ralph maybe.  I'm more interested in seeing it now than before.

Directed Shawn Levy starring Ryan Reynolds, Jodie Comer, Joe Keery, Lil Rel, Howery Utkarsh, Ambudkar, Taika Waititi

(trailer review) - Borat Subsequent Moviefilm: Delivery of Prodigious Bribe to American Regime for Make Benefit Once Glorious Nation of Kazakhstan

First of all, I would be lying if I said I wasn't interested in watching this movie.  The first one, even though I didn't go into the story or any details much, due to spoilers of course, I can tell you that I laughed soo hard that I found it soo difficult to breathe whist tears was streaming down my face.  The movie was THAT funny.  Considering the film is 14 years old, it was the scene where Borat was fighting his friend naked in the hotel.  I DIED.  Simply watching this trailer for the sequel, the line where he says to the police officer "Only man and bears are allowed inside car" is just hilarious! I honestly feel, there will be MORE insane moments like the wrestling fight with his friend i the first one and more outrageous things said, like in the middle where he says, "did you ever put one inside your daughter" referencing a baby. 

There is nothing much more to say other than the trailer speaks loudly for itself and I hope we all get to see this before the election.  Also, the full title is absolutely ridiculous! 

Directed by Jason Woliner and starring Sacha Baron Cohen