Negromancer News Bits and Bites from February 1st to 11th, 2023 - Update #21

by Leroy Douresseaux a.k.a. "I Reads You"

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ENTERTAINMENT AND CULTURE NEWS:

MOVIES - From THR:   Daniel Fajemisin-Duncan and Marlon Smith, who co-created the 2013 British crime drama "Run," has been tapped to write the action thriller, "Rainbow Six," that has Michael B. Jordan starring and Chad Stahelski directing.

MOVIES - From Deadline:  Writer-director David Twohy and star Vin Diesel are reunited for a fourth film in the "Riddick" series, entitled "Riddick: Furya."

From JoBlo:  On Instagram, Vin Diesel shares some concept art for the upcoming, "Riddick: Furya."

MOVIES - From Deadline:  Oscar-nominee Sacha Baron Cohen and Keke Palmer ("Nope") are teaming up with writer-director David O. Russell ("Amsterdam") for "Super Toys."

AMAZON - From Deadline:  Nicole Kidman and Jamie Lee Curtis will headline Amazon Studios' TV series adaptation of Patricia Cornwell's "Kay Scarpetta" novels.  Kidman will play the lead, and Curtis will play her sister, Dorothy.

TELEVISION - From EW:  British comedy legend, John Cleese, is reviving his beloved BBC sitcom, "Fawlty Towers," with his daughter, Camilla Cleese.  The series is being developed by Rob Reiner's Castle Rock Entertainment.  The original series ran for two series of six episodes each in 1975 and 1979.

MOVIES - From Deadline:  Sony Pictures is developing a direct sequel to its 1997 hit slasher film, "I Know What You Did Last Summer."  Jennifer Love Hewitt and Freddie Prinze, Jr. are in talks to reprise their respective roles from the original.

NETFLIX - From THR:   Matthew McConaughey has signed on to voice Elvis Presley in Netflix’s adult animated action comedy series "Agent Elvis."

MOVIES - From THR:  The AMC Theatres chain is going start basing movie ticket prices on where patrons want to sit in the auditorium.  This price will take place after 4 pm.

MUSIC - From Deadline:  At the 2023 / 65th annual Grammy Awards, "Harry's House," an album by recording artist Harry Styles, won the top honor "Album of the Year."  With her 32nd Grammy win, Beyonce became the all-time leaders in career Grammy wins.

MOVIES - From BloodyDisgusting:  Film producer-director, Sean S. Cunningham, is "working to get his own 'Friday the 13th' reboot off the ground.  Much depends on the setting the franchise's rights issues"

BOX OFFICE - BoxOfficePro:  The winner of the 2/3 to 2/5/2023 weekend box office is "Knock at the Cabin" with an estimated take of 14.2 million dollars.

From Here:  Negromancer's review of "Knock at the Cabin."

From Variety:  Actor Dave Bautista explains his most shocking scene in the new film, "Knock at the Cabin."

MOVIES - From Deadline:  Warner Bros has acquired the rights to Stephen King's novel, "Billy Summers.  JJ Abrams and Leonard DiCaprio's respective production companies are producing.

TELEVISION - From Deadline:  NBC has given its comedy revival, "Night Court," a renewal for a second season.

MUSIC - From Variety: Grammy-winning recording artist and music icon, Beyonce, has announced stadium tour dates for her "Renaissance" world tour.  The first U.S. date appears to be July 12th in Philladelphia.

MOVIES - From Deadline:  Jerry Bruckenheimer and director Guy Ritchie's World War II movie, "The Ministry of Ungentlemanly Warfare," has added eight new names to a cast that already includes Henry Cavill and Eiza Gonzalez. New cast includes Alex Pettyfer and Cary Elwes.

AMAZON - From Deadline:  Amazon Prime's "The Terminal List," staring Chris Pratt, will continue with a second season and will become a franchise with a prequel executive produced and starring Taylor Kitsch.

MOVIES/MUSIC - From Variety:  Jaafar Jackson will portray his late uncle, Michael Jackson, in director Antoine Fuqua's biopic about the Grammy Award-winning legend and music icon, which is entitled "Michael."  Jaafar is the second youngest son of Michael Jackson's brother, Jermaine Jackson, songwriter, producer, recording artist, and member of the "Jackson 5."

*DC STUDIOS - From Deadline:   DC Studios co-CEOs James Gunn and Peter Safran finally revealed their plans for an inter-connective universe of DC Comics character-based film and television.

*MOVIES - From Deadline:  Will Smith and Martin Lawrence announced that "Bad Boys 4" is in pre-production.  "Bad Boys for Life" directors El Arbi and Bilall Fallah are also returning.

OBITS:

From Deadline:  Songwriter, composer, and record producer, Burt Bacharach, has died at the age of 94, Wednesday, February 8, 2023.  Over a three decade career, he composed hundreds of pop songs that have been recorded by over 1000 recording artists.  He won the "Best Original Song" Oscar twice and "Best Original Score" once (for "Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid").  He won six Grammy Awards, including for the 1987 "Song of the Year" award for "That's What Friends Are For" (1986, co-written with his then wife, Carole Bayer Sager).

From MarinIJ:  Author and activist, David Harris, has died at the age of 76, Monday, February 6, 2023.  He was a leader and an icon of the Vietnam War draft resistance movement.  He encouraged young men to resist the draft and to refuse to report for military service.  When he himself was drafted in 1968, he refused to report and was immediately indicted.  He spent 20 months of a three-year sentence in the federal prison system.  He would go on to write for "Rolling Stone" and "The New York Times Magazine."  He also published 10 non-fiction books on a range of topics, including the NFL, politics, and international events.

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AWARDS:

From Oscar:  The nominations for the 2023 / 95th Academy Awards have been announced.  The winners will be announced Sunday, March 12, 2023.

From Deadline:  "Top Gun: Maverick" wins "Best Picture" at the "AARP Movies for Grownups Awards" held Saturday night in Beverly Hills.

From Variety:  The nominations for the 2023 Writers Guild Awards have been announced.  Winners will be announced Sunday, March 5, 2023.

From Variety:  The nominations for the 2023 EE BAFTA Awards have been announced. The Netflix World War I drama, "All Quiet on the Western Front," leads with 14 nominations.  The winners will be announced Sunday, February 19, 2023.

From Deadline:  The winners were announced at the 2023 / 28th annual Critics Choice Awards.  "Everything Everywhere All at Once" was named "Best Picture."

From Deadline:  The nominees for the 2023 / 34th Producers Guild of America Awards have been announced in both film and TV categories.  The winners will be announced Sat. Feb. 25th, 2023.

From Deadline:  The nominations for the 2023 / 29th Annual Screen Actors Guild Awards have been announced.  The winners will be announced Sun., Feb. 26th, 2023.

From Deadline:  The National Society of Film Critics has named "Tar" its "Best Picture" of 2023 and its star, Cate Blanchette, as "Best Actress."

From Deadline:  The nominations for the 2023 / 23rd Annual Black Reel Awards have been announced.  "Black Panther: Wakanda Forever" and "The Woman King" have tied for the lead in nominations with 14 apiece.  The winners will be announced February 6, 2023.

From Deadline:  The Black Film Critics Circle named "The Woman King" the "Best Film" of 2022.

From Deadline:  The winners of the 2022 Los Angeles Film Critics Association (LAFCA) Awards have been announced.  "Everything Everywhere All at Once" and "Tar" tie for "Best Picture" award.

From Deadline:  The nominations for the 2023 / 80th annual Golden Globes Awards were announced today (Mon., Dec. 12th).  "The Banshees of Inisherin" led the film field with eight nominations. ABC's "Abbot Elementary" lead the TV side with five nominations.  The winners will be announced January 10, 2023.

From Deadline:  The American Film Institute (AFI) has named its "AFI Awards Film" list of "Top 10 Films of 2022."  The list includes "Avatar: The Way of Water," "Top Gun: Maverick," and "The Woman King."

