Black Cinema Connection

Release Date:  1/20/23; Sundance Film Festival
Genre:  Drama
Rating:  NR
Running Time:  124 mins.
Director:  Elijah Bynum
Studio(s):  Los Angeles Media Fund (LAMF), Tall Street Productions

Cast:  Jonathan Majors (Killian), Haley Bennett, Taylour Paige (Pink Coat), Mike O’Hearn (Brad Vanderhorn), Harrison Page (William Lattimore), Harriet Sansom Harris.

Story:  Killian Maddox lives with his ailing veteran grandfather, obsessively working out between court-mandated therapy appointments and part-time shifts at a grocery store where he harbors a crush on a friendly cashier. Though Killian’s struggles to read social cues and maintain control of his volatile temper amplify his sense of disconnection amid a hostile world, nothing deters him from his fiercely protected dream of bodybuilding superstardom, not even the doctors who warn that he’s causing permanent damage to his body with his quest.  Source/Photo Source:  festival.sundance.org.

Release Date:  1/27/23; Netflix
Genre:  Comedy
Rating:  R
Running Time:  117 mins.
Director:  Kenya Barris
Studio(s):  Khalabo Ink Society, Misher Films, Netflix, Strong Baby

Cast:  Eddie Murphy (Akbar), Jonah Hill (Ezra), Lauren London (Amira), Nia Long (Fatima), Deon Cole (Demetrius), Julia Louis-Dreyfus (Shelley), Travis Bennett (Omar), Mike Epps (Uncle EJ), La La Anthony (Shaela), David Duchovny (Arnold), Molly Gordon (Liza), Andrea Savage (Becca), Elliott Gould (Mr. Greenbaum), Rhea Perlman (Bubby), Yung Miami (Tiffany), Sam Jay (Sam Jay).

Story:  A new couple and their families find themselves examining modern love and family dynamics amidst clashing cultures, societal expectations and generational differences.  Source:  Variety.com.  Photo Source:  IMDB.

Trailer:

a/k/a Don’t Fear

Release Date:  1/27/23; In Theaters (Limited)

Genre:  Horror

Rating:  R

Running Time:  100 mins.

Director:  Deon Taylor

Studio(s):  Hidden Empire Film Group (HEFG); Hidden Empire Releasing.

Cast:  Annie Ilonzeh (Bianca), Joseph Sikora (Rom), Andrew Bachelor (Benny), Terrence Jenkins (Russ), Tip ‘T.I.’ Harris (Lou), Iddo Goldberg (Michael), Ruby Modine (Serena), Jessica Allain (Meg), Tyler Abron (Kim).

Story:  A year into living through a worldwide pandemic, a group of friends gather in the remote Tahoe Mountains to stay at the “Historic Strawberry Lodge”. But celebration turns to terror as one by one each guest faces their own worst fear.  Sources:  Firstshowing.net.

Trailer:

Release Date:  1/22/23; Sundance Film Festival

Genre:  Drama

Rating:  NR

Director:  Raven Jackson

Studio(s):  A24, PASTEL

Cast:  Charleen McClure, Moses Ingram, Sheila Atim, Kaylee Nicole Johnson, Reginald Helms, Jr., Chris Chalk, Jayah Henry, Zainab Jah.

Story:  Tender caresses and enveloping embraces are portals into the life of Mack, a Black woman in Mississippi. Winding through the anticipation, love, and heartbreak she experiences from childhood to adulthood, the expressionist journey is an ode to connection — with loved ones and with place.  Source/Photo Source:  festival.sundance.org.

Release Date:  1/20/23; In Theaters

Genre:  Thriller

Rating:  PG-13

Directors:  Nicholas D. Johnson, Will Merrick

Studio(s):  Sony Pictures Releasing, Screen Gems, Sony Pictures Worldwide Acquisitions (SPWA), Stage 6 Films.

Cast:  Storm Reid (June Allen), Nia Long (Grace Allen), Ken Leung (Kevin Lin), Joaquim de Almeida (Javier Ramos), Daniel Henney (Elijah Park).

Story:  When her mother disappears while on vacation in Colombia with her new boyfriend, June’s search for answers is hindered by international red tape. Stuck thousands of miles away in Los Angeles, June creatively uses all the latest technology at her fingertips to try and find her before it’s too late. But as she digs deeper, her digital sleuthing raises more questions than answers and when June unravels secrets about her mom, she discovers that she never really knew her at all.  Standalone sequel to the 2018 film Searching, which was set entirely on computer screens and smartphones and followed a father trying to find his missing 16-year-old daughter  Source:  Wikipedia. Photo Source:  Jakalefilm.com.

Trailer: