GINA PRINCE BYTHEWOOD FILMMAKER PROFILE

Gina Prince Bythewood is the writer/director of such female-driven African-American dramas like Love & Basketball and The Secret Life of Bees. She is the second black women ever to direct a film financed by a studio and the high grossing black female director of all time. She first broke the record when Love & Basketball grossed over 27 million in 2000, and again in 2008 when The Secret Life of Bees grossed over 38 million.

Gina’s decision to become a filmmaker arose while running track for UCLA. She found she had a desire to direct and applied to the UCLA film program. After being rejected, she appealed the decision and by writing an impassioned letter to the department heads, was granted enrollment. Post-graduation, she nabbed her first industry gigs writing for shows like A Different World, South Central, and Sweet Justice. Her writer position for A Different World, again, came after a relentless pursuit. Having failed her first interview, she called every other day until granted another chance. It was here she met her husband, Reggie Rock Bythewood, another staff write whose gone on to write films such as Biker Boyz, Spike Lee’s Get On The Bus, and Notorious. Out to prove she could write about other lives than just black people, she was granted a staff position on J.J. Abram’s Felicity.

Trekking five-years in the TV industry made Bythewood restless. Soon she took a year off to write her first feature film; a story about an upper-middle class boy and girl who shared a passion for the game of basketball. However, the script was rejected everywhere it went. The studios saw little diversity in black films and Bythewood’s script didn’t fit their guarded mold.

Eventually Love & Basketball was accepted into the Sundance Institute Writer’s and Director’s lab and got the attention of Spike Lee who decided to produce it. Granting a theatrical release, Bythewood became only the third black female to do so after Julie Dashes’s Daughters of the Dust and Kasi Lemmon’s Eve’s Bayou.

Bythewood continues to be a silent trailblazer for African-American women in film. Her second feature, The Secret Life of Bees, opened to critical acclaim. She also has directing credits for TV shows Girlfriends, Everybody Hates Chris, and The Bernie Mac Show, and producer credits for Biker Boyz and Felicity.

AWARDS:
3 Black Reel Awards - (2008, Directing Bees); (2008, Writing Bees); (2001, Directing Basketball)
2 Black Reel Nominations – (2001, Writing Basketball); (Directing cable film Disappearing Act)
1 Sundance Humanities Prize - (2000, Writing Basketball)
1 Independent Spirit Award – (2000, Writing Basketball)
1 Independent Spirit Nomination – (2000, 1st Feature Award for Basketball)

SOURCES:

Answers.com
Celebrity Biography.com
Gina Prince-Bythewood's Wikepedia Page
Reggie Rock Bythewood's Wikepedia Page

Tropic Thunder Review

Absurdity runs amuck. I would have thought the chances of Ben Stiller creating a Academy-Award nominated movie would have been the same as watching Tom Cruise grind to Ludacris. Aside from that, Tropic Thunder remains the only good thing to come out of god-awful Steven Spielberg's Empire of the Sun. Stiller came up with the idea in 1987 on the set of the film. 21 years later, his idea comes to fruition, creating the most absurd and unconventional movie of the year. A gang of pampered film stars run amuck while filming a Vietnam War Memoir adaptation about a POW. Determined to seize back control, the director opts to shoot guerilla style in the middle of a jungle. Unbeknownst to them, a real militant Vietanemese army is nearby and soon they're ironically realistically recreating the scenes the film is adapting. 

Bar none, the best part of this film is Robert Downey Jr. He plays an Australian method actor who undergoes skin surgery to play the role of a black sergeant. A play on method actors like Russell Crowe who take their roles too seriously. A beginning montage of the actors other films show Downey's character, Kirk Lazarus, as a priest getting his belt fondled by Toby Maguire. This alone sets the tone for what's it's like to watch Downey's performance. Amazing and creepy. He disappears into the character so much, you no longer see Downey, but the fact that he's playing an actor who disappears into a character makes the performance that much more admirable. He actually says it best. "I know who I am. I'm a dude playing a dude disguised as another dude."

