< I>Every week, Vern Seward takes a look at Appleis latest offerings at the QuickTime Trailer site, letting your know whatis new.
Many of you are too young to remember the 70s, but during that time there was a boat load of movies made that featured Black actors. These "Blaxploitation" movies were geared to give Black audiences something to watch besides Love Story, spaghetti westerns, and very bad Kung Fu flicks. Some were not nearly as bad as you might think; Shaft, Super Fly, and Cotton Comes to Harlem were some of the better known movies that have since turned into cult classics. Many of the characters in Blaxploitation movies were larger than life fantasies that depicted Black men and women who demanded and got the respect and admiration of their Black and White peers for who they were, and they were always "Baaadd Mutha...(shut yo mouth!)."
There seems to be a renaissance of movies featuring African American actors of late, the directors and writers of some of these new movies seem stuck in the 70is, delivering characters and stories that are either irrelevant or attempts to portray African Americans in tired stereotypes. Many of the new movies featuring Black actors, however, attempt to address a broader audience. Movies like The Brothers, Barbershop, and How Stella Got Her Groove Back address issues that transcend color and culture, but the storytelling stays rooted firmly in the African American experience. That makes these movies fun and interesting to watch, if for no other reason than just to see how other people handle problems.
One of this weeks QuickTime Exclusive Movie Trailers is one such movie that should find an audience in Beverly Hills and Harlem. Deliver Us From Eva stars LL Cool J and Grabrielle Union (you may remember her as head Compton cheerleader "Isis iIce" in Bring It On). Eva (Union) is an overbearing older sister to three sisters who each have a relationship with which Eva interferes. The sistersi significant others hire a local player (Cool J) to distract Eva so that they can be left in peace, but things donit work out the way they should. LL Cool J is due for a hit, not that heis the best actor in the world, but heis infinitely more watchable than Chris Rock. Deliver Us... should deliver us a good time.
Another QuickTime Movie Trailer Exclusive is Love Liza, starring Philip Seymour Hoffman and Kathy Bates. Hoffman plays Wilson Joel, a man recently become a widower who is trying desperately to deal with his wifeis death, and what may lie ahead on lifeis road. All the while, he is carrying an unopened letter from his deceased wife. This movie has made the rounds at various film festivals and has gotten a lot of good reviews. Judging from the trailer, we can see why. Looks like one to watch.
Malcom in the Middle star Frankie Muniz is a quart-sized 007 who can beat up spies, drive like an Indy racer, and handle cool tech toys as well as any version of Bond, but he canit get a hook-up with a girl to save his life. The movie is called Agent Cody Banks, and this spy-spoof looks like it might be as fun as Spy Kids, but, hopefully, not as cutesy.
OK, you knew there would be a sequel to X-Men, right? Itis called X2, and this trailer will make you anxious for next May to get here. If the trailer isnit enough, youill have to check out the Official Movie Site (available in no less than 9 languages). Good stuff there.
Other trailers you should check out:
- Intacto: Max von Sydow stars in this thriller where people play a game. The winner is the last man (or woman) standing. Itis Russian Roulette taken to a deadly new level.
Thatis gonna do it for this week for Appleis QuickTime Movie Trailer site. Babylon 5 fans will be happy to know that the series is now available on DVD. Stop by the Official site to check a QuickTime feature, "The Making of Babylon 5." More good stuff.