This summer marks the centennial of James Baldwin, whose brilliance, boldness, and bravura have made him the rare Civil Rights icon who’s also endured as subject of cinematic interest. A restoration of portrait par excellence I Heard It Through the Grapevine will open (courtesy The Film Desk) on January 12 at Film Forum, which is also screening a series of titles concerning Baldwin. Ahead of this weekend’s engagement, we’re pleased to exclusively debut a new trailer.
Pat Hartley and Dick Fontaine’s film finds Baldwin recounting his travails through the Civil Rights Movement, from southern cities to Newark, all the while arguing progress in a post-Civil Rights era isn’t what it seems.
“[In I Heard It Through the Grapevine], James Baldwin [1924–1987] retraces his time in the South during the Civil Rights Movement with his trademark brilliance and insight on the passage of more than two decades,” notes Rich Blint, writer/Baldwin scholar and Jake Perlin,...
Pat Hartley and Dick Fontaine’s film finds Baldwin recounting his travails through the Civil Rights Movement, from southern cities to Newark, all the while arguing progress in a post-Civil Rights era isn’t what it seems.
“[In I Heard It Through the Grapevine], James Baldwin [1924–1987] retraces his time in the South during the Civil Rights Movement with his trademark brilliance and insight on the passage of more than two decades,” notes Rich Blint, writer/Baldwin scholar and Jake Perlin,...
- 1/9/2024
- by Nick Newman
- The Film Stage
I’m not crazy about adaptations
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, by disposition. I’d generally rather see new stuff in Creative Format X, rather than a Format X version of a story that worked well in Format Q.
I seem to be in a pretty small minority in that, though. The world demands movies from their comic books, TV shows from their novels, opera from their stories about historical figures, stage musicals assembled from random songs. And vice versa: look at the deeply incestuous “casting thread,” in which random observers squee over which actors in TV-shows-based-on-books should be their favorite characters in a potential movie-based-on-a-comic-book.
On the other hand, I don’t mind as much with old stuff. A new movie based on a Shakespeare play? Yeah, Ok – that’s closer to the point to begin with. A graphic novel based on that hundred-year-old book everyone has heard of? Well, I suspect...
doxycyclin 50 kaufen
, by disposition. I’d generally rather see new stuff in Creative Format X, rather than a Format X version of a story that worked well in Format Q.
I seem to be in a pretty small minority in that, though. The world demands movies from their comic books, TV shows from their novels, opera from their stories about historical figures, stage musicals assembled from random songs. And vice versa: look at the deeply incestuous “casting thread,” in which random observers squee over which actors in TV-shows-based-on-books should be their favorite characters in a potential movie-based-on-a-comic-book.
On the other hand, I don’t mind as much with old stuff. A new movie based on a Shakespeare play? Yeah, Ok – that’s closer to the point to begin with. A graphic novel based on that hundred-year-old book everyone has heard of? Well, I suspect...
- 3/16/2022
- by Andrew Wheeler
- Comicmix.com
Things Fall Apart: Lee’s New Joint Unearths a Heart of Darkness Alive and Well
“There is no story that is not true,” wrote Chinua Achebe in his classic 1958 novel Things Fall Apart, a seminal Nigerian text which deals with the southeastern part of the country’s introduction to the first round of Europeans in the late 19th century, and, of course, colonialism. Conversely, the suggestion is, every story is true, even if those who tell them wouldn’t necessarily agree—to exist is a certain truth. But whether perspective is the true scribe or just the inchoate cohort of every narrative’s origin, the intentions are as suspect as any narrator is subjective.…...
“There is no story that is not true,” wrote Chinua Achebe in his classic 1958 novel Things Fall Apart, a seminal Nigerian text which deals with the southeastern part of the country’s introduction to the first round of Europeans in the late 19th century, and, of course, colonialism. Conversely, the suggestion is, every story is true, even if those who tell them wouldn’t necessarily agree—to exist is a certain truth. But whether perspective is the true scribe or just the inchoate cohort of every narrative’s origin, the intentions are as suspect as any narrator is subjective.…...
- 6/11/2020
- by Nicholas Bell
- IONCINEMA.com
Editor’s note: Noah Tsika teaches media studies at Queens College, City University of New York. His books include “Nollywood Stars” and a forthcoming history of film distribution and exhibition in Nigeria.
When the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences recently elected to remove Genevieve Nnaji’s Nigerian film “Lionheart” from the Oscar race — or, at least, from competition in the category now known as Best International Feature Film — it entered fraught territory: In a decision that stems from longstanding submission guidelines, the Academy ruled “Lionheart” ineligible because it’s an English-language production. But the outrage surrounding the ruling speaks to enduring debates about the postcolonial employment of European languages — the colonizers’ tongues — and why these debates remain so contentious.