From THR:  The African-American Film Critics Association name "The Woman King" the "Best Film of 2022."

From Deadline:  The nominations for the "2023 Critics Choice Awards" in the television categories have been announced.  ABC's sitcom, "Abbot Elementary" leads the nominations.  The winners will be announced Sunday, January 15, 2023 and broadcast on The CW.

From Variety:  The 2022 / 88th Annual New York Film Critics Circle (NYFCC) Awards have been announced.  Todd Field's "Tar" wins "Best Film" and "Best Actress" (Cate Blanchett).  Keke Palmer wins "Best Supporting Actress" for her performance in "Nope."

From Deadline:  "Everything Everywhere All at Once" wins the "Best Feature" award at the 2022 / 32nd Annual Gotham Awards, one of two wins for the film.

From IndieWire:  The nominations for the 2023 Film Independent Spirit Awards have been announced.   "Everything Everywhere All at Once" leads with eight nominations.  The winners will be announced March 4th, 2023.

From Variety:  The nominations for the 2022 / 32nd Annual Gotham Awards were announced a month ago.  Todd Field's "Tar" leads with five nominations.  The winners will be announced Monday, November 28th.

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TYRE NICHOLS:

From NBCNews:  Tyre Nichols' death: A summary and timeline of his encounter with Memphis police officers

From YahooNews:  In the 67 minutes of the Tyre Nichols video, brutality followed by nonchalance.

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BRITTNEY GRINER:

From CBSNews:  WNBA star Brittney Griner has been released from her Russian imprisonment in a one-for-one prisoner swap for notorious international arms dealer, Viktor Bout.

From NBCNews:   Brittney Griner will enter a system of isolation, grueling labor and psychological torment when she is transferred to a penal colony, the successor to the infamous Russian gulag, to fulfill a nine-year sentence handed down Tuesday in Moscow, former prisoners and advocates said.

From NBCNews:  A Russian court has rejected Brittney Griner's appeal of her nine-year prison sentence on (fake) drug charges.

From Reuters:  Russia says that it is ready to talk prisoner swamp for Brittney Griner and U.S. Marine veteran Paul Whelan, but also scolds the U.S. Embassy.

From TheDailyBeast:   Legendary NBA bad boy and champion (Detroit Pistons, Chicago Bulls), Dennis Rodman claims that he has been given permission to go to Russia and help free imprisoned hostage, WNBA star, Brittney Griner.

From Vox:  Vox's Jonathan Guyer talks the Brittney Griner case with Danielle Gilbert, a Dartmouth professor who is writing a book about states and rogue actors that take hostages.

From ESPN:   A Russian court sentenced WNBA star Brittney Griner to nine years in prison Thursday, Aug. 4th.  Griner was arrested Feb. 17 for bringing cannabis into the country and pleaded guilty July 7, though the case continued under Russian law.

From ESPN:  The Biden administration has offered a deal to Russia aimed at bringing home WNBA star Brittney Griner and another jailed American, Paul Whelan, Secretary of State Antony Blinken said Wednesday.

From RSN:  "Will Support From LeBron James, Joe Rogan, Kim Kardashian, and Other Celebrities Help Free Brittney Griner From a Russian Prison?" by Kareem Abdul-Jabbar via Substack

From ESPN:  Detained WNBA star Brittney Griner pleaded guilty on Thursday to bringing hashish oil into Russia, telling a judge that she had done so "inadvertently" while asking the court for mercy.

From CBSSports:  The Brittney Griner situation explained.

From RSN:  According to The Washington Post Editorial Board: "Brittney Griner is a hostage, plain and simple."

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Review: "Everything Everywhere All at Once" is Action Movie T&A - Tedious and Amazing

TRASH IN MY EYE No. 45 of 2022 (No. 1857) by Leroy Douresseaux

Everything Everywhere All at Once (2022)

Running time: 139 minutes

MPA – R for some violence, sexual material and language

WRITERS/DIRECTORS:  Daniel Kwan and Daniel Scheinert
PRODUCERS:  Daniel Kwan, Mike Larocca , Anthony Russo, Joe Russo, Daniel Scheinert, and Jonathan Wang
CINEMATOGRAPHER:  Larkin Seiple (D.o.P.)
EDITOR:  Paul Rogers
COMPOSER:  Son Lux

SCI-FI/COMEDY/DRAMA

Starring:  Michelle Yeoh, Stephanie Hsu, Ke Huy Quan, James Hong, Tallie Medel, and Jamie Lee Curtis and Randy Newman (voice)

Everything Everywhere All at Once is a 2022 science fiction and comedy-drama film written and directed by Daniel Kwan and Daniel Scheinert.  The film focuses on an aging Chinese-American woman who discovers that she must save the universe by exploring all the other universes and connecting with the lives she could have, but never lived.

Everything Everywhere All at Once introduces Evelyn Wang (Michelle Yeoh), a Chinese-American wife and mother.  Evelyn and her husband, Waymond (Ke Huy Quan), own a struggling laundromat.  Tensions are high because the laundromat is being audited by the IRS and because they are dealing with an intense, by-the-book, IRS inspector named Deirdre Beaubeirdre (Jamie Lee Curtis).  Waymond is trying to give Evelyn divorce papers, and her demanding and elderly father, Gong Gong (James Hong), has just recently arrived from Hong Kong.  Finally, Evelyn and Waymond's daughter, Joy (Stephanie Hsu), has been trying to get her mother to accept her girlfriend, Becky (Tallie Medel).

During the meeting with Inspector Deirdre Beaubeirdre, Waymond's personality suddenly changes.  According to this new “personality,” known as “Alpha Waymond” (Ke Huy Quan), he is a version of Waymond from another universe, and he has taken over her Waymond's body.  Alpha Waymond says that he is from “Alphaverse,” one of many parallel universes (the “multiverse”).  He explains that “verse jumping” technology allows people to access the skills, memories, and bodies of their parallel universe counterparts.  He says that Evelyn must learn “verse jumping” because only she can save the multiverse from the threat of “Jobu Tupaki.”  The problem is that the Evelyn of this universe has never been good at much of anything.

Writer-directors Daniel Kwan and Daniel Scheinert (collectively known as “Daniels”) are quite inventive and imaginative.  Everything Everywhere All at Once is filled with crazy ideas and crazier universes and the craziest characters.  Still, I find the mechanics of this film's concept of a multiverse and how one traverses it to be not that interesting.  Every time, Alpha Waymond started talking, I found myself bored and considered stopping the film.

Luckily, the Daniels created engaging and lovable characters for Everything Everywhere All at Once, and they are played by a very skilled cast.  First, I am always happy to see the legendary Chinese-American actor, James Hong, who plays “Gong Gong.” and in this film, he has an opportunity to show the breath of his abilities.  Secondly, I am a huge fan of Jamie Lee Curtis (A Fish Called Wanda), and she gives an electric performance as the tough-talking IRS inspector, Deirdre, but she also makes a poignant turn as the “hot dog wiener fingers” universe version of Deirdre.  Ke Huy Quan plays several versions of Waymond so well that you might believe he is the lead character.  Stephanie Hsu is crazy, sexy, cool, dangerous, and even world-weary in her multiple turns in this film.

But Michelle Yeoh (Memories of a Geisha, The Mummy: Tomb of the Dragon Emperor) is the goddess here.  Apparently, the lead role in this film was originally written for Jackie Chan, who would have been magnificent in such a role in his younger days.  Circumstances, however, allowed Michelle Yeoh to show that she has the acting chops and the physicality to take on the kind of roles that have been afforded Jackie Chan for decades.  Yes, she is a great actress, and though Hong Kong and Chinese audiences have seen her range, I doubt many American moviegoers know that she could be so good in such a physically and emotionally challenging role as Evelyn Wang.

