Countdown to Halloween: Vampire in Brooklyn

Tagline
A Comic Tale of Horror and Seduction

Details
Year of Release:   1995
Genre:   Comedy/Horror
Rating:  R
Runtime:  100 mins.
Studio(s):  Eddie Murphy Productions, Paramount Pictures
Producer(s):  Eddie Murphy, Mark Lipsky
Director:   Wes Craven

Cast
Eddie Murphy as Maximillian / Preacher Pauly / Guido
Angela Bassett as Detective Rita Veder
Allen Payne as Detective Justice
Kadeem Hardison as Julius Jones
John Witherspoon as Silas Green
Zakes Mokae as Dr. Zeko
Joanna Cassidy as Captain Dewey
Simi Kali as Nikki

Synopsis

An abandoned ship crashes into a dockyard in Brooklyn, New York, and the ship inspector, Silas Green, finds it full of corpses. Elsewhere, Julius Jones, Silas’s nephew, has a run-in with some mobsters. Just as the two goons are about to kill Julius, Maximillian, a vampire who arrived on the ship, intervenes and kills them. Maximillian infects Julius with his vampiric blood, thereby turning Julius into a decaying ghoul, and explains that he has come to Brooklyn in search of the Dhampir daughter of a vampire from his native Caribbean island in order to live beyond the night of the next full moon.

Dhampir is NYPD Detective Rita Veder, who is still dealing with the death of her mentally ill mother (a paranormal researcher) some months before. As she and her partner, Detective Justice, investigate the murders on the ship, Rita begins having visions about a woman who looks like her, and starts asking questions about her mother’s past. Rita is completely unaware of her vampire heritage, and believes she is losing her mind like her mother.

Maximillian initiates a series of sinister methods to pull Rita into his thrall, including seducing and murdering her roommate Nikki, as well as disguising himself as her preacher and a lowlife crook. Max,  in these disguises, misleads Rita into thinking Justice slept with Nikki, making her jealous and angry with him. After saving Rita from being run down by a taxicab, Maximillian takes her to dinner. Rita is taken with Maximillian’s suave charm, and while dancing with her, he bites her.

The next day, Justice finds Rita in her apartment, having slept all day.   Justice informs Rita about Nikki’s murder, and vows to help understand her visions, as one correctly foretold Nikki’s fate. Rita forgives Justice, but she almost bites him in the neck during a passionate kiss before catching her disappearing reflection in a mirror, and realizes she is becoming a vampire. She confronts Max about the changes occurring within her, and deduces he is also responsible for the murders she and Justice are investigating. Rita further finds out that Maximillian was sent to her by her father; his death at the hands of vampire hunters was what drove Rita’s mother insane.

Max tries to convince Rita that she will be happier as a vampire instead of remaining in the human world. Justice plans to rescue Rita from Max, and seeks advice from Dr. Zeko, a vampire expert they visited earlier in the murder investigation. Zeko explains that he knew Rita’s mother while she did her research on the vampires of the Caribbean islands, and she surrendered to evil by falling in love with Rita’s father. To avoid becoming a vampire, Rita must refrain from drinking the blood of an innocent human victim; also, Maximillian must die before the next full moon. Zeko gives Justice an ancient dagger with instructions to either kill Maximillian or risk being killed by Rita.

When Justice reaches her, Rita is lying inside Max’s coffin, almost completely changed into a vampire, and threatens to bite Justice. Justice and Maximillian fight, at which time Justice loses Zeko’s dagger. Maximillian encourages Rita to kill Justice and complete the transformation, but she rejects life as a vampire and drives the dagger through Maximillian’s heart, causing him to disintegrate. Rita and Justice then embrace with a passionate kiss.

Meanwhile, Julius, now completely decayed, enters his master’s limousine. He finds Maximillian’s ring and puts it on, instantly transforming him into a fully intact member of the undead. Overjoyed, he tells Silas, “There’s a new vampire in Brooklyn, and his name is Julius Jones!”, as both of them drive off into the night to parts unknown.

 Notes

Stunt performer Sonja Davis was fatally injured performing a 42-foot backward fall.  Source:  Wikipedia; Giphy.com; syfywire.

Trailer

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Countdown to Halloween: Boo!

Tagline
You’ve Been Chosen

Details
Year of Release:  2018
Genre:  Horror/Mystery
Rating:  NR
Runtime:  91 mins.
Studio(s):   Midland Entertainment
Director:  Luke Jaden

Cast

Jaden Piner (Caleb), Rob Zabrecky (James), Aurora Perrineau (Morgan), Jill Marie Jones (Elyse), Charley Palmer Rothwell (Ashton), Dwight Henry (Memphis).