Surprises also run amuck such as Matthew McConaughey as Ben Stiller's manager or Tom Cruise as an over-the-top Hollywood exec. Cruise's role in the film was a well-hidden kept secret.

The worst part about this movie. I hate to say - Jack Black. He plays a comedian who battles his addiction during the shoot. While Downey's and Stiller's humor were found in the characters, Black's was in his conflict and could have been transplanted into any comedy and gotten the same laughs.

Despite it being a comedy, many cultural introspections can be drawn. Many about the film community i.e. jerkwad Hollywood executives caring more about their profits than their products and how much actors have to loose themselves in a role to pull of a decent performance. Also the issue of black face, ringtone rappers, and homophobia in the African-American community (to be discussed). The most talked about issue is the portrayal of the mentally challenged. Stiller's character (Tugg Speedman) reminisces a time when he played a mentally challenged character by the name of simple jack. Everytime he refers to the character, he calls him retarded - the n'word or f'word to the handicapped community. Many groups spoke out against the film's use of the word although I wouldn't put it past Paramount to have drawn the hoopla up for publicity. Whether they did or didn't, it's safe to say we live in a PC world. Nas tried to put out an album called "Nigger" and was denied by the powers that be. A couple years ago, Isiah Washington was fired from Grey's anatomy for calling a castmate a faggot. Even those these are words, they obviously carry a huge weight if they are able to rally up ney-sayers. But if they can't be used in anger, comedy, or to make a social statement, then when can they be brought up?

THE BLACK PERSPECTIVE:

Downey plays blackface, which would normally be a cause for resentment. However, they were very careful with the protrayal of Kirk Lazarus. Instead of being a buffoon, unintelligent, or lacking self-respect, Downey plays him competently. At times he's the intelligent voice of reason explaining they are in a real jungle and the bloody head he's holding is not a prop. This gets sketchy when it comes to his jive speak, but the creators cover their bases here by having Brandon Lee's character (rapper- Alpa Chino) call him out on it. So even if Downey (or Lazarus, whatever) did play the fool, it would seem more of a social statement ala Bamboozled.

Lee or Alpa Chino plays a flagrant, misogynistic rapper whom shameless promotes his products like an energy drink called "Booty Sweat" and granola bar titled "Bust-A-Nut". His music video/commercial seems to be a farce of Nelly's Tipdrill. But while they show the bad, they also show the good. I remember Nelly on BET's Hip-Hop vs. America discussion, asking why nobody ever brings up all his charitable givings. Likewise Alpa Chino gives millions in charities. Bringing up the point that while many rappers do little to raise the perceptions of the black community, the good deed they do pull of are often forgotten and they tend not to be so socially irresponsible as we claim. Chino is also a closet gay - pinning for a man named Lance who we later find out to be Lance Bass. With the rap communtiy so fixated on representing the utmost masculinity, a closeted gay rapper who hides under lyrics like "I love the pussy" doesn't seem to be to far off. 

EXTRAS:

Tropic Thunder garnered two Golden Globes nominations for Robert Downey Jr. & Tom Cruise and an Academy Award nomination for Downey. As a director, it is Stiller's most successful film to date. 

RATING:

 = 4 Stars

 = 4 Black Fists

Could PUSH be the next Slumdog?

SUNDANCE, the biggest film festival of the year, gave it's top drama award to PUSH, a Lee Daniel's produced tale about an abused teenager. The film also won the Audience Award and a Special Jury Prize for Acting for Mo'Nique's dramatic turn as an abusive mother. Lee Daniels is best known for being the only African-American to solely produce an Oscar winning film - Monster's Ball. Also known for taking risky casting moves, Mariah Carey, Lenny Kravitz, Sherri Shepherd, and Robin Thicke's wife Paula Patton co-star.