The influence of the Wachowski's groundbreaking 1999 film, The Matrix, on Everything Everywhere All at Once is obvious.  Ironically, Yeoh was one of the actresses considered to play “Trinity,” the lead female role in The Matrix.

Everything Everywhere All at Once is a whole lotta sound and fury for a film that is ultimately about the conflicts that can define a mother-daughter relationship, as well as basic family dysfunction.  I also think that it could have done the same thing in a considerably shorter run time than two hours and 19 minutes.  Everything Everywhere All at Once is good, but not great, and any greatness that it does have, it has because of the all-time great, Michelle Yeoh.

6 of 10
B
★★★ out of 4 stars

Friday, July 29, 2022


The text is copyright © 2022 Leroy Douresseaux. All Rights Reserved. Contact this blog or site for reprint and syndication rights and fees.

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Review: "HALLOWEEN KILLS" is the Best "Halloween" Sequel in Decades

TRASH IN MY EYE No. 3 of 2022 (No. 1815) by Leroy Douresseaux

Halloween Kills (2021)
Running time:  105 minutes (1 hour, 45 minutes)
MPAA – R for strong bloody violence throughout, grisly images, language and some drug use
DIRECTOR:  David Gordon Green
WRITERS:  David Gordon Green, Danny McBride, and Scott Teems (based on the characters created by John Carpenter and Debra Hill)
PRODUCERS:  Malek Akkad, Bill Block, and Jason Blum
CINEMATOGRAPHER:  Michael Simmonds (D.o.P.)
EDITOR:  Tim Alverson
COMPOSERS:  Cody Carpenter, John Carpenter, and Daniel Davies

HORROR/THRILLER

Starring:  Jamie Lee Curtis, Judy Greer, Andi Matichak, James Jude Courtney, Nick Castle, Will Patton, Thomas Mann, Jim Cummings, Dylan Arnold, Robert Longstreet, Anthony Michael Hall, Charles Cyphers, Scott MacArthur, Michael McDonald, Kyle Richards, Nancy Stephens, Diva Tyler, Lenny Clarke, Brian Mays, Sr., Michael Smallwood, Carmela McNeal, Jibrail Nantambu, and Omar Dorsey

Halloween Kills is a 2021 slasher-horror film from director David Gordon Green.  It is the twelfth installment in the Halloween film series and is a direct sequel to the 2018 film, Halloween, and to the original Halloween, the 1978 film that was the first in the series.  

Halloween Kills opens on October 31, 1978 in Haddonfield just after the events depicted in the original Halloween (1978) film.  Michael Myers failed to kill Laurie Strode, but he survived being shot by Dr. Samuel Loomis.  Now, the sheriff's department is desperately searching for Michael.  While searching for him in the ruins of his childhood home, Deputy Frank Hawkins (Thomas Mann) accidentally shoots his partner, Peter McCabe (Jim Cummings), dead while trying to save him from Michael.  Hawkins also prevents Dr. Loomis from executing Michael.

Forty years later, on October 31, 2018, Laurie Strode (Jamie Lee Curtis); her adult daughter, Karen Nelson (Judy Greer), and Karen's daughter, Allyson (Andi Matichak), have escaped Laurie's fortified house.  They believe that they have defeated Michael Myers who had returned to do what he had not forty years earlier – kill Laurie Strode.  They believe that Michael will die in Laurie's now-burning house, even as they see firefighters responding to the blaze.

While the medical staff of Haddonfield Memorial Hospital try to save the badly injured Laurie's life, survivors of Michael original rampage celebrate the 40th anniversary of Michael's imprisonment.  Two of them are the adult Tommy Doyle (Michael Anthony Hall) and the adult Lindsey Wallace (Kyle Richards), the two children Laurie Strode was babysitting back in 1978 the night Michael attacked.   When Tommy learns that Michael Myers has returned to Haddonfield, Tommy forms an every-growing mob of vengeful Haddonfield residents to hunt down and kill Michael.  Meanwhile, back at the hospital, Laurie and an older Deputy Frank Hawkins (Will Patton) wonder if Michael can really every be stopped.

Halloween Kills is the sequel to Halloween 2018, which is both a direct sequel to Halloween 1978 and a reboot of the entire franchise.  Halloween 2018 literally made all the sequel films to the 1978 film irrelevant.  Halloween Kills, however, takes elements from one of those sequels, the excellent Halloween II (1980), and rewrites them to explain what happened to Michael immediately after the events of the 1978 film.  In Halloween II, Michael escapes the police and stalks Laurie to Haddonfield Memorial Hospital.  In Halloween Kills, the sheriff and his deputies and Dr. Loomis capture Michael before he ever makes his way to the hospital to attack Laurie again.

In fact, Halloween Kills pretty much keeps the now-elderly Laurie Strode in the hospital and out of the fight this time around.  Halloween Kills is the first Halloween film that pits Michael Myers against the residents of Haddonfield rather than having him stalk Laurie Strode, a version of her, or a descendant, while killing anyone who happens to be connected directly or indirectly to his target.

I like that.  It refreshes the franchise in a way that Halloween 2018 did not.  Halloween Kills is honest, in a way.  Michael Myers won't be killed off because, as a movie character and as intellectual property, he is a cash cow.  In the world of the film, Michael suffered injuries in Halloween 1978 and 2018 that should have caused his death.  The very nature of his violence creates the atmosphere and conditions that keep him alive and returning to kill more.  Michael can't be killed, even in the world of these films.

I like Halloween Kills much more than I liked Halloween 2018.  The inventive script and David Gordon Green's aggressive and confrontational directing style result in two good things.  First, the actors' performances are individualized, so no one is the same.  Thus, when Michael kills a character, it feels like he is killing a real resident of Haddonfield rather than a generic victim in a horror film's typically high body count.  Let's be honest, dear readers, the main problem with the Friday the 13th horror film franchise is that the vast majority of the victims seem like the same people.

Secondly, Green and company offer some of the most creatively brutal kills that the audience will find in a slasher horror film.  No one killing is the same, and they all seem well thought out even when they happen quickly.  I really enjoyed Halloween Kills, and several times, I caught myself cheering and whooping it up.  I will say that Halloween Kills is a near-masterpiece of the genre, and it is a more worthy successor to Halloween 1978 that Halloween 2018 is.

8 of 10
A

Reviewed by Leroy Douresseaux a.k.a. "I Reads You"


The text is copyright © 2022 Leroy Douresseaux. All Rights Reserved. Contact this blog or site for reprint syndication rights and fees.

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Review: "Halloween" 2018 is a Crazy Film

TRASH IN MY EYE No. 2 of 2021 (No. 1740) by Leroy Douresseaux

[This review was originally posted on Patreon.]

Halloween (2018)
Running time:  106 minutes (1 hour 46 minutes)
MPAA – R for horror violence and bloody images, language, brief drug use and nudity
DIRECTOR:  David Gordon Green
WRITERS:  David Gordon Green, Danny McBride, and Jeff Fradley (based on the characters created by John Carpenter and Debra Hill
PRODUCERS:  Malek Akkad, Bill Block, and Jason Blum
CINEMATOGRAPHER:  Michael Simmonds
EDITOR:  Timothy Alverson
COMPOSER:  Cody Carpenter, John Carpenter, and Daniel A. Davies

HORROR

Starring:  Jamie Lee Curtis, Judy Greer, Andi Matichak, James Jude Courtney, Nick Castle, Haluk Bilginer, Will Patton, Rhian Rees, Jefferson Hall, Toby Huss, Virginia Gardner, Dylan Arnold, Miles Robbins, Drew Scheid, Jibrail Nantambu, and Omar Dorsey

Halloween is a 2018 slasher-horror film from director David Gordon Green.  It is the eleventh installment in the Halloween film series and is a direct sequel to Halloween, the 1978 film that was the first in the series.  Halloween 2018 follows a post-traumatic woman as she plots the final showdown with the masked killer who has haunted her ever since he killed her friends and almost killed her forty years ago on Halloween night.

