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The entertainment industry is in the midst of a general contraction after last year’s SAG and WGA strikes, but there’s one sector that continues to thrive: holiday-themed TV movies! Granted, last year’s 116 has very slightly declined to a mere 110 in 2024, but that should still provide you with enough distraction to minimize your obligation to make conversation with loved ones.

There are probably sicko fans out there who commit to watching every single one of these titles. I am, however, normal, and thus limited my in-depth investigation to a single platform: Netflix, which has released “only” five new Christmas comedies. Which (if any) should be your next watch? This guide should help narrow it down.

“I want to watch something from an actual comedy legend”

Comedy fans of a certain age will remember Fear of A Black Hat, a feature mockumentary about fictional hip-hop act Nwh, and a...

For the second time in two weeks, a previous #1 VOD release, still at premium price, returned to #1 after a week in a lower position.

“The Wild Robot” (Universal), still #4 in theaters this weekend parallel to home availability, repeats the move “Beetlejuice Beetlejuice” (Warner Bros. Discovery) managed last week.

The rise comes for two reasons. First, a lack of competitive new releases, including disinterest in “Joker: Folie à Deux” (Wbd). Second is likely its rental price reduction from an initial premium at $24.99 to the more standard $19.99 PVOD cost.

After over three weeks where five different original movies took the top daily spot, Will Smith, whose “Bad Boys: Ride or Die” was his last studio #1, returned with his 2015 mid-level success “Focus.” But for most of the week, “Meet Me Next Christmas” led their list.

Fandango (which ranks by revenue) and iTunes (by transactions) both also list the “Beetlejuice” sequel and “Deadpool & Wolverine...

Paramount’s free streaming service Pluto TV has revealed its September highlights. The Pluto TV September 2024 lineup includes coverage of the new NFL season and the launch of contact sports channels One Championship TV and Wow – Women of Wrestling.

In honor of Hispanic Heritage Month, Pluto TV is expanding its channel lineup in the category, and for fans looking to return to a place where everybody knows your name, they have a new Cheers + Frasier channel to deliver nostalgic vibes.

Pluto TV is the leading free streaming television service, delivering hundreds of live, linear channels and thousands of titles on-demand to a global audience. The Emmy Award-winning service curates a diverse lineup of channels in partnership with hundreds of international media companies.

Pluto TV offers various genres, languages, and categories featuring movies, television series, sports, news, lifestyle, kids, and much more. The service can be easily accessed and streamed across mobile,...

We love rock & roll, and so do most moviegoers, which is why cinema is filled with heroes who get together with their friends to pound out some numbers. Whether they do it for fame and fortune or to just hang out with buddies, pop bands are inherently cinematic, tying together moving images and sound to create something spectacular. That’s particularly true of fictional groups, who often draw from real-world inspirations and transform them into moving protagonists or hated villains.

This list covers ten of the best fictional bands in cinema history. The key word here is “bands,” as we ignore solo acts, even from really good films. So Mac Sledge from Tender Mercies won’t show up, nor will Noni Jean from Beyond the Lights. Also, we’re looking at fictional groups here, so the Ramones from Rock & Roll High School don’t show up, nor do Talking Heads,...

Each week we highlight the noteworthy titles that have recently hit streaming platforms in the United States. Check out this week’s selections below and past round-ups here.

A Compassionate Spy (Steve James)

See an exclusive clip above.

The latest film from acclaimed documentarian Steve James, A Compassionate Spy, comes with a fascinating subject: the spy who leaked nuclear information from the Manhattan Project to the Soviet Union, therefore ensuring that America could not establish a nuclear monopoly on the world. It’s easy to see why James would be drawn to the spy, Theodore “Ted” Hall, and his wife Joan as he has often been interested in using individuals as the framework to explore larger societal issues. Utilizing a hybrid of recreations, archival footage, and modern-day interviews, James crafts a portrait of a man, a relationship, and the sheer weight of the decision to betray your country to save the world.

