Posts Tagged Spike Lee
STEELE PICKS: Best Films of 2015
Posted by Amy Steele in Film on December 30, 2015
I’m not a film critic although when I worked at Harvard Business School I was the film critic for The Harbus and it was great fun going to screenings and interviewing actors such as Claire Danes, Rose Byrne, Donnie Wahlberg, Rose McGowan, Aidan Quinn, Andie MacDowell and David Cronenberg.
I’m a music critic and a book critic. That’s my focus. I can’t do everything. Yes, I cover the occasional television program.
I love film. I love indie film. I try to see a new film in the theater each week and my Netflix account [both streaming and DVD] remains quite active. I saw about 200 films this year. I don’t always pick the award winners but I pick what truly moved me. 5/20 of these films directed by women. 9/20 written or co-written by women. Many strong, intriguing female protagonists in these films.
Far from the Madding Crowd
directed by: Thomas Vinterberg
screenplay by: David Nicholls
starring: Carey Mulligan, Matthias Schoenaerts, Michael Sheen
Brooklyn
directed by: John Crowley
screenplay by: Nick Hornby
starring: Saorsie Ronan, Emory Cohen, Domhnall Gleeson
Carol
directed by: Todd Haynes
screenplay by: Phyllis Nagy
starring: Cate Blanchett, Rooney Mara, Kyle Chandler
The Diary of a Teenage Girl
directed by: Marielle Heller
screenplay by: Marielle Heller
starring: Bel Powley, Kristen Wiig, Alexander Skarsgaard
Spotlight
directed by: Tom McCarthy
screenplay by: Tom McCarthy, Josh Singer
starring: Mark Ruffalo, John Slattery, Rachel McAdams, Michael Keaton
Tangerine
directed by: Sean Baker
screenplay by: Sean Baker, Chris Bergoch
starring: Kitana Kiki Rodriguez, Mya Taylor, Karren Karagulian
Suffragette
directed by: Sarah Gavron
screenplay by: Abi Morgan
starring: Carey Mulligan, Helena Bonham Carter, Meryl Streep
Room
directed by: Lenny Abrahamson
written by: Emma Donoghue
starring: Brie Larson, Jacob Tremblay, Sean Bridgers
While We’re Young
directed by: Noah Baumbach
screenplay by: Noah Baumbach
starring: Ben Stiller, Naomi Watts, Amanda Seyfried, Adam Driver
Love and Mercy
directed by: Bill Pohlad
screenplay by: Oren Moverman, Michael A. Lerner
starring: Paul Dano, John Cusack, Elizabeth Banks
Grandma
directed by: Paul Weitz
screenplay by: Paul Weitz
starring: Lily Tomlin, Sam Shepard, Julia Garner, Marcia Gay Harden
Sicario
directed by: Denis Villeneuve
screenplay by: Taylor Sheridan
starring: Emily Blunt, Benecio Del Toro, Josh Brolin
Mistress America
directed by: Noah Baumbach
screenplay by: Greta Gerwig, Noah Baumbach
starring: Greta Gerwig, Lola Kirke
Steve Jobs
directed by: Danny Boyle
screenplay by: Aaron Sorkin
starring: Michael Fassbender, Kate Winslet, Seth Rogen
Infinitely Polar Bear
directed by: Maya Forbes
written by: Maya Forbes
starring: Mark Ruffalo, Zoe Saldana, Imogene Wolodarsky
McFarland, USA
directed by: Niki Caro
screenplay by: Christopher Cleveland, Bettina Gilois, Grant Thompson
starring: Kevin Costner, Maria Bello, Ramiro Rodriguez, Carlos Pratts , Johnny Ortiz
The Age of Adaline
directed by: Lee Toland Krieger
screenplay by: J. Mills Goodloe and Salvador Paskowitz
starring: Blake Lively, Michiel Huisman, Harrison Ford
Advantageous
directed by: Jennifer Phang
screenplay by: Jacqueline Kim, Jennifer Phang
starring: Jacqueline Kim, James Urbaniak, Freya Adams
Digging for Fire
directed by: Joe Swanberg
written by: Jake Johnson, Joe Swanberg
starring: Jake Johnson, Anna Kendrick, Brie Larson, Rosemarie DeWitt, Sam Rockwell, Orlando Bloom
I Smile Back
directed by: Adam Salky
written by: Paige Dylan
starring: Sarah Silverman, Josh Charles
Chi-Raq
directed by: Spike Lee
written by: Spike Lee
starring: Nick Cannon, Teyonah Parris, Wesley Snipes, Angela Bassett, Samuel L. Jackson, John Cusack
notable performances: Bryan Cranston in Trumbo; Charlize Theron in Mad Max: Fury Road; Will Smith in Concussion; Amy Schumer in Trainwreck
