Movies/TV
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Movies
A Twist on Human Survival
Whether they were intended to be or not, the scenes of drone attacks in “Oblivion” serve as terrifying metaphors for today’s controversial and deadly drone attacks by the United States against the dark masses of the Middle East and Africa.
By Esther Iverem
May 6, 2013,
21:55
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Movies/TV
Jackie Robinson Lite
“42: The Story of an American Legend" tells the story of Jackie Robinson, the first African American to integrate major league baseball. In it, Harrison Ford plays a great role as Branch Rickey, the owner of the Brooklyn Dodgers who recruited and hired Robinson. A case could be made that "42" says more about Rickey than it does about Robinson.
May 6, 2013,
22:03
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Movies/TV
Torturous Lies
There is nothing to cheer about in “Zero Dark Thirty,” just like there was nothing to cheer in Saddam Hussein’s hanging or Muammar Gaddafi’s murder on YouTube. If anything, “Zero Dark Thirty” shows America what kind of global empire it has become and why, in reaction, the world hates us.
By Esther Iverem
Jan 23, 2013,
23:57
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Movies/TV
'Unchained' and Unbowed
In his “Pulp Fiction” over-the-top style, Quentin Tarantino wraps the vicious reality of American slavery within the familiar confines of the action hero, the Western gunslinger and the quest to rescue the damsel in distress. The main problem with “Django Unchained” is that it is the most recent example of someone other than Black people telling the story of Black People.
By Esther Iverem
Jan 2, 2013,
15:16
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Movies/TV
Truth Online and Onscreen
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| Halle Berry starred in the thought-provoking "Cloud Atlas." |
When I look back at culture and media for 2012, I am drawn to the power and importance of the Internet, to how documentaries remind us of truth and to how movies can still speak to our humanity.
By Esther Iverem
Dec 21, 2012,
12:07
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Movies/TV
‘King Abraham Africanus’?
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| Daniel Day-Lewis as "Lincoln." |
Steven Spielberg’s sojourn into representing Lincoln in the new movie of the same name automatically provokes major questions: Would he complicate the imagery of Lincoln or would he merely represent the mythology of the noble ‘Great Emancipator’?
By Stephanie Dunn
Nov 30, 2012,
16:33
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Movies/TV
U.S. Mass Incarceration
Two new films offer penetrating insight into the impact of mass incarceration in the United States. Powerful from start to finish, "The House I Live In" explores the devastating impact of the so-called "war on
drugs." "Middle of Nowhere" reminds us of the loved ones left on the outside.
By Esther Iverem
Oct 12, 2012,
16:14
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Movies/TV
Pictures and Progress
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| This image of President Obama and his daughters watching Michelle Obama address the Democratic Convention was aired nationally. |
On the new season of "Left of Black"-- "Pictures, Progress and Raising Black Daughters in the Obama Era". Watch host Mark Anthony Neal and Maurice Wallace, co-editor of the new book, Pictures and Progress: Early Photography and the Making of African American Identity. Also. "Race and the Digital Humanities.
Sep 25, 2012,
21:05
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Movies/TV
Movie Meditations on Home
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| Clarke Peters stars in Spike Lee's new joint, "Red Hook Summer." |
Three new independent films, “Detropia,” “2 Days in New York” and Spike Lee's new joint, “Red Hook Summer,” offer unique meditations on home and place.
By Esther Iverem
Sep 14, 2012,
12:26
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Movies/TV
Hearing Whitney's Appeal
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| Whitney Houston returns to her church roots in "Sparkle." |
Whitney Houston's rendition of "His Eye Is On The Sparrow" in "Sparkle" is an appeal, a cry, a declaration of faith in the divine. It also declares faith in the individual's resilience in the face of all.
By Esther Iverem
Aug 27, 2012,
19:29
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Movies/TV
Bored By Bourne and Batman
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| Morgan Freeman appears again in the "Dark Knight" franchise. |
Maybe it’s not fair for me to review another Batman movie, or another movie in the “Bourne” series. Maybe I’m just exhausted with narratives that are packed with the same, time-worn good and evil archetypes, and that are long on mayhem and suspense but short on provocative ideas or insights into our real human condition.
By Esther Iverem
Aug 16, 2012,
21:15
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Movies/TV
Does "Beasts" Get Real?
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| Quevenzhane Wallis carries "Beasts of the Southern Wild." |
Maybe “Beasts of the Southern Wild” is a parable about what it is to be a “beast” in an "advanced" civilization such as ours. And in exploring this idea, this movie is most effective in exploring the world through a child’s eyes.