PUSH Description from Sundance website:

With sheer audacity and utter authenticity, director Lee Daniels tackles Push: Based on the Novel by Sapphire and creates an unforgettable film that sets a new standard for cinema of its kind. Precious Jones (Gabourey Sidibe) is a high-school girl with nothing working in her favor. She is pregnant with her father’s child—for the second time. She can’t read or write, and her schoolmates tease her for being fat. Her home life is a horror, ruled by a mother (Mo’Nique) who keeps her imprisoned both emotionally and physically. Precious’s instincts tell her one thing: if she’s ever going to break from the chains of ignorance, she will have to dig deeply into her own resources.Don’t be misled—Push is not a film wallowing in the stillness of depression; instead, it vibrates with the kind of energy derived only from anger and hope. The entire cast are amazing; they carry out a firestorm of raw emotion. Daniels has drawn from them inimitable performances that will rivet you to your seat and leave you too shocked to breathe. If you passed Precious on the street, you probably wouldn’t notice her. But when her story is revealed, as Daniels does in this courageous film, you are left with an indelible image of a young woman who—with creativity, humor, and ferocity—finds the strength to turn her life around.

THE STUEY'S

Between the Oscars, the Golden Globes, the Razzie's, there is no prestigious selection I have more beef with than The Stuey's. This annual tradition of one of my best friend's choice for top picks of the year gives me the chance to ream him on his personal taste and audacity to avoid some of the year's best films (last year he avoided Into The Wild and had the nerve to still call it a Top Ten).

My beef with the Stuey's this year - Forgetting Sarah Marshall. Don't get me wrong, I'm not bashing the Judd Apatow raunch-fest craze. I think Knocked Up, Superbad, & 40-Year Old Virgin were all amazing movies, insightful, emotional, touching, and still edgy. Forgetting Sarah Marshall isn't even the best comedy of the year. That distinction goes to Tropic Thunder. Christian Bale's Batman grunt earning a Best Actor nod is also questionable. On a better note, I'm glad he had the balls to give WALL-E the respect its due. 

 

Best Picture
The Dark Knight
Forgetting Sarah Marshall
Slumdog Millionaire
WALL-E
The Wrestler

Best Director
Danny Boyle, “Slumdog Millionaire”
Jonathan Demme, “Rachel Getting Married”
David Gordon Green, “Snow Angels"
Christopher Nolan, “The Dark Knight”
Andrew Stanton, “WALL-E”

Best Actor
Christian Bale, "The Dark Knight"
James Franco, “Pineapple Express”
Sean Penn, “Milk”
Brad Pitt, “The Curious Case of Benjamin Button”
Mickey Rourke, “The Wrestler”

Best Actress
Kate Beckinsale, “Snow Angels”
Cate Blanchett, “The Curious Case of Benjamin Button”
Anne Hathaway, “Rachel Getting Married”
Meryl Streep, “Doubt”
Kate Winslet, “The Reader”

Best Supporting Actor
Robert Downey, Jr., “Tropic Thunder”
Heath Ledger, “The Dark Knight”
John Malkovich, “Burn After Reading ”
Gary Oldman, “The Dark Knight”
Brandon Walters, “ Australia ”

Best Supporting Actress
Penelope Cruz, “Vicky Christina Barcelona”
Viola Davis , “Doubt”
Rosemarie DeWitt, “Rachel Getting Married”
Taraji Henson, “The Curious Case of Benjamin Button”
Marissa Tomei, “The Wrestler”

Best Original Screenplay
The Bank Job
Forgetting Sarah Marshall
Rachel Getting Married
WALL-E
The Wrestler

Best Adapted Screenplay
The Dark Knight
Iron Man
The Reader
Slumdog Millionaire
Snow Angels

Best Song
“Down to Earth”, WALL-E
“Dracula’s Lament”, Forgetting Sarah Marshall
“Pineapple Express”, Pineapple Express
“The Wrestler”, The Wrestler

Best Original Score
Australia
The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
The Dark Knight
Slumdog Millionaire
WALL-E

Best Cinematography
Australia
Burn After Reading
The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
The Dark Knight
WALL-E

Best Sound
Burn After Reading
Cloverfield
Iron Man
Quantum of Solace
WALL-E

Best Visual Effects
Australia
The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
The Dark Knight
The Incredible Hulk
Iron Man