It was more than a little heartening to see Roger Corman paid tribute by Quentin Tarantino at Cannes’ closing night. By now the director-producer-mogul’s imprint on cinema is understood to eclipse, rough estimate, 99.5% of anybody who’s touched the medium, but on a night for celebrating what’s new, trend-following, and manicured it could’ve hardly been more necessary. Thus I’m further heartened seeing the Criterion Channel will host a retrospective of Corman’s Edgar Allan Poe adaptations running eight films and aptly titled “Grindhouse Gothic,” though I might save the selections for October.

Centerpiece, though, is a hip hop series including Bill Duke’s superb Deep Cover, Ghost Dog, and numerous documentaries––among them Beats, Rhymes & Life: The Travels of a Tribe Called Quest, making Michael Rapaport a Criterion-approved auteur. Ten films starring Kay Francis and 21 Eurothrillers round out series; streaming premieres include the Dardenne brothers’ Tori and Lokita,...

The episode of The Test of Time covering Tales from the Hood was Written by Andrew Hatfield, Narrated by Niki Minter, Edited by Mike Conway, Produced by John Fallon and Tyler Nichols, and Executive Produced by Berge Garabedian.

For the most part on this show, we are looking at certified classics to see if they still hold up. For the most part, anyway. Looking at you C.H.U.D. We try to look at everything from the cinematography and direction to the acting and special effects. Sometimes though the story ends up being the most important aspect of the movie. Every now and then a movie needs a reappraisal even when it wasn’t a hit at the time or seen as a classic. Look at what happened to The Thing. From box office dud (even though that has been blown out of proportion) and critical hatred to topping...

Writer Alex Tse discusses a few of his favorite films with Josh Olson and Joe Dante.

Show Notes: Movies Referenced In This Episode

Rrr (2022)

Watchmen (2009)

Superfly (2018)

The Blair Witch Project (1999)

Book Of Shadows: Blair Witch 2 (2000)

Independence Day (1996)

Clueless (1995)

Fast Times At Ridgemont High (1982) – Karyn Kusama’s trailer commentary, Glenn Erickson’s Criterion Blu-ray review

William Shakespeare’s Romeo + Juliet (1996)

The Goonies (1985)

Indiana Jones And The Temple Of Doom (1984)

Infested (2002)

Straw Dogs (1971) – Rod Lurie’s trailer commentary, Josh Olson’s trailer commentary, Charlie Largent’s Criterion Blu-ray review, Joe Dante’s review

Altered States (1980) – Katt Shea’s trailer commentary

Return Of The Ape Man (1944)

Major League (1989)

The Sting (1973)

Angels In The Outfield (1951)

Rocky (1976)

Slap Shot (1977) – Josh Olson’s trailer commentary

Eight Men Out (1988)

Heavy Metal (1981)

Fritz The Cat (1972) – Mick Garris’s trailer commentary, Charlie Largent’s Blu-ray review

The Killer Snakes (1974)

Zodiac (2007)

Se7en (1995)

Dirty Harry (1971) – Alan Spencer’s trailer commentary,...

Next month’s Criterion Channel selection is here, and as 2021 winds down further cements their status as our single greatest streaming service. Off the top I took note of their eight-film Jia Zhangke retro as well as the streaming premieres of Center Stage and Malni. And, yes, Margaret has been on HBO Max for a while, but we can hope Criterion Channel’s addition—as part of the 63(!)-film “New York Stories”—opens doors to a more deserving home-video treatment.

Aki Kaurismäki’s Finland Trilogy, Bruno Dumont’s Joan of Arc duology, and Criterion’s editions of Irma Vep and Flowers of Shanghai also mark major inclusions—just a few years ago the thought of Hou’s masterpiece streaming in HD was absurd.

I could implore you not to sleep on The Hottest August and Point Blank and Variety and In the Cut or, look, so many Ernst Lubitsch movies,...

Deezer D, who played Nurse Malik McGrath on “E.R.” for the NBC medical drama’s entire 15-season run, died Thursday, according to TMZ. He was 55.

The actor and rapper, whose real name is Dearon Thompson, was found unresponsive at his Los Angeles home, his brother Marshawn told TMZ. No cause of death has been released for Thompson, but his brother tells TMZ he believes Thompson — who had a six-hour heart surgery in 2009 to replace his aorta and repair a leaky heart valve — died of a heart attack.

Thompson’s brother Emmery confirmed the actor’s passing in an Instagram post Friday, writing: “My Big Brother! God is with you. I will miss you.”

The Los Angeles Police Department and L.A. County coroner’s office did not have information on Thompson when reached by TheWrap Friday. A representative for Thompson could not be reached.

Thompson appeared in 190 episodes of “E.R....

It’s no stretch to say that Rusty Cundieff’s 1995 horror film “Tales from the Hood” has become a cult classic in its own right. The film launched a franchise that now includes three films. The latest installment — led by Candyman Tony Todd — premiered on the SyFy network this month, and can now be streamed on Amazon Prime and other VOD platforms. “Tales from the Hood 3” comes with the same degree of social commentary as the previous two films.

From a searing indictment of gentrification featuring a murderous realtor (London Brown) to a right-wing nutjob (Cooper Huckabee) who attempts to protect his property from a diverse America, the movie hits a lot of nerves at once. Once again, Spike Lee serves as executive producer, while Darin Scott co-directed and wrote the last two entries with Cundieff.

“Tales from the Hood” has lost none of its relevance today. While the franchise...

Chicago – The month long celebration that is the 2018 Black Harvest Film Festival is coming to a close on August 30th with a special revival screening of 1993’s “Fear of a Black Hat.” The ahead-of-its-time hip hop “mockumentary” chronicles the misadventures of the group Nwh. Director Rusty Cundieff will make an appearance of behalf of the film’s 25th Anniversary. Over its run, the Black Harvest Film Festival featured a cornucopia of African American themed features and shorts celebrating stories, dreams, history and legacy.

Director Rusty Cundieff Also Portrayed ‘Ice Cold’ in “Fear of a Black Hat’

Photo credit: Black Harvest Film Festival

The Gene Siskel Film Center of the School of the Art Institute of Chicago has presented cutting edge cinema, both as a vital part of the school’s offerings and as a continuous celebration of the cinema for the general public. The Film Center’s programming includes specialized...

Chicago – One of the Windy City’s greatest annual cultural events will open its 2018 edition at the Gene Siskel Film Center. The 24th Black Harvest Film Festival runs from August 4th through 30th, 2018, and features a cornucopia of African American themed features and shorts celebrating stories, dreams, history and legacy. Many of the screenings will include filmmaker appearances, including the Opening Night short film overview, “A Black Harvest Feast,” featuring “Training Wheels” (directed by Sanicole), “Shotgun Wedding” (Derek Dow), “Stuck” (Praheme) and “Riverment” (Shaya Racquel).

August 4th-30th, 2018, at the Gene Siskel Film Center

Photo credit: Black Harvest Film Festival

Opening Night kicks off the month of screenings, including the Sunday, August 5th “Ali and Cavett: The Tale of the Tapes,” a look back at the unique relationship between Muhammed Ali and talk show host Dick Cavett (who will appear with director Robert S. Bader); short film programs with international,...

More than 20 years before “Get Out” transformed widespread anxieties about racism into a riveting horror-comedy, Rusty Cundieff’s “Tales From the Hood” got the ball rolling. Taking a tip from “Tales From the Crypt,” the 1995 horror anthology tackled the issues that terrorized black communities in America, from racist police officers to gang violence and the Kkk. With those themes still very much a part of the national conversation, “Tales From the Hood” is finally receiving a long-overdue sequel. With Spike Lee again attached as a producer, “Tales From the Hood 2” premieres this month at the Fantasia International Film Festival in Montreal ahead of its direct-to-dvd release later this year.

For those who missed out on the original: Cundieff, whose 1993 hip-hop mockumentary “Fear of a Black Hat” was a breakout Sundance hit, used a framing device that stretches back to the E.C. Comics days. Creepy funeral home director Mr. Simms...