Halloween opens on October 29, 2018.  Michael Myers (Nick Castle) has been institutionalized at Smith's Grove Psychiatric Hospital for 40 years following his killing spree in Haddonfield on October 31, 1978.  Myers is being prepared for transfer to a maximum security prison, but the following day, as he is being transferred, Michael manages to escape and returns to Haddonfield.

In Haddonfield, Laurie Strode (Jamie Lee Curtis) is still living in fear of Michael Myers 40 years later.  She is drinking heavily and rarely leaves her fortified house deep in the woods.  Laurie is estranged from her adult daughter, Karen Nelson (Judy Greer), whom the state took away from Laurie when Karen was 12.  Karen's husband, Ray Nelson (Toby Huss), does not want Laurie around, but their daughter, Allyson (Andi Matichak), does keep in touch with her grandmother, Laurie.

When Laurie discovers that Michael has escape, she springs into action.  Deputy Frank Hawkins (Will Patton), who arrested Michael in 1978, seems to be the only other person who truly understands how dangerous Michael Myers is.  As they try to convince Laurie's family and the rest of Haddonfield that Michael (James Jude Courtney) is back, Laurie prepares for her final confrontation with Michael.

Halloween 2018 is called a “direct sequel” to the 1978 original, although I think the 2018 film is a hybrid that is a combination sequel, remake, reboot, and re-imagining of various elements of the Halloween film franchise.  If anything Halloween 2018 is inspired by Halloween 1978 and by the fables and culture surrounding it.

That would explain why Halloween 2018 seems incomplete in many ways.  Initially, the film presents Michael Myers as a man.  When he dons the mask, Michael becomes “The Shape,” which was how the original film's screenplay referred to him.  Ultimately, however, Myers is a slasher film villain and when he starts dispatching the denizens of Haddonfield, he becomes what he must be – a killing machine.  He kills so many other characters in this film that it just becomes pointless.  Apparently, Myers really wants to kill Laurie Strode, but while he strolls on over to his inevitable showdown with her, he must think why not kill a person or two … or three … or four.

What is this movie about, really?  I will freely admit that it is one of the most intensely scary movies that I have seen in recent years.  So is it about the post-traumatic woman that Laurie Strode is?  Is it about the multi-generational affects of violence?  Is it about Laurie vs. Michael, and if it is, why is Laurie vs. Michael a thing?  After all, Halloween 2018 “retcons” out the fact that Laurie Strode and Michael Myers are siblings, as movie audiences learned in 1981's underrated Halloween II.

The problem is that the original Halloween was a film that director John Carpenter wanted to make, while Halloween 2018 is something birthed by Halloween the cash cow film franchise.  Although, Halloween 2018 is very well directed by David Gordon Green, it is not cinematic art; it is simply film as entertainment product.

Halloween 2018 sells a familiar product to audiences, and this product is a scary movie that is supposed to deliver scares, which, once again, I will admit that it does indeed deliver.  The writers and director really deliver the horror movie wheelhouse tropes, but do so with the cost being truncated character drama and story development.  This film has some quality actors, led by Jamie Lee Curtis, and some quality acting, for instance Haluk Bilginer as Dr. Ranbir Sartain (an underutilized character).  But the actors' efforts with these characters feels abbreviated … because the film has to focus on Michael killing lots of characters in the most gruesome fashion.  Only child actor, Jibrail Nantambu, as the babysat kid, Julian Morrisey, makes the most of his character, and that is because his character has too little screen time to infer with Michael's killing spree.

However, I must state that if you, dear readers, want to be scared, Halloween 2018 will scare you.  It is a genuinely chilling, creepy, and scary film.  But I also want to make sure that I emphasize that the true “direct sequel” to Halloween 1978 is 1981's Halloween II.  Halloween 2018 was meant to be and is an effective cash cow, and if it were more that that, I would give it an even higher grade.

B+
7 of 10

Tuesday, December 1, 2020


The text is copyright © 2020 Leroy Douresseaux. All Rights Reserved. Contact this blog or site for reprint syndication rights and fees.

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Review: "Knives Out" a Fresh Cut of Murder Mystery

TRASH IN MY EYE No. 15 (of 2020) by Leroy Douresseaux

[This review was originally posted on Patreon.]

Knives Out (2019)
Running time:  130 minutes (2 hours, 10 minutes)
MPAA – PG-13 for thematic elements including brief violence, some strong language, sexual references, and drug material
WRITER/DIRECTOR:  Rian Johnson
PRODUCERS:  Rian Johnson and Ram Bergman
CINEMATOGRAPHER:  Steve Yedlin (D.o.P.)
EDITOR:  Bob Ducsay
COMPOSER:  Nathan Johnson
Academy Award nominee

MYSTERY/COMEDY

Starring:  Daniel Craig, Chris Evans, Ana de Armas, Jamie Lee Curtis, Michael Shannon, Don Johnson, Toni Collette, LaKeith Stanfield, Christopher Plummer, Katherine Langford, Jaeden Martell, Riki Lindhome, Edi Patterson, Frank Oz, K Callan, Noah Segan, M. Emmet Walsh, and Marlene Forte

Knives Out is a 2019 mystery film written and directed by Rian Johnson.  The film is a modern whodunit and a murder mystery inspired by the works of the legendary mystery novelist, Agatha Christie.  Knives Out focuses on a master detective investigating an eccentric, combative family after the family's patriarch is found dead.

Knives Out introduces wealthy crime novelist, Harlan Thrombey (Christopher Plummer).  He has invited his family to his Massachusetts mansion for his 85th birthday party.  The following morning, Harlan's housekeeper, Fran (Edi Patterson), finds Harlan dead, with his throat slit.  Local police Detective Lieutenant Elliott (LaKeith Stanfield) believes Harlan's death to be a suicide.  However, an anonymous party among the family has secretly paid private eye, Benoit Blanc (Daniel Craig), to investigate Harlan's death as a homicide.  Blanc finds his suspects among the members of the family, and each one is either eccentric or combative.

Blanc learns that Harlan's relationships with his family were strained.  Blanc is keeping an eye on particular members of the family.  There is Harlan's eldest daughter, Linda Drysdale (Jamie Lee Curtis), a real estate mogul, and his youngest son, Walt Thrombey (Michael Shannon).  There is also Joni Thrombey (Toni Collette), Harlan's daughter-in-law and the widow of his late son, Neil, and his son-in-law, Richard Drysdale (Don Johnson), Linda's husband.  Even Harlan's nurse and close friend, Marta Cabrera (Ana de Armas), is a suspect... or at least has knowledge that will answer important questions.  And where is Harlan's grandson, Ransom “Hugh” Drysdale (Chris Evans), the spoiled playboy son of Linda and Richard?

Whodunit... if it is true that someone did anything criminal?  Or is the truth more complicated and too obvious for even world-famous private investigator Benoit Blanc to discover?

Rian Johnson's Knives Out starts with an excellent screenplay, not necessarily in terms of the mystery's plot.  That is mostly just an exercise in genre elements and trappings – similar to the twists and terms found in the works of Agatha Christie and those stories inspired by Christie.  The best of Knives Out is in the characters, the kind that character actors can use to chew up movie scenery.

The cast of Knives Out is comprised of actors who have been at or near the top of their professions in film or television at some point in their careers.  They are not really known as character actors because they have been or still are headliners.  However, they are mostly veteran actors, and they can do what character actors do best, and that is deliver performances that create the kind of characters of which film audiences cannot get enough.

That is what Rian Johnson did with this film.  He composed a topnotch script, and then, he directed his actors to topnotch performances.  The result is a mystery film that grabs the viewers and holds them from start to finish.  I certainly felt as if I could not let stop watching Knives Out; it is truly a fun film to watch.  It is not perfect; there seems not to be enough screen time for some of the best characters, such as Jamie Lee Curtis' Linda Drysdale, Michael Shannon's Walt Thrombey, and Toni Collette's Joni Thrombey.  And Chris Evan's Ransom Drysdale seems misused...