The issue goes beyond this incident. Nigeria, and Nigerians, remain so unfamiliar to the Hollywood establishment that Ridley Scott’s production company, seemingly responding as much to the star...
When the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences recently elected to remove Genevieve Nnaji’s Nigerian film “Lionheart” from the Oscar race — or, at least, from competition in the category now known as Best International Feature Film — it entered fraught territory: In a decision that stems from longstanding submission guidelines, the Academy ruled “Lionheart” ineligible because it’s an English-language production. But the outrage surrounding the ruling speaks to enduring debates about the postcolonial employment of European languages — the colonizers’ tongues — and why these debates remain so contentious.
The issue goes beyond this incident. Nigeria, and Nigerians, remain so unfamiliar to the Hollywood establishment that Ridley Scott’s production company, seemingly responding as much to the star...
- 11/8/2019
- by Noah Tsika
- Indiewire
Barack Obama continues to be America’s pop culture president. On Friday, Obama shared his list of his 15 favorite movies of 2018, which featured nine directors who are nonwhite.
Those directors include Barry Jenkins (“If Beale Street Could Talk”), Bing Liu (“Minding the Gap”) Hirokazu Kore-eda (“Shoplifters”), Lee Chang-dong (“Burning”), Chloé Zhao (“The Rider”), Alfonso Cuaron (“Roma”), Carlos Lopez Estrada (“Blindspotting”), Ryan Coogler (“Black Panther”) and Spike Lee (“BlacKkKlansman”).
Obama also listed his favorite books and songs of the year.
Also Read: Michelle Obama Ends Hillary Clinton's 17-Year Run as Most Admired Woman in Us
“As 2018 draws to a close, I’m continuing a favorite tradition of mine and sharing my year-end lists. It gives me a moment to pause and reflect on the year through the books, movies, and music that I found most thought-provoking, inspiring, or just plain loved,” Obama wrote on Instagram.
Obama also shouted out his wife Michelle’s new biography,...
Those directors include Barry Jenkins (“If Beale Street Could Talk”), Bing Liu (“Minding the Gap”) Hirokazu Kore-eda (“Shoplifters”), Lee Chang-dong (“Burning”), Chloé Zhao (“The Rider”), Alfonso Cuaron (“Roma”), Carlos Lopez Estrada (“Blindspotting”), Ryan Coogler (“Black Panther”) and Spike Lee (“BlacKkKlansman”).
Obama also listed his favorite books and songs of the year.
Also Read: Michelle Obama Ends Hillary Clinton's 17-Year Run as Most Admired Woman in Us
“As 2018 draws to a close, I’m continuing a favorite tradition of mine and sharing my year-end lists. It gives me a moment to pause and reflect on the year through the books, movies, and music that I found most thought-provoking, inspiring, or just plain loved,” Obama wrote on Instagram.
Obama also shouted out his wife Michelle’s new biography,...
- 12/28/2018
- by Omar Sanchez
- The Wrap
Former President Barack Obama has released his annual year-end list of favorites films, books, and music, a tradition he started while in the office.
Among the favorite movies of 2018, Obama listed award faviorites and Oscar Best Picture hopefuls Black Panther, Roma, and Eighth Grade.
Foreign films such as the Lee Chang-dong-directed adapation Burning and Golden Globe nominated Japanese drama Shoplifters were also a favorite for the 44th U.S. President, along with skateboarding documentary Minding the Gap and Mister Rogers doc Won’t You Be My Neighbor.
“As 2018 draws to a close, I’m continuing a favorite tradition of mine and sharing my year-end lists. It gives me a moment to pause and reflect on the year through the books, movies, and music that I found most thought-provoking, inspiring, or just plain loved,” Obama shared on his Facebook account. “It also gives me a chance to highlight talented authors, artists,...
Among the favorite movies of 2018, Obama listed award faviorites and Oscar Best Picture hopefuls Black Panther, Roma, and Eighth Grade.
Foreign films such as the Lee Chang-dong-directed adapation Burning and Golden Globe nominated Japanese drama Shoplifters were also a favorite for the 44th U.S. President, along with skateboarding documentary Minding the Gap and Mister Rogers doc Won’t You Be My Neighbor.
“As 2018 draws to a close, I’m continuing a favorite tradition of mine and sharing my year-end lists. It gives me a moment to pause and reflect on the year through the books, movies, and music that I found most thought-provoking, inspiring, or just plain loved,” Obama shared on his Facebook account. “It also gives me a chance to highlight talented authors, artists,...
- 12/28/2018
- by Amanda N'Duka
- Deadline Film + TV
Barack Obama may be a couple of years removed from the Oval Office, but the president ex officio is continuing a tradition he started as commander-in-chief of sharing his year-end list of his favorite movies, music, and books. He did not share his favorite shows and streaming series.
