Tuesday, April 23, 2024

Tag: samuel jackson

Kong: Skull Island
It should go without saying that portrayals of black characters in horror movies can stand to improve, but on the bright side, they aren't as bad as they've been in the past. Compare the original King Kong to 2017's Kong: Skull Island, for instance (acknowledging that films like these...
Danai Gurira, My Soul to Take
Most actors and actresses have to pay their dues before they become famous, and one genre well versed in due-paying is horror. Popular with producers out to make a quick buck yet reviled by critics, horror movies are both high in number and low in esteem, making them perfect...
Snakes on a Plane movie poster
A funny thing happened along the way in the translation of the fun, campy concept of Snakes on a Plane into a big-screen reality: the filmmakers forgot to make it fun and campy. What should've been something in the realm of Eight Legged Freaks turned out to be more...
Snakes on the Brain: Racial Representation in Snakes on a Plane
Like every other Internet gnome trolling the Web for treasure, I traced the progress of the film Snakes on a Plane for months, drinking in the online parodies and speculating on the possibility of sequels (Giraffes on a Speedboat) or even prequels (Dodos on a Frigate). I cheered when...
Dying in a horror movie is a rite of passage for black actors. Can you name at least one film in which these esteemed (and not so esteemed) actors, actresses, athletes, and musicians have met their maker? If you can, perhaps consider getting some fresh air for a change....
Deep Blue Sea horror movie poster
I don't know if there's anyone who would describe anything Renny Harlin's ever done as "clever" -- except maybe "Clever how he tanked Geena Davis's career" -- but darnit if Deep Blue Sea doesn't display a glimmer of cleverness amidst its arm-gnawing mayhem. There's a nudge-and-wink awareness of the...
Def by Temptation horror movie poster
That Def By Temptation may be the best film in the Troma oeuvre (which studio president Lloyd Kaufman claims in the DVD intro) is perhaps a dubious distinction, but hey, everyone's got a cross to bear. Unlike most Troma works -- including one of the scant all-black selections from...