In 'As Of Yet' One Black Woman Finds Her Voice In Isolation

So much of what humanity has experienced in the past year has reshaped who we are as a society. In As of Yet, helmed by co-directors Chanel James and Taylor Garron, one Black woman’s pandemic experience comes to life through video diaries, facial expressions, and FaceTime calls. When the film opens, Naomi (Garron) has been isolated in Brooklyn for months. She spends her days having solo dance parties, buying random items on Amazon, cooking elaborate meals, pretending to do puzzles, and touching base with her family and friends.

Continue reading at ESSENCE.

'The Ringmaster' Is A Fascinating Circus

Filmmaking has specific rules. There are codes that directors live by to bring a narrative to their audience. This is not to say filmmakers can't alter particular rules. We've seen characters break the fourth wall, and the composition of some films have also shifted in a way that the audience may not have expected. However, for documentary films, in particular, filmmakers must remain neutral, never interjecting themselves into the material. In co-directors Dave Newberg and Molly Dworsky’s documentary, The Ringmaster, filmmaker turned subject Zachary Capp plants himself centerstage in someone else's story. What unfurls is a confounding yet intriguing narrative.

The Ringmaster was meant to center Larry Lang, an unassuming aging chef known as the Midwest's onion ring master. The film opens in a frenzy of confusion and frustration. We soon learn that Capp has been crafting Larry's story for over three years, much to the disappointment of his co-producers and crew. It's also been to the determinant of his bank account. 

Drawn to Larry because of the memories of his childhood and Lang's family history in the restaurant world, Newberg seeks to unpack the story of Micheal's Steakhouse, a beloved restaurant in his mother's hometown of Worthington, Minnesota, owned by Larry's father, Micheal. At first, the Langs story appears to be the American dream. However, a series of tragedies, including arson, illness, and death, proves that it hasn't been. 

While Larry set out to reopen his father's dream, he soon finds himself settling into other restaurants where he continued to make his beloved onion rings. Whether you're a foodie or not, onions rings can't carry a film, and the audience is quickly made aware that Larry, in particular, is not a good film subject. Quiet and unassuming, it's more than obvious that he wants to be left alone to fry his onion rings, content to lives his days out in the kitchen and spend time at home with his older sister, Linda.  

A film novice with an addictive personality, Capp is both unwilling and unable to accept Larry for who he is. Therefore, what happens next is a wild goose chase to deliver the "perfect" documentary. The movie begins barreling down a path of confounding edits, poor judgment, and a clear infatuation with notoriety.

Though there is a warm layer of human interest that runs throughout the film, much of The Ringmaster is an engaging train wreck. In what becomes a three-plus-year saga, we watch Larry and then Capp's producing partners become increasingly determined to distance themselves with his manic compulsion to find the perfect ending as the director throws more and money into an already sinking shift. 

Well-meaning, watching Capp inject himself into the film and Larry's life was cringing worthy. As the film's subject morphs, it shapes out to be the story of a rich kid, ambling along to find his life's purpose without having a true game plan or direction. It's incredibly uncomfortable as Capp pushes a clearly uncomfortable Larry toward opportunities he never asked for. 

Since there is so much awry with The Ringmaster from the documentary and the subject's relationship to audio and editing, it should have gone up in flames. However, by handing the film over to Newberg and Molly Dworsky and taking a step back and finding the film within the film, the audience is left with an eye-opening saga about obsession, access, and the craft of storytelling. 

The Ringmaster is currently on Amazon Prime.

'Alex Wheatle' is the latest revelation from Steve McQueen’s 'Small Axe'

In most biopics, filmmakers offer their audience a sweeping bird’s-eye view of the life of a historical figure. These films chronicle the person’s childhood and any trials or tribulations they may have faced before ending in a typical flourish of the subject’s successes and triumphs. In Alex Wheatle, the fourth film in the Small Axe anthology, which follows London’s West Indian community from the 1960s into the 1980s, Steve McQueen offers something different. The British-born filmmaker presents a snapshot of the life of a young man who was never meant to rise above his circumstances.

Continue reading at The A.V. Club.