“It gives me a moment to pause and reflect on the year through the books, movies, and music that I found most thought-provoking, inspiring, or just plain loved,” Obama wrote on social media. “It also gives me a chance to highlight talented authors, artists, and storytellers — some who are household names and others who you may not have heard of before.”
It’s a best-of list that boasts Oscar contenders and box office hits such as “Black Panther,” “Eighth Grade,” and “Roma”; chart-toppers such as Leon Bridges’ “Bad Bad News” and Cardi B’s “I Like It”; and best-sellers such as Michael Ondaatje...
“It gives me a moment to pause and reflect on the year through the books, movies, and music that I found most thought-provoking, inspiring, or just plain loved,” Obama wrote on social media. “It also gives me a chance to highlight talented authors, artists, and storytellers — some who are household names and others who you may not have heard of before.”
It’s a best-of list that boasts Oscar contenders and box office hits such as “Black Panther,” “Eighth Grade,” and “Roma”; chart-toppers such as Leon Bridges’ “Bad Bad News” and Cardi B’s “I Like It”; and best-sellers such as Michael Ondaatje...
- 12/28/2018
- by Brent Lang
- Variety Film + TV
Lin-Manuel Miranda is the creator and star of the hip-hop Broadway hit Hamilton, which received a record-breaking 16 Tony nominations on Tuesday. Ahead of the June awards show, here are five things to know about Miranda: 1. He doesn't get a lot of sleep.Along with Hamilton, Miranda previously won a Tony for In the Heights, and was also awarded the MacArthur "genius grant." If that wasn't enough, he's now writing songs for Disney's Moana. "I don't really sleep that much," Miranda, 35, previously admitted to People about how he makes time for all his projects. 2. He cries regularly."I cry seven times a week during the show,...
- 5/3/2016
- by Mariah Haas
- PEOPLE.com
Lin-Manuel Miranda is the creator and star of the hip-hop Broadway hit Hamilton, which received a record-breaking 16 Tony nominations on Tuesday. Ahead of the June awards show, here are five things to know about Miranda: 1. He doesn't get a lot of sleep.Along with Hamilton, Miranda previously won a Tony for In the Heights, and was also awarded the MacArthur "genius grant." If that wasn't enough, he's now writing songs for Disney's Moana. "I don't really sleep that much," Miranda, 35, previously admitted to People about how he makes time for all his projects. 2. He cries regularly."I cry seven times a week during the show,...
- 5/3/2016
- by Mariah Haas
- PEOPLE.com
Lin-Manuel Miranda created and stars in the hip-hop Broadway hit Hamilton, which was nominated for a record 16 Tony nominations on Tuesday. Ahead of the June award show, here are five things to know about Miranda: 1. He doesn't get a lot of sleep.Along with Hamilton, Miranda previously won a Tony for In the Heights, and was also awarded the MacArthur "genius grant." If that wasn't enough, he's now writing songs for Disney's Moana. "I don't really sleep that much," Miranda, 35, previously admitted to People about how he makes time for all his projects. 2. He cries regularly."I cry seven times a week during the show,...
- 5/3/2016
- by Mariah Haas
- PEOPLE.com
Born November 16, 1930, Chinua Achebe died on this day in history, March 21, 2013 after a reported short illness, in Boston. A source close to the family said that he had been sick for a while and was hospitalized in the city. He was eventually laid to rest in his hometown Ogidi, Anambra State in Nigeria. One of continental Africa's most widely read towering novelists, revered throughout the world, in memory, I've been on the hunt for any film adaptations of the 5 fiction novels he wrote; and, not surprisingly, there aren't many - certainly not in recent years. But if any of you reading this knows otherwise, please do share. What I did discover is that, of his 5 novels...
- 3/21/2016
- by Tambay A. Obenson
- ShadowAndAct
1. "Arrow of God" - the film adaptation of the classic novel by the great Nigerian novelist, Chinua Achebe of blessed memory. "Arrow of God" is the second most highly acclaimed novel of Achebe and in fact I rate it higher than his debut novel "Things Fall Apart" that made him famous. He said he could not choose between "Arrow of God" and "Things Fall Apart," because both novels were too precious to him. The novel centers on Ezeulu, the chief priest of several Igbo villages in Colonial Nigeria, who confronts colonial powers and Christian missionaries in the 1920s. The phrase "Arrow of...
- 11/19/2015
- by Michael Chima Ekenyerengozi
- ShadowAndAct
Born November 16, 1930, Chinua Achebe would've been 85 years old today, were he still alive (he died March 21, 2013). In memory, I've been on the hunt for any film adaptations of the 5 fiction novels he wrote; and, not surprisingly, there aren't many - certainly not in recent years. But if any of you reading this knows otherwise, please do share. What I did discover is that, of his 5 novels ("Things Fall Apart," "No Longer At Ease," "Arrow Of God," "A Man of the People" and "Anthills of the Savannah), one of them ("Things Fall Apart," likely the work he's most known for), was adapted to screen as a TV mini-series in 1987,...
