Monday, December 7, 2020

DC Comics New Releases from Lunar/UCS Distributors for December 8, 2020

DC COMICS:

Absolute Transmetropolitan Volume 1 HC (New Printing), $150.00
American Vampire 1976 #3 (Of 9)(Cover A Rafael Albuquerque), $3.99
American Vampire 1976 #3 (Of 9)(Cover B TBD), AR
Arkhamaniacs TP, $9.99
Batman #104 (Cover C Jorge Jimenez Card Stock Variant), AR
Batman Black And White #1 (Of 6)(Cover A Greg Capullo), $5.99
Batman Black And White #1 (Of 6)(Cover B J.H. Williams III), AR
Batman Black And White #1 (Of 6)(Cover C Peach Momoko Talia Variant), AR
Batman Black And White #1 (Of 6)(Cover D Blank Variant), AR
Dark Nights Death Metal The Last Stories Of The DC Universe #1 (One Shot)(Cover A Tula Lotay), $8.99
Dark Nights Death Metal The Last Stories Of The DC Universe #1 (One Shot)(Cover B Gary Frank), AR
DC’s Very Merry Multiverse #1 (One Shot)(Cover A Ivan Reis & Joe Prado), $9.99
Deadman Omnibus HC, $99.99
Detective Comics #1032 (Cover A Brad Walker & Andrew Hennessy), $3.99
Detective Comics #1032 (Cover B Lee Bermejo Card Stock Variant), AR
Flash #767 (Cover A Clayton Henry), $3.99
Flash #767 (Cover B Hicham Habchi), AR
Justice League Vengeance Is Thine TP, $19.99
MAD Magazine #17, $5.99
Sandman The Books Of Magic Omnibus Volume 1 HC, $150.00
Shazam And The Seven Magic Lands TP, $29.99
Superman Endless Winter Special #1 (One Shot)(Cover A Francis Manapul), $3.99
Superman Endless Winter Special #1 (One Shot)(Cover B Rafael Grassetti), AR
Superman Vs Wonder Woman Tabloid Edition HC, $39.99
Sweet Tooth The Return #2 (Of 6)(Cover A Jeff Lemire), $3.99
Tales From The Dark Multiverse Flashpoint #1 (Cover A David Marquez), $5.99
Wonder Woman #768 (Cover A David Marquez), $3.99
Wonder Woman #768 (Cover B Joshua Middleton Card Stock Variant), AR


Amblin Television and HBO Max Developing Series Inspired by the Film, "Rashomon"

Amblin Television and HBO Max Sign Development Deal for an Original Series Inspired by Rashomon

The modern take on the groundbreaking classic will be written by Oscar® nominees Billy Ray and Virgil Williams

LOS ANGELES--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Amblin Television and HBO Max announced that they have entered into a deal to develop a show inspired by the acclaimed Akira Kurosawa film Rashomon, with Oscar® nominees Billy Ray (Captain Phillips, The Hunger Games, The Comey Rule) and Virgil Williams (Mudbound, A Journal for Jordan) writing.

    Amblin Television and HBO Max sign development deal for an original series inspired by Rashomon. The modern take on the groundbreaking classic will be written by Oscar nominees Billy Ray and Virgil Williams.

Amblin Partners’ Co-Presidents of Television Darryl Frank and Justin Falvey (The Americans, Haunting of Hill House) will executive produce, along with Mark Canton (Power, 300) of Atmosphere Entertainment, Leigh Ann Burton of Opus7 Entertainment, and David Hopwood (Den of Thieves, Immortals). Todd Cohen, SVP Television Development, will oversee the day-to-day development of the project for Amblin, with Frank and Falvey.

In 2018, Amblin announced that they had secured the blessing of the Kurosawa family to create a new series inspired by the iconic 1950 film, after Burton and Canton approached them with the once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. It was Burton who successfully navigated the complex negotiation, to close the deal.

The series will not be an adaptation but will retain the key plot device of the groundbreaking Kurosawa film – a drama centering around a grisly sexual assault and murder, and the unraveling mystery seen through multiple characters’ competing narratives – to explore the themes of truth and subjective point of view, in a modern setting. Each episode will present the perceived truth of an individual character – putting each, in turn, at the center of the story and telling the events surrounding the murder from their unique, self-serving point of view.

