Two new films hit theaters Apr. 13 "Women Thou Art Loosed" and "Life, Love, Soul"

04/13/2012

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I read about these films while working on Breaking News at the Trib. Check out this article. Tired of the same old scripts and lack of diversity in films. Support movies that don't have the same recycled plot and with a cast that doesn't look like the movie plopped someone in to make the quota. I watch a lot of different movies, but I think in the African-American film industry, the roles and stories are limited. These two movies seemed to have potential from the theatrical trailers.

Update (8 p.m. on Friday): I just came in tonight after seeing "Women Thou Art Loosed: On the 7th Day" and I loved this movie. I've been a Blair Underwood fan since I was a kid (and he cracked me up on "The New Adventures of Old Christine"), but he really did his thing in this film. I like Sharon Leal, too. She's more than just a pretty face. She's an exceptional actress and I thought the two of them worked great together. And my gawd, her high school ex-boyfriend and the pimp (okay, yeah, that's a stereotype but it made sense for the movie) were gorgeous! But better than that, the movie kept me intrigued the entire time. I'd highly recommend it.

I wanted to support "Life, Love, Soul" too but I have a bone to pick with where this movie is showing. I was already cringing to see Tami Roman from "Basketball Wives" in it, but for all I know, she may be a great actress. But more importantly, why did they choose Woodridge (been living in Chicago for 26 of 30 years and I've never even heard of Woodridge, IL) to show a predominantly black film? Why not stick it where the black folks are? I'm willing to bet the film would be supported far more in Chicago than this place, and I'm not driving over an hour to see a movie that costs less than $10. I'd blow more money in gas than I would on the film. I wonder if the other locations are in no-man's land, too. Doubt it, especially in the Atlanta locations. I hope it comes to Netflix or Amazon though. I'll watch it there.

See the trailers:


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Five things I'm digging right now

08/12/2011

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1. Ultimate Merger: I give major respect to the show for using faux fur instead of real fur. Thanks @LilVanPeebles for calling me out about that because I originally comp-tweet-lained before I knew it was fake. The show is interesting and there's some serious eye candy on here, too. Usually on these dating shows there are only 1 or 2 guys I enjoy, but a lot of these guys are entertaining. So far, I'm cheering for Jason, Cedric, Frank and King. I like temperamental Harvey playing "big brother," too.

2. David Banner's "Swag": I can't remember the last time (minus Eminem's "Syllables") that I actually had to listen to a hip-hop song more than a couple times to make sure I got all the lyrics. Usually it's a bunch of negative gibberish with a tight beat. I can dance to a few, but I'd NEVER buy it. This song, however, I respect. I respect what David Banner is doing professionally anyway, but this cut sealed it for me. (Just an FYI, I despise it when people use the word "nigga" and completely disregard the history. I went through a stage in high school when I thought it was OK but college quickly poured ice water on me and I haven't used it in conversation--outside of quoting--since then.)
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Odd conversation on an ordinary day

07/29/2011

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I woke up and after waiting for the maintenance guy in my apartment to fix an issue, I headed out to run errands. I used to people watch more when I was younger than I do now. There are times that I observe people, but then there are times when I'm so focused on getting things done that I just don't care what everybody else is doing. On my way from the bank to a CTA stop to put money on my Chicago card, a guy strolled by me, said "Hello," I said "Hi" and kept it moving. He goes, "Eh, cah ask you a question?" and immediately my eyes rolled. I don't know what he was getting ready to ask and anybody who can't find anything better to do than hang by an el stop on a weekday isn't somebody I feel I'm going to get some beneficial information from. Maybe it was beneficial, but it just looked like he had a lot of free time on his hands. I just kept walking. I really didn't want to hear it. (My instincts were right. A police car rolled by and he disappeared faster than Casper!) A few days back I was on my cell and this guy screams out, "Eh 'scuse me, 'scuse me, oooh she bad! Don't you think she bad?" I'm sure it was meant to be a compliment, but it just made me cringe. First of all, the guy was my father's age, and I know some women like older men, but I can't stand it when folks who could've been my father walk up to talk to me like we're on the same level. You should be trying to teach me something not trying to undress me. Gross!

However, there are times when I will stop and listen to people speak about a bunch of nothing. There's a special place in my heart for the elderly.
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There goes the neighborhood

07/22/2011

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For the life of me, I just can't understand why somebody would complain about how bad their own neighborhood is and then move into another neighborhood to screw that one up, too. If you like being in the hood, stay there! (Yeah, somebody's going to be mad I said that, but I bypassed caring last month when my mail was stolen. I'm still mad about that.) It's aggravating to watch a neighborhood being ruined from folks who could care less while others who do care either have to move or watch their block go straight down the drain.

One thing that I've loved the most about living in the neighborhood I've been in for over seven years was the decrease in ridiculous approaches I got. By approaches, I mean guys walking up to you spitting game that doesn't work on anybody but rats. Yeah, that might sound harsh, but it's the truth. Within this past year, there's been a significant change during my train ride (folks are selling candy to make-believe organizations, opening train doors jumping from car to car, putting their legs up on seats, blasting music without using headphones) and now I'm seeing folks hang out by my nearby el stops and just walk around randomly loitering. One perk of my own building was this beautiful set of flowers and freshly mowed grass. There's no porch. There's no stoop. So it's strictly for show and nobody hangs out. I came home one day to see two teenagers flopped down on the ground in front of the door. Extra tacky! Why would you need to hang out by the door when there's a lakefront and a beach a few minutes away?

Although I preferred peaceful, quiet rides on the el station once it passed the downtown area, and I liked walking down the street with folks getting off of work, walking their dogs and working on their lawns, the neighborhood is changing. And to be honest, I don't care for it. One of the things that I really loved about living on the north side is the diversity and the peace. My mother has joked a few times about how she thinks I'll never move. I told her I genuinely liked the area. I like being able to take a walk without worrying about what neighborhood I'm going through. I like being able to jog at night. I like being able to go to a beach not overcrowded with litter and not being concerned about somebody shooting somebody else on the basketball court.
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