movie review
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Aquaman Wants to be Obama for the Seven Seas but the People Wanted Trump
Warning: light spoilers ahead but the movie kind of sucked so I think that’s fine. There have been a couple of variations of Aquaman that have existed in pop culture before DC Comic’s latest attempt at a blockbuster film. There’s the lame blonde guy from the Superfriends whose only power is talking to fish that…
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An Ode to Scamming and NYC: Rapper Awkwafina on the Diversity and Strength of Ocean’s 8
If Paris is the City of Lights, then New York is the City of Hustle. Perhaps no other city in the world is so emblematic of competition and drive—the Frank Sinatra-era mantra, “If you can make it here, you can make it anywhere,” indelibly imprinted into the city’s ethos no matter which borough or which…
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The Black Person’s Guide to Avengers: Infinity War
This review contains spoilers … I think. I’m not really sure, but if this article ruins your moviegoing experience, I apologize. Also, if this review ruins your moviegoing experience, you need to get a life. I’m sure your news feeds and timelines are filled with reviews and think pieces about one of the most anticipated…
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Tribeca Film Festival 2018: There’s No Redemption Song in The Rachel Divide
I spent 100 minutes with Rachel Dolezal Tuesday night, and I still don’t know who she is. Frankly, I’m still not convinced she does, either, though she continues to declare otherwise. But surprisingly, I’m not asking for my 100 minutes back. I was admittedly none too thrilled by the prospect of providing Dolezal yet another…
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Jumanji: Welcome to the Jungle Is Good-Hearted Fun, With a Few Minor Exceptions
During the holiday season, there’s always that one movie that children drag their sulking parents to and then ask for extra butter on their popcorn while adult innuendos fly over their heads and their parents’ sulks turn into smiles. [Full disclosure: The Root attended a press junket where travel and hotel lodging was paid for…
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Denzel Washington’s Roman J. Israel, Esq. Isn’t Exactly What You’re Expecting, but What You Might Need to See
I walked into Roman J. Israel, Esq. with an open mind. I knew that director Dan Gilroy’s previous film Nightcrawler was dark and gritty. I also knew that Denzel Washington, before his most recent appearance in Fences, had taken a leap into the world of dark and gritty with his award-winning performance in Training Day…
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Kingsman: The Golden Circle Turns the Drug War Into the Opioid Crisis for White America
If you found a way to enjoy Kingsman: The Secret Service when it sneaked into theaters back in 2014, you’ll like Kingsman: The Golden Circle, which drops this weekend. Golden Circle has the same over-the-top action, the same cartoonish sex and the great acting from lead Taron Egerton (Eggsy) that made the first film a…
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Exclusive Preview: Copwatch Explores What Happened to the People Who Filmed Famous Cop Killings
Spoiler alert: If you happen to film a police officer killing a black person, the cops might not like it. That’s one of the not-so-surprising revelations from a new documentary set to premiere this month. Copwatch isn’t about cops, police killings or even injustice. Instead, director Camilla Hall chronicles the aftermath of what happens when…
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The Dark Tower: Mediocre Marksmanship and Magical Negroes
The Green Mile, The Shawshank Redemption and The Shining are a trio of renowned Stephen King titles turned to film. And they are also leading exhibits for the Stephen King “Magical Negro theory,” the idea that a lone black character is at the behest of white characters and protagonists by whom he’s surrounded. This black…
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Did War for the Planet of the Apes Come for DeRay Mckesson or Did Hotep Twitter Go Too Far?
The Planet of the Apes movie series has always been racially problematic. Starting with the originals in the late 1960s and ’70s and extending to the reboots starting in 2011, the films have a sort of hackneyed white-liberal-pontificates-about-race element to them that is at times compelling and other times insulting. Apes, even superintelligent apes, as…