"I am delighted to work with Amblin Partners and HBO Max to reimagine Rashomon for today’s audience. I am excited to see my dad’s vision through this inspirational story kept alive and made accessible to a new generation,” said Hisao Kurosawa.

“Truth has become increasingly fractured in this age of cable news and social media’s 'say it and it’s true' culture,” said Frank and Falvey. “Akira Kurosawa’s masterpiece was not just a murder mystery; it was a revolution in storytelling, as cinema’s most impactful and influential early exploration of subjective points of view and flawed narration. Seventy years after the film’s release, the legacy of Rashomon is indisputable and its central themes more relevant than ever. Our series will honor the impact of the original work and explore the age-old concept of objective truth versus subjective perspective in our modern times.”

“It takes a lot of hard work to make the stars align and I consider myself incredibly fortunate to have the opportunity to create an original take on Rashomon – a masterpiece from a true genius of cinema – for new audiences, with the full support and blessing of the Kurosawa family,” said Canton. “Not only that, but to be doing so in partnership with my friends and colleagues at Amblin Television, as well as the brilliantly talented Billy Ray and Virgil Williams, is truly the convergence of hard work and good fortune that every producer hopes for.”

“We are excited to work with Amblin Partners and our incredible writing team. Everyone involved understands the caliber and cache of Akira Kurosawa’s Rashomon and his legacy,” said Burton.

“Our partnership on Rashomon is based on our mutual pledge to make every single episode, every scene, and every character of this show a loving homage to Kurosawa’s talent as an artist. That’s our true north,” said Williams and Ray.

Virgil Williams is represented by Craig Brody of Map Point Management and John Meigs Jr. of Hansen, Jacobson, et. al.

Billy Ray is represented by Peter Nichols of Lichter Grossman Nichols Adler Feldman & Clark.


About Amblin Television:
Amblin Television, a long-time leader in quality programming, is a division of Amblin Partners, a content creation company led by Steven Spielberg. Amblin Television’s co-presidents, Darryl Frank and Justin Falvey, oversee all development, production and programming for the company. Amblin Television currently has eight projects in various stages of production and release, including The Haunting of Bly Manor – the follow-up chapter to acclaimed series The Haunting of Hill House – for Netflix, Animaniacs for Hulu, a third season of Roswell, New Mexico for The CW, Brave New World from Peacock, Halo for Showtime, Masters of the Air for Apple, Gremlins for HBO Max, and Resident Alien for SYFY.

Some of Amblin Television’s previous credits include the Emmy and Golden Globe Award-winning drama The Americans for FX, Emmy-nominated HBO movie All The Way starring Bryan Cranston, Smash for NBC, Under the Dome for CBS, Falling Skies for TNT, The Borgias and The United States of Tara for Showtime, and Las Vegas for NBC.

http://www.amblin.com

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Saturday, December 5, 2020

Negromancer News Bits and Bites from December 1st to 5th, 2020 - Update #24

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

Support Leroy on Patreon:

ENTERTAINMENT AND CULTURE NEWS:

BLM - From TheNation:  51 years ago today (Dec. 4th, 1969), the police, the FBI, and the pigs murdered Black Panther leader, Fred Hampton. 

CELEBRITY - From ShadowandAct:   How did the late Chadwick Boseman ("Black Panther") and his wife-now-widow, Taylor Simone Ledward, meet?

MOVIES - From Collider:   Alex Winter talks about his Frank Zappa documentary and the possibility of he and Keanu Reeves returning for "Bill & Ted 4."

STREAMING - From Variety: Hollywood and movie theater owners sound off on Warner Bros.’ bold HBO Max move: "They’re Playing With Fire."

MOVIES - From ScreenRant:   The site has a list of every Warner Bros. movie that is scheduled to be released on HBO Max in 2021.

TELEVISION - From Deadline:  In the Season 11 debut episode of CBS' long-running cop drama, "Blue Bloods," Oscar-winning actress Whoopi Goldberg makes her debut as "City Council Speaker."

