The #Selma Bougie Movie Review - Must see and yet...

Selma

was all it was marketed to be: a brilliant and sometimes painfully honest look at the fight for the right to vote which came to a head in Selma, Alabama in 1965. Martin Luther King, Jr and Coretta Scott King were played masterfully by David Oyelowo and Carmen Ejogo. The supporting cast was impressive and the story felt authentic. By authentic, I mean it felt like the story was being told without any obvious hidden agenda.

No spoilers but they kept it really real. No one was all saint or all villain. Everyone was human. LBJ was not painted as a benevolent savior for the colored folk and Martin Luther King's faults, fears and foibles were on display. You winced and you sympathized and you exhaled. As for the flow of the movie, the opening scene ripped your heart out and you never really got it back because you knew what laid ahead. 

The dialogue and scenery made sense for the movie and even though you knew what was going to happen, you were so embedded in the moment that things still came as a surprise, or a laugh, or a disappointment or a prayer. It's a rare movie that allows for that kind of emotional investment but

Selma

is just that good.

On the other hand, I have to admit that I'm thoroughly weary of seeing black folks catch a beatdown on the big screen, in real life, just generally. Sick. Of. It. There was a couple sitting behind us that said, "Wow, that scene looked just like Ferguson from a few weeks ago." Unfortunate and true. Apparently in this country, some lessons need to be learned and learned again.

The best thing about

Selma

is that it gives a detailed almost "behind the scenes" look at one of the pivotal moments in the Civil Rights Movement. The worst thing about

Selma

is that it is a stark reminder that no matter how many strides of progress have been made, we have not overcome as yet.

I walked out of the movie conflicted. Watching the movie felt like a journey. However, when the movie ended we hadn't reached our destination yet.  Much as I loved the artistry of the film, it's not one I'll watch over and over again. 

Have you or will you see it? Thoughts, comments, insights? Do share...

Three things to love about A Long Walk to Freedom

BougieMom, BougieSis and I headed out the day after Christmas to see A Long Walk to Freedom, the highly touted bio-pic on Nelson Mandela. Five stars, all the way around. Visually rich, evoking both poignancy and pride, the film provides a fresh and in depth measure of a man who altered the course of history. It was brilliantly cast and lovingly filmed. Here are three things I loved about it:

1. All the Idris. There's a pivotal scene where he got out of a car asking, "Somebody want me?" and I held myself back from raising my hand in a fervent affirmative. Moving on... Beyond the fine (and there's just so much fine) and perhaps more important than the fine is all the brilliance. Though I would not have believed it to be true, there came a time in the movie where all I saw was Mandela. Not Idris as Mandela but Mandela. He morphed in the man. I've seen Idris in a lot of film and television, this is his triumph. Oscar needs to come a-calling.

2. Winnie's struggles. I've been oft-irritated by the media's need to footnote Winnie Mandela as Nelson's ex-wife and whittle her role in his life down to a footnote. In this film we are able to see that Winnie was as much terrorized and imprisoned for 27 years as he was. In different ways but persecuted just the same. It's patently unfair and illogical not to relegate her into less than what she is. A strong woman, flawed but gifted and incredibly resilient and intelligent.

3. Mandela's humanity. Too many times when a man does heroic deeds, he is whitewashed as perfect. As though he is just the hero and not the sum of everything else that makes him uniquely him. However, this film allows you to see that Madiba was but a man with imperfections, vanity and ego. He did extraordinary things and made immeasurable change in the world. This movie allows you to celebrate the accomplishments while keeping it real. He was kind of a player. He wasn't above violence. There was some vanity there. None of that detracts from his legacy, just gives you additional flavor. I liked seeing it.

The movie moves smartly through Mandela's life rarely getting weighed down in one segment. If you feel like parts were skipped, imagine how long the movie would have had to run to get it all in there. There are, as you can imagine, moments that hit you in the gut and take your breath away at the unfairness of it all. There are lightbulb moments where you clearly understand the motivation and there are things that make you go hmmm. Less than a decade free and the South Africans elected a black president almost fifteen years before the US? Don't get me started...

Go see the movie. It's amazing. Enjoy. Who has seen it already? What did you think?

Five Reasons To See #BestManHoliday: A Bougie Movie Review

First, no spoilers. Feel free to read without fear of learning all the twists and turns (and there are plenty) in @TheBestManMovie.

My first thing was getting past the tagline: Times change. Friendship doesn't. That is patently untrue so start off by suspending your disbelief. Hey, this is a movie and movies need a premise. Friendships are tricky but they are a universal theme so we'll go with it. 

