Category: Upcoming Films

Surrounded

Release Date:  6/20/23; VOD

Genre:  Western

Rating:   R

Running Time:  100 mins.

Director:  Anthony Mandler

Studio(s):  3.16 Productions, BRON Studios, BlackHand, Creative Wealth Media Finance, Mandalay Pictures

Cast:  Letitia Wright (Moses Washington), Jamie Bell (Tommy Walsh), Michael K. Williams (The Stranger), Jeffrey Donovan (Wheeler), Brett Gelman (Mr. Fields).

Story:   Five years after the Civil War, freedwoman and former Buffalo Soldier Moses “Mo” Washington travels west disguised as a man to lay claim to a gold mine.  After her stagecoach is ambushed by a group of murderous thieves, Mo is forced to hold dangerous outlaw, Tommy Walsh, captive while the remaining surviving passengers seek out help before the bandit’s gang tries to free him.  Sources:  Wikipedia, IMDB.

Trailer:

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Cinnamon

Release Date:  6/11/23 – Tribeca Film Festival; 6/17/23 – American Black Film Festival;
6/23/23 – Tubi
Genre:  Thriller
Rating:   NR
Running Time:  91 mins.
Director:  Bryian Keith Montgomery, Jr.
Studio(s):  Village Roadshow Pictures, Tubi TV

Cast: Pam Grier (Mama), Hailey Kilgore (Jodi Jackson), David Iacono (Eddie), Jeremie Harris (James Walker), Damon Wayans (Wally).

Story:  Cinnamon centers on Jodi, a young woman who is frustrated and stuck in a dead-end job with her dreams slipping away.  Then she meets Eddie, a hustler who quickly becomes her fiercely devoted boyfriend.  The couple, desperate to start a new life and jumpstart Jodi’s singing career, make the fateful decision to commit a crime together but their plan quickly goes sideways.  Jodi and Eddie have unknowingly unleashed a spiraling chain of events that quickly makes them the target of a ruthless family run crime organization.  Mama, the undisputed head of the organization and her son James will stop at nothing to find out what went wrong.  As James begins to uncover the truth, no one is safe and secrets are revealed leading to a deadly showdown where Jodi and Eddie must answer for their crime.  The noir thriller marks the first film released under Village Roadshow and Tubi’s Black Noir Cinema banner.  Sources:  Variety.com; Deadline.com.

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Mary J. Blige’s Strength of A Woman

Release Date:  6/17/23; Lifetime
Genre:  Romance
Rating:   NR
Director:  Shari L. Carpenter
Studio(s):  Blue Butterfly, Davis Entertainment, Front Street Pictures, Lifetime, Sony Pictures Television
Cast:  Da’Vinchi (Ben), Ajiona Alexus (Kendra)

Story:  The story of Kendra and Ben continues in Mary J. Blige’s Strength of a Woman.  Jumping ahead more than 15 years, now a successful photographer, Kendra finds herself in a failing marriage and must reckon with the decisions she made for the life she thought she wanted. When Ben unexpectedly comes back into her life, she is forced to a crisis point and must dig deep to find the strength to take control of her life and accept the love Ben may be offering again.  Source:  Lifetime.com, vibe.com.

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The Perfect Find

Release Date:  6/23/23; Netflix
Genre:  Romance
Rating:  NR
Running Time:  99 mins.
Director:   Numa Perrier
Studio(s):  Confluential Films, AGC Studios, I’ll Have Another, Netflix

Cast:  Gabrielle Union (Jenna), Gina Torres (Darcy), Keith Powers (Eric), D.B. Woodside (Brian), Aisha Hinds (Billie), La La Anthony (Elodie), Tyler Antonius (Ronnie), Janet Hubert (Monica), Devale Ellis (Dialo).

Story:  After a messy public breakup and a high-profile firing, Jenna returns to New York to resurrect her fashion career. Knowing she will only get one chance to rebuild her reputation, Jenna swallows her pride and goes to work for cutthroat mogul Darcy. But her comeback attempt gets complicated when she falls for her charming, much younger coworker Eric – who just so happens to be Darcy’s son. After putting everything on the line for her career, Jenna must decide if she will risk it all on a secret romance, and find out if she can have a future with Eric despite their generational divide.  Source:  IMDB.  Photo Source:  blackfilmandtv.com.

Trailer:

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The Blackening

Release Date:  6/16/23; In Theaters
(Original Release Date:  9/16/22 – Toronto International Film Festival)
Genre:  Horror/Comedy
Rating:   NR
Running Time:  96 mins.
Director:  Tim Story
Studio(s):  Catchlight Studios, Lionsgate, MRC Film, Media Rights Capital (MRC), The Story Company.

Cast:  Grace Byers (Allison), Jermaine Fowler (Clifton), Melvin Gregg (King), X Mayo (Shanika), Dewayne Perkins (Dewayne), Antoinette Robertson (Lisa), Sinqua Walls (Nnamdi), Jay Pharoah (Shawn), Yvonne Orji (Morgan), Diedrich Bader (Officer White), James Preston Rogers (Camden Conner).

Story:  Based on the 2018 short film of the same name by the comedy troupe 3Peat, The Blackening centers around a group of Black friends who reunite for a Juneteenth weekend getaway only to find themselves trapped in a remote cabin with a twisted killer. Forced to play by his rules, the friends soon realize this ain’t no motherf****** game.  The Blackening skewers genre tropes and poses the question: if the entire cast of a horror movie is Black, who dies first?  Source(s):  official site, theblackening.movie, Wikipedia.

Trailer:

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Mary J. Blige’s Real Love

Release Date:  6/10/23; Lifetime
Genre:  Romance
Rating:   NR
Director:  Camrus Johnson
Studio(s):  Blue Butterfly, Davis Entertainment, Front Street Pictures, Lifetime, Sony Pictures Television

Cast:  Da’Vinchi (Ben), Ajiona Alexus (Kendra).

Story:  Mary J. Blige’s Real Love follows 18-year-old Kendra as she sets off on her own for the first time at an HBCU in North Carolina. Attending on a scholarship, Kendra is determined to focus on school while balancing work study and keeping things professional with Ben, her photo class partner. Despite disapproving parents, financial hardship, and even an unexpected pregnancy, Kendra and Ben find themselves falling hard for each other and ultimately learning the meaning of “Real Love.” Even when Kendra realizes that in order to pursue her dreams, she must leave Ben behind, it’s certain that their story isn’t over…  Source:  Lifetime.com.

 

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