'L'Autre' Is a Quiet but Powerful Film About the Consuming Pain of Grief

Out of all of the emotions and states of being, grief is perhaps one of the most challenging to articulate and replicate clearly on-screen. For those of us who've experienced profound loss in our lives, there are various ways of navigating that feeling. However, most people will understand the dark, suffocating cloud that seems to hover over them due to that loss. Often times, it can feel like it will always be there. 

In her gorgeously quiet and powerful film, L'Autre (The Other), French filmmaker Charlotte Dauphin follows Marie (Astrid Berges-Frisbey), a talented ballerina who become despondent and lost following the sudden death of her beloved father (Jean-Louis Martinelli). Unable to continue on with her life as she knew it, Marie leaves the dance world behind and begins to isolate herself from the life she once knew. 

Unable to cope with his absence, Marie insists on leaving her father's apartment exactly as he left it, desperate to connect with him through memories and the words he left behind. However, life has a funny way of tilting and shifting us when we least expect it. An unexpected photo shoot with a photographer named Paul (James Thierree) ignites something within Marie that she assumed died with her father. It continues to call to her even as she burrows further into her depressive state. 

L'Autre isn't some revolutionary story that we've never seen before. However, the way that Dauphin chooses to unveil the narrative on the screen is what makes it so fascinating. Without stuffing the plot full of overbearing and robust dialogue, the director gives her actors room to breathe. It's Berges-Frisbey's devastating looks and silences as Marie, set against a quiet Paris cast in grey, that sets the tone here. It allows the audience to fully connect with Marie's pain. 

The pain that drives Marie is also carefully unfurled. Though her choices are sometimes eye-raising, we understand quite clearly why she creates the dream world that she forms around her. It's a state of being where she can still lean on her father, discovering aspects of his life that she never knew existed. Through her mental state becomes increasingly more fragile at some points in the film, it was refreshing in some ways to see Marie lean into it. 

So often, women, in particular, are asked to put on a brave face and to press forward in life as if everything is OK. Her father's death nearly breaks Marie, and instead of fighting against that, she allows herself to lean into that feeling for as long as she needs to. As she begins to connect with Paul on a deeper level, warring against two versions of herself, who she is, and who she might become, the film starts to fill with color.

In addition to L'Autre being an eloquently told story, it offers something to the viewer something that very few films on the subject have failed to provide in the past, the ability to sit in the sheer awfulness of death on their own terms. After all, the loss of a loved one is one of the most painful aspects of being human. We should all be allowed our anguish, no matter how dark and grey it might look. 

 L'Autre is currently being shown at film festivals.

L'Autre, un film de Charlotte Dauphin. Au cinéma le 8 janvier 2020.Après la mort brutale de son père le jour de son trentième anniversaire, Marie, décide d'a...

'Spark: A Burning Man Story' Is A Fiery Display Of Community

For many of us over the last 30 years, Burning Man has been somewhat of a legend. The cultural event has expanded exponentially since it was founded in 1986. It now stretches out into a multi-day adventure that draws in upward of 60,000 participants. While society has focused its attention on mainstream events like Coachella, Burning Man remained mostly mythic until the sheer size of the event began to demand a different type of infrastructure and, in turn, a lot more visibility. In their 2013 documentary, Spark: A Burning Man Story, Steve Brown and Jessie Deeter peel back the layers of Burning Man, turning his lens on the founders, the machine behind the event, and the community that keeps it alive. 

To understand what Burning Man has become, Brown and Deeter take a careful look back at its history. We hear from the founding members, Crimson Rose, Harley K. Dubois, the late Larry Harvey, Marian Goodell, Michael Mikel, Will Roger, and John Law, who left Burning Man as it began to expand and the need for more structure became apparent. For the founders who joined the group at various points, Burning Man is much more than an event. Throughout the film, we learn why they find themselves in the 100 plus degree heat in Nevada's Black Rock desert, transforming it into Black Rock City each year. 

Spark is set in the months leading up to the 2012 event. At the time, Burning Man was curated by Black Rock City, LLC, a for-profit business put into place at the turn of the 21st century to circumvent the size and liabilities that come with producing such an event. Built on 10 principles, including gifting, decommodification, radical self-reliance, radical self-expression, communal effort, and civic responsibility, leaving no trace, participation, and immediacy, Burning Man had become more cumbersome then any of the owners or the attendees could have dreamed of. 