Tales From the Hood 2 will be making its world premiere at Montreal's Fantasia International Film Festival on Friday, July 13th. Ahead of the upcoming premiere, we have a look at the first photos from the new anthology horror movie:

Horror is back in the hood! The sequel to the groundbreaking original film Tales From The Hood reunites executive producer Spike Lee (Honorary Academy Award® winner) and writers/directors/producers Rusty Cundieff and Darin Scott for an all-new gripping, horrifying and oftentimes devilishly comical anthology. Keith David stars as a contemporary Mr. Simms to tell bloodcurdling stories about lust, greed, pride, and politics through tales with demonic dolls, possessed psychics, vengeful vixens and historical ghosts. Mr. Simms’s haunting stories will make you laugh... while you scream.

With its openly political bent, it’s no surprise that Tales From The Hood 2 has Spike Lee as an executive producer. Original 1995 Tales From...

In 1993, after not being accepted into any major film festival of the time, such as Sundance, filmmaker Todd Phillips personally toured the U.S. and Europe with his first documentary film, Hated: Gg Allin & The Murder Junkies. Following this experience, Phillips partnered up with fellow filmmaker Andrew Gurland to launch several initiatives to help small, challenging and often controversial films connect with audiences.

One of those initiatives was the first ever New York Underground Film and Video Festival, which was held at the Anthology Film Archives in New York City on March 18-20, 1994.

The term “underground film” was first used to describe the experimental film scene in 1961 by filmmaker and film theorist Stan Vanderbeek. Using “underground film” to describe the avant-garde cinema remained popular throughout the ’60s, then lost popularity in the ’70s as terms like “structural film” came into existence. “Underground film” ultimately regained some of its mojo...

The untold story of one of the most influential hip-hop musicians of all time, All Eyez on Me arrives on Digital HD August 22 and on Blu-ray Combo Pack (plus DVD and Digital HD) and DVD September 5 from Lionsgate. A gritty narration of the late legend Tupac Shakur’s rise and fall, newcomer Demetrius Shipp, Jr. portrays Shakur, alongside Danai Gurira (“The Walking Dead”) as Afeni Shakur, Lauren Cohan (“The Walking Dead, ” Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice) as Leila Steinberg, and Kat Graham (“The Vampire Diaries,” 17 Again) as Jada Pinkett Smith. Character appearances from other ’90s hip-hop legends include Dr. Dre (Harold House Moore), Snoop Dogg (Jarett Ellis), Suge Knight (Dominic L. Santana), Notorious B.I.G. (Jamal Woolard), and more.

Now you can own All Eyez On Me on Blu-ray. We Are Movie Geeks has four copies to give away. All you have to do is leave a comment...

Earlier this month, when Vanilla Ice announced via Twitter that he was boldly defying instructions to evacuate his Florida home in the face of Hurricane Matthew, it not only inspired what had to be the greatest (and possibly also the most depressing) tweet ever made by the Florida Democratic Party, but it also made one hope that it might really be a sneaky promo for an upcoming Weather Channel series wherein the rapper and reality TV star goes head to head with natural disasters.

Alas, "The Ice Storm" (or whatever...

CB4

Directed by Tamra Davis

Written by Nelson George, Robert LoCash and Chris Rock

1993, USA

Back in 1993, two low-budget mockumentary-style comedies based on Gangsta Rap were released. The better of the two is Rusty Cundieff’s Canadian indie gem Fear of a Black Hat, chronicling the rise and fall of Nwh, a not particularly talented but always controversial hip-hop group. The second was CB4, about the rise to fame of Mc Gusto, Stab Master Arson, and Dead Mike, members of the rap group Cell Block 4. The similarities between the two are uncanny, so much so that one would think someone got their greedy hands on the other script and decided to shamefully steal the idea.

Written by music critic Nelson George and Saturday Night Live’s Chris Rock (who also plays the lead role of Albert, a k a Mc Gusto), this spoof on gangsta rap targets controversial rap groups (specifically N.W.A.) and deliberately provocative,...