- 11/16/2015
- by Tambay A. Obenson
- ShadowAndAct
Editor's note: As 2013 ends, and 2014 begins, I'll be reposting some of our highlights published during the last year. Those who've already read each one can obviously skip them, or revisit if you'd like. For those who joined us later in the year, missing many of these posts from earlier in the year, they will probably be new items. Here's the 12th of many to come, originally posted on March 23, 2013, 2 days after Chinua Achebe's death. Happy New Year to you all! Since news of Chinua Achebe's death yesterday [he died March 21, 2013], I've been on the hunt for any film adaptations of the 5 fiction novels he wrote; and, not surprisingly, there are none! But if any of you...
- 1/2/2014
- by Tambay A. Obenson
- ShadowAndAct
Leading Ghanaian poet, novelist and political activist whose work was firmly rooted in the traditions of the Ewe people
The African poet and novelist Kofi Awoonor has died aged 78 in the terrorist attack by al-Shabaab militants at the Westgate shopping mall in Nairobi. Awoonor was the most eminent of several African authors invited to participate in the Storymoja Hay festival, a celebration of writing and storytelling, in the Kenyan capital last week. His work was deeply rooted in the poetic and mythic traditions of the Ewe people in Ghana. He was also a diplomat and political activist who spent some time in prison when the party he supported was in opposition.
Born of mixed Togolese and Sierra Leonean ancestry in Wheta, south-eastern Ghana (then called the Gold Coast), he was originally named George Awoonor Williams and published his first collection, Rediscovery and Other Poems, under that name in 1964 while still...
The African poet and novelist Kofi Awoonor has died aged 78 in the terrorist attack by al-Shabaab militants at the Westgate shopping mall in Nairobi. Awoonor was the most eminent of several African authors invited to participate in the Storymoja Hay festival, a celebration of writing and storytelling, in the Kenyan capital last week. His work was deeply rooted in the poetic and mythic traditions of the Ewe people in Ghana. He was also a diplomat and political activist who spent some time in prison when the party he supported was in opposition.
Born of mixed Togolese and Sierra Leonean ancestry in Wheta, south-eastern Ghana (then called the Gold Coast), he was originally named George Awoonor Williams and published his first collection, Rediscovery and Other Poems, under that name in 1964 while still...
- 9/23/2013
- by Lyn Innes
- The Guardian - Film News
It's Sunday afternoon — your last chance to read all that stuff you meant to read last week before Monday brings a new deluge of things you will want to read. Below, some of our recommendations: "Harmony Korine" by Carrie Battan (Pitchfork): The Spring Breakers director and his music supervisor on the movie's use of Gucci Mane, Britney Spears, and lots of bass-dropping. "Roll in the hay: The rise of the Amish romance novel" by Valerie Weaver-Zercher (Larb): Reading into the "bonnet-ripper" market. "The Epic Ups and Downs of Peter Gelb" by Chip Brown (The New York Times Magazine): Everything you ever wanted to know about the guy who runs the Metropolitan Opera. "Chinua Achebe, The Art of Fiction No. 139" by Jerome Brooks (The Paris Review): A 1994 interview with the celebrated Nigerian novelist, who died last week. "What Is the Business of Literature?" by Richard Nash (Virginia...
- 3/24/2013
- by Andre Tartar,Caroline Bankoff
- Vulture
Chinua Achebe, the acclaimed Nigerian author of "Things Fall Apart" and several other novels, has died in Boston. The New York Times reports that Achebe's agent announced the death of the man at 82, following a short illness.
Published in 1958, "Things Fall Apart" was the first major work of African anti-colonialist literature. Written when Achebe was only 28 years old, the book focuses on the cultural clash that occurred when British and Christian colonial powers met traditional Igbo culture in what later came to be Nigeria. More than 10 million copies of the book have been sold, and it has been translated into 45 languages. Students around the world still read the story of Okonkwo and his family.
Achebe wrote four more novels after his debut work: "No Longer at Ease" (1960), "Arrow of God" (1964), "A Man of the People" (1966) and "Anthills of the Savannah" (1987). He was also the author of many short stories and poems.
Published in 1958, "Things Fall Apart" was the first major work of African anti-colonialist literature. Written when Achebe was only 28 years old, the book focuses on the cultural clash that occurred when British and Christian colonial powers met traditional Igbo culture in what later came to be Nigeria. More than 10 million copies of the book have been sold, and it has been translated into 45 languages. Students around the world still read the story of Okonkwo and his family.