Still, get yourself to Knives Out, dear reader.  It is one of the funniest and most enjoyable murder mystery films in quite some time.

8 of 10
A

Saturday, June 20, 2020


NOTES:
2019 Academy Awards, USA:  1 nomination: “Best Original Screenplay” (Rian Johnson)

2019 BAFTA Awards:  1 nomination: “Best Screenplay” (Rian Johnson)

2019 Golden Globes, USA:  3 nominations:  “Best Motion Picture - Musical or Comedy,” “Best Performance by an Actress in a Motion Picture - Musical or Comedy” (Ana de Armas), and “Best Performance by an Actor in a Motion Picture - Musical or Comedy” (Daniel Craig)


The text is copyright © 2020 Leroy Douresseaux. All Rights Reserved. Contact this site or blog for reprint and syndication rights and fees.

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Negromancer News Bits and Bites from November 1st to 9th, 2019 - Update #23

Support Leroy on Patreon:

TELEVISION - From Deadline:  ABC's sitcom, "Fresh Off the Boat," will end Friday, February 21, 2020, the completion of its sixth and final season.

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MOVIES - From Deadline:  "Scream 5" is in early development at Spyglass Media Group.  It would be the fifth film in the franchise begun by writer Kevin Williamson and the late director, Wes Craven.

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MUSIC - From YahooEntertainment:  Robyn Crawford was Whitney Houston's best friend, and the two always denied that they were lovers.  Now, Robyn is talking in her new book, "A Song for You: My Life With Whitney Houston.

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CELEBRITY - From YahooEntertainment:  Actor Richard Gere may be 70-years-old, but that did not stop him from impregnating his 36-year-old wife, Alejandra, with their second child.

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MOVIES - From THR:  Legendary Hollywood star and icon James Dean died in a car accident in 1955.  Now, Dean has been posthumously cast in the film, "Finding Jack."  Dean will be reconstructed via "full body" CGI that will use actual (archival) footage and photos of Dean.  The CGI will probably be posted on a body double actor, and another actor will provide Dean's voice.  Dean's family has apparently approved of this.

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MOVIES - From CinemaBlend:  Denis Villeneuve is working on "Dune 2" even as he is still compiling his "Dune" reboot.

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TELEVISION - From Deadline:  Actor Lucas Black has left the CBS series, "NCIS: New Orleans," after six seasons of playing the character, "Special Agent Christopher LaSalle."  Black was an original cast member.

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CELEBRITY - From Variety:  Jamie Lee Curtis talks about her addiction, even freebasing once with her late father, legendary Hollywood star, Tony Curtis.

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TELEVISION - From Deadline:  ABC's next "Live In Front Of A Studio Audience" will feature recreations of classic episodes of "All in the Family" and "Good Times" and will debut December 18, 2019.  "ABC’s "Live in Front of a Studio Audience: Norman Lear’s ‘All in the Family’ and ‘The Jeffersons’" was nominated for three Emmy Awards, and took home the prize for "Outstanding Variety Special (Live)" and premiered on May 22, 2019.

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TELEVISION - From Deadline:  In spite of recent controversy, the cable TV series, "Mayans M.C.," gets a third season from FX.

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TELEVISION - From Deadline:  CBS has given a pilot production commitment to a reboot of its 1980s TV series, "The Equalizer" (starring the late, great Edward Woodward).  This time Oscar-nominated actress, Queen Latifah, will play the lead role and executive produce.

----------
BOX OFFICE - From Patreon:  My review of "Terminator: Dark Fate"

From THR:  With an estimated debut of 29 million dollars in the U.S., "Terminator: Dark Fate" is looking like a box office bomb, especially with its production cost of 185 million dollars, which does not include marketing costs.

From Variety:   The newest release in the "Terminator" film franchise, "Terminator: Dark Fate," seems fated for a lackluster box office debut weekend.

From TheWrap:   "6 Major Ideas ‘Terminator: Dark Fate’ Copied From Previous ‘Terminator’ Movies"

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ECO - From TheGuardian:  Oscar-winning actor Leonardo DiCaprio praises child climate change activist, Greta Thunberg.

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MOVIES - From Deadline:  Director Rian Johnson says angry tweets about his film, "Star Wars: The Last Jedi" inspired his new film, "Knives Out."

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MOVIES - From ThePlaylist:   Francis Lawrence has confirmed that he is talks to direct a "Hunger Games" prequel film.

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STEAMING - From ThePlaylist:  Al Pacino is joining producer Jordan Peele on a new Amazon series about Nazi hunters.

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OSCARS - From IndieWire:  There have been some changes to the Academy Award category, "Best International Feature Film" (formerly "Best Foreign Language Film"), including that voting members of the Academy (AMPAS) will be able to view the film onlin.

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MOVIES-MUSIC - From Deadline:  "Bohemian Rhapsody" producer Graham King is one of the parties behind a biopic about the Bee Gees, the brotherly singing trio.  They wrote songs for the 1977 film, "Saturday Night Fever," which yielded several hit songs and made the film's soundtrack, "Saturday Night Fever," one of the biggest selling albums of all time.

OBITS:

From NBCNews:  The acclaimed Louisiana-based novelist, Ernest J.Gaines, has died at the age of 86, Tuesday, November 5, 2019.  He was best known for his 1971 novel, "The Autobiography of Miss Jane Pittman."  The novel became a 1974 CBS television movie starring Cicely Tyson, which went on to win nine Emmy Awards, including one for Tyson.  Gaines 1983 novel, "A Gathering of Old Men," and his 1993 novel, "A Lesson Before Dying" were also made into TV movies.

From Variety:  British music and film producer, Nik Powell, has died at the age of 69, Thursday, November 9, 2019.  Powell was one of the co-founders of Virgin Records and of the film production company, Palace Productions.  Among the films he produced were "Mona Lisa" (1986) and "The Crying Game" (1986).

TRAILERS:

From YouTube:  First trailer for Universal/Blumhouse's "Invisible Man" starring Elizabeth Moss.  The film debuts Feb. 28th, 2020.

Universal Pictures Announces Two "Halloween" Sequels

"HALLOWEEN KILLS" and "HALLOWEEN ENDS" - Release Dates Now Available

The saga of Michael Myers and Laurie Strode isn't over.

Universal Pictures  announced release dates for two new films in the iconic Halloween series.

In response to the global fan enthusiasm for last year's Halloween, starring Jamie Lee Curtis and directed by David Gordon Green, which went on to become the highest-grossing installment in the classic horror franchise at more than $250 million worldwide, Universal Pictures announced release dates for two new films in the iconic Halloween series, from Trancas International Films, Miramax and Blumhouse Productions.

HALLOWEEN KILLS will be released on Friday, October 16, 2020.

Written by David Gordon Green & Danny McBride & Scott Teems, based on characters created by John Carpenter and Debra Hill, the film will be directed by David Gordon Green and produced by Malek Akkad, Jason Blum and Bill Block. John Carpenter, Jamie Lee Curtis, Jeanette Volturno, Couper Samuelson, Danny McBride, David Gordon Green and Ryan Freimann are executive producers. Ryan Turek is overseeing the project for Blumhouse.

HALLOWEEN ENDS will be released on Friday, October 15, 2021.

Written by David Gordon Green and Danny McBride, and Paul Brad Logan and Chris Bernier, based on characters created by John Carpenter and Debra Hill, the film will be directed by David Gordon Green and produced by Malek Akkad, Jason Blum and Bill Block. John Carpenter, Jamie Lee Curtis, Jeanette Volturno, Couper Samuelson, Danny McBride, David Gordon Green and Ryan Freimann are executive producers. Ryan Turek is overseeing the project for Blumhouse.