Best Editing
The Dark Knight
Iron Man
Slumdog Millionaire
WALL-E
Wanted

Best Art Direction
The Chronicles of Narnia: Prince Caspian
The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
The Dark Knight
Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull
Iron Man

Best Makeup
The Chronicles of Narnia: Prince Caspian
The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
The Dark Knight
The Reader
Tropic Thunder

Best Costume Design
The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
The Dark Knight
Doubt
Iron Man
Sex and the City 

Biggest Disappointment
Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Chrystal Skull
Quantum of Solace
Speed Racer
Twilight
The X-Files: I Want to Believe

Stu’s Top Ten of 08 
1. The Dark Knight
2. WALL-E
3. Slumdog Millionaire
4. The Wrestler
5. Forgetting Sarah Marshall
6. Snow Angels
7. Iron Man
8. Rachel Getting Married
9. Tropic Thunder
10. Shine a Light

January Oscar Predictions

So,  I had planned on casting my updated list of Oscar Nominations, but oddly, nothing has changed. See below for my predictions and compare when the official list is posted tomorrow. My brave picks I'm sketchy on:

Clint Eastwood (Gran Torino) -Best Actor

Richard Jenkins (The Visitor) - Best Actor

James Franco (Milk) - Best Supporting Actor

*May possibly be upstaged by Slumdog Millionaire's Dev Patel

Darren Aronofsky (The Wrestler) - Best Director

Charlie Kauffman (Synechdoche) - Best Original Screenplay

Road To Perdition Review

Love it when film teaches new words. Perdition: a state of eternal punishment and damnation into which a sinful and impenitent person passes death. This 2002 period drama is adapted from the “Road To Perdition” graphic novel (I call them graphic novels. They’re responsible for films that have brought Hollywood billions of dollars. They’re due their artistic merit). Tom Hanks plays 1930’s hitman, Michael Sullivan. His fate is sealed, but the question lies whether his son, Michael Sullivan Jr., will follow the same path. Sullivan’s wife and youngest son are murdered by his mentor’s (Paul Newman) son (Daniel Craig). From here we follow the typical revenge plot, however with the added consequences of how Hank’s quest for justice affects his son.

Not my favorite Tom Hank’s role. His tough-guy grunt shows Hanks is clearly out of his element, but the supporting cast members do provide adequate performances. Jude Law plays an eerie cadaver photographer whom doesn’t mind finishing off his victim to enrich his shot. At first glance, it would also seem like the British lothario is out of his element, but his somewhat feministic portrayal makes since. Paul Newman plays Sullivan’s mentor and crime boss John Rooney.

Better than the acting or uninspiring script are the technical achievements of Road to Perdition. After his directorial debut of the fantastic American Beauty (my favorite movie – ever), Oscar Mendez leaps into this film showing he knows how to move the camera, and in a powerful way. The unconventional cinematography of the film is incredible, taking a backseat only to musical score, which uplifts the film to a whole another level.



Oscar Mendez has incredible death scenes. After this Tom Hanks busts into a hotel to shoot Daniel Craig in the bathtub. However, instead of following Hanks into the bathroom, we see him walk in, shoot, walk out, and then Daniel Craigs cranium splattered through the doors window. Might I add, the only dialogue in these two scenes combined is Newman’s “I’m glad it was you”. Stories being told through pictures, not dialogue, always creates the more epic effect.

My problem with the film has to do with a ethical or reasoning issue. Sullivan is given the choice to take his son and leave town, however he chooses to pursue revenge. His greatest fear is that Sullivan Jr. will go down “The Road to Perdition” himself and become a murder. Spoiler Alert, he doesn’t, given the opportunity to shoot Law’s character to save his father, he finds himself unable to pull the trigger. But this boy witnessed his father killed three guys in a warehouse, his mother and brother’s corpses, and was on the run for six weeks from his supposed extended family, all without now show of remorse or misgivings from his father. It seems questionable to me that he wouldn’t be able to shoot his father’s murderer and that Sullivan Sr. was hell bent on leading him down this morally corrupt pass despite his worries.