Though there are no voyeurs allowed at Burning Man, the nature of the film and Brown and Deeter’s lens allows an audience that would have never seen the event's inter-workings a bird's-eye view. From the whimsical costuming, the stunning structures, and even the organized chaos leading into the opening day, it's clear almost immediately that without the organization backing it, Burning Man would become dangerous and implausible. 

Spark works well because it doesn't merely chronicle Burning Man's origins; it also pulls back the curtain on the event, including its missteps and mishaps. The 2012 event moved to a lottery ticket system that inadvertently locked out some of the long-time supporters of Burning Man — a scandal that eventually made its way into the New York Times. Furthermore, it juxtaposes the paths of those genuinely committed to Burning Man's original message, versus those who choose to attend for pure spectacle. As the community has expanded, many people have chosen to participate for an Instagram photo or a unique backdrop. 

While the founders certainly can't control everything, they have taken steps to reevaluate and reset as the event has gained traction. Since 2013, they've moved back to a non-profit format — Burning Man Project. Moreover, various smaller events across the United States and internationally guided by the Burning Man principles have allowed those who might not be able to get to the Nevada Desert a similar experience. 

In Spark, Brown and Deeter neither elevate nor ridicules Burning Man for its past or its present. Instead, he allows the event and the people at its core to present themselves to the audience. He enables us to see what Burning Man was meant to be as the founders have struggled to continue those same rituals and customs. More than anything, amid the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic as people have been forced to become more isolated and alone, it is a spectacular reminder of the communities that will be there to embrace us when this is all over. 

Spark: A Burning Man Story is available on VOD, Amazon Prime, iTunes and VUDU.

'High On Heels' Is An Informative Snap-Shot Of A Polarizing Shoe

There is something regal about a high heeled shoe. Without ever having to say a word, a woman wearing a stunning shoe shows up in the world in a certain way, commanding power and certain spaces that women are still trying to access today. In his documentary short, High On Heels, filmmaker Adelin Gasana explores the history of heels, which stretches back well into the 16th century. Their origins began in Persia on the feet of men who rode horseback. High On Heels also explores how modern-day women feel about the gorgeous and often painful footwear as we continue to navigate various spaces while shattering sexist practices and behaviors. 

Most women know that heels aren't practical. As little girls, many of us admire the sleek stilettos and the women around us who effortlessly glide around in them. However, when the time comes for us to step into our own pair of shoes, pinched toes, painful heels, blisters, and ankle twists often follow. Still, despite the ramifications, many of us are continually drawn to this style of shoes. 

Using historian Lisa Small's overview of the history of heels, Gasana also pulls in anecdotes from women of all walks of life, including dancers, models, anchors, actors, and a variety of others. Because of the film's rapid pace, there was little time to dive into the fashion industry or examine how heels have played a role in women's "professional" dress. Also, though the interviewees' title cards and professions eventually appear on-screen, it would have been more helpful for them to appear as soon as the interview began to give the film more authority and structure.

Nevertheless, Gasana paints an informative and well-rounded portrait of a polarizing shoe. He gathers quotes from doctors who have seen the damage that heels have on the feet, women who would much rather be wearing flats, and those who wouldn't be caught dead in anything less than a three-inch heel. 

High On Heels is now streaming on Amazon Prime. 

'In Bright Axiom' Is A Beautiful Concept With Little Context

Since the beginning of time, humans have been obsessed with secret societies, elusive clubs, and cults. Many of these organizations are steeped in privilege and exclusive access, while others have become strongholds for tyrannical leaders who brainwash their followers for their own personal purposes. People begin these sorts of organizations for all types of reasons. When Jeff Hull created Latitude Society in the early 2010s, he wanted to do something distinctive. In his documentary film, In Bright Axiom, filmmaker Spencer McCall unpacks the secret society which shuttered its doors in 2015. The film looks to explore the belief system behind Hull's idea, what exactly caused Latitude's downfall and why so many former members are still profoundly enamored with it. 

By the time the San Francisco/Oakland based society closed in 2015, it was a well-known secret. The members indulged in symbols and rituals that many of us only read about in books or see on film. Latitude members seemed to thrive off of creating these unique experiences for one another. Though Latitude has been closed for years, In Bright Axiom, make it clear how much reverence some of these former members still hold for the group in their minds and hearts. 

