Herzog’s Bad Lieutenant

 

Attempted to go see “A Serious Man,” went to the wrong theater and caught this saw this on a whim.  Glad I did.  It’s not at all what I think most would expect after seeing the trailer and was a real treat.   Werner Herzog is ill, man.

On Progress and Procrastination

I’m very good at thinking of initial concepts for things, but I often have a difficult time following through on a lot of those things.  I often make excuses for myself and willing lag, when I know that I can get things done.

Part of the reason for this, actually most of the reason for this is because I’m afraid of failure and I’m afraid that the things I would like to do will not be received well by others.

This is something I’m going to have to get over and soon.  I do not want to be one of those guys walking around at 30, 35, regretting shit.  I’ve met those guys.  They aren’t a lot of fun to be around.

Part of the trouble, I think, comes from me being envious of what I see other people, my peers and people my age having been able to do in the time that they’ve had.  So as a result, I say to myself, “well, I need to be there.  I could do that!  Why didn’t I do that?  Ok, do that!  That’s what we’ll do.”  Then, when I don’t get to where I think I should be after having used my peers’ accomplishments as a comparison, I’m of course disappointed.

Gotta run my own race.  I just need to be more realistic about the goals that I set for myself and focus on what I have rather than what I haven’t.  Kanye said that, man.  He was like, “you can’t get anywhere if you keep thinking that you can’t do something because you keep harping on what you don’t have.”  Look at where he is.  He didn’t start with shit.

That’s the move.

–

I, myself am a work in progress.  The sooner I think that I think I get that through my head, the better off I’ll be.

I’ve just got to try.

But will I?

How badly do I want to succeed?

(I guess I’ll see.)

Are People Really Complaining About Couples’s Retreat? (Misplaying the Race Card)

In our “post-racial” age, going for the race card is like grabbing that axe that you get from the “break in case of fire” case.  When you pull it out, you’ve gotta be sure there’s a real fire.  Otherwise, you just might have glass on yourself.  Sharp, painful glass.

There are times to play the race card and there are times where you just don’t.  In the case of racism against Black folk, it’s always been easier to assert the existence of racism during antebellum times up until Jim Crow and even through the 80s, when whole communities of people were still being enslaved, hosed down, bitten by dogs, abducted, lynched, given crack, you name it.

Now, finding ourselves in a modern age confronted with sporadic and isolated incidents–NY and California area police shooting people dozens of times (often out in the open), minority-aimed subprime mortgage steering, FEMA’s solutions for Hurricane Katrina victims and a curious and unrelenting vitriol which has seemed to have underscored many right-wing attacks on President Obama’s character (and citizenship) into the initial stages of his candidacy, it seems we’ve had slightly less opportunities for which to justifiably call out for the existence of “racism.”

Thus, we’ve got to be careful where we play that card.

This brings me to entertainment.

But really–today, I heard there was some “controversy” over the fact that Columbia Pictures removed images of Faizon Glover and Some Actress I’ve Never Seen from a one-sheet for “Couple’s Retreat” that is to be used for the film’s promotions in the UK.

Before - The U.S. One-Sheet

After – The U.K. One-Sheet

Now I’ve seen this one-sheet, and I gotta say, I don’t want to see it no matter who’s on it at any point in time.  The film doesn’t interest me.  I see Vince Vaughn doing his Vince Vaughn thing, Jason Bateman (who I generally like), the woman that played Charlotte, from Sex in the City, and what appears to be two tokened Black folks.  Not my thing.

But the basis for this argument against Columbia Pictures seems to be that the studio itself is racist, or at least, culturally insensitive because of the fact that (correct me if I’m wrong) they’ve removed the only two colored folks on their one-sheet for promotions abroad, in spite of the fact that they’re actually in the film.

But really?  People are really making an argument for this?  I’m just like…I can’t name the last thing that Faizon Love did and I don’t even know that woman’s name.  Obviously, from the way the picture is taken, they have small roles.  Of course, the U.K. one-sheet does look a lot more Eurocentric, but I mean, I really feel like that’s Columbia’s call.