THE BLACK PERSPECTIVE:
If Road To Perdition were a black film, it would be criticized for its violence and father’s irresponsible actions in influencing his son. Sullivan is told to leave and not seek revenge. Instead, he goes on a murdering spree, exposing his son to the corrupt world of killers. The on-going cycle of violence is one problem in the black community. Being exposed to it at a young age creates a psychological effect that’s hard to break from. If the black film made a statement about the perpetual effects of violence, then it would be hailed as socially responsible. If it went down as this film did, people would nail it for blatantly ignoring the issues. Since it is a white film, however, it’s okay, which is a double standard. Gang violence affects all races, and needs to be handled on the national level, not just in the black community.

RATING:
 = 2 Stars
 = 2 Black Fists

BLACK FILM HISTORY SPOTLIGHT

The 2000 released romantic drama, Love & Basketball took in a worldwide amount of over 27 million making it the highest grossing film by a African-American female director at that time. Gina Prince Bythewood was only the third African-American women to receive a national theatre distribution, following Julie Dash with 1992's Daughters Of The Dust, and Kasi Lemmons with 1997's Eve's Bayou. Costing between 15 to 20 million, Love & Basketball was also the most expensive film to be directed by a woman of color to date. Since, Gina Prince Bythewood has topped her own record. 2008's The Secret Life of Bees so far as grossed over 38 million.  

New York Times Article on Black Filmmakers

Link Here

3-Way Underdog Race for Best Picture of 2008

The Underdog: The Dark Knight

Why: The Dark Knight is a superhero flick, likened to films like Spiderman, Punisher, etc., and adapted from a comic book, which of course, were never really taken seriously. The film is also a sequel, and only two sequels in history have gone on to contend for Best Picture: "The Godfather 2" & "Lord of The Rings: The Twin Towers." Also, the film is the highest grossing movie of the year. The Oscars, under the belief moviegoers are more amused by careful marketing and huge explosions and not great filmmaking, tend not to gravitate towards movies that do well in the box office. 

Analysis: The reasons that make Dark Knight an underdog are the same reasons that make it in contention. Common belief is that comic book adaptations & superhero flicks are finally maturing. Crowning The Dark Knight would be the manifestation of that belief.  Not only is the film the top grossing of 2008, but it's the 2nd top grossing of all time, a hard detail for Oscar voters to ignore. Add that to Heath Ledger's legendary performance on top of his untimely death and the chance to reward a great actor posthumously for an inspiring body of work, The Dark Knight basically dares one not to vote is Best Pic. 

The Iconic Underdog: Slumdog Millionaire

Why: Slumdog Millionaire is a cross-cultural film entirely set in India. There are no recognizable names, at least to the American Audience, and it's directed by Danny Boyle, a director known for making detestable films like Trainspotting (about Heroin addicts) and 28 Days Later (about Zombies). Plus, it's an indie. 

Analysis: Not only is the film an underdog, but the film is about an underdog. The main character Jamal lives the horrid life of a slum in pursuit of a long-lost-and-lost again love, goes on a game show, and up to the point in which we start the film, gets every question right despite no education. This is the feel good movie of the year, and many are weary of the trend of honoring dark,moody, sad films i.e. No Country for Old Men, There Will Be Blood, The Departed, Crash, & Million Dollar Baby. Everyone wants to root with the underdog, and with no big names, non-ethnocentric view, and euphoric emotions, Slumdog Millionaire gives everyone enough reason to root for it.  

The True Underdog: WALL-E

Why: Most of the film, in peticular the first half-hour, contains no dialog. The main characters aren't even real, they're robots, and the cliche of two robots falling in love is too corny to overlook.  The film is an animation, "the ghetto" of film categories. Not only do they have their own Oscar category, but these films are tailored more toward children, which means they're taken less seriously to everyone outside they're demographic. 