------------------------

Negromancer News Bits and Bites from June 1st to 8th, 2019 - Update #23

Support Leroy on Patreon:

COMICS - From Newsarama:  Apparently (X-Men:) "Dark Phoenix" was being rewritten daily during its production.

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MOVIES - From MovieWeb:  Sigourney Weaver says that she will appear in Jason Reitman's upcoming "Ghostbusters 3" film.

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COMICS-FILM - From TheWrap:  "X-Men: Dark Phoenix" apparently does not have a post-credits scene.  When the credits role, the movie is over.

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MOVIES - From Collider:  Producer Jason Blum and actress Jamie Lee Curtis tease a sequel to last year's hit, "Halloween" (2018).

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TELEVISION - From TheWrap:  NBC is developing a TV series based on Dan Brown's novel, "The Last Symbol."  Entitled "Langdon," the series will focus on Robert Langdon, the character best known as the lead in Brown's worldwide bestselling novel, "The Da Vinci Code."

----------
MOVIES - From THR:  Brigette Lundy-Paine and Samara Weaving will play the onscreen children of Keanu Reeves and Alex Winter, respectively.

----------
TERMINATOR - From CBR:  James Cameron said that he would return to the "Terminator" franchise (for "Terminator: Dark Fate") on one condition.  Arnold Schwarzenegger had to also return.

----------
BLM/STREAMING - From YahooNews:  Regarding the Central Park Five and Netflix's "When They See Us," former prosecutor Linda Fairstein is discovering that God don't sleep.

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SPORTS - From NFL:  NFL announces new social grants recipients.

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TELEVISION - From YahooEntertainment:  Mindy Kaling says she was a diversity hire at "The Office."

----------
MOVIES - From Variety:  Woody Allen will begin shooting his 51st film this summer in Spain.  Amazson shelved Allen's last film, "A Rainy Day in New York," and ended its deal with im.

----------
TELEVISION - From Variety:  There was word that writers for Fox's TV series, "Empire," were working on ideas to bring disgraced actor, Jussie Smollett, back to the series.  However, series co-creator Lee Daniels says Smollett will not return.

----------
SCIENCE - From ScienceMag:  What cats do with their time.

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STREAMING -  From Deadline: Joe and Anthony Russo ("Avengers: Infinity War" and "Endgame") will executive produce an animated series based on the tabletop trading card game, "Magic: The Gathering" for Netflix.

From ShadowsandAct:  Octavia Spencer credits NBA superstar LeBron James with making sure she got paid right for her Netflix limited series about Madam C.J. Walker.

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OSCARS - From Deadline:  Actor Wes Studi and directors David Lynch and Lina Wertmuller will receive Honorary Oscars and actress Geena Davis (The Jean Hersholt Humanitarian Award).  They are the winners of the 11th Annual Governors Awards as voted by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts & Sciences Board of Governors.

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MOVIES - From Deadline:   Barry Jenkins ("Moonlight") is in talks to direct a biopic about Alvin Ailey, one of the most important and influential choreographers of the 20th century.

---------
BOX OFFICE - From BoxOfficeMojo:  The winner of the 5/31 to 6/2/2019 weekend box office is "Godzilla: King of the Monsters" with an estimated take of 49 million dollars.

From Deadline:  "Godzilla: King of Monsters" trending lower than expected, here and abroad.

----------
ANIMATION - From THR:  Japan's Studio Ghibli ("Princess Mononoke," "My Neighbor Totoro") announces plans to open in theme park in 2022.

----------
TECH - From TechRader:  5G and film: how will the tech change how we consume movies?

---------
MOVIES - From WMagazine:  Summer Movies: An Official Guide to the Non-Blockbusters, From Plus One to Ready or Not

OBITS:

From Deadline:  New Orleans singer, songwriter, and pianist, Dr. John, has died at the age of 71, Thursday, June 6, 2019.  A six-time Grammy Award winner, Dr. John was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2011.  His best known single was the 1973 hit, "Right Place, Wrong Time."

From NOLA:  Celebrated chef and civil rights activist, Leah Chase, has died at the age of 96, Saturday, June 1, 2019.  Known as the queen or matriarch of New Orleans Creole cuisine, Chase career spanned seven decades, she fed everyone from ordinary people to the famous, including Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. and James Baldwin.

From RollingStone:  Former Harlem drug kingpin, Frank Lucas, has died at the age of 88, Thursday, May 30, 2019.  Lucas was immortalized in Ridley Scott's 2007 crime film, "American Gangster," with Denzel Washington playing Lucas.  Lucas claimed he imported heroin from Southeast Asia in the coffins of U.S. soldiers killed in Vietnam in the 1970s, a gambit known as the "Golden Triangle."

Negromancer News Bits and Bites from October 14th to 20th, 2018 - Update #23

Support Leroy on Patreon:

SPORTS - From Deadline:  NFL owners would like Amazon's CEO Jeff Bezos to purchase the Seattle Seahawks.

----------
AWARDS - From Variety:  2018 Gotham Awards nominations announced.  Based in New York City, the Gotham Awards honor independent films and also television.

---------
COMICS-STREAMING - From Variety:  Netflix has cancelled Marvel's "Luke Cage" a few months after its second season debut.

----------
MOVIES - From YahooEntertainment:  Jamie Lee Curtis calls the 1998 reboot film, "Halloween H20: 20 Years Later," a paycheck film, but says that she still loves it.

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CELEBRITY-SPORTS - From YahooCelebrity:  Amy Schumer vows not to film in commercials for Super Bowl 53 (Feb. 3rd, 2019) in support of the "take a knee" protests among NFL players.  Schumer wonders why more white players are not taking a kneeling.

From Vulture:  Grammy-winning singer and actress Rihanna said that she turned down the Super Bowl LIII halftime show in support of Colin Kaepernick and his "National Anthem" protests of "taking a knee" during the playing of the Anthem.

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MOVIES - From TheWrap:  Liam Hemsworth and Vince Vaughn join "Arkansas," the directorial debut of Clark Duke, the former child actor ("Hot Tub Time Machine").

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TELEVISION - From WashPost:  How Julia Louis-Dreyfus quietly became the most successful sitcom star ever

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MOVIES - From BleedingCool:  Chris Hemsworth has finished filming his part in the "Men in Black" reboot/sequel.

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MOVIES - From Variety:  Michael B. Jordan will star in and produce the assassin story, "The Silver Bear," for Lionsgate.

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MOVIES - From Variety:  Idris Elba joins Taylor Swift in the film adaptation of the classic Broadway musical, "Cats."

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MOVIES - From YahooEntertainment:  Robert Englund says he fought for Freddie Krueger to wear a fedora.

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MOVIES - From TheVerge:  An article about Gareth Evan's ("The Raid") latest film, the Netflix drama-thriller, "Apostle," and it how it extends the legacy of Robin Hardy's "The Wicker Man."

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ANIMATION - From SlashFilm:  New "Tom & Jerry," "The Flintstones," and "Scooby-Doo" films are in the works.  Some will be animated; some will be live-action/animation hybrids.

----------
BOX OFFICE - BoxOfficeMojo:  The winner of the 10/12 to 10/14/2018 weekend box office is "Venom" with an estimated take of $35.7 million.

----------
COMICS-FILM - From Thrillist:  How Venom's crazy tongue comes to life in "Venom."

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MOVIES-POLITICS - From Truthout:  Michael Moore’s “Fahrenheit 11/9” Shows Democrats' Complicity in Electing Trump

----------
CELEBRITY - From Deadline:  Bryan Singer slams an upcoming "Esquire" magazine profile of him is a rehash of false accusations about him.

----------
COMICS-TV - From TheWrap:  Jack Bannon will star as "Alfred Pennyworth" in "Pennyworth," a 10-episode Batman prequel TV series to premier on Epix.

