Denzel Washington, Angela Bassett and Delroy Lindo in the Spike Lee movie ‘Malcolm X’

Directed by Spike Lee with the screenplay written by Lee and Arnold Perl based on the book The Autobiography of Malcolm X: As Told to Alex Haley as written by Alex Haley, the movie Malcolm X (1992) is our subject today. An epic biographical drama of the life of Malcolm X, the movie Malcolm X became a part of the National Film Registry of the United States Library of Congress in 2010.

(From left, Spike Lee as Shorty, Denzel Washington as Malcolm X and Kate Vernon as Sophia in the Spike Lee movie Malcolm X).

The 1992 film Malcolm X begins illustrating the life of the civil rights activist of the same name in rural Michigan with the burning down of the family house. X‘s parents, Earl Little and Louise Little as portrayed by Tommy Hollis and Lonette McKee, are respectively killed in a death called suicide while being committed into a mental institution. Malcolm and his siblings are placed into protective care, with the ambitions of X as a grown man dashed based on the color of his skin.

(From left, Delroy Lindo as West Indian Archie and Denzel Washington as Malcolm X in the Spike Lee movie Malcolm X).

From Boston, Massachusetts as a teenager, X has sex with Sophia as portrayed by Kate Vernon. The pair travels to Harlem, New York City, New York where West Indian Archie, as portrayed by Delroy Lindo, convinces Malcolm X to join the gangster’s criminal enterprise. As a disagreement ensues over money at the hands of West Indian Archie, Malcolm, Sophia, Shorty (as portrayed by Spike Lee), and Peg (as portrayed by Debi Mazar) take to robbery in Boston to earn money. This path leads to incarceration for four members of the group.

(From left, Ernest Thomas as Sidney, Denzel Washington as Malcolm X, Angela Bassett as Betty Shabazz and James McDaniel as Brother Earl in the Spike Lee movie Malcolm X).

Malcolm X is directed through mentorship by Baines, as portrayed by Albert Hall, to take up the teachings of Elijah Muhammad as portrayed by Al Freeman Jr. and learn the ways of Islam while also learning to resent the whites for their poor treatment of blacks. After being paroled in 1952, X meets Muhammad at the Nation of Islam (NOI) headquarters in Chicago, Illinois. Six years later, marries Betty Shabazz as portrayed by Angela Bassett, with the pair parenting multiple children. X rises as a prominent speaker in the Nation of Islam, facing the reality that Muhammad had fathered many children out of wedlock and against the teachings of the faith.

(Al Freeman Jr. as Elijah Muhammad in the Spike Lee movie Malcolm X).

X rails against white violence in blaming the assassination of United States President John F. Kennedy shortly after Kennedy‘s murder in November 1963. Muhammad suspends X from speaking on behalf of the Nation of Islam, whereupon Malcolm X takes a pilgrimage to Mecca, Saudi Arabia, finding a desire to found the Organization of Afro-American Unity to spread tolerance rather than racial separation after making a formal break with the Nation of Islam. Shortly after his house was firebombed, Malcolm X would be shot in the Audubon Ballroom by Nation of Islam followers including Talmadge X Hayer as portrayed by Giancarlo Esposito.

(Giancarlo Esposito as Talmadge X Hayer in the Spike Lee movie Malcolm X).

The film closes with tributes to Malcolm X the man by Martin Luther King Jr., Ossie Davis and Nelson Mandela.  As quoted here, the Spike Lee “biopic of legendary civil rights leader Malcolm X brings his autobiography to life with an epic sweep and a nuanced message.” I grant the movie Malcolm X by director/screenwriter Spike Lee 4.25-stars on a scale of 1-to-5.

Matt – Wednesday, February 28, 2024

Arnold Schwarzenegger, Penelope Ann Miller and Pamela Reed in the Ivan Reitman movie ‘Kindergarten Cop’

The mood for a bit of crime fighting comedy brought me to the Ivan Reitman directed movie Kindergartarten Cop (1990) recently. The movie’s lightness mixes in a bit of a love interest with the central character cast in the role of undercover policeman seeking love, a criminal and a potential love interest as well. Starring Arnold Schwarzenegger, Penelope Ann Miller and Pamela Reed, today we look into Reitman‘s foray into childhood comedy with a side of cuteness.

(From left, Pamela Reed as Detective Phoebe O’Hara and Arnold Schwarzenegger as Detective John Kimble in the Ivan Reitman movie Kindergarten Cop).

Based on a tip that involves a drug dealer getting information regarding the whereabouts of his former wife, Kindergarten Cop begins with Los Angeles Police Department detective John Kimble arresting a drug dealer for murder. The drug dealer, Cullen Crisp, suspects his former wife of absconding with the couples child; a fair amount of money supposedly was taken as well. This leads Kimble, portrayed by Arnold Schwarzenegger, to Astoria, Oregon with former teacher-turned-detective Phoebe O’Hara, as portrayed by Pamela Reed. The idea was for O’Hara to become a substitute teacher in a kindergarten class at the local elementary school to contact Crisp’s wife and get her to testify against her former husband.

(From left, Richard Tyson as Cullen Crisp and Linda Hunt as Miss Schlowski in the Ivan Reitman movie Kindergarten Cop).

Richard Tyson portrayed Cullen Crisp, the drug dealer. By the time Kimble and O’Hara get to the local school to meet with Miss Schlowski, the school principal as portrayed by Linda Hunt, a stomach bug keeps O’Hara from walking into her undercover teaching position. Needing to proceed with their undercover work, Kimble becomes the undercover kindergarten teacher with no previous classroom experience.