Analysis: Out of the three, Wall-E is the only original story not adapted from another work. Also it's ironic that animated movies are looked down on by regular real-action movies when animations take more than twice as long to make. The idea for Wall-E was conceived in 1994, and they started to write the script in 1995, about 13 years before it's release. Pixar is known for making some of the most brilliant films of the last two decades (Toy Story, Finding Nemo, The Incredibles, Ratatouille), yet the stigma of being "animated" is too powerful. The Oscars only have so much room for Underdogs, and crowing a "cartoon" best movie would be too much of an embarrassment to the film industry for Oscar voters to allow. WALL-E gets the shaft. 

I'm Through With White Girls Review

I’m Through with White Girls? Such a bold statement for a low-budget endeavor. Jay Brooks, a black, indie rock loving, single, comic book artist in his 30’s, blames his string of failed relationships on the common dominator between all his exes, being Caucasian. Hence, ‘Operation Brown Sugar”, a feeble attempt to find love by only dating sistahs. But when that plan ultimately fails, Brooks stops looking outside at the women’s skin color, and looks inside at his own commitment issues.



A simple, refreshing, and endearing romantic comedy. There are not many laugh out loud moments but the film is quirky enough to keep one’s attention throughout. The film does have a purpose, to deliver a message about the irrelevance of race in relationships, but unlike a Spike Lee Joint, it doesn’t heavy-handedly smack you in the face with it. The performances are solid, but more impressive are the scripting of the characters, all of whom are made more real by their idiosyncrasies and complexity. Central character, Jay Brooks, smokes cigarettes through an ‘artistic flair’ and loves indie rock. His better half, Catherine, has multi-colored dreadlocks and fears public speaking due to her valley girl diction. Brook’s best friend’s family lack the same humor and complexity and seem to be taken out of Tyler Perry’s playbook, but only constitute a small portion of the screen time.

Many films have tackled the subject of Interacial Dating. New Beyonce-flick “Obsessed”, and Sidney Poiter’s & Bernie Mac’s remake of Guess Who’s Coming to Dinner deals with the complicated issues dating (or having an affair with) another race attracts. Lee’s Jungle Fever attempted to reason why attraction between races exits, posing the question: is it was love or curiosity. Although both examples are portrayed, the dominant storyline shows the downhill spiral of an interracial couple where race is the only reason their together. “Race Matters,” Lee says. I’m Though With White Girls claims the opposite. Whether white, black, or oddly enough Half-rican Canadian, the issues one brings to the table ultimately decide whether a relationship fails or soars, not race. The film only briefly recognizes the role cultural identity plays in all of Brook’s partnerships. After one break-up he complains she told him he “looked like Emmanuel Lewis” and to white women, all black guys look the same. Besides this minor issue the film tends to agree with American’s new popular consensus. With a black president-elect and increasing Hispanic minority positioned to become dominant, race is becoming irrelevant.

THE BLACK PERSPECTIVE:
Catherine writes about black folks but talks like a white cheerleader. She is half-black & Canadian but looks neither. Despite all this she is considered BLACK. Jay Brooks digs indie rock and is BLACK as well. In many films, as if color wasn’t enough, filmmakers often find the need to remind us what race their characters are. Either they talk “black” or act “black” or feel the need to overemphasize their African roots. In short, they’re defined by their blackness, but not in this film. Neither character fits the stereotypes of black people and are completely comfortable with it, a notion to be admired.

On another note, coming from a well-to-do family, Catherine’s black friend J.C. becomes increasingly high strung over whether her fiancé’s family will act “ghetto” at their wedding. She, in turns, becomes ghetto herself, yelling at visitors for bringing 40’s when it turns out only to be ice tea. Cited for the reason black men stray, black people often stereotype their own, and sometimes this gets in the way of seeing individuals for whom they really are.