TELEVISION - From THR:  HBO gets "Nice White Parents" from producers Issa Rae and Oscar-winner Adam McKay.

MOVIES - From THR:  Oscar Isaac to star as "Solid Snake" in Sony Picture's film adaptation of the "Metal Gear Solid" movie.

CULTURE - From YahooNYT:  A Kamikaze pilot tells his story 70 years later.

CELEBRITY - From People:   John Boyega ("Star Wars") and Letitia Wright ("Black Panther") talk about their decade-long friendship and about breaking barriers in Hollywood.

POLITICS - From CookPolitical:   The popular vote count is President-Elect Joe Biden: 81,264,673; President Donald: 74,210,838.  The lead is over 7 million votes.

STREAMING - From Deadline:   Lenny Henry, Peter Mullan, and Cynthia Addai-Robinson are among 20 cast members added to Amazon's "The Lord of the Rings" TV series.

MOVIES - From Deadline:   WarnerMedia is sending its entire 2021 theatrical slate to its streaming service, HBO Max.  Each film will be released on HBO Max and to the international markets concurrently.  After a month, each film will leave HBO Max and move to U.S. theaters...

MOVIES - From Deadline:   Gal Gadot ("Wonder Woman 1984") will headline "Heart of Stone," a spy thriller in the mold of "James Bond 007" and "Mission: Impossible."

CELEBRITY - From YahooPeople:   Tyrese Gibson says his feud with Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson has ended.

MOVIES - From WeGotThisCovered:  Horror fiction legend Clive Barker has won the legal battle to retrieve the film rights to the story and characters from his beloved 1987 film, "Hellraiser," which was based on one of his short stories.

CELEBRITY - From Deadline:   Oscar-nominated actress Taraji P. Henson has signed with M88 to represent.

MOVIES - From Collider:  Universal Pictures will apparently reboot its 2004 film, "Van Helsing" (starring Hugh Jackman), with director Julius Avery ("Overlord")

DISNEY+ - From Collider:  Disney+ has announced new cast members of its TV series sequel to the 1988 fantasy film, "Willow."  Among the new cast is Erin Kellyman, the British actress who appeared in "Rogue One: A Star Wars Story."

ANIMATION - From SmallScreen:   Disney XD has reportedly cancelled "DuckTales" the 2017 revival of the popular 1987-90 original series.  The current series reportedly ends after the third season.

LGBTQ - From Deadline:  The actress formerly known as Ellen Page has announced that he is now know as "Elliot Page," a non-binary, transgender person.

MOVIES - From Deadline:   Emmy Award-winning actor, Peter Dinklage ("Game of Thrones") will star in the reboot of the cult superhero comedy, "The Toxic Avenger" (1984).

MOVIES - From TheAtlantic:  In the new horror movie, "The Nest," wealth is the demon.

OBITS

From Deadline:   The English-Australian actor, Hugh Keays-Byrne, has died at the age of 73, Tuesday, December 1, 2020.  Keays-Byrne was best known for the role of "Immortan Joe" in Oscar-winning film, "Mad Max: Fury Road" (2015).  He also appeared in the original 1979 "Mad Max" film and in the Sci-Fi TV series, "Farscape."

From Variety:  The American television actress, Abby Dalton, has died at the age of 88, Monday, November 23, 2020.  She was best known for her role as "Julia Cumson" from 1981 to 1986 on the CBS evening soap opera, "Falcon Crest."  In 1961, Dalton received a Primetime Emmy nomination for her work on the CBS sitcom, "Hennesey" (1959-62).


COVID-19:

From CDC:   The Centers for Disease Control has a "COVID Data Tracker."

From YahooNews:  Why does COVID-19 kill some people and hardly affects others?

From YahooNews:  Yahoo has a dedicated page of links updating news about COVID-19.

From Deadline:  The news site "Deadline" has a dedicated page for news about coronavirus and the film, TV, and entertainment industries.

From TheNewYorker:  The venerable magazine has a dedicate COVID-19 page free to all readers.

