Saturday, February 28, 2009

State of the Black Union

PBS Talk Show Host Tavis Smiley and a variety of America's black leaders meet in Los Angeles, CA, for the 2009 "State of the Black Union." This day-long event is titled, "Making America As Good As Its Promise."
The event is living up to its promise as recent challenges are made to the governors of Louisania, Mississipi, Tennessee and Georgia. Black Voters need to take the these policitians to task for recent actions and comments. Especially Bobby Jindal, and Sonny Perdue.

Sunday, February 22, 2009

Madea Goes To Jail!


At long last, Madea returns to the big screen in Tyler Perry's Madea Goes To Jail. This time America's favorite irreverent, pistol-packin' grandmomma is raising hell behind bars and lobbying for her freedom...Hallelujer! To the dismay of many of my fellow bloggers, that find these films as disappointing, I disagree. Once again Tyler Perry brings to the screen unheralded talent, such as Viola Davis, whom on this Oscar evening is well desrving of a oscar nod, and win this evening for her performance in Doubt. And this is why I defend Tyler against some of his ardent critics in the blogsphere. Who else continues to recoginise and promote unherald black talent.


Tyler Perry is a master at making modern morality plays which address an array of concerns of the African-American community. What makes his films feel so authentic is that his characters invariably reflect black culture in a manner which is instantly recognizable and thus effortlessly resonates with the audience as real. Another plus is Perry's knowing how to mix-in plenty of comic relief without diluting the power of the sobering message he's trying to deliver.
Loosely-based on the stage production of the same name, Madea Goes to Jail just might be Tyler Perry's best endeavor to date. The film stars Tyler, back in drag, as the sassy, pistol-packing Mable "Madea" Simmons, heading a talented ensemble which includes Viola Davis, Derek Luke, Ion Overman, Keisha Knight Pulliam and David and Tamela J. Mann.

The cast also features an incredible number of celebrity cameos, most notably, Dr. Phil, and TV Judges Greg Mathis and Mablean Ephriam, not to mention Reverend Al Sharpton, comedian Steve Harvey, DJs Tom Joyner and Michael Baisden, CNN news anchor Tony Harris, and The View talk show hosts Whoopi Goldberg, Joy Behar, Sherri Shepherd and Elisabeth Hasselbeck. Fortunately, balancing all the egos never gets in the way of making a hilarious flick, for the finished product is a rollicking roller coaster that ought to be fun for the whole family.
At the point of departure, we find Madea in front of Judge Mablean who lets the hell-raising granny off with a slap on the wrist and a stern warning for leading police on a high-speed freeway chase. Instead of landing behind bars, she is ordered to undergo treatment for anger management with Dr. Phil. While on the coach, she and the shrink engage in a hilarious exchange reminiscent of Abbott and Costello's classic "Who's on First?"
Needless to say, the therapy doesn't work, and Madea goes berserk again when a customer steals her parking spot at the mall. After wrecking the woman's car with a forklift, Madea is arrested again but ends up this time in front of a very incensed Judge Mathis who decides to teach her a lesson with a sentence of 5-10 years.
Meanwhile, there's a whole parallel plot unfolding involving Assistant District Attorney Joshua Hardaway (Luke) who is engaged to Linda (Overman), a bourgie colleague who doesn't understand why he might care about rehabilitating Candy (Pulliam), a former girlfriend who has turned to streetwalking. With the help of a prison minister (Davis), Josh does his best to get his ex the help she needs anyway, a decision which destabilizes his once solid relationship. Everything comes to a head when Madea and Candy cross paths in a correctional facility, leading to tidy resolution which not only ties loose ends but elicits a few tears.
Remember to stay for the closing credits, for some bonus badinage between Madea and Dr. Phil.
Lionsgate and TPS Present A Reuben Cannon/Lionsgate Production of Tyler Perry's Madea Goes To Jail. Based on Perry's successful stage play, Tyler Perry's Madea Goes To Jail is produced, written and directed by Tyler Perry.

Saturday, February 21, 2009

The New Archtypes for Black Folks!



Congrats to Barack and Michelle OBAMA on both covers this month. The reign of the niggas is coming to a end, maybe we will see improvement in literature, Movies and everything else.

Wednesday, February 18, 2009

The New Face of Black Masculinity!


The New Face of Black Male Masculinity,sans oversexed rappers, and clownish buffoons. The new face, however is reminiscent of the early works of Sidney Poiter of Blackboard Jungle, Lilies of the Field, and later films such as Heat of the Night, and no one personifies this more than Rob Brown (Finding Forrester)(The Express)Derek Luke(Antoine Fisher)(Miracle at St Anna's)It is refreshing to see these two young actors carry on Poitier's legacy in their roles!

Sunday, February 15, 2009

What do you have to say for yourself Burro?

CHICAGO - Sen. Roland Burris admitted Saturday that former Gov. Rod Blagojevich's brother asked him for a campaign contribution before the governor appointed Burris to the Senate.

The disclosure is at odds with Burris' testimony in January when an Illinois House impeachment committee specifically asked if he had ever spoken to Robert Blagojevich or other aides to the now-deposed governor about the Senate seat vacated by Barack Obama.

Burris admits Blagojevich donation request
He says ex-governor's brother sought $10,000 in campaign funds

State Rep. Jim Durkin, the impeachment committee's ranking Republican, told The Associated Press that he and House Republican Leader Tom Cross would seek an outside investigation into whether Burris perjured himself.