In my view–Columbia Pictures has the right to sell this movie in any way they want.  It’s their damn film.  It’s their investment.  I think if they had mixed feelings (lol) about their previous promotion, it’s their right to change it to the way that they think will allow them to make the most money.  It’s not like they had Denzel Washington and Angela Bassett standing in the back of the one-sheet and chopped them out once the film was marketed abroad.  You’ve chopped out Faizon Love and “Kali Hawk,” who I’m not sure would make me want to see this film in the first place.  I ain’t seen Faizon since “The Parenthood.”

Out of everything going on in the film/entertainment industry, people wanted to jump on Columbia Pictures and their campaign for “Couples’s Retreat?”  Come on, now.

How about the fact that heads, execs and other influential people of many major studios have sometimes been quoted as saying that they don’t even think that Black films (films with mostly Black casts, often made by Black people) can appeal to “non-urban” audiences, especially if the content itself is not “urban,” whatever the hell people have chosen that term to mean at the time.

Then, as a slight aside–

“The Wire” still doesn’t have a fucking Emmy, for God’s sakes.  I said “The Wire” never got an Emmy.  THE WIRE NEVER GOT AN EMMY.  NOT ONE.  Have you seen “The Wire?”  It was probably the best written, most epic shows to have ever aired on television, ever.  Got damn.  Let’s talk about that one.

That’s all I’ve got to say.

“Precious,” The Film Everyone’s Talking About

Every once in a while, there comes a film that is so boldly unapologetic in presenting its story that it cannot be ignored, whether for better or for worse.

I would say that “Precious: Based on the Novel by Sapphire” a film about the struggles of an obese, welfare-bound, developmentally disabled, pregnant Black teenager fits that picture.

Based on the adapted novel by Sapphire and directed/produced by Lee Daniels (Shadowboxer, Monster’s Ball, The Woodsman), “Precious…” originally entitled “Push: Based on the novel by Sapphire,” was quickly picked up by Tyler Perry and Oprah, who wisely saw fit to tack their names on as “Executive Producers” after its Sundance debut and would spark public interest for months to come.

Sure enough, with an avalanche of media buzz having heaped up just in time for Oscar season, people poured into the theaters opening weekend, Nov. 6th and bought out nearly every ticket in each of the in 18 screens theaters in select markets (ATL, NY, LA and Chicago) selling out every show, grossing an extraordinary 1.8 million dollars, with an average of about $100,000 per theater.  - Variety.com

This past weekend, the film was expanded to play in 174(?) theaters in markets in (D.C., Philadelphia, Dallas, Washington, San Francisco, and Houston), where it will most likely have gross a significant amount more money because of all the people still fiending to get a ticket from last week.

I wanted to like “Precious,” I really did.   In spite of all of his sensational, shock value marketing, much of which (in addition to press) must have fueled enthusiasm for the film’s opening weekend, I think Director Lee Daniels tried his darndest to craft what he’d hoped would be a promising, uplifting piece.  Given the allegedly (I’ve not read it) depressing nature of the content from Sapphire’s novel, I think he’d probably had a challenging time during the adaptation process.

That being said, the film is done and should be critiqued in and of itself.  You just can’t excuse some things. This comes from a dude that has never done a feature film or anything.  I haven’t even completed a short that I like yet. For me, Daniels’s treatment of the Sapphire’s novel is ham-handedly melodramatic, almost to the point of being embarrassing.

Watching it, the film’s plot seems to play out as clumsily as the gait of the main character, herself, stumbling its way to an ending that seems to come too soon, fumbling with awkwardly-placed story devices– a strangely articulate inner monologue that I didn’t get (given the character’s overt disability), an excess of cuts to surreal scenes where Precious wishes for better days and an overall amateurish sensibility for editing that makes the film look like it was cut by a first-year film student.

For me, what the film does have going for it, however, are its immensely strong performances on the part of the film’s many new and up-and-coming actors (Gabourey Sidibe (sp?), Paula Patton, Monique, Mariah Carey, Xosha Rocquemore and Chyna Layne[sp?]).  I just wish that they could have had a better platform on which to showcase their skills.