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Remembering Malcolm X [1925-1965]
Posted by Amy Steele in Books, DVD, TV on February 21, 2013
civil rights activist Malcolm X was assassinated on this day in 1965
READ:
The Autobiography of Malcolm X [as told to Alex Hailey]
SEE:
Malcolm X [a Spike Lee film]
Betty & Coretta on Lifetime
–Mary J. Blige stars as Dr. Betty Shabazz, wife of Malcolm X and Angela Bassett stars as Coretta Scott King, wife of Martin Luther King, Jr. It’s a lot to pack into 90 minutes and starting in the middle can be rather confusing for those unfamiliar with civil rights history or with Malcolm X or MLK. These are strong, smart women. Although there’s an initial rivalry between the women and an animosity between the men and their opposing messages– Malcolm X wanted to use “any means necessary” to fight the system and MLK spoke out for civil disobedience– this film is about the women’s friendship after the assassinations of their husbands. Betty Shabazz earned her doctorate and taught. Coretta King worked tirelessly for the national holiday recognizing her husband.
HEAR:
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DVD review: Who Do You Think You Are? Season One
Posted by Amy Steele in DVD, TV on March 6, 2011
Rated: NR (Not Rated)
Studio: Acorn Media
DVD Release Date: March 15, 2011
Run Time: 293 minutes
Lisa Kudrow and writer/director Don Roos co-produced this intriguing series that follows celebrities as they work with genealogists, historians and researchers to investigate their family histories. It’s heartfelt and uplifting. Sarah Jessica Parker [Sex and the City], Matthew Broderick [Wonderful World, Addicted to Love], Lisa Kudrow [The Opposite of Sex, Friends], director Spike Lee [Malcolm X, 25th Hour] , Susan Sarandon [Dead Man Walking, Thelma & Louise], Brooke Shields [The Blue Lagoon, Suddenly Susan] and former Dallas Cowboys player Emmitt Smith take unforgettable, fascinating journeys to trace their roots.
Sarah Jessica Parker travels to California to find out information about a relative who may have been in the Gold Rush. Interesting Gold Rush fact: 10 people died for every mile traveled. Then she finds herself in New England and Salem, Mass. where a relative has some connection with the Salem witch trials. Is her relative an accuser or an accused? I won’t reveal it. Sarah’s husband Matthew Broderick has two relatives who fought in major wars. His great-grandfather served as part of the Connecticut regiment and fought at Gettysburg. Remember that Matthew played a Civil War hero in the film Glory? Lisa Kudrow’s research takes her to Minsk, Belarus. Her great-grandmother was killed in the Holocaust. She was “killed and burned.” Kudrow states: “You make people afraid enough of something completely manufactured and you can drive them to be cold-blooded murderers.” Emmitt Smith and Spike Lee both find slave-owner ancestors. Lee reunites with a relative he didn’t know he even had. Brooke Shields discovers her royal connections [she’s related to Henry IV 25 times removed]. Finally Susan Sarandon traces her artistic ancestors to Tuscany. Fun fact: 50, 000 Italians immigrated to America in 1888.
In finding out about their familial background, the stars inevitably uncover aspects about themselves in the process. Who Do You Think You Are? is riveting and intriguing.
Purchase at Amazon: Who Do You Think You Are?: Season One
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About Me
covering mostly music and books. focus on alternative/indie and women in music, literature and the arts. feminist. vegan. mostly alternative, a bit bohemian. Masters in journalism from Boston University. BA from Simmons College.
Entertainment Realm by Amy Steele is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 3.0 United States License.
Based on a work at entertainmentrealm.comCopyright © 2009. All writing, unless otherwise noted, by Amy Steele.
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