I Hate Muscular Dystrophy (BOOK REVIEW)

I Hate Muscular Dystrophy:
Loving a Child with a Life-Altering Disease
by Star Bobatoon, Esq.
Photos by Mark Gomez
Black Currant Press
Paperback, $14.99
120 pages, Illustrated
ISBN: 978-0-9817111-8-8

Book Review by Kam Williams

“This is a personal story of a family’s ability to love and support each other through the unexpected challenges of a life-transforming condition. It speaks of the strength and resolve of a mother who believes that life is to be lived and celebrated, despite any real or perceived limitations…
It gives us poignant glimpses into the initial disillusionment of a parent’s dream for her child, while at the same time, openly embracing all of the gifs that this experience has to offer… I Hate Muscular Dystrophy shows us that life can be beautiful even during periods of despair and pain. It helps us know that miracle and wonder of life is found… in simple moments of mystery and grace.”
-- Excerpted from the Foreword by Dr. Julie vanPutten (pg. vii)


Unless your life has somehow been touched by Muscular Dystrophy (MD) directly, the only time you probably think about the disease is during the