Beautifully shot, one of the best things about In Bright Axiom is that it does not immediately present as a documentary. The viewer might, at first, think they are watching a fictional piece or even a mockumentary. Yet, though they remain nameless, former members speak in awe about the society that allowed them to create magic for themselves in alluring rooms, libraries, and complex puzzles. However, since the film is a documentary, and should in theory provide straight-forward answers, its message becomes a bit muddled. 

Though the invitation into Latitude was alluring in all of its white-card and non-descript glory, none of the former members, nor even McCall seems to be able to articulate exactly what Latitude was, nor what purpose it served. Instead, In Bright Axiom presents the members as a group of people looking for ways to conjure up excitement and a bit of chaos in their lives. From the way the film depicts it, Latitude was an elite social media platform come to life. 

Since McCall is willing to provide very little information aside from members' initial indoctrination experiences, the documentary stumbles. It should also be noted that Hull is an executive producer of the film, which means that there are unquestionably some biases in how In Bright Axiom is presented. Because the film seems focused on maintaining some of Latitude's elusiveness, we never truly understand what this society is or is meant for. Instead, McCall depicts Hull as a Professor character (portrayed by Geordie Aitken) who seems to be on his own very personal journey, which is focused on convictions that neither the audience nor the former Latitude members can keep up with. 

In Bright Axiom certainly isn't a bad film, it simply feels like the director and subjects are in on a joke or an idea that the audience can't even begin to unpack. It might boil down to McCall being too close to the subject matter. In theory, Hull wanted to create a for-profit business with all of the dressings and allure of a living and breathing art installation, and he nearly succeeded. The trouble was, as is with this film, is Hull didn't quite know what his mission was. Instead, he chose to focus on how it looked. 

Former members have written long articles about their time in Latitude for outlets like Vice and Longreads. If you're looking for actually concrete answers about the society, then you'll find what you're seeking there. For its part, In Bright Axiom is simply a beautiful tapestry without much context. 

In Bright Axiom  will be released on July 14, 2020 on VOD platforms such as iTunes, Amazon, Vudu, Tubi, etc. in the US and Canada.

The Queer Love Story In 'UNION' Gets Lost In Space & Time

A sweeping film that transports its viewers back in time over 150 years, UNION is set during the Civil War era. Yet, the movie's central focus is not the war. As Whitney Hamilton's film opens, we learn that at least 400 women fought as men during the Civil War, in both the Union and Confederate armies. UNION is the true story of just one of those women. 

Amid the absolute horror and chaos of the war that divided our country, Grace (Hamilton) takes on her dead brother Henry's identity — fighting in the Confederate Army undercover to preserve her life. However, Henry is haunted by the memories of a mysterious woman and her son. Desperate to keep his identity a secret under the watchful eye of his comrades, when Henry is wounded, Virginia (Virginia Newcomb), a grieving widow, helps to nurse him back to health. 

To repay Virginia's kindness, and because women had little to no recourse in the era, Henry agrees to marry Virginia so that she can avoid a disturbing arranged marriage and save her farm. However, what transpires next — an epic love story — is something neither Henry or Virginia ever expected. UNION seeks to elevate the LGBTQ+ community of a past era. Though they are often hidden in the fabric of our history, the antebellum and Civil War periods had many gender non-conforming people who engaged in same-sex love affairs. This was during a time when the world was even more hostile towards women and feminine-leaning people then it's now. It was lovely to see Virginia and Henry's love story unfold, and the chemistry between Hamilton and Newcomb carried a great deal of weight in the film. Unfortunately, despite these themes, the real heart of this story gets muddled underneath the many and various moving parts of UNION. 

The film opens sometime in the early 20th century with an older Indigenous man telling a young boy Henry's story. Our only indication of the time period is an old fashion automobile that is seen in the frame. As the man unpacks the story, we are swept back in time during Henry's participation in the Confederate Army and during his time with Virginia. However, the lack of title cards giving any indication of time and location leaves viewers disoriented and puzzled.

Additionally, while UNION was committed to showcasing the war itself, the lack of Black cast, as soldiers, enslaved people, or otherwise, was rather baffling considering the context of the Civil War and the sheer numbers of Black Americans who lived in the South during the period. Much of UNION was born out of Hamilton's short film, My Brother's War. However, since the film plays out as a second act to that story instead of an expansion, those who haven’t seen the first film will quickly get lost.