Achebe wrote four more novels after his debut work: "No Longer at Ease" (1960), "Arrow of God" (1964), "A Man of the People" (1966) and "Anthills of the Savannah" (1987). He was also the author of many short stories and poems.
- 3/23/2013
- by editorial@zap2it.com
- Pop2it
Chinua Achebe—whose debut novel, Things Fall Apart, was many people’s first (and perhaps only) introduction to African literature—has died at the age of 83. Born in Nigeria, Achebe began writing as a college student, inspired partly by his sense of the woeful inadequacy of Western authors’ depictions of Africans and African life. He was still in his twenties when, writing in English, he completed Things Fall Apart and began submitting it to London publishers, many of whom rejected it out of hand, based of the assumption there was no market for sophisticated fiction from what was still ...
- 3/22/2013
- avclub.com
Chinua Achebe, the acclaimed Nigerian author of Things Fall Apart and other literary works, has died at the age of 82. Citing the author's agent, Andrew Wylie, The Associated Press reports that Achebe died after an illness. "He was also a beloved husband, father, uncle and grandfather, whose wisdom and courage are an inspiration to all who knew him," said Wylie in a statement. Achebe, who lived in the United States for the majority of his adulthood, was a vocal proponent of bringing democracy to Nigeria. His celebrated first novel, Things Fall Apart, is set in the country
read more...
read more...
- 3/22/2013
- by THR Staff
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
While he's not a filmmaker (and this is a film blog), he most certainly deserves acknowledgement on this site, given his global recognition as the father of modern African literature, one of the greatest African writers, and literary voices of all time! It's been reported by both his agent and his publisher this morning that Chinua Achebe, the prominent Nigerian novelist, poet and essayist, has died at the age of 82, following an illness and hospital stay in Boston. In a statement, Achebe's family requested privacy, calling him "a beloved husband, father, uncle and grandfather, whose wisdom and courage are an inspiration to all who knew him." Achebe is probably best...
- 3/22/2013
- by Tambay A. Obenson
- ShadowAndAct
What made film-maker Judd Apatow want to be be funny? Or inspired novelist Stephenie Meyer to create a world of vampires? In My Ideal Bookshelf, more than 100 writers and other cultural figures were asked to share the literary journeys that helped them realise their ambitions and find success. Here are four
• What would your 'ideal bookshelf' be, and why?
Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie, novelist: 'All my characters drank ginger beer'
I grew up in a university town in Nigeria. I was an early reader and, what I read as a young child, were mostly British and American books. I was also an early writer. And when I began to write, at about the age of seven – stories in pencil with crayon illustrations, which my poor mother was obligated to read – I wrote exactly the kinds of stories I was reading.
All my characters were white and drank ginger beer, because the...
• What would your 'ideal bookshelf' be, and why?
Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie, novelist: 'All my characters drank ginger beer'
I grew up in a university town in Nigeria. I was an early reader and, what I read as a young child, were mostly British and American books. I was also an early writer. And when I began to write, at about the age of seven – stories in pencil with crayon illustrations, which my poor mother was obligated to read – I wrote exactly the kinds of stories I was reading.
All my characters were white and drank ginger beer, because the...
- 11/26/2012
- The Guardian - Film News
'This is our first album in which it's an actual narrative,' ?uestlove tells MTV News of December's Undun.
By Rob Markman
?uestlove
Photo: MTV News
Dating back to their 1993 debut, Organix!, the Roots have always pushed the envelope as far as hip-hop creativity goes. And on their upcoming December 6 album, fans should expect the Philadelphia band to take things a few steps further.
"We are working on our 13th album; it is titled Undun," ?uestlove told MTV News when we caught up with him last month at Jay-z's fundraising event in New York City. "It is our first concept album. Mostly, our albums are thematic, but this is our first album in which it's an actual narrative, so sort of like a movie without visuals; kind of like a storybook record."
On Do You Want More?!!!??!, the Roots set a precedent for live bands in rap. Their...
By Rob Markman
?uestlove
Photo: MTV News
Dating back to their 1993 debut, Organix!, the Roots have always pushed the envelope as far as hip-hop creativity goes. And on their upcoming December 6 album, fans should expect the Philadelphia band to take things a few steps further.
"We are working on our 13th album; it is titled Undun," ?uestlove told MTV News when we caught up with him last month at Jay-z's fundraising event in New York City. "It is our first concept album. Mostly, our albums are thematic, but this is our first album in which it's an actual narrative, so sort of like a movie without visuals; kind of like a storybook record."
On Do You Want More?!!!??!, the Roots set a precedent for live bands in rap. Their...