By Esther Iverem
Aug 10, 2012,
13:27
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Movies/TV
War! War! War! (How Do You Like It?)
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| Does Rihanna make being in the military look sexy and cool? |
As militarism has been interweaved with many forms of entertainment, “Battleship” takes this tradition to new heights, challenging U.S. viewers to separate support for brave soldiers and sailors from support for policies of perpetual war.
By Esther Iverem
May 22, 2012,
10:43
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Movies/TV
Race And 'The Hunger Games'
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| In "The Hunger Games," the roles of Thresh and Rue are played by Dayo Okeniyi and Amandla Stenberg. |
With “The Hunger Games,” novelist Suzanne Collins has produced a futuristic, Orwellian tale and, inadvertently, contributed to the national debate about race.
By Esther Iverem
Apr 3, 2012,
20:04
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Movies/TV
A Scary-Funny 'Game Change'
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| Julianne Moore delivers an award-worthy performance in "Game Change." |
“Game Change,” the new HBO movie about the historic 2008 presidential election, is illuminating — and devastating. It reminds us how scary Vice President Palin would be!
By Esther Iverem
Mar 15, 2012,
11:19
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Movies/TV
Makeba Is "Mama Africa"
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| Miriam Makeba always wished that she was known for a song with more social meaning than the international dance hit "Pata Pata." |
The Sixth Annual "New African Films Festival" includes in its line-up the Washington, D.C. premiere of “Mama Africa, " the story of singer Miriam Makeba, and "Pegasus,” which took top honors at Africa's 2011 FESPACO festival. By Esther Iverem
Mar 9, 2012,
12:47
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Movies/TV
2012 Oscar Honors
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| An image from "Undefeated" |
You probably know the movie “The Help” received Oscar nominations and a win for Octavia Spencer But you might not know about two other recognized movies: “Barber of Birmingham: Foot Soldier of the Civil Rights Movement” and "Undefeated" And what does Diddy have to do with the Oscars?
Feb 28, 2012,
13:14
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Movies/TV
Cop-Spook-Soldier-Spy
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| Denzel Washington stars in "Safe House." |
In "Safe House," Denzel Washington plays the part of Tobin Frost, who is a feared CIA operative gone rogue and suspected of selling secrets to enemies.
By Esther Iverem
Feb 10, 2012,
16:52
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Movies/TV
Black History Month 2012
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| "Daisy Bates: First Lady of Little Rock" premieres on PBS. |
Here is a list of programs of interest this year during Black History Month. Check local listings for show times in your area.
Feb 6, 2012,
13:55
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Movies/TV
The Amazing William Still
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| Abolitionist William Still was personally impacted by slavery. |
“Underground Railroad: The William Still Story” highlights the decades leading up to the Civil War when slavery’s profitability and depravity took center stage in the United States.
By Esther Iverem
Feb 6, 2012,
13:25
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Movies/TV
What's The Word? —Johannesburg!
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| Steve Biko was murdered by the South African police in 1977. |
A new five-part documentary on PBS, “Have You Heard from Johannesburg” is mesmerizing as it chronicles the five-decade struggle against the racist system of apartheid in South Africa. PLUS VIDEO
By Esther Iverem
Jan 31, 2012,
17:27
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Movies/TV
Little Cheer For Red Tails
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| Tristan Wilds shines in "Red Tails." |
Despite the well-intentioned media and community campaign to support this fictionalized account of the legendary World War II Tuskegee Airmen, cheering for “Red Tails” might be limited. (Not even a pin-up of Lena Horne? Really?) By Esther Iverem
Jan 24, 2012,
11:14
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Movies/TV
Tuskegee's Action Heroes
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| David Oyelowo as Joe "Lightning" Little in "Red Tails." |
In a roundtable discussion in Washington, D.C., actors Terrence Howard, David Oyelowo and surviving Tuskegee airman Dr. Roscoe Brown talk about the making of "Red Tails," which takes the story of the Tuskegee Airmen and makes it into an aerial action flick. AUDIO
Jan 19, 2012,
23:03
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Movies/TV
Young, Black and Lesbian
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| Adepero Oduye as Alike in "Pariah." |
The movie “Pariah” focuses on a Brooklyn teen-ager who is exploring her identity as a lesbian. It is raw, sometimes funny and often awkward. And what is being a teenager if it is not sometimes raw and funny—and frequently awkward?
By Esther Iverem
Jan 11, 2012,
12:51
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