Still, Hamilton's commitment to showcasing the period correctly was aspirational. There is a vast battle sequence near the beginning of the film that really draws you in. However, with so many different characters and various locations, as well as the immense historical context of the film, it was often difficult to connect back with Henry and Virginia's story though it's supposed to stand at the core of the movie. 

Running at 135 minutes, and at an often slow pace, the queer love story that centers UNION often falls by the wayside. When it was remembered, it seems puzzling that so many people were causally OK with a same-sex relationship in the 19th century.  

It's evident that Hamilton took a great deal of time and care to bring this piece to life. Still, though UNION has some profound themes and excellent historical context, it lacks a much-needed sharpness that could truly center this remarkable LGBTQ story in space and time. 

UNION is now available on HBO PPV, Itunes, VUDU, Fandango, Flixfling, Frontier, Redbox, Direct TV, Youtube, Optimum, Google Play, Microsoft, Verizon, BRCT, and Amazon.

Images: Indican Pictures

'The Photograph' Is The Soft Romance Film That Black People Deserve

There has been such a void in Black Romance dramas that we didn't realize how much we were craving one until The Photograph hit us in the face.

Though we still cling to our favorites, such as 1997's Love Jones and 2000's Love & Basketball, Black romance on screen is nearly as old as cinema itself. The earliest surviving movie depicting Black intimacy is 1898's Something Good — Negro Kiss, a 29-second silent film. Since then, the romance drama category has taken off in Hollywood with timeless films like Casablanca and Titanic. Still, seeing Black people in these kinds of narratives is a rarity. 

In 1964, Nothing But a Man, though not widely seen, made a powerful impact on cinema. Set in Birmingham, Alabama, it follows the romance of a railroad worker and a preacher’s daughter, played by Ivan Dixon and Abbey Lincoln. The film showcases a Black romantic drama in a way that isn’t packaged for the white masses, as has been implied of 1943's Stormy Weather or 1954's Carmen Jones. Following Nothing But a Man, films like Mahogany came to be in the 1970's. However, it wasn’t until the 1990's that a slew of romantic dramas, including The Best Man and Waiting to Exhale, or romantic comedy Boomerang began to take center stage. Yet, in the past 20 years, there have been only sprinklings of Black intimacy, sex and relationships on screen, heteronormative or otherwise, especially in mainstream cinema. 

Continue reading at Shadow and Act.

'Farewell Amor' Is A Character Study On Loss, Reconnection And Second Chances

Cinema has a history of examining the breaking, ripping and pulling apart of families. What is almost never seen on screen is the rejoining and the reconnection of what was once broken, or the aftermath of what occurs when lives are forced back together. Ekwa Msangi's feature directorial debut Farewell Amor is a quiet, elegant film about a family torn apart by the Angolan Civil War only to reconnect 17-years later in New York City's JFK airport. 

Walter (The Chi's Ntare Guma Mbaho Mwine) is an Angolan-born taxi-cab driver who fled from Angola to New York City, leaving his wife, Esther (Zainab Jah), and daughter, Sylvia (Jayme Lawson), behind. Now, nearly two decades later, having battled the United States' often chaotic and sometimes corrupt immigration system, the family is together once again. What should be a happy occasion is a tense meeting of virtual strangers. 

Accustomed to life as a single man, with a routine that involves driving during the day, dancing at night and a beautiful lover, Linda (Nana Mensah), Walter struggles to make room for Esther and Sylvia in his home and in his heart. Still, he's determined to do what he feels is honorable. Stuffing down his feelings over the loss of Linda and the life he's grown accustomed to, Walter carves out space for his wife and daughter in his cramped one-bedroom Brooklyn apartment. Meanwhile, Esther isn't quite the woman he once knew. Now a devout Christian who prays fervently and offers more than the family can afford in tides, Esther feels that God has truly blessed her family with their reunion. However, she struggles with the cracks and imperfections of her new family dynamic. America is a terrifying new world for a woman who has experienced so much loss. Though Walter is present, she feels his emotional absence, which only heightens the deep-seated loneliness that she's carried with her for so long. 