- 10/10/2011
- MTV Music News
Good titles are hard to come by. Artist 50 Cent thought he had one all set to go for the film he.s making, however he was forced to change the name when he learned that the title chosen was previously claimed by an African author who doesn.t want to give it up. According to the Guardian, Curtis Jackson a.k.a. 50 Cent spent much of last year filming a movie about a football player with cancer, which he intended to tile Things Fall Apart. It.s a great title, to be sure, so it shouldn.t come as a surprise that someone else had previously used it for their own work. Described as one of Africa.s greatest novelists, Chinua Achebe published a book in 1958 titled .Things Fall Apart.. Upon hearing that 50 Cent was titling his movie the same, Achebe contacted his legal team and had them put a...
- 9/16/2011
- cinemablend.com
Remember how rapper-filmmaker 50 Cent wrote, produced, and stars in a film about a football player who gets diagnosed with cancer? The Mario van Peebles-directed flick was set to launch Fiddy into dramatic stardom under the title Things Fall Apart until reps for Nigerian author Chinua Achebe -- who wrote a little book also called Things Fall Apart, practically the most famous African novel ever -- contacted him with a copyright infringement complaint. 50 offered $1 million for use of the title, prompting Achebe's camp to shoot back with a resounding rejection.
- 9/16/2011
- Movieline
Washington, Sept 15: Rapper 50 Cent has had to rename the title of his new movie, after Nigerian novelist Chinua Achebe protested that it shares the same name as his 1958 novel.
The rapper was unaware that his new movie, 'Things Fall Apart,' shares the same name with Achebe's 1958 book, which is considered one of Africa's greatest English language novels selling over 8 million copies worldwide.
Directed by Mario Van Peebles the movie, which is the story of an American football player who is diagnosed with cancer shares, premiered at the Miami Film Festival in March this year and has been completely financed by.
The rapper was unaware that his new movie, 'Things Fall Apart,' shares the same name with Achebe's 1958 book, which is considered one of Africa's greatest English language novels selling over 8 million copies worldwide.
Directed by Mario Van Peebles the movie, which is the story of an American football player who is diagnosed with cancer shares, premiered at the Miami Film Festival in March this year and has been completely financed by.
- 9/15/2011
- by Leon David
- RealBollywood.com
50 Cent's new movie has been forced to back down in a legal battle with representatives of the 80-year-old Nigerian novelist, Chinua Achebe.
The rapper, whose real name is Curtis Jackson, had called his movie Things Fall Apart - the same title as Achebe's most famous novel, which was included on the list of Time magazine's All Time Top 100 Novels. Chinua Achebe continues to write, and is currently professor of Africana Studies at Brown University in Rhode Island.
The movie's producers allegedly offered $1m for the rights to the title. Though Achebe himself has been silent on the issue, Naijan, a Nigerian news website, reports that a spokesman for Achebe's Foundation, which manages his works, informed producers that "the novel with the said title was initially produced in 1958 (that is 17 years before rapper 50 Cent was born), listed as the mostly read book in modern African literature, and won’t be sold for even $1bn.
The rapper, whose real name is Curtis Jackson, had called his movie Things Fall Apart - the same title as Achebe's most famous novel, which was included on the list of Time magazine's All Time Top 100 Novels. Chinua Achebe continues to write, and is currently professor of Africana Studies at Brown University in Rhode Island.
The movie's producers allegedly offered $1m for the rights to the title. Though Achebe himself has been silent on the issue, Naijan, a Nigerian news website, reports that a spokesman for Achebe's Foundation, which manages his works, informed producers that "the novel with the said title was initially produced in 1958 (that is 17 years before rapper 50 Cent was born), listed as the mostly read book in modern African literature, and won’t be sold for even $1bn.
- 9/14/2011
- by Andrew Losowsky
- Huffington Post
Things fall apart for rapper as Nigerian writer makes him change forthcoming film title to avoid conflict with 1958 novel
50 Cent has been undone by one of Africa's greatest novelists, Chinua Achebe. The rapper's latest movie has been renamed ahead of its release, due to a conflict with Achebe's most famous work.
Things Fall Apart, published by Achebe in 1958, is Nigeria's most famous English-language novel. It has sold more than 8m copies worldwide. Unfortunately, 50 Cent was not aware of this. He spent much of 2010 shooting a film of the same name, the story of an American football player diagnosed with cancer. "It's a project that I wrote, produced and financed myself," he explained last year. Directed by Mario Van Peebles, it premiered at the Miami film festival in March and is expected to be released soon.
Unfortunately for Fiddy, his film will not keep its original title. After being contacted by Achebe's legal team,...
50 Cent has been undone by one of Africa's greatest novelists, Chinua Achebe. The rapper's latest movie has been renamed ahead of its release, due to a conflict with Achebe's most famous work.