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MUSIC-POLITICS - From TheRoot:  The estate of the late music legend, Prince, asks President Trump to stop playing Prince's song, "Purple Rain," at his political rallies.

----------
RELIGION - From YahooNews:  Pope Francis has canonzied Oscar Romero, the late archbishop of San Salvador, El Salvador.  On March 24, 1980, Archbishop Romero was murdered by a right-wing assassination while performing Mass in the chapel of the Hospital of Divine Providence.  Pope Francis also canonized Pope Paul VI (1963 to 1978).

OBITS:

From ESPN:  NFL Hall of Famer (Class of 1976), Jim Taylor, died Saturday, October 13, 2018 at the age of 83.  Taylor played for the Green Bay Packers from 1958 to 1966.  He was the NFL MVP in 1962, and was on the Packers 1961, 1962, and 1965 NFL Championship teams, as well as being a member of the team that won Super Bowl I.  A native of Louisiana, he played football at Louisiana State University (LSU).

From CNN:  Billionaire Paul Allen has died at the age of 65, Monday, October 15, 2018.  Allen was the co-founder of Microsoft.  He also owned two professional sports franchises, the NBA's Portland Trailblazers and the NFL's Seattle Seahawks.

From YahooHuffPost:  Brothel owner and celebrity pimp, Dennis Hof, has died at the age of 72, Tuesday, October 16, 2018.  Porn movie acting legend, Ron Jeremy, reportedly found Hof's body.  At one time, Hof owned as many as four brothels, including the "Moonlite BunnyRanch" in Nevada.  He had an HBO series, "Cathouse" (2002 to 2014) and a bestselling autobiography.  Hof was running for Nevada state office.

Negromancer News Bits and Bites from January 14th to 20th, 2018 - Update #34

Support Leroy on Patreon.

COMICS-FILM - From WeGotThisCovered:  Brie Larson continues her preparation for Marvel Studios' "Captain Marvel," as seen in these photos.

----------
COMICS-FILM - From ICv2:  "Marvel's Cloak & Dagger" will debut on Freeform (Disney) June 7, 2018 at 8 p.m. Eastern/Pacific.

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MUSIC - From Billboard:  Drake drops two new songs.  Here, them at Billboard.

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MUSIC - From RollingStone:  A medical examiner has ruled that rock musician Tom Petty died of an accidental mixture of medication including opiods.  Petty died in October 2017.

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MOVIES - From BleedingCool:  The "Crocodile Dundee" film franchise gets a new life with "Dundee" starring Danny McBride.

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PIXAR - From THR:  Stephany Folsom is the new writer on "Toy Story 4."  Previous writer Rashida Jones left the project.

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COMICS-FILM - From ComicBook:  Matthew Lloyd, who was the cinematographer on the first season of Marvel/Netflix's "Daredevil" will be do the photography duties on the "Spider-Man: Homecoming" sequel.

COMICS-FILM - From BleedingCool:  NBA legend, champion, and Basketball Hall of Famer Shaquille O'Neal wants to be in an "Avengers" movie.  Back in the 1990s, he was the star of the film, "Steel," based on the DC Comics character.

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MANGA-FILM - From CBR:  Director Robert Rodriguez explains the photo-realistic "manga eyes" in "Alita: Battle Angel" (based on the manga "Battle Angel Alita").

----------
CULTURE - From YahooNews:  A University of Alabama female student finds herself expelled and returned to her New Jersey home after she posts a racist anti-African-American rant on Instagram.

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COMICS-FILM - From ComicBookMovie:  John Francis Daley and Jonathan Goldstein will be the directors of "Flashpoint," the stand-alone film featuring DC Comics superhero, "Flash."

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TELEVISION - From THR:  J.J. Abrams is working on a television science fiction drama that has HBO and Apple would like to buy.

----------
CULTURE - From TheNewYorker:  When Barbie Went to War with Bratz

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COMICS-ANIMATION - From DenofGeek:  There are rumors that Marvel will cancel all three of its Disney XD animated TV series.

----------
COMICS-FILM - From TheWrap:  Vin Diesel wants to play the lead in Sony's film adaptation of Valiant Comics' "Bloodshot."

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CELEBRITY - From Deadline:  Pam Grier talks about her biopic and speaks on sexual harassment.

----------
MOVIES - From Deadline:  Trevor Jackson and Jason Mitchell to star in Sony's "Superfly" remake.  Director X (a Canadian music video director) is set to director.

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CELEBRITY/AWARDS - From TMZ:  Halle Berry may have "gone commando" at the 49th NAACP Image Awards ceremony on Mon., Jan. 15th, 2018.

----------
CULTURE - From THR:  "The Big Sick" and Hollywood's Muslim-American Renaissance by Kareem Abdul-Jabbar.

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POLITICS - From HuffPost:  Famed whistleblower, Chelsea Manning, is running for a U.S. Senate seat in Maryland.

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COMICS-FILM - From CinemaBlend:  Stan Lee talks about what he wanted his "Black Panther" cameo to be.

From ScreenRant:  Both Todd McFarlane and Stan Lee will appear in the reboot of the "Spawn" film franchise.  McFarlane is the creator of the Spawn comic book and is writing and directing the reboot.  Stan Lee was the creator or co-creator of many of the most iconic Marvel Comics characters.

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MLK - From TheGuardian:  If Martin Luther King Jr were alive today, politicians would denounce him.

MOVIES - From ThePlaylist:  Quentin Tarantino reportedly wants Al Pacino in his 1969/Manson murders movie.

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BOX OFFICE - From BoxOfficeMojo:   The winner at the 1/12 to 1/14/2018 weekend box office is "Jumanji: Welcome to the Jungle" with an estimated take of $27 million.

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SCANDAL - From Deadline:  Eliza Dushku has accused famed stunt coordinator, Joel Kramer, of molesting her on the during filming of the James Cameron film, "True Lies" (1994).

From Facebook:  Eliza Dushku's post describing the sexual assault she alleges a True Lies coordinator committed against her when she was 12.  [WARNING: Her post is shocking, graphic, and heartbreaking.]

From BleedingCool:  James Cameron, director of True Lies, and Jamie Lee Curtis, co-star of True Lies, comments on Eliza Dushku's allegations that she was molested as a child on the set of True Lies by a stunt coordinator.

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MOVIES - From Variety:  Mark Wahlberg and his agency WME to donate "All the Money in the World" reshoot money (a combined $2 million) to "Times Up" legal defense fund.

From TheWrap:  Mark Wahlberg's "All of the Money in the World," Michelle Williams, praises Wahlberg for donating his reshoot money to #TimesUp.

From TimesUp:  About #TimesUp

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CELEBRITY - From THR:  A profile of journalist and writer Ronan Farrow, the son of Mia Farrow and Woody Allen, and one of the writers who broke open the Harvey Weinstein sexual misconduct scandal.

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COMICS - From BleedingCool:  Oscar winning screenwriter, John Ridley (12 Years a Slave) is writing "The Other History of the DC Universe" for DC Comics.

VIDEO:

From FlickeringMyth:  Lucasfilm and Disney XD has released a trailer for the final episodes of "Star Wars Rebels." The final six episodes will be released over a 3-week period beginning Feb. 19th, 2018.

OBITS:

From ChicagoSunTimes:  The Chicago-based rapper, Fredo Santana, has died at the age of 27, Saturday, January 20, 2018.  Known as a "drill rapper," Fredo was the older cousin of controversial rapper, Chief Keef.  Fredo released nine mixtapes and one solo album, 2013's "Trappin Ain't Dead."

From PEOPLE:  Irish musician, Dolores O'Riordan, has died at the age of 46, Monday, January 15, 2018.  She was the lead singer of the Irish band, "The Cranberries," which has a number of hit songs in the 1990s, especially "Linger" and "Zombie."

Negromancer News Bits and Bites from September 10th to 16th, 2017 - Update #43

Support Leroy on Patreon.