[Aside:

A bit of a rant--I have loads of other issues with this film, mostly from a sociocultural point of view, but I think that to delve into them would require a whole 'nother article.  Some of these:

1. Stereotypes.

A lot of it just has to do with what I feel like is the exploitation of Black stereotypes in the marketing of this movie--but this film is all about Black these stereotypes, so what does that mean?  Is it wrong to play those factors up?  On the one hand, how can it be, when that's what the film's about?  Does that mean that we can no longer make films about "the hood," and about the experiences that might be had by those who are impoverished Black, Latino and yadda yadda yadda?  Is there any sort of ethical responsibility that filmmakers have today in presenting material like this?  Does a movie like this illuminate and provoke discussion of stereotypes or does it reinforce them?  Does it even matter whether it does, even in this day and age?

Ex.

Monique's character, for example, often seems so one-dimensional throughout the movie that she almost seems the quintessential "welfare queen," -- uncaring, opportunistic, lazy, shiftless, neglectful and of course, ever-reliant on her welfare, traits which, when depicted as repetitively as they are in "Precious," completely undermine the poignance of the monologue she has toward the film's end, which might have shed a more realistic light on her motivations had it been more skillfully hinted at throughout the story.

2. The Photographic Treatment of "Good"/"Troubled"/"Bad" Characters in this Film and Their Relative Skin Tones

Just something I noticed and something that I don't think anyone can ignore when watching this movie, whether you feel that it's socially relevant or not.  Thoughts?

3. Oscars - If Monique Wins (hearkens back to #1)

If Monique wins an Oscar for effectively playing what I think everyone can agree is a stereotype of a "welfare-queen," (and with a handkerchief on her head at the end of the movie, no less [I know her hair ain't did, but got damn]) but are there problems with this?  Are we post-racial enough to just say she kicked ass in the role and to applaud her for it?  Shouldn’t we be?  She did kick ass in that role, after all.

I feel like I have to ask.

]

All in all–

After having seen this movie and “Mississippi Damned” this year (not to conflate Daniels’s and Mabry’s works) I swear, it will be at least another 15-20 years before I’ll want to see another Black film (what I define as a film in which the principal creative elements and most actors are African-American) which positions–rape/sexual abuse/incest, alcoholism, chicken, pigs feet, welfare, or terminal diseases as major problems for the story’s characters.  That shit is just too depressing.

I thought this film could be better and I wanted it to be, but who cares, it’s kicking ass, right?  With theaters sold out, a swilling stream of reviews, press and buzz, not to mention the promotional efforts of Oprah and the Nino Brown of Filmmaking, himself, I think this movie will do just fine, at least from a monetary standpoint (wait until VOD, DVD/Blu-ray, etc.  Oh boy)

Something I think the piece has done well, however, is provoke a lot of discussion, something that is always a good thing.

I May Have to Get Cable Just for Charles Barkley (The Sammy Sosa Edition)

I know I’m probably late on this, but it really had me rolling.

Come on, Sammy.

Damn.

What If Books Had Video Promos?

The promotional treatment of Kanye’s “Glow in the Dark” book/CD combo by director/photographer Nabil Elderkin makes me wonder.

Of course, the difference between this and other books is that it’s heavily focused on Elderkin’s own photographic work during the tour, but I wonder if similar promos could be made to advertise other, less visually-oriented, printed media.

Why not?  What do people think?

In Invictus, Morgan Freeman Gets a Life of His Own. Kinda.

Morgan Freeman is an extremely talented actor , but I can’t help but feel like for the better part of his career, he’s just been given roles as a completely self-effacing (although always noble), desexualized helper/sage/mentor for other characters.  A sidekick of sorts.  Not necessarily a bad thing, in and of itself, but something I think is been wack given the dude’s obvious talent.

Glory.  Shawshank.  Driving Miss Fuckin’ Daisy.  Se7en.  That Movie Where He Played God.  Lucky Number Slevin.  The list goes on.  Many of those are dope movies, but I’m like, “damn, can they give the brotha a life?  A Family?  Maybe a love interest or an animal he’s fond of?”