And now... a disclaimer: I will admit that I was not a huge fan of The Best Man. The characters didn't feel fully fleshed out, there was a lot (too much) going on and there were some characters you were supposed to like but didn't so much. Not only a hot mess movie but a wedding movie as well - reunion of old friends, bachelor/bachelorette party drama, drinking, confessions, fights, will they/won't they, they do, electric slide, garter toss, everybody's happy and we're out. Put that aside, this movie grows up. I appreciated it and found there are lots of reasons for everyone (both guys and gals) to go see this movie. I'm serious. Let's start with a trailer:

Okay then, here we go:

1) It's for the grown & sexy set. While there are universal themes that people of all ages will easily relate to, this movie is geared for people who have real-life-sometimes-shit-happens-and-you-got-to-deal-with-it experiences. I loved that about this movie. There are "we got kids" struggles, "we've been together and now what" struggles, the "I'm a professional woman and can I actually have it all" struggles as well as "what do do when your perfect life ain't perfect" struggles and "have I fully lived up to my potential or are my best days behind me" struggles. Here. For. It. All of it.

2) It's not really a chick flick. Oh there's enough hearts and flowers to spill into that territory but this movie deals with some real stuff. Yes, they feel compelled to bowtie up things up but that's just smart movie making. There's stuff that will make you think, laugh, cry, wince, drool and even "whelp!" Over-the-top but real. At one moment, half the audience stood up and applauded while the rest of us held our breath because we sensed what came next. That's smart theater.

3) It's well written, it's not just over-the-top dramatical, we need a laugh here, we need some skin there formulaic. It flows and makes sense (it's probably about twenty minutes too long but we forgive that part when they set up the ending). The characters become very much like prettier versions of people in your life that you've seen in similar situations. It feels like we've been invited into the plot and can hang out and make ourselves at home while everything unfolds.

4) Eye Candy. Eye Candy for the fellas, for the ladies, for the exotic, for the light and the dark. And it's all on display. Wonderfully wardrobed from evening wear to next to nothing, all of the pretty is on display.

5) It's better than the first one. Did I say that already? So much better, I need to check and see if the same person wrote them both. This one had some depth. Even the fellas at the screening were nodding like, "Okay." Something for everyone, I'm telling you. Except the kids, do not take kids to see this movie. Grown. And. Sexy.

If I may point out a few things:

• Harper (Taye Digg's character) is supposed to be the main character but you find yourself not caring so much about his angsty angst especially when he just does stupid stuff.
• Morris Chestnut has been fine for years. Years I say. God Bless that brother. His character is supposed to be a forgiving and forgetting Christian but "Lance" can't seem to do either. I would care more but damn he fine.
• Terrence Howard always plays that dude. But he truly plays it to perfection. He and Melissa DeSousa are twisted sides of the same ratchet coin.
• The soundtrack is smartly done. The duet of Marsha Ambrosius & Anthony Hamilton doing a gospel version of "As"... so much awesome.
• Eddie Ciprian is underutilized. And yummy. But there's a scene between him and Nia Long that is so damn real, my girlfriends and I were like "Wooooo." (He also makes an awesome Olivia Pope reference)
• Fellas, the ladies look good. And there's plenty of the sexy and silly for your viewing pleasure.
• If you have any love for New Edition, the scene with the gents lip-syching "Can You Stand The Rain" is priceless. Say it with me now, priceless.

Look here, just go see it. It was really awesome. I expected it to be okay. It blew past that and kept going. I'm giving it 4 suede pumps out of 5.

Come back and let me know what you think. 

Sneak Peek: White House Down

The summer blockbusters started early and will continue well into August. In my eagerness to get it started, I dragged Beau Nouveau to Olympus Has Fallen and it almost killed the relationship dead. No Bueno. I like a good disaster movie. Olympus Has Fallen was not it. Even with the stellar cast. But I'm going to try one mo'gin. Friday, White House Down is coming out. It's eerily similar in that terrorists decide to tear up DC, grab the President and make a mockery of our defense systems. But I have high hopes for this one. Why?

1. Channing Tatum shirtless or sleeveless - yep, I'm visual like that
2. Jamie Foxx being funny. I know he has dramatic range but I like him best when he's being smart-alecky and witty. Also, since Django - he's looking awfully comfortable with a gun in his hand, isn't he? 
   
3. Produced by Independence Day and Day After Tomorrow folks - they know how to really destroy a city and make it look desolate. Color me shallow, I like it when things go boom in a spectacular manner on the big screen.
4. It's a cute premise, they aren't trying too hard. Here's the official synopsis: In Columbia Pictures’ White House Down, Capitol Policeman John Cale (Channing Tatum) has just been denied his dream job with the Secret Service of protecting President James Sawyer (Jamie Foxx).  Not wanting to let down his little girl with the news, he takes her on a tour of the White House, when the complex is overtaken by a heavily armed paramilitary group.  Now, with the nation’s government falling into chaos and time running out, it's up to Cale to save the president, his daughter, and the country. 
5. Black president kicks ass? I'm here for it.

Let's check out the trailer:

Who's going to see it? I'm going to take a look on Saturday. If you go, report back and let me know what you think.