Synopsis

A torn suburban family refuses to heed the warning of an innocent prank left upon them, releasing an unknown supernatural force to wreak havoc.

Boo! starts with an innocuous prank note, popular with kids to share with their friends at Halloween.  In Detroit Halloween 1980, a man carries the mysterious chain letter.  The unnamed character disappears into his house, terrified. Once inside he is caught up in a furious cataclysm of light and sound, culminating in his apparent off-screen suicide.

Back in present day, the same note and a mysterious package are left on the doorstep of a family having breakfast.  The note reads:

You’ve Been Boo-ed!
The air is cool, the season is Fall
Soon Halloween will come to all,
Terror and horror, spooks galore
Tricky witches are at your door.
The spooks are looking for things to do
In fact, one bought this boo to you.
Excitement comes and ghouls like you
Copy this note and make it through.

Parents, James and Elyse are struggling to keep their family together.  James is a religious zealot who is blind to his family’s needs and dismisses anything that does not a line up with his ideology.  A child from Elyse’s past that she could not save haunts her. Besides their marital problems the other members of the family also contribute to the instability of the home with their own internal conflicts. Morgan, a teenager, battling with the thoughts of her own extinction, wonders if it would matter to anyone. The youngest son, Caleb, systematically strings together his repressed fears and emotions in an artistic representation of hellish inventions.  The two children with their formidable concerns go unnoticed by their parents who are oblivious to their own children’s suffering. By not passing along the chain letter, the evil inside the house flourishes while the family battles their internal demons. The family must band together in order to stop the unimaginable terror.  Source(s):  Black Girl Nerds; Film Threat.

Trailer

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Countdown to Halloween: Lucky Ghost

a/k/a LADY LUCK
Poster 1

Tagline: A Thriller Diller Laff Sensation!

Details
Year of Release: 1942
Genre: Horror/Comedy
Rating: N/A
Runtime: 68 mins.
Black & White
Studio(s): Dixie National Pictures Inc.
Producer(s): Jed Buell; Maceo B. Sheffield (Associate)
Director: William X. Crowley

Cast

Mantan Moreland (Washington Delaware Jones), F. E. Miller (Jefferson), Maceo B. Sheffield (Dr. Brutus Blake), Arthur Ray (Blackstone), Florence O’Brien (Hostess), Harold A. Garrison (Brown), Jessie Cryer (Dawson), Napoleon ‘Nappie’ Whiting (Chauffeur), Jessie Brooks (Door man), Ida Coffin (Hat check girl), Nathan Curry (Farmer), Millie Monroe (First waitress), Louise Franklyn (Second waitress), Lucille Battles (Third waitress), Aranelle Harris (Fourth waitress), Monty Hawley (Masher)
Vernon McCalla (First man guest), Harry Levette (First man diner), Henry Hastings (Uncle Ezra’s ghost), Florence Field (Mrs. Ezra’s ghost), John Lester Johnson (First ghost), Eddie Thompson (Second ghost), Leonard Christmas (Third ghost).

Synopsis

After being ordered by a judge to get out of town, Washington Delaware Jones and his pal Jefferson hit the road in search of a new home. While traveling, they come across a wealthy man named Brown, stranded on a country road because his car has run out of gas. While Brown’s chauffeur is off looking for gas, Washington and Jefferson engage Brown and his friend Dawson in a dice game. After winning all of Dawson’s and Brown’s money, Washington and Jefferson take their car and instruct the chauffeur to drive them to Dr. Brutus Blake’s Sanitarium and Country Club. When Washington and Jefferson arrive at Blake’s elegant but crooked establishment, Blake thinks that they are rich and plans to fleece them in a fixed crap game. Later, when Blake sees Washington dancing with the hostess, he gets jealous and picks a fight with him. The hostess reminds Blake that Washington and Jefferson are wealthy and that he needs their money. While Washington and Jefferson are graciously escorted into Blake’s gambling room, the ghosts of Blake’s dead relatives discuss their regret at having bequeathed the place to him. Because they feel that Blake has turned the sanitarium into a sinful place, the ghosts send the ghost of Ezra Dewey, Blake’s uncle, to straighten out the situation. The invisible Ezra arrives at the sanitarium just as Blake has lost the sanitarium in a bet to Washington and Jefferson. Much to the dismay of the ghosts, the sanitarium under the management of Washington and Jefferson remains a sinful place. Ezra is now joined by the other ghosts in his effort to rid the property of all the noise and sinful activity. Meanwhile, Blake and his partner Blackstone make plans to regain control of the sanitarium by having the sheriff arrest Washington and Jefferson on trumped-up charges. The scheme is soon thwarted by Ezra, who overhears the plans and spooks Blake by telling him that his dead relatives are ashamed of him. The ghosts then scare away Jefferson, Washington and other guests by haunting the sanitarium. After handing over their dice and money to a piano-playing skeleton, Washington and Jefferson run away.