From YahooNews:  Re: the federal government's response to COVID-19: What if the most important election of our lifetime was the last one - 2016?

From YahooLife:  What is "happy hypoxia?"  And do you have this COVID-19 symptom?

From JuanCole:  Remember when President Donald went crazy and suggested that we ingest household cleaning supplies and UV light to fight COVID-19.  Here is the video and commentary from Juan Cole.

From TheIntercept:  The federal government has ramped up security and police-related spending in response to the COVID-19/coronavirus pandemic, including issuing contracts for riot gear, disclosures show. The purchase orders include requests for disposable cuffs, gas masks, ballistic helmets, and riot gloves...

From TheAtlanticThe Coronavirus Was an Emergency Until Trump Found Out Who Was Dying. The pandemic has exposed the bitter terms of our racial contract, which deems certain lives of greater value than others.

From ProPublica:  Hospital's Secret COVID-19 Policy Separated Native American Mothers From Their Newborns

From TheGuardian:  More than 20 million Americans could have contracted COVID-19, experts say.

From RSN/WashPost:  The COVID-19 mutation that has taken over the world.

7/13 - From YahooSports:  Maybe a pandemic means that there will not be college football this fall.

7/13- From YahooNews:  The CDC adds four new symptoms (including nausea and purple or blue lesions on feet and toes) to the list of COVID-19 symptoms.

7/19 - From YahooFinance:  Harvard Public Health professor Dr. Howard Koh says the U.S. "needs to regroup" to find COVID-19.

7/22 - From YahooNews:  A public health employee predicted Florida's coronavirus catastrophe — then she was fired.

7/22 - From YahooLifestyle:  Florida mom loses son, 20, to coronavirus, and then days later, her daughter.

7/23 - From TheWrap:  The site has a list of movie and TV stars, entertainment and sports figures who have tested positive for COVID-19

From Bloomberg:  Will the COVID-19 pandemic turn Millennials into socialists?

7/27 - From CNN:   Chief of critical care at Baltimore's Mercy Medical Center, Dr. Joseph Costa, passes away due to Covid-19 complications... after treating the hospital's sickest COVID-19 patients.  He was 56 and leaves behind family, including a husband of 28 years.

7/31 - From Slate:  COVID-19 is airborne - for reals!

8/9 - From YahooAFP:  According to the real-time tally kept by John Hopkins University, the United States has hit 5 million cases of COVID-19.

8/16 - From Truthout: COVID Deaths Continue to Surge in Countries Led by Far Right Authoritarians

9/19 - From WashPost:  U.S. coronavirus death toll reaches 200,000

9/23 - From CNBC:  Mark Cuban, who owns the NBA's Dallas Mavericks and star of ABC's "Shark Tank," suggests that every household in American get a $1000 check every two weeks for the next two months.

11/7 - From YahooNews:  "It's a slaughter," doctors say of new coronavirus wave.

11/13 - YahooNews:  "We blew it": U.S. reaches 'explosive' COVID-19 spread as virus is nearly impossible to control, experts say.

11/29 From LATimes:  California sets record with most COVID-19 hospitalizations since pandemic began

BLACK LIVES MATTER:

From RSN:   Judge's Blistering Opinion Says Courts Have Placed Police Beyond Accountability

From TheGuardian:  Yusef Salaam, one of the "Central Park Five," says in an interview, "Trump would have had me hanging from a tree in Central Park."

From NPR:  Prosecutors' plea deal required drug suspect to name Breonna Taylor a "co-defendant."

From ChicagoSunTimes:  Rev. Jesse Jackson: America has millions of people in poverty because Americans choose not to demand the policies that would lift them out of poverty.

From APNews:  No one will be held accountable for the killing of Louisville African-American resident, Breonna Taylor.

From Channel4:  Revealed: Trump campaign strategy to deter millions of Black Americans from voting in 2016

From GuardianUK:  California is going to consider paying reparations to the descendants of African slaves after adopting a landmark law to study and to develop proposals around the issue.