One of the fiancé’s family members constantly reminisces how her male admirers flocked to her because of her “lightened” skin, despite the contrary. It’s a joke, but nether less brings up the subject of colorism, an issue in the black community not talked about enough. Obama, Will Smith, Beyonce, all light-skinned fixtures in Mainstream culture, but the question remains, would they all be so accepted if they had darker skin. While looking at their counterparts, Jesse Jackson, Wesley Snipes, and Kelly Rowland, they all hold a different position in culture and had to travel a different route to get there. Talent, and ambition are obvious parts of the equation, but so are the trends. Beyonce lightens her skin for magazine covers and Michael Jackson lightened his permanently. In a perfect society, we want to say race doesn’t matter, but is that only because the constant mash-up of cultures are bringing us closer together?

Rating:

 = 4 Stars

 = 4 Black Fists

Zack and Miri Make A Porno

The 2008 comedy stars Seth Rogen and Elizabeth Banks and is helmed by veteran director, Kevin Smith. Zack and Miri are two slacker best friends who are unable to pay for the basic necessities of their apartment like water and electricity. After encountering a gay porn star at their high school reunion, they decide making a porno will solve all their financial problems. However, opting to star in the film as well happens to be their demise when sex complicates their long-lasting friendship.

Zack and Miri Make A Porno is amusing to a point. The comedy is raunchy and explicit, however one can conclude as much from the title alone. There’s a lot of mild funny but only one big laugh out loud moment (I won’t ruin it, but it involves feces). Jokes like Star Whores and Justin Long’s cameo role as gay porn star Brandon St. Randy almost make the film worth the price of admission (see youtube clip below). The humor ends where the plot begins. Zack and Miri easy-going relationship made more complicated by sex comes off as a contrived attempt to bring an emotional storyline into the mix. Not only does it falls flat, but also halts the production of the porno and leads us to an uninspired and unfulfilling ending.



Little cultural introspection can be drawn from the events of the movie, but the controversy that took place in the real world says a lot. The initial movie poster showing both Zack & Miri possible receiving oral sex was banned by the MPAA, forcing producers to smartly release a new poster with stick figures and the clever tag ‘Seth Rogen & Elizabeth Banks made a porno so titillating, this is all we could show’. Even with the change many outlets refused to display the poster or even show the movie due to the word “porno”, however the same outlets had no trouble promoting the graphically violent Saw 5, which was released the same weekend. Despite the increasing liberal attitudes towards sex, America still finds the subject somewhat more taboo than supporting the portrayal of horrific and senseless violence.

THE BLACK PERSPECTIVE:
The only two black characters in the film come off as stereotypical archetypes. The first being Craig Robinson who plays Zack’s co-worker at the coffee shop and producer due to his financial contributions. Near the end, Robinson’s character becomes “Oprah rich”. One could see this as a positive portrayal of a black man’s success, however Robinson’s character doesn’t get this money from working hard. Instead, he wins a lawsuit. And even worse, he is counting on the lawsuit so he can quit his job. The Stereotype: Lazy Negro looking for a handout. Robinson’s character also comes off as sensitive to perceived racial jokes. When a white customers asks for ‘coffee, black’, Robinson tells him, “after I’m talking, white’. He also calls his boss racist for asking him to work on Black Friday. No doubt a response to the common stereotype in black films of the unmercifully racist white lady who clutches her purse and gladly calls blacks niggers.

The second character is Delaney’s wife, played by Martin’s Tisha Campbell-Martin. Despite the surprise cameo and Tisha’s aggressive performance, this character is a worse perpetrator of racial stereotypes than Robinson. Tisha curses relentlessly, screams, is overly sexualized (even asking Rogen if he wants to sleep with her), and in a short, a raging bitch. The angry mad black woman stereotype has never been shown this forcefully and frankly, both Tisha & Kevin Smith should be ashamed for having been apart of it.

Extras:

Zack and Miri Make A Porno topped the box office it's first three days of release, the first time ever for Kevin Smith. It opened #2 behind High School Musical 3: Senior Year becoming the second biggest opening weekend for Smith behind Jay and Silent Bob Strike Back. However, the film eventually surpassed Jay and Silent Bob Strike Back to become Smith's most successful theatrical release. 

Rating: 
= 2 Stars

 = 1 Black Fist