It's also hard for Sylvia to adjust to life in a different place, but with more maturity than most teenagers in her position, she does her best to embrace her new life. In America, she's able to foster her secret love of dancing. The introverted teen also captures the eye of DJ (black-ish's Marcus Scribner), a boy at school who encourages her to try out for the step team. While she is used to living under the looming shadow of her beloved but Bible-bound mother, Sylvia recognizes that a relationship with a more lenient and understanding Walter may provide the kind of freedom that she's been craving, she's just uncertain if she can trust him.

Continue reading at Shadow and Act.

'Time' Shows The True Cost Of Our Broken Prison System

Time is precious. But it can also be haunting, especially when an outside force is holding the years, minutes and moments we use to clock our lives in the balance. For people who are incarcerated, the United States prison system is adamant about making sure time is something it owns. 

For over 20 years, Sibil Fox Richardson, aka Rich Fox, a businesswoman, and an advocate, has been doing all the groundwork to push for the release of her husband, Robert Richardson. On September 26, 1997, in an act of desperation, Rich and Robert robbed a credit union. Though Rich was able to get a plea deal, serving out three and a half years for her role in the crime, Robert was sentenced to 60-years in the Louisiana State Penitentiary, one of the worst prisons in the United States. Time is their story. 

Told in black and white with director Garrett Bradley's modern-day footage interwoven with Rich's personal home videos of her and their sons, Time unveils a life of waiting and longing. From her own words, prior to and following her release from prison, the audience learns more about Rich. She welcomes us into the life she's carved out for herself. We watch their six boys transform from pamper-wearing babies into towering bearded men. Rich has found joyous moments in the past 20 years. Yet, the fight for her husband's release is the singular goal of her life.

Regal and fearsome, Rich more than takes responsibility for her part in the robbery. What she doesn't accept is the time that has been stolen away from her family. She's constantly irritated by the lackadaisical attitudes of judges and judicial secretaries who can't seem to make the correlation between their day-to-day work and the lives that dangle in the balance. 

As Time swivels between the past and the present, we sit with a self-assured Rich, who never cowers in the face of her past mistakes or what she perceives to be right. It's an interesting contrast to her mother, who suggests on more than one occasion that Rich should humble herself to make headway with Robert's case.

Continue reading at Shadow and Act.

Kenyan Documentary 'Softie' Unpacks The Hefty Personal Cost Of Revolution [REVIEW]

Softie opens with 1,000 liters of blood, and the carnage doesn't stop there. Kenyan filmmaker Sam Soko's bold and emotionally visceral documentary follows photojournalist and activist Boniface Mwangi, on his quest to change the corrupt political system in Kenya. It's a system that has choked the country since colonialism and continues into its near-60 years of independence. Despite the corruption and the high cost of human life, two political dynasties have clutched onto the most powerful political offices in Kenya. At the same time, the blood of Kenyans continue to pool at their feet. 

Though the film opens on the cusp of the 2017 elections (government elections in Kenya happen every five years), Soko takes the time to give his audience a history lesson. Using propaganda from the British occupation, Soko explains how Kenya was divided into tribes by the British. Today, those tribes that have been pitted against one another for power and greed. More than an assessment on the political state of Kenya,  Softie is a crash course on the man, who, though not yet 40, witnessed the corruption in his country first hand.

A young photojournalist during the violent aftermath of the 2007 elections which led to the country's leaders being tried in the International Criminal Court, Mwangi turned his camera lens on what was happening to his people. Men were being sliced apart by machetes, people were being dragged through the streets and beaten to death . with impunity. Fed up with the press and the government's apathy, when he had the literal evidence to back up his claims, Mwangi quit his job and took to the streets in protest. 

Now, a decade later, Mwangi is still working tirelessly to expose the country's corrupt political system. Soko's Softie unpacks what it costs Mwangi to speak up and force change. 

Continue reading at Shadow and Act.

Nicole Beharie's Magnetism Carries 'Miss Juneteenth'

The past haunts many of us. Roads we could've taken regularly play over in our minds, suggesting what might've been. From the outside looking in, this doesn't appear to be the case for Turquoise Jones (Nicole Beharie); She has moved on from the events of yesterday.