From TheRoot:   What to Do When Your Country Turns Into a Dumpster Fire

From Vox:  It's True: 1 in 1,000 Black Americans Have Died in the Covid-19 Pandemic

From CBS:  Breonna Taylor's boyfriend certain cops didn't identify themselves

From DonaldTrump:  Well, because it has been in the news a lot lately (via Ice Cube and Li'l Wayne), here is "The Platinum Plan."  It is impressive, but no Republican Congress would go along with even 10 percent of this plan which is basically a long list of promises to the Black Americans - individually and as a group.

From Truthout:   Yes, 55 Percent of White Women Voted for Trump. No, I’m Not Surprised.



Friday, December 4, 2020

Negromancer Book Review: "LOVECRAFT COUNTRY" is a Brilliant Novel, an Uncanny Read

LOVECRAFT COUNTRY
HARPERCOLLINS – @HarperCollins

AUTHOR: Matt Ruff – @bymattruff
ISBN: 978-0-06-229206-3; hardcover (February 16, 2016)
384pp, B&W, $26.99 U.S.

Lovecraft Country is a 2016 fantasy novel from acclaimed cult novelist, Matt Ruff (Fool on the Hill; The Mirage).  Blending fantasy, historical fiction, Lovecraftian horror, and weird fiction, Lovecraft Country focuses on a Black man, his father, his uncle, and a small circle of Black friends and relatives who take on sorcery and Jim Crow-era secret occult societies.

It's 1954.  22-year-old African-American, Atticus Turner, recently received a letter from his estranged father, Montrose Turner.  The letter was a summons for Attitcus, a Korean War Army veteran, to return home to Chicago.  When he arrives at his father's apartment, Atticus learns that Montrose left several days earlier in the company of a young White man.  His destination – a mysterious, small village named Ardham, deep in the Sabbath Kingdom Woods of Devon County, Massachusetts.

Atticus embarks on a road trip to New England to find Montrose.  He is accompanied by his Uncle George Berry, his father's brother and the publisher of The Safe Negro Travel Guide, a periodical that informs African-American travelers which hotels, restaurants, and business serve “Colored” people.  Letitia Dandridge, a childhood friend of Atticus', insists on tagging along.

Shortly after arriving in Ardham, they find Montrose in chains, held prisoner by Samuel Braithwhite, the leader of a secret cabal known as the Order of the Ancient Dawn.  Braithwhite and his fellow conspirators plan to orchestrate a bizarre ritual that requires Atticus' participation.  To escape, Atticus and company will need the help of Braithwhite's son, Caleb, who has his own need of the Turner clan.

Late last year, I saw the movie, American Ultra, which basically failed at the box office and received mixed reviews from film critics.  I, however, loved it, and I had a blast watching it.  American Ultra reminded me of why I watch so many movies:  no matter how many bad or disappointing movies I watch, I will always find movies that thrill me, spark my imagination, inspire me to make a difference, or just make me happy.

Lovecraft Country does all those things.  I am embarrassed to admit that I seem at a lost to completely and accurately describe how much I enjoyed this book and what it did to me.  There are so many shocking and amazing things about Lovecraft Country.

For one thing, author Matt Ruff is a White man.  His depiction of how African-Americans had to live in segregated, racist, Jim Crow America match what other authors have detailed in non-fiction books written by Black and White Americans, who lived in that America or researched it.  What boggles the mind, however, is that a White man captures the indignities heaped on Black people and the dangers they faced during Jim Crow with such intensity that you might think that he is a Black man.

And let's be honest, Jim Crow may have lost a lot of feathers, but he is still alive.  There are quite a few things that Ruff depicts in this book that I have experienced in our allegedly more enlightened times.  Ruff gets it, so much so that he must be a secret Negro, or he has some kind of telepathic connection with a lot of Black folks – past and present.

The copy on the back of the book jacket calls Lovecraft Country a “...brilliant and wondrous work of the imagination....” and “...a devastating kaleidoscopic portrait of racism—the terrifying specter that continues to haunt us today.”  That's the triple-truth Ruth.  Lovecraft Country blends the modern fantasy inventiveness of writers like J.K. Rowling and Neil Gaiman with the inspired pulp fiction imaginations of H.P. Lovecraft and Robert E. Howard and their contemporaries.