Things Fall Apart, published by Achebe in 1958, is Nigeria's most famous English-language novel. It has sold more than 8m copies worldwide. Unfortunately, 50 Cent was not aware of this. He spent much of 2010 shooting a film of the same name, the story of an American football player diagnosed with cancer. "It's a project that I wrote, produced and financed myself," he explained last year. Directed by Mario Van Peebles, it premiered at the Miami film festival in March and is expected to be released soon.
Unfortunately for Fiddy, his film will not keep its original title. After being contacted by Achebe's legal team,...
- 9/14/2011
- by Sean Michaels
- The Guardian - Film News
Filed under: Trailers and Clips, Movie News, Video, Cinematical
It's time to watch 'Things Fall Apart,' but forget Chinua Achebe. With the help of Brian Miller, 50 Cent wrote himself a sports drama that lets him bite into dramatic fare and enter the illustrious circle of actors who go skeletal for their craft. As we showed you last May, the firmly pectoraled rapper lost a whole lotta weight to play Deon, a college football star stricken with a cancerous tumor in his chest.
Now we've got a trailer to, well, experience, because just as Vulture rightly pondered, "The video quality and the musical transitions lead us to believe this was edited in somebody's basement around 2Am last night."
Continue Reading...
It's time to watch 'Things Fall Apart,' but forget Chinua Achebe. With the help of Brian Miller, 50 Cent wrote himself a sports drama that lets him bite into dramatic fare and enter the illustrious circle of actors who go skeletal for their craft. As we showed you last May, the firmly pectoraled rapper lost a whole lotta weight to play Deon, a college football star stricken with a cancerous tumor in his chest.
Now we've got a trailer to, well, experience, because just as Vulture rightly pondered, "The video quality and the musical transitions lead us to believe this was edited in somebody's basement around 2Am last night."
Continue Reading...
- 3/9/2011
- by Monika Bartyzel
- Moviefone
Filed under: Trailers and Clips, Movie News, Video, Cinematical
It's time to watch 'Things Fall Apart,' but forget Chinua Achebe. With the help of Brian Miller, 50 Cent wrote himself a sports drama that lets him bite into dramatic fare and enter the illustrious circle of actors who go skeletal for their craft. As we showed you last May, the firmly pectoraled rapper lost a whole lotta weight to play Deon, a college football star stricken with a cancerous tumor in his chest.
Now we've got a trailer to, well, experience, because just as Vulture rightly pondered, "The video quality and the musical transitions lead us to believe this was edited in somebody's basement around 2Am last night."
Continue Reading...
It's time to watch 'Things Fall Apart,' but forget Chinua Achebe. With the help of Brian Miller, 50 Cent wrote himself a sports drama that lets him bite into dramatic fare and enter the illustrious circle of actors who go skeletal for their craft. As we showed you last May, the firmly pectoraled rapper lost a whole lotta weight to play Deon, a college football star stricken with a cancerous tumor in his chest.
Now we've got a trailer to, well, experience, because just as Vulture rightly pondered, "The video quality and the musical transitions lead us to believe this was edited in somebody's basement around 2Am last night."
Continue Reading...
- 3/9/2011
- by Monika Bartyzel
- Cinematical
There's just something about Bill Moyers I like. It might be that his prolific journalism covers a variety of subjects, many of which are of great interest to me. It might also be because his greatest hits - his multi-part specials that aired originally on PBS - are now finding their way home to DVD, thanks to the Athena imprint of Acorn Media. February 15 saw the release of two of his sets with Acorn. One of those sets, A World of Ideas - Writers, was particularly engrossing to me, as it should have been to any fan of storytelling (and I'm assuming most of you are fans of good storytelling). For us, this set had some pretty exciting stuff.
Any genre fan should know of Isaac Asimov. Asimov's Foundation series is a landmark work of sci-fi, but unfortunately most people nowadays know him because he penned the work that loosely inspired the film I,...
Any genre fan should know of Isaac Asimov. Asimov's Foundation series is a landmark work of sci-fi, but unfortunately most people nowadays know him because he penned the work that loosely inspired the film I,...
- 2/28/2011
- by Sam McPherson
- TVovermind.com
By now, reviewing King Kong is kind of pointless. The details of plot and characterization are familiar to millions who have not even seen the original film, and its conclusion has been copied and referenced so many times that it has come to feel more obligatory than revolutionary. But as the distance we look back to see its 1933 premiere grows greater and greater, so too does the film’s at once majestic and concise vision of primal aggression. In a cinema that frequently seems obsessed with exploring different modes of male hierarchy and how they are enforced, there has yet to be a better expression of singular power than of Kong standing astride the Empire State Building, shaking his fists in the air and roaring defiantly at a more complicated world that it won’t take him down by wits alone.
Carl Denham (Bruce Cabot) is a out to get...