She's a waitress at Wayman's BBQ & Lounge, a fiercely protective mother to her precocious 15-year-old daughter, Kai (Alexis Chikaeze) and a beloved member of her Black Ft. Worth, Texas community. Turquoise puts all her energy into giving Kai the opportunities she never had. Yet, the heartbreaking thing about director Channing Godfrey Peoples' debut feature is that all of the ambitions Turquoise desperately has for Kai were once within her own grasp. 

As Miss Juneteenth opens, Turquoise stands in the mirror with a glistening crown atop her fluffy curls, with the Black national anthem "Lift Every Voice and Sing" booming in the background. Turq has a radiance and youthfulness about her, despite the weariness that comes with working yourself to the bone and raising a strong-willed teenage daughter. She is reminiscing on the beauty queen title she held fifteen years prior. Back in 2004, Turq won the Miss Juneteenth pageant, which commiserates the day slavery was abolished in Texas. Her title earned her a scholarship to a Historically Black College or University of her choosing.

Yet, life has a way of putting your mind at war with your heart. For Turquoise, it's a battle she's been fighting with Kai's father, her estranged husband Ronnie (Insecure's Kendrick Sampson), for over 15 years. Despite his past and present choices, Turquoise is still smitten by the immature but charismatic mechanic. All of these years later, she still desperately wants Ronnie to live up to all of his promises. 

Miss Juneteenth is a breathtaking canvas for Beharie's emotional range, deliberate choices and profound warmth as an actress. It begins slow, with Peoples meticulously fleshing out Turquoise's world. The chemistry between mother and daughter even elevates the sometimes choppy narrative. Beharie has a way of channeling both friendship and an authoritative tone in the same breath or with one look. Though Turquoise recognizes that Kai has different aspirations than she once did, she is incapable of fully accepting this. Kai's desires are mainly to join a dance team, attend the big state school and slay in Battle of the Bands. However, Turq's desperate desire for her daughter to achieve what she never did overwhelms her. 

Continue reading at Shadow and Act.

'Sunday Girl' Almost Breaks Traditional Rom-Com Tropes For Women

The modern dating scene is a harrowing place—particularly for women who find themselves seeking heterosexual partnerships with men. Dating apps of the 21st century intersecting with misogynist ideals from a past time can make it feel like we’re all trudging through mud. There seems to be a constant misunderstanding of one other. Instead of communicating effectively, we continue to walk in circles. Most single women find the experience utterly exhausting. Unfortunately, cinema hasn't made it much better when it comes to how women are portrayed when it comes to breakups. 

Thankfully— Peter Ambrosio's new film, Sunday Girl, offers a unique and mostly refreshing perspective. The movie follows Natasha (Dasha Nekrasova), an introverted artist who finds herself keeping company with five different men. Though each man has his merits (for the most part) —Natasha decides she wants to have a real shot at a relationship with her on-again, off-again boyfriend — George (Brandon Stacy).

On one particular day, dressed in a bold red coat with matching flats —Natasha sets off to break up with her four "extra" men. In letting go of these other attachments, Natasha hopes to clear a real path for her relationship with George. What ensues next is what makes much of Ambrosio's film such a standout in films that center romance. Too often, films position women as hysterical people who can't deal with the fall out of broken relationships. However, in Sunday Girl, the tables are turned. 

It's mesmerizing to watch Natasha break up with each guy. From Victor (Bilar Mir), a poet who is absolutely tortured by Natasha's dismissal of him -- to Winston (Morgan Roberts), who literally cannot handle the news that Natasha has been seeing other people. Watching these varied and nuanced reactions from men is almost unheard of in cinema. However, when the film is not focused on the breakups — it stumbles. 

Using a non-linear timeline, Sunday Girl unpacks the events leading up to Natasha's day of breakups while fleshing out the world around her. We learn about her work as an artist and the pseudo creepy boss who seems intent on bringing her on a business trip to Rome with him. Yet, none of this tells us anything real about Natasha. 

By offering such small slivers of her life, Natasha's motives when it comes to relationships become hazy. It becomes quite clear that though she wears an armor of courage —sunglasses, and cigarettes to boot, Natasha lacks any true self-confidence. This was a rather disappointing revelation to the audience after watching a woman who appears from the first frame of the film to know exactly what she wants. 