Matt Ruff does these writers one better, however.  His fantastic fantasy invention does not leave out the true darkness and terror, and that is the real malevolence of venomous racial hate, bigotry, and prejudice.  By making his characters Black people living under the yoke of oppression, Ruff dares to imagine a world of magic that is as poisonous as it is wondrous.

Readers are always looking for great books.  Some want the kind of novels that are usually called the “best of the year.”  Well, they should travel to Lovecraft Country.

A+

http://www.bymattruff.com/

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


The text is copyright © 2016 Leroy Douresseaux. All Rights Reserved. Contact this blog for reprint and syndication rights and fees.

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Thursday, December 3, 2020

Winners at the 2020 "Soul Train Awards" Announced; Chris Brown Leads with Four Wins

Chris Brown Wins Big at the 2020 “Soul Train Awards” Hosted by Tisha Campbell and Tichina Arnold

Young Thug and H.E.R. Also Bring Home Top Honors

The Award Show Featured Performances by Lady of Soul Honoree Monica, Brandy, Ella Mai, Jazmine Sullivan, Snoh Aalegra and CeeLo Green With Duets by Charlie Wilson & Smokey Robinson and Lucky Daye & Babyface

#SOULTRAINAWARDS


NEW YORK--(BUSINESS WIRE)--The 2020 “Soul Train Awards” celebrated the best in soul, R&B and hip hop by highlighting both living legends and breakout stars with unrivaled musical moments and show-stopping performances. The awards show, which aired the evening of Sunday, November 29, 2020 at 8 PM EST on BET, BET Her, VH1 and MTV2 was hosted by the iconic best friend duo Tisha Campbell and Tichina Arnold, who also brought their chemistry to the stage as the show’s opening musical acts.

Chris Brown led the pack as the evening’s most awarded artist, dominating in four categories including Best R&B/Soul Male Artist and the shared honors of Song of the Year, Best Dance Performance and Best Collaboration with Young Thug for their hit “Go Crazy.” H.E.R. followed closely with two awards: Best R&B/Soul Female Artist and The Ashford & Simpson Songwriter’s Award for “I Can’t Breathe.

Honoring artists across 12 categories, the 2020 “SOUL TRAIN AWARDS” also recognized Summer Walker (Album of the Year), Megan Thee Stallion (Rhythm & Beats Award), Brandy (Soul Train Certified), Beyoncé, Blue Ivy, Saint Jhn & Wizkid (Video of the Year), Snoh Aalegra (Best New Artist) and Kirk Franklin (Best Gospel/Inspirational Award) for their special contributions to the genre.

The hosts kicked things off with an electrifying song and dance tribute to the power of Black women. Brandy performed a medley of her recent hits “Say Something” and “Boderline.” Ella Mai sang her latest single “Not Another Love Song.” Lucky Daye shut the stage down with Babyface for a performance of their new collaboration “Shoulda.” Charlie Wilson performed a duet with Smokey Robinson before honoring the memory of gospel legend Rance Allen with a rousing tribute. Additional performers included Jazmine Sullivan, Snoh Aalegra and CeeLo Green. After accepting the Lady of Soul Award, Monica brought down the house with a jam-packed performance of her chart-topping hits.

In addition to electrifying performances, this year’s highly anticipated Soul Cypher featured R&B stars PJ Morton, Chanté Moore, Shanice and Stokely. Ella Nicole and Moses Sumney took the BET Amplified Music Stage, a platform for emerging artists. Presenters included Andra Day, Tessa Thompson, Nnamdi Asomugha, Deon Cole, Nicco Annan, Dallas Austin, Jermaine Dupri and Brandee Evans.