Back in 1993 writer and director Rusty Cundieff burst upon the scene with his hysterical film satirizing hip-hop, Fear of a Black Hat, which has now achieved cult status and he followed up two years later with equally popular urban horror film spoof Tales from the Hood. Since then he's been very busy comedy television director involved with such shows as The Dave Chappelle Show and The Wanda Sykes Show and directing TV episodes for commercial and cable networks. Now after a long absence Cundieff has finally returned to feature film making with the TV One movie White Water starring Larenz Tate, Sharon Leal, Barry Shabaka Henley and Amir and Amari O’Neil which the network will...

"White Water" is the story of a 7 year-old black kid in segregated 1963 Opelika, Alabama who becomes obsessed with the desire to taste the water from the white's only drinking fountain and sets out on a quest to do the unthinkable:  drink from it. Based on a children's book by Michael S. Bandy and Eric Stein, which was itself based on their childhood experiences, the story is now being produced as a feature film to be shot this fall in Opelika. The film is described as a "whimsical tale in the tone of 'Forest Gump.'" Rusty Cundieff ("Fear of a Black Hat," "Tales From The Hood") will direct from a script written by Bandy and Stein, with Cundieff...

Odd List Simon Brew 20 Sep 2013 - 07:14

They don't make funny movies any more, right? Wrong. If you're looking for a laugh, then here are some you may have missed...

For this list, blame The Hangover Part III. It was whilst walking out of that film that I got into a chat with someone, who was bemoaning the lack of genuinely funny movie comedies. Certainly, big budget Hollywood comedies have no end of problems right now - with the occasional exception - but I couldn't help thinking of the many neglected gems that had gone through my DVD player over the past decade or so.

As such, I started to put this list together. It's inevitably subjective, as one person's comedy is another person's snore fest. But I've tried to dig out a mix of comedies from the past three decades that have either flown under the radar completely, or...

Check out this two part video tribute to fictional movie bands courtesy of Vulture.   

 Musical artists featured are as follows:

01 - The Lone Rangers (Airheads)

02 - Dewey Cox (Walk Hard: The Dewey Cox Story)

03 - Spinal Tap (This is Spinal Tap)

04 - The Pinheads (Back to the Future)

05 - Weird Sisters (Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire)

06 - Max Frost and the Troopers (Wild in the Streets)

07 - The Blues Brothers (The Blues Brothers)

08 - The Soggy Bottom Boys (O Brother, Where Art Thou?)

09 - The Swanky Modes (Tapeheads)

10 - Marvin Berry & the Starlighters (Back to the Future)

11 - Figrin D'an and the Modal Nodes (Star Wars Episode IV: A New Hope)

12 - The Wonders (That Thing You Do!)

13 - The Folksmen (A Mighty Wind)

14 - The New Main Street Singers (A Mighty Wind)

15 - Mitch & Mickey (A Mighty Wind)

16 - Three Times One Minus One (Run, Ronnie, Run...

We were recently invited to the first Now Playing gig by the kind people over at Three to celebrate its partnership with Spotify. The first in a series of exclusive and intimate live music events, Now Playing London(#threenowplaying) has a stellar line-up – headlining are White Lies, accompanied by hotly tipped newcomers Everything Everything and I Am Arrows – needless to say we were quick to accept the invitation. DJ Eddie Temple Morris will also be at the decks throughout the night keeping the music flowing in-between sets.

Now Playing London (#threenowplaying) will be kicking off the series of gigs in style on Thursday 28th October at London’s Shoreditch Town Hall. We can’t wait to indulge in a night of music but we don’t want to go on our own – so we’re offering one lucky Blogomatic3000 reader the chance to bag themselves a pair of tickets.

So...

The 17th Annual Austin Film Festival and Conference is now underway! From Oct. 21-28, the Austin Film Festival will be host to filmmakers, actors, screenwriters, industry pros, and people who just love film. One man (Executive Writer - Don Simpson) from the Smells Like Screen Spirit crew has single handedly completed the task of reviewing 9 of the films screening at Aff 2010 in the next week, to provide a sneak preview just for you. Stay tuned for further coverage of the festival throughout the next week; including interviews, tweets and many more reviews. _____________________________________________ Conviction (2010) | Review "...Goldwyn takes a few too many dramatic shortcuts and abides all too closely to preexisting formulas and conventions. There is no narrative depth or subtext; what you see is exactly what you get. The only real chance that Goldwyn takes is in casting Rockwell against type (Swank is cast in an all too predictable and standard...