MOVIES - From GlobalNews:  Are real-life clowns losing work because of "IT's" Pennywise the Clown?

----------
MOVIES - From Vox:  The site explains why Hollywood keeps making the same kinds of movies.

----------
JAMES BOND - From Fortune:  Apple and Amazon are among the players that will bid for the rights to distribute the 27th James Bond film, which is due in 2019.

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MOVIES - From Vulture:  The site lists 17 horror movies remake it thinks you should actually watch.

----------
BLM - From YahooNews:  The AP takes a look at high-profile killings of African-American men by law enforcement.

----------
MOVIES - From THR:  Joel McHale joins Melissa McCarthy's puppet comedy, "The Happytime Murders."

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HISTORY - From StillCrew:  The story of how the late Dick Gregory forced the FBI to find the bodies of three slain Civil Rights workers in Mississippi.

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MOVIES - From THR:  Jamie Lee Curtis reportedly returning to the Halloween film franchise for the 2018-scheduled reboot, remake, re-whatever.

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TELEVISION - From TheWrap:  Jack Whitehall, Miranda Richardson, and Michael McKean have joined Neil Gaiman's TV series, "Good Omens."

----------
TELEVISION - From TheWrap:  Apparently Oscar-winner and multiple Oscar-nominee, Jennifer Lawrence, once auditioned to play "Serena" on The WB's late "Gossip Girl."  The role eventually went to Blake Lively.

----------
TELEVISION - From TVLine: Adria Arjona joins Neil Gaiman's "Good Omens" TV series, based on the novel he wrote with the late Terry Pratchett.

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OSCARS - From BleedingCool:  The film to send out movie screeners to Oscar voters is "Logan."  [At least, they're trying, bless their hearts. - Ed.]

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TELEVISION - From Collider:  HBO will shot multiple endings for the "Game of Thrones" finale.

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COMICS-FILM - From YahooEntertainment:  Here is the first photo of David Harbour ("Stranger Things") as Hellboy in the "Hellboy" reboot film.  [Honestly, I think he resembles Ron Perlman, the previous Hellboy actor. - Ed.]

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TELEVISION - From YahooEntertainment:  "South Park" opens its 21st season poking fun at white supremacists and the white working class.

----------
POLITICS - From YahooEntertainment:  Some actors, entertainers, and performers have decided to be blunt about what they think about President Trump even his supporters are fans of theirs..

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MOVIES - From Variety:  Kiki Layne has won the lead in Oscar-winner Barry Jenkins' ("Moonlight") next film, "If Beale Street Could Talk."

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STAR WARS - From TheWrap:  J.J. Abrams is now the director of Star Wars Episode 9, after the first announced director, Colin Trevorrow, was fired.  Abrams directed "Star Wars: The Force Awakens" (Episode 7).  Abrams will co-write the film's script with Oscar-winner Chris Terrio ("Argo").

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LGBTQ - From YahooEntertaiment:  Armie Hammer shuts James Woods down after Wood tweets some silliness about Hammer's gay-themed film, Call Me By Your Name.

From YahooEntertaiment:  Amber Tamblyn weighs in on James Woods' "decency."

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COMICS-FILM - From THR:  Daniel Dae-Kim is in talks to play Major Ben Daimio in the "Hellboy" reboot.  Actor Ed Skrien, who is white, had been hired to play the character who is Japanese-American in the comic book, but Skrien stepped down after social media protests and complaints of "whitewashing."

----------
COMICS-FILM - From SlashFilm:  "Maze Runner" director Wes Ball to direct a film based on the really cool comic book, "Mouse Guard."

-----------
COMICS-FILM - From Variety:  Patty Jenkins closes deal to direct "Wonder Woman" sequel. [D'uh. - Ed.]

----------
CELEBRITY - From YahooEntertaiment:  The wife of Jonathan Rhys Meyers, Mara Lane, reveals that the actor has had a substance abuse relapse after she suffered a miscarriage.

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BOX OFFICE - From BoxOfficeMojo:  The winner of the 9/8 to 9/10/2017 weekend box office is "It," with an estimated take of $117 million.  Among the records that opening sets is the largest opening for any horror movie of any MPAA rating.

----------
CELEBRITY - From BET:  There is something going on between Tyrese Gibson and Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson.

From BET:  Tyrese continues begging for The Rock's attention, now moving to Instagram.

----------
BLM - From RawStory:  Claremont, New Hampshire police chief Mark Chase is trying to protect white teenagers who lynched a biracial child after taunting him with racial epithets.  Luckily, the child survived.

----------
POLITICS - From RawStory:  Incompetent CIA director Mike Pompeo trying to turn the CIA into an evangelical dumpster.

----------
EMMYS - From Deadline:  Night 1 2017 Creative Arts Emmy winners announced.  RuPaul, Leah Remini, Meryl Streep, and Ava DuVernay among winners.

From Variety:  Here is a winners list from Night 2 of the 2017 Creative Arts Emmys.

From Vulture:  Complete winners list from 2017 Creative Arts Emmy winners.

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FILM FESTIVALS - From Deadline:  Guillermo del Toro's period fantasy film, "The Shape of Water," wins the "Golden Lion" at the 2017 Venice Film Festival.

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STREAMING - From YahooFinance:  Maybe Disney should just buy Netflix.

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FILM FESTIVALS - From YahooEntertainment:  At Toronto International Film Festival, Margot Robbie earning good reviews for her starring role in the Tonya Harding fake documentary/biopic, "I, Tonya."

OBITS:

From Variety:  The actor Harry Dean Stanton has died at the age of 91, Friday, September 15, 2017.  He had a decades-long career, but his breakthrough roles came in the mid-1980s when he was 58, in Alex Cox's "Repo Man" and Wim Wenders "Paris, Texas."  He also appeared in the TV series, "Twin Peaks," during its original run.

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From Variety:  Grant Hart, the drummer for the influential punk band Hüsker Dü, has died at the age of 56, Thursday, September 14, 2017.  Hart had been battling cancer.

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From THR:  The actor Frank Vincent has died at the age of 78, Wednesday, September 13, 2017.  He played the vicious mob boss, Phil Leotardo, on "The Sopranos."  He also played tough guys in three Martin Scorsese films: "Raging Bull" (1980), "Goodfellas," (1990), and "Casino" (1995).  He also had a role in Spike Lee's "Do The Right Thing" (1989).

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From TheWrap:  Edith Windsor, LGBTQ activist, has died at the age of 88, Tuesday, September 12, 2017.  Windsor was the lead plaintiff in the pivotal Supreme Court case, "United States vs. Windsor" that took down the ridiculous federal law, the "Defense of Marriage Act."  Her victory paved the way towards the recognition of the rights of gay people to marry.

From Variety:  X Atencio, Disney animation and Imagineer, has died at the age of 98, Sunday, September 10, 2017. Atencio worked on the Disney animated features, "Pinocchio" and "Fantasia."  He worked on the Disneyland attractions, Pirates of the Caribbean and The Haunted Mansion

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From JewishChronicle:  Len Wein, the comic book writer and editor who co-created the characters Wolverine and Swamp Thing," died at the age of 69, Sunday, September 10, 2017.

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From RollingStone:  Troy Gentry, one half of the popular country music duo, Montgomery Gentry, died at the age of 50, Friday, September 8, 2017.  Gentry was killed in a helicopter accident.

From YahooEntertainment:  Federal investigators release details about helicopter flight and crash that killed country music star, Troy Gentry.

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From TheWrap:  The actor Mike Hodge has died at the age of 70, Saturday, September 9, 2017.  Hodge had recurring roles on "Law & Order" and "Law and Order: Special Victims Unit."

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From TheWrap:  Influential television executive Don Ohlmeyer died at the age of 72, September 10, 2017.  A 16-time Emmy winner, Ohlmeyer worked on "Monday Night Football" and coined the phrase, "Must See TV," for NBC.