The full winners list for 2020 “SOUL TRAIN AWARDS” is below:

2020 “SOUL TRAIN AWARDS” WINNERS:
Best New Artist – Snoh Aalegra
Soul Train Certified Award –Brandy
Best R&B/Soul Male Artist – Chris Brown
Best R&B/Soul Female Artist – H.E.R.
Video of the Year – Beyoncé, Blue Ivy, Saint Jhn & Wizkid “Brown Skin Girl”
Best Gospel/Inspirational Award – Kirk Franklin
Album of the Year – Summer Walker “Over It”
Rhythm & Bars Award – Megan Thee Stallion “Savage”
Song of the Year – Chris Brown & Young Thug “Go Crazy”
The Ashford & Simpson Songwriter’s Award – “I Can’t Breathe,” Written by H.E.R.
Best Dance Performance – Chris Brown & Young Thug “Go Crazy”
Best Collaboration Performance – Chris Brown & Young Thug “Go Crazy”

Connie Orlando, EVP Specials, Music Programming & Music Strategy at BET, along with Jesse Collins, CEO of Jesse Collins Entertainment (JCE), and JCE’s Jeannae Rouzan–Clay and Dionne Harmon will Executive Produce the 2020 “SOUL TRAIN AWARDS.”

For show information, please visit BET.com/SoulTrain, the official site for 2020 “SOUL TRAIN AWARDS.”


ABOUT BET:
BET, a subsidiary of ViacomCBS Inc. (NASDAQ: VIACA, VIAC), is the nation's leading provider of quality entertainment, music, news, and public affairs television programming for the African-American audience. The primary BET channel is in 90 million households and can be seen in the United States, Canada, the Caribbean, the United Kingdom, sub-Saharan Africa, and France. BET is the dominant African-American consumer brand with a diverse group of business extensions including BET.com, a leading Internet destination for Black entertainment, music, culture, and news; BET HER, a 24-hour entertainment network targeting the African-American Woman; BET Music Networks - BET Jams, BET Soul and BET Gospel; BET Home Entertainment; BET Live, BET’s growing festival business; BET Mobile, which provides ringtones, games and video content for wireless devices; and BET International, which operates BET around the globe.

ABOUT JESSE COLLINS ENTERTAINMENT:
Jesse Collins Entertainment (JCE) is a full-service television and film production company and has played an integral role in producing many of television’s most memorable moments in music entertainment. JCE has a multi-year overall agreement with ViacomCBS Cable Networks. On the theatrical film side, the company also has a first look on JCE’s film development projects which could include Viacom’s film entities such as Paramount Players. The award-winning and critically acclaimed television that JCE has produced includes miniseries—The New Edition Story and The Bobby Brown Story; scripted series—American Soul and Real Husbands of Hollywood; children’s series—Bookmarks: Celebrating Black Voices; award shows—BET Awards, Black Girls Rock!, BET Honors, UNCF’s An Evening of Stars, BET Hip Hop Awards, ABFF Honors and Soul Train Awards; specials—John Lewis: Celebrating A Hero, Love & Happiness: An Obama Farewell, Change Together: From The March On Washington To Today, Stand Up for Heroes, Dear Mama, Amanda Seales I Be Knowin’, Def Comedy Jam 25 and Leslie Jones: Time Machine; as well as competition/game shows—Sunday Best, Hip Hop Squares, Nashville Squares and Rhythm & Flow. Jesse Collins, founder & CEO of the company, is the executive producer of all programming and is also a producer for the iconic Grammy Awards. He will next executive produce The Pepsi Super Bowl LV Halftime Show. Go to jessecollinsent.com for more information on the company.

ABOUT SOUL TRAIN HOLDINGS:
SOUL TRAIN HOLDINGS, LLC was formed in May 2008 and is owned by InterMedia Partners and a partnership between Magic Johnson Enterprises and Ron Burkle's investment firm, The Yucaipa Companies. The iconic franchise and catalog consists of more than 1,100 episodes and 40 specials from Don Cornelius Productions, Inc. Soul Train is the longest running, first-run, nationally syndicated music program in television history. During its 35-year run, the show featured lasting innovations such as the Soul Train line and the legendary sign off “Love, Peace and Soul.” At the heart of the show was Don Cornelius, the dancers and influential artists such as James Brown, Al Green, Ike & Tina Turner, Hall & Oates, Donna Summer, Marvin Gaye, The Jackson 5, Aretha Franklin, Stevie Wonder, Elton John, Whitney Houston, David Bowie, Prince, Run D.M.C. and Destiny’s Child.