Lucky Ghost

Notes

Lucky Ghost is a follow-up to the 1940 Buell film Mr. Washington Goes to Town, which also starred Mantan Moreland and F. H. Miller and featured the characters “Brutus Blake” and “Blackstone.”  Lucky Ghost was originally titled Lady Luck. Source: TCM.

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The Workout Room

Release Date:  10/8/19 (Original Release – 2018)
Genre:  Comedy
Rating:  NR
Director:  Kena Monique
Studio(s):  Pigrat Productions, Stick Chick Films, Maverick Entertainment
Running Time:  81 mins.

Cast:  Joe Torry (Teejay), Tammy Townsend (Xena), Jay “Lil JJ” Lewis (Juice), Calida Jones (Anita), Torrei Hart (Kiki).

Story:  The Workout Room is a dramatic comedy about Teejay, an up and coming comedian who is given the chance of a lifetime at the cost of missing his daughter’s wedding. Xena, an educated, tell it like it is comedy promoter turned club owner is a one woman wrecking crew keeping everyone in line with her boisterous presence and edgy tongue. The Workout Room is a funny, plot driven film featuring real life stand-up comedians.  Source:  Maverick Entertainment.

Trailer:

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Game Day

Release Date:   10/4/19; Limited (2017 – Original Release)
Genre:   Comedy/Drama
Rating:  NR
Director:  John Susman
Studio(s):   Movie Night Media, Artist View Entertainment
Running Time:  101 mins.
Cast:   Romeo Miller (Lucas), Elizabeth Alderfer (Ricki), Chris Johnson (Victor), Jerod Haynes (Trey), Antoine McKay (Sherman).

Story:   Game Day is a dramatic comedy about Ricki, a socially awkward, self-centered, tech-whiz. Spending other people’s money to create the next big technology company, she works long and crazy hours at the expense of personal relationships and impatient financial backers. When investors pull their money, Ricki’s professional and personal lives are left in ruins.  Struggling to recover, she gets an opportunity at a new technology firm. Despite her hard work, she discovers that people don’t last long in this firm unless they prove themselves a team player with work on behalf of the company’s clients and on the company’s, up till now all-male, basketball team.

Desperate to save her job, she awkwardly tries to hone her skills at a neighborhood basketball court and encounters Lucas, a street-wise high-school kid, who makes shooting hoops look easy.  When Lucas’s advice immediately pays dividends for her play, Ricki offers to pay him for lessons. Although he’s never coached a “girl” or anyone else before, Lucas agrees, sparking a relationship that ultimately changes both of their lives forever.  Source:  Official site, gamedaymovie.com.

Trailer:

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Miss Virginia

Release Date:  10/18/19; In Theaters & VOD
Genre:  Drama
Rating:  NR
Director:  R.J. Daniel Hanna
Studio(s):   Moving Picture Institute, Vertical Entertainment.
Running Time:  102 mins.

Cast:  Uzo Aduba (Virginia Walden), Vanessa Williams (Sally Ray), Aunjanue Ellis (Congresswoman Lorraine Townsend), Amirah Vann (Shondae Smith), Adina Porter (Annette Johnson), Niles Fitch (James), Nadji Jeter (Bonz), Matthew Modine (Congressman Clifford William).

Story:   Based on a true story, Miss Virginia stars Uzo Aduba as a struggling single mother who is losing her fifteen-year-old son to the rough streets of Washington, DC. Unwilling to see him drop out and deal drugs, she places him in a private school. But when she can’t afford the tuition, she launches a movement to change the system that is destroying him and thousands like him. Attacked and threatened by those who don’t want change—from corrupt politicians to the local drug lord—Virginia must discover depths of strength she never knew she had.  Source:  Official site, missvirginiamovie.com.

Trailer:

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