Carl Denham (Bruce Cabot) is a out to get...
- 10/9/2010
- by Anders Nelson
- JustPressPlay.net
You'd think, with the way that Hollywood takes every fucking thing with a whiff of success attached to it and turns it into a movie (board games, children's toys, cartoons, bubble gum mascots) that they'd have already pillaged every successful book in the history of mankind. And you would be mostly right. In fact, in coming up with the list below, I discovered that all but 13 novels that have sold over 10 million copies have been turned into a feature motion picture at some point. Can you believe that? All but 13. And of those 13, several of them are practically unadaptable (though, Hollywood tends to find ways -- see the upcoming Monopoly or Battleship movies), or are way too short or way too long for a feature length film (again, not that it's stopped Hollywood in the past -- see Where the Wild Things Are and the Dr. Seuss movies). In fact,...
- 4/14/2010
- by Dustin Rowles
As previously mentioned on this blog, Hunger director Steve McQueen is currently working on bringing the life of Afro-beat king Fela Kuti to the big screen. The screenplay, which will be based on Michael Veal’s biography Fela: The Life and Times of an African Musical Icon, is being written by both McQueen and British-Nigerian novelist and playwright, Biyi Bandele.
We all know who Steve McQueen is at this point. But who is Biyi Bandele.
Here’s a brief bio:
Biyi Bandele was born in Nigeria in 1967, and now lives in London, where he’s been since 1990. He’s written several plays, and worked with the Royal Court Theatre, the Royal Shakespeare Company, as well as writing radio drama and screenplays for television. He was a Judith E. Wilson Fellow at Churchill College, Cambridge from 2000-2002, and Royal Literary Fund Resident Playwright at Bush Theatre from 2002-2003.
His plays...
We all know who Steve McQueen is at this point. But who is Biyi Bandele.
Here’s a brief bio:
Biyi Bandele was born in Nigeria in 1967, and now lives in London, where he’s been since 1990. He’s written several plays, and worked with the Royal Court Theatre, the Royal Shakespeare Company, as well as writing radio drama and screenplays for television. He was a Judith E. Wilson Fellow at Churchill College, Cambridge from 2000-2002, and Royal Literary Fund Resident Playwright at Bush Theatre from 2002-2003.
His plays...
- 2/25/2010
- by Tambay
- ShadowAndAct
50 Cent's acting career thus far has largely relied on roles that closely mirror his actual life-- a thinly veiled self-portrait in Get Rich or Die Tryin', a thuggish drug dealer in the Sundance laugh-out-loud melodrama Twelve, and, er, a thuggish drug dealer in Righteous Kill. I'm not saying 50 isn't capable of more-- anyone see him as a soldier in Home of the Brave-- but maybe he just hasn't gotten the right role yet. Well, how about playing a running back college senior? At age 34? Yeah, that sounds like a pretty good stretch. Variety reports that 50 Cent will star for director Mario Van Peebles in Things Fall Apart, which is not an adaptation of the Chinua Achebe book, but a story about a football player "who faces a personal tragedy as well as his own mortality while in his senior year in college." Production begins in May in Michigan. I...
- 2/22/2010
- cinemablend.com
Variety reported today that Curtis (known to all his beloved fans of course as 50 Cents) Jackson will produce and co-finance his next film project Things Falls Apart. No sorry this is not the long awaited film version of the classic 1958 novel by Nigerian author Chinua Achebe. Instead 50’s film is rather more mundane picture dealing with a famous football running back who “who faces a personal tragedy as well as his own mortality while in his senior year in college”. Lynn Whitfield and comedian Mike P (who I admit I’ve never heard of) will co-star with Jackson. Mario Van Peebles will direct the film which starts shooting in Michigan in May. Along with his producer partner Randall Miller through their joint production company Cheetah Vision Films, Jackson plans to finance and produce three films a year.
- 2/22/2010
- by Sergio
- ShadowAndAct
CANNES -- U.K. independent production company Slate Films on Friday unveiled an eclectic development and production slate headlined by an international thriller penned by hot British writer Paul Laverty. Laverty ("My Name Is Joe") is scribbling "Gull" for documentary director Clive Gordon, who will make his directorial movie debut on the $8 million-budgeted movie. The project, set on a tanker sailing between Africa and Europe, will be produced by Slate Films chief Andrea Calderwood and Spanish production company Morena Films founder Juan Gordon. The producers aim to shoot the movie in Europe and Africa and are putting together casting. Slate Films has also cast hot young British actor Chewitel Ejiofor ("Dirty Pretty Things") to star in an African love story titled "Girls at a War". Based on the short story by Nigerian novelist Chinua Achebe, the screenplay is penned by theater and television writer Biyi Bandele and will mark the debut feature of Andrew Dosunmu.
- 5/17/2003
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
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