Follow us @BET_PR

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Tuesday, December 1, 2020

Review: "The Girl With All the Gifts" is a Gift to Movie Audiences

 

TRASH IN MY EYE No. 22 (of 2020) by Leroy Douresseaux
 
[This review was originally posted on Patreon.]

The Girl with All the Gifts (2016)
Running time:  111 minutes (1 hour, 51 minutes)
MPAA – R for disturbing violence/bloody images, and for language
DIRECTOR:  Colm McCarthy
WRITER:  Mike Carey (based on his novel)
PRODUCER:  Camille Gatin and Angus Lamont
CINEMATOGRAPHER:  Simon Dennis   
EDITOR:  Matthew Cannings
COMPOSER:  Cristobal Tapia de Veer

SCI-FI/HORROR/DRAMA

Starring:  Sennia Nanua, Gemma Arterton, Paddy Considine, Fisayo Akinade, Anthony Welsh, Anamaria Marinca, Dominique Tipper, and Glenn Close

The Girl with All the Gifts is a 2016 British post-apocalyptic science fiction horror film from director Colm McCarthy.  Screenwriter Mike Carey adapted this film's screenplay from his 2014 novel, The Girl with All the Gifts.  The Girl with All the Gifts the movie is set in a dystopian future and follows the struggles of a scientist, a teacher, and two soldiers, and a special young girl who embark on a journey of survival.

The Girl with All the Gifts is set in the United Kingdom in a near future scenario.  Humanity has been ravaged by a mysterious disease that is caused by a parasitic fungus.  It is transmitted by bodily fluids, such as when an infected person bites an uninfected person.  The infected humans have turned into fast-moving, mindless zombies called “Hungries.”  Mankind's only hope is a small group of hybrid children, born with the fungus wrapped around their brains, making them part-human and part-Hungry.  These children crave living, human flesh, but they retain the ability to think and to learn.

On an army base, the scientist, Dr. Caroline Caldwell (Glenn Close), has been using a group of hybrid children in an attempt to develop a vaccine that would protect humans from becoming infected Hungries.  One of the children is a very special and exceptional girl named Melanie (Sennia Nanua), who has drawn the particular attention of Helen Justineau (Gemma Arterton), a young woman who is responsible for educating and for studying the children.

The hybrid children on the army base are essentially as held prisoners, guarded by a group of soldiers lead by Sergeant Eddie Parks (Paddy Considine).  When the base falls, Melanie, Justineau, Dr. Caldwell, Parks, and another soldier, Private Kieran Gallagher (Fisayo Akinade), head for London in the hope of finding help, but are they all in denial about the new order of things in a world of Hungries?

I have no trouble recommending The Girl with All the Gifts, a fantastic and truly unique film.  It is equally post-apocalyptic science fiction, zombie apocalypse horror, and road movie drama.  I could have watched another two hours of this stunning movie.  The Girl with All the Gifts is like a new take on the three films based on late author Richard Matheson's 1954 seminal post-apocalyptic novel, I Am Legend.  Those films are The Last Man on Earth (1964), The Omega Man (1971), and I Am Legend (2007), to one extent or another.

What makes this film exceptional is both the performance by and the appearance of Sennia Nanua as the film's lead character, Melanie.  She gives a honest and vibrant performance as Melanie, a child referred to as “it,” but who grows from a child seeking attention and being... hungry to a child learning to a becoming the group's guide and protector and finally to evolving into a kind of “Eve.”  Also, it is simply great to see a young actress of color as the lead in a science fiction film, especially in a movie that is led primarily by female characters.

The performances in the film are mostly poignant and quiet.  Do I have to tell you that Glenn Close gives a muscular turn as Dr. Caldwell?  Should I have to tell you that?  Well, I will tell you again that The Girl With All the Gifts is one of this decade's best genre films and that I highly recommend and might even demand that you see it.

9 of 10
A+

Friday, October 16, 2020


NOTES:
BAFTA Awards 2017:  1 nomination: “Outstanding Debut by a British Writer, Director or Producer” (Mike Carey and Camille Gatin)

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