To that end, George —the man that Natasha is making all of these changes for certainly isn't worth the effort. He's withholding, dull, and quite frankly the worst. There's really no explanation as to why Natasha decides to make things permanent with George other than the fact that his aloofness appears to be a challenge for her

Though Nekrasova's performance Is quirky and compelling, Sunday Girl never really lives up to its full potential. When Natasha is seen despondent and drunk dialing on Valentine's Day, shoving aside both her work obligations and other plans she could have partaking in —she becomes much less of a hero and more of a typical rom-com character.

Natasha is artistic and spirited. She loves creative minds and stimulating conversations. Her problem isn't love, it's just that she loves to love -- and can't make a decision until TODAY! Today is the day Natasha will break up with 4 out of her 5 boyfriends.

Sunday Girl just finished a limited theatrical run in New York City and Los Angeles.

Images: Cresmont Pictures

'ANYA' Proves That Bonds Go Well Beyond Love

As much as we still cling to fairytale versions of love and romance— science and the real world love to come sweeping in. Reality has a way of shaking us out of our unrealistic stupors, forcing us to face real facts about the life partners that we choose and the journeys that we take. In their new sci-fi romance, ANYA, directors Jacob Akira Okada and Carylanna Taylor remind us that as much as we want to be in control of our own destinies — science and the universe have a way of knocking us down a peg.

The compelling drama follows Libby (Ali Ahn), a New York City-based journalist who falls head over heels in love with Marco (Gil Perez-Abraham). The polar opposite of the driven Libby, Marco is a quiet but compassionate man haunted by his past. After allowing Marco to break through the walls around her heart, the ambitious workaholic Libby decides to go all-in — marrying him and deciding she wants to start a family with him. However, after a series of miscarriages —Marco comes clean about his true origins and why his convoluted past may be the key to the couple's infertility issues. 

Unfortunately, in this day and age, infertility is more common than one would imagine, and sadly many hopeful couples are given little to no information about the reasons behind it. Instead of laying the burden of their troubles solely on Marco and Libby's shoulders, Okada and Taylor do a deep dive into human genetics and anthropology.

When Libby turns to her ex-lover, Seymour (Motell Foster)—a geneticist for help, we learn about Marco's true origins. He comes from Narval, a fictional Caribbean community that is both physically and genetically isolated from the rest of humanity. The people of Narval are convinced that those who marry outside of their community are cursed with infertility. Working with scientists from Harvard and Carnegie Mellon University— the directors were adamant about giving Seymour's research some real-world weight to provide Libby and Marco some of the answers that they were desperately seeking.

An intriguing story with a diverse cast and a compelling subject matter, a great deal of ANYA works well. From the moment Libby and Marco approach Seymour to the slivers of Marco's past life that are slowly revealed -- the audience desperately tries to get to the root of Marco’s mysterious background and find a solution for the couple's future. 

However, because of the relatively modest run time of the film — a great deal of ANYA felt rushed. From the second they encounter one another on the streets of New York, Marco and Libby's relationship is full speed ahead. Though that reads as romantic at times, it was also troubling— as it's obvious (to everyone except Libby) that Marco is withholding information from his wife. 

Likewise, when we do finally encounter Marco's family and the rest of his Narval-born community, the audience doesn't get the payoff that they deserve. Narval’s customs and traditions are neither well explored or explained. Instead, it felt unsettling, with audience members racing to put things together quickly for themselves. 

Despite its rapid pace, and some of the questions that remain unanswered as the final credits roll — ANYA, is a film for our time. As we continue to move about and exist in a rapidly deteriorating world, what does it mean for the generations that will follow? Will our bodies and our ability to survive and procreate in the present sustain? ANYA doesn't have all of the answers, but the story does remind us that as we look toward the future, we must remember we are much more alike and connected than we think. 

"ANYA" release trailer for upcoming Sci-fi (or is it Sci-fact?) film. (2019, 80 minutes). **Available 11/26/19 on iTunes, Amazon, DVD and more!** For more info and to stay up to date about ANYA visit www.anyamovie.com.

ANYA will be available Nov. 26. ITUNES, AMAZON, GOOGLE PLAY, VIMEO, VUDU, XBOX & DVD

Images: Giant Pictures.