Then, they have the nerve to go and have ol’ Morgan deliver this in the horrendous, “Wanted.”

Even in the context of the film it’s shameful.

But Eastwood’s “Invictus” looks promising, even though Morgan’s still been given a partner.

I Told Y’all To Look Out for Last Pictures.

Now look at you, lamenting not having peeked at the post I posted before about Last Pictures.

Why am I promoting so hard?  I don’t know.  These cats aren’t paying me commission.  I just see dopeness and pass it along.  These cats are making moves and I applaud their diligence.

I’m especially looking forward to their short, “Boobie,” featuring Elijah Wood and shot by A. Newport-Berra, by far one of the dopest Directors of Photography to have come out of NYU’s Undergrad Program in the past several years.

We in there.

“Snatch.” is my Shit.

Guy Ritchie’s pieces have a dark, quirky charm and a bravado that I can’t help but dig.

The build to the film’s climax, where the characters’ lives depend on the outcome of a boxing match.

I don’t care what anyone says.  For me, this is one of the illest scenes in contemporary cinema.  It’s a perfect example of how editing film is an art unto itself and how paramount it is to the whole process (it basically is the process, in the end).   Check out “Snatch,” if you can.  I’ve incorporated Oasis’s “Fucking in the Bushes” into my workout routine ever since.

Can NYU Let A Film Student Shoot A Film Before He Graduates? The Wackness (Pt. 1?)

I don’t like bitching, especially when I think I can be a lot more productive trying to work through my problems than dwelling on them.  Film production is full of problems and that’s just part of the game.  Still, in certain instances, I think certain situations can be so wack that you’ve got to speak on them.  Especially bad service.  Especially when you’ve paid $200,000 for that service.

For me, making films is kinda like making love.  I’m passionate about it.  I’ve spent many a late night hour trying to put in some quality work.   It’s what I’m trying to get good at.  I’m just trying to “get it in” while I have the chance.  (Y’all know how rough those dry spells can be).

Bear with me, it gets deep.

It’s October ‘09.   I’m submitting a proposal for a new project to be submitted to NYU just so I can maybe have a decent film after having graduated.  Fuck that, not even necessarily decent, just something interesting.  Cohesive.  Something that shows that I might have some promise.  Something that might make someone want to see more of what I might have to offer.

Haven’t I had chances before?  Of course.  Of course I have.

During sophomore year, when I first transferred to NYU, and in my junior year, when I shot my first real film, my intermediate project, but anyone who’s done those projects knows that they don’t really want to show those films to anybody.  If you have a friend that went to NYU UG Film, ask them about their introductory and intermediate film projects.  Sight and Sound and Color Syncs.  I’ll bet they don’t want to show you those, not because anything was necessarily wrong with them–but because they were probably feeling like what they were able to put together then wasn’t typical of what they might have the potential to do in the future.

Those first few classes sophomore year, you’re poking around, experimenting, playing with things, not really sure how to use all the appendages you’ve got at your disposal, but you’re not ready for the real deal.  Junior year, with your intermediate, your first film, you’re about to do it.

You’ve spent a good amount of time dicking around, you’ve got all the the right intentions and a good idea of how things are supposed to be done and you pop that cherry.  You make a film.  Still, you probably didn’t have all the right moves and it probably resulted in some awkward shit.

So between your intermediate and advanced level projects, you take a breather, review your moves (edit and finish your intermediate), compare notes (maybe work on some other films, study films) and finally, senior year, you’re ready to put it down. (lol or so you think) in the manner of a 10-15 minute short.

That’s the goal of film school.  Have something to show for the fact that you’ve spent $200,000 on a Bachelor’s degree in Film Production.

So what’s my excuse?  Why am I still waiting so long to do a project when I walked and should have been out in May ‘09?

What’s Been Involved in Making a Student Short at NYU (For Me), the Fall ‘08-Fall ‘09 Edition

September-December ‘08 – thinking/planning/fundraising – i need an idea worth all the trouble that follows.  I develop.  I get an idea.  An edgy, urban cop drama.

Dope.

January-February ‘09 – I stealthy hunt for a location.