Director: Eric Hueber Writer(s): Andy Cope, Eric Hueber John Wayne once asked, “Have you ever been to Nacogdoches?” Well, few people ever visit the “great white grandmother of the lone star state” -- the home of the ceiling fan, the strip tease and the first oil well in Texas; the great hecklers of Nacogdoches also helped convince the Marx Brothers that they should become comedians rather than singers. Then on February 1, 2003 the Space Shuttle Columbia broke up during re-entry into the Earth’s atmosphere; much of the debris fell on Nacogdoches and suddenly Nacogdoches skyrocketed to international headlines... ...And from the debris of the Columbia -- and I mean this quite literally, as they construct their drum set out of space shuttle debris -- arises the great rock band Country Willie & the Cosmic Debris. Lead singer Country Willie Edwards, guitarist Zack Jones and drummer Brad Maule soon receive...

Michael Jai White’s spoof of 70s blaxploitation movies, Black Dynamite, gets a UK theatrical release. Here’s Kwame’s review…

Blaxploitation films are generally characterised as films made during the early 70s, which featured young, urban African Americans, working with small budgets while wearing wide bell-bottoms. These films were the theatrical ground zero for themes like ‘The Man' and urban conspiracy theories concerning the government. They are also known for complementing such freethinking concepts with lots of gunplay, nudity and car chases.

Black Dynamite was well received with a small release in the States of 70 theaters nationwide. The UK will have its chance to see Michael Jai White, Arsenio Hall, Tommy Davidson and many more in theaters, with its UK theatre release August 13th .

Alternatively, Black Dynamite is already out on sale on DVD in region one coding in the Us, containing deleted scenes and a panel discussion with...

Film about legendary rap group will be penned by 'World Trade Center' screenwriter.

By Adam Rosenberg

N.W.A

Photo: Redferns/ Getty Images

"Don't be another sequel." The line comes from N.W.A's "Express Yourself," a track that deals with issues of censorship and a trend within the rap community of following rather than breaking new ground.

The group, whose members included Dr. Dre, Ice Cube, Eazy-e, Mc Ren and DJ Yella, fought hard against those issues during their too-brief five years together, something that Andrea Berloff will presumably attempt to capture in the biopic she's scripting.

The Hollywood Reporter reveals that Berloff, who wrote Oliver Stone's "World Trade Center," is working now on "Straight Outta Compton," also the title of the 1988 double-platinum album that featured "Express Yourself." The film will follow N.W.A (short for N---az With Attitude) from their early days in the mid-'80s...

It may have been not much a surprise with the news earlier today of the death of actress Brittany Murphy from a heart attack at only 32 years of age. Rumors about her drug abuse and anorexia had been swirling about her for years. Furthermore her erratic behavior on recent films had taken a toll on her career. She had been replaced as the female lead on the thriller The Caller just earlier this month to due her reported “disruptions” on the set, and a few months earlier, after she had been cast by Sylvester Stallone on his mercenary action film The Expendables, Stallone had written her part completely out of the film. However she did manage to complete one last film before her death, the independent horror film Something Wicked. What is noteworthy about the film, aside from it being her last film project, is because the film was also...

You have to hand it to Rob Zombie... he sure knows how to keep people talking. Fresh off of the weekend announcements (see previous item here) of Ezra Buzzington and Tyler Bates' involvement in the upcoming Halloween sequel, Zombie hit MySpace again yesterday and today with even more.

First came yesterday's post announcing the arrival of a Geico Caveman:

"Jeff Daniel Phillips has joined the cast of H2 as Howard Boggs - the bouncer at The Rabbit in Red club. If you don't recognize the Jeff as his normal self you might know him from his genius Geico TV spots."

Then today, Rob jumped on to announce Mark Christopher Lawrence (Fear Of A Black Hat):

"Well, again another cast member who got cut out the first time is back Mark Christopher Lawrence is back as Deputy King a member of the Haddonfield police force."

Halloween II begins lensing...