(From left, Sarah Rose Karr as Emma, Penelope Ann Miller as Joyce Palmieri and Rachel Myatt Crisp and Arnold Schwarzenegger as Detective John Kimble in the Ivan Reitman movie Kindergarten Cop).

The absurdity of this scenario drives much of the movie’s comedy. Kids running amok in multiple ways, and seeing Kimble experience the frustration of embarrassment and feeling overwhelmed are used to great effect. Teacher Rachel Myatt Crisp, as portrayed by Penelope Ann Miller, calms some of that initial chaos and, along with her son Dominic Palmieri, also known as Cullen Crisp, Jr., ultimately brings in some important story elements for the movie. Unraveling some history about Palmieri’s father being in France was part of the movie’s charm.

(Brothers Christian Cousins and Joseph Cousins portrayed the character alternatively known as Dominic Palmieri and Cullen Crisp, Jr. in the Ivan Reitman movie Kindergarten Cop).

Twin brothers Joseph Cousins and Christian Cousins portrayed Dominic Palmieri / Cullen Crisp, Jr. The relationship that Cullen Crisp Jr’s father has with him, the boy’s mother, and the boy’s paternal grandmother, informs much of the how the movie resolves itself. The role of Eleanor Crisp, the grandmother to Pamieri / Crisp, was filled by Carroll Baker. Prior to this, the father would gain his release following his arrest. A case of child and spousal abuse, separate from the core storyline, raises an important question of credibility for John Kimble as a teacher at the grade school.

(Carroll Baker as Eleanor Crisp in the Ivan Reitman movie Kindergarten Cop).

Kindergarten Cop achieves a wholesome level of storytelling with compelling conflict and differentiated yet appropriate likability among the characters. The writing credits for Murray Salem, Herschel Weingrod and Timothy Harris are solid and satisfying, as is the movie. Lynn, one half of the name Matt Lynn Digital for this blog, enjoys this movie. I give Kindergarten Cop as directed by Ivan Reitman 4.0-stars on a scale of 1-to-5.

Matt – Saturday, September 17, 2022

Jodie Foster, Matthew McConaughey and Tom Skerritt in the Robert Zemeckis movie ‘Contact’

Astronomer Carl Sagan wrote the 1985 book Contact: A Novel. With his Peabody Award and Emmy winning wife, Ann Druyan, Sagan wrote the outline for the movie that became Contact (1997). James V. Hart and Michael Goldenberg wrote the screenplay for the movie both produced and directed by Robert Zemeckis.

(From left, Jena Malone as young Eleanor ‘Ellie’ Arroway and David Morse as Theodore Arroway in the Robert Zemeckis movie Contact).

We are introduced to Dr. Eleanor ‘Ellie’ Arroway as a child, a dreamer in beaming with curiosity for connection and the love for her father, the one parent in the picture for her at the movie’s beginning. Theodore Arroway encourages this curiosity, pointing to a means of connecting with others using a radio connection in the family home. Shortly after introducing this dynamic, Ellie’s father dies. David Morse portrayed Theodore Arroway while Jena Malone portrayed Dr. Eleanor ‘Ellie’ Arroway as a child.

(From left, Matthew McConaughey as Palmer Joss and Jodie Foster as Dr. Eleanor Arroway in the Robert Zemeckis movie Contact).

Fast forward to the modern day, with the child grown into a doctor working at the Arecibo Observatory in Arecibo, Puerto Rico, searching for signs of civilized life in space as a part of SETI. It is here that Arroway meets Christian philosopher Palmer Joss. Matthew McConaughey and Jodie Foster portray Joss and Arroway as an adult. It is also here in Arecibo that the first notion of David Drumlin, the president’s science advisor, wants to pull funding for the research that Dr. Eleanor ‘Ellie’ Arroway has made her life’s ambition.

(From left, William Fichtner as Kent Clarke and John Hurt as S.R. Hadden in the Robert Zemeckis movie Contact).

The position of Drumlin’s position leads Ellie to pursue alternative paths of funding to continue her research. With friend Kent Clarke present to offer professional assistance and advice along the way, the two ultimately gain financial backing from Hadden Industries, run by reclusive billionaire industrialist S. R. Hadden. This gives Dr. Arroway the time to work at the Very Large Array (VLA) in San Agustin, New Mexico, near Socorro. Tom Skerritt portrayed David Drumlin. John Hurt portrayed S.R. Hadden. William Fichtner portrayed Kent Clarke.

(From left, Tom Skerritt as Dr. David Drumlin and James Woods as Michael Kitz in the Robert Zemeckis movie Contact).

Approximately four years later, Dr. Arroway discovers a signal that includes a repeating sequence of prime numbers at the VLA. Rather than close access to the telescopes at the VLA, Drumlin and National Security Council leader Michael Kitz, among many others, descend upon the facility with the intention of commandeering the facility and Arroway’s discovery. While assuming credit, astounding further discoveries are found that lead to an opportunity to contact an alien intelligence from the star system Vega, which is approximately 25 or 26 light-years away. The drama the ensues from here fascinates me to an enormous degree. James Woods portrayed Michael Kitz.

(From left, producer and director Robert Zemeckis, actor Matthew McConaughey and actress Jodie Foster on sight of the Robert Zemeckis movie Contact).

Many existential questions of justice, spirituality, politics, power dynamics, curiosity and love flow through the course of the movie Contact. I grant Contact as directed by Robert Zemeckis 4.25-stars on a scale of 1-to-5.

Matt – Wednesday, June 22, 2022