I find one that seems perfect.  It’s ill.

February ‘09-March ‘09 – writing/fundraising (cont’d) – i present my project to the class + my teacher digs + it seems I can pull it off = I get approved, I’m thinking I’m ready to go.  Planning to shoot in April.

March ‘09 - some kid gets $140,000 of cam equipment stolen when he leaves his truck to buy a sandwich + school gets equipment insurance policy dropped + me not having been able to raise enough money for my project = me requesting to postpone my shoot until September, by which time I was sure I could have the money raised.

The school says, “cool.”

May ‘09 – I walk out into the world, a broke college grad, with the rest of my ‘09′ers.

Late May ‘09 - A terrible tragedy occurs on a student shoot due to improper safety procedures, NYU’s Film Program gets massively sued, screwed, and the entire film program at NYU is placed in jeopardy.  (or so I hear)  From now on, the school’s has to assess all future student shoots to prevent for the possibility of risks.  Understandable, given the pressure.

June-August ‘09 – I’m dealing with a select Review Panel, composed of faculty whose job it is to review my project for potential safety risks.  I gather information about my project as I plan and submit it to them as I get it.  I plan to shoot in the 2nd Weekend of September 10-13th, right after school has begun.

A Lead Admin says I can pretty much bank on having September 10-13th available to me.

During the summer, I stay busy freelancing, work on music videos, direct a music video, trying to continue practicing.

I finally raise enough money to shoot the short.

August 31-Sept 4th - The week before school starts, the week before I’m supposed to shoot.  I’m feeling pretty good.  I submit the remainder of my information to the Review Panel.  I get–

“Why’d you wait so long?”  “Well, I thought I was pretty much guaranteed to shoot, what’s the deal?”

–I hear through the grapevine that Review Panel is scrambling to piece together some new prohibitive guidelines for upcoming projects so that they can finalize getting their shit together before school starts.  Incidentally, many of these would probably directly apply to my shoot.

Sept. 4th-7th – Labor Day Weekend - I do quite a bit of drinking.

Sept. 8th - school starts – I’m trying to see what the deal is.  In effect, because of the rules that have been reinstated over the weekend, after 3 months of gathering, review, etc., I’m told that I can’t shoot my film that I’ve been working on since November ‘08.

Sept. 8th-Oct. 1, -  I do a bit more drinking.

I need a job because I don’t want to waste the money that I’ve been able to raise on living expenses.   So I grind, just like everybody else that’s sticking around in the city after graduating in ‘09.

October, ‘09 - With the help of friends, I’m able to hop onto a few freelance gigs.  Thank God.  Then I get hired–and get a day job.  So I’m stable, I’m chillin.

Oct. 5th - I send a script for a 2-character relationship drama that can be shot in my apt. to my teacher.  It’s way cheaper, simpler and less involved than my previous project.  It’s more contained.  He advocates for me.  He pushes it through, letting the faculty know I still want to shoot.

Oct. 9th – One of the lead production admins from the Review Panel tells me that he thinks it best that I take the grade for my class without shooting a project, get my diploma, and be out because since it’s now so late in the semester and with so many other kids scheduled to shoot, the school might not be able to spare the equipment to produce my project.  I get it.  I still want my shot, though.

Then, homeboy tells me that I would “just have to” give back the $800 check I was granted in my Production Class from the Spring term, when I was approved to do the piece that I would later be denied for in September.

Wowzers.  Nice.

Oct. 9-14th -

- My teacher and I meet.  He encourages me to get moving–gather relevant info and appeal to the panel again to shoot this 2-character relationship drama in my apartment.  I agree.

- The Review Panel hits me back and tells me that I’ve basically got 2 weeks to resubmit all the information they need to know about my production before they can give me the go ahead.   Cool.  Pressure is what it’s all about.

Currently

Busting my ass.  I hope to God that NYU will let me shoot a 2-character relationship drama in my apartment.

Why do I keep appealing?  I have no choice.  I’m hella broke and I’d be saving mad money with their resources.  I need NYU.  And I want my money’s worth.

Gotta deal.  Just thought I’d put it out there.