‘Movie Corner’ Archives
Movie Corner: They Call Me Mister Tibbs! Sidney Poitier (1927-2022)
by Howard McQuitter II They Call Me Mister Tibbs! Sidney Poitier (1927-2022) Sidney Poitier was (and is) a trailblazer for Black thespians in Hollywood and outside who, then and now, are undervalued on screen and elsewhere. (Including the NFL that touts a solid majority of Black players, but stingy about hiring Black head coaches, and to this day no Black owner of any of the 32 teams.) He's a native of Cat Island, Bahamas, born on February 20, 1927. The youngest of nine children to Evelyn Outten and Reginald James Poitier, he grew up in abject poverty and little education. His family moved to the capital Nassau in 1937, after Florida stopped imports of Bahamian tomatoes, the life bread for the family. At the time, he had no knowledge of segregation which he would face at age 15 in Florida where he was sent to live with relatives. Lying about his age, the 16 year old young man joined the Army working as an orderly [...]
Movie Corner – Passing (★★★★★)
by Howard McQuitter II From a cinematic viewpoint, the rich black and white, crisp shadows inside and outside brownstone houses as well as the inside intimate jazz sessions are excellent. Passing displays for subtlety blossoms on celluloid. Passing is Rebecca Hall's debut film about two African American women, one is passing for white while the other is married to a dark-skinned Black man, at the time of the Harlem Renaissance when Black figures like Zora Neale Hurston, Langston Hughes, Alain Locke, Jean Tommer, Claude McKay, Augusta Savage, Aaron Douuglas, Louis Armstrong, Duke Ellington, Countee Cullen are on the scene particularly in Harlem. Passing is based on the novel by Nella Larsen, who comes from a mixed background, similar to Hall. Hall gets to the central characters immediately with Clare Kendry Bellew (Ruth Negga) and Irene “Reenie” Redfield [...]
Movie Corner: Last Night in Soho
Universal (2021) ★★★★★ By HOWARD MCQUITTER II Last Night in Soho to its credit is quite spellbinding, thanks in large part to cinematographer Chung-hoon Chung (who also is the cinematographer with director Edgar Wright's Shaun of the Dead and Hot Fuzz . What director Edgar Wright does convincingly well is how he segues genres, drama, horror and mystery. Adding to this fascinating film is a tribute to many 1960s rock/R&B songs. (The title for Last Night in Soho is a reference to a 1960s rock band, Dave Dee, Dozy, Beaky, Mick & Tich.) The story begins with a young woman, Eloise (Thomasin McKenkie from JoJo Rabbit), with big aspirations to go London to be a fashion designer but not without a warning about moving to the big city from Peggy (Rita Tushingham). Eloise loves 60s music and styles. Her first nights are in the dorm with some other students who love to party and go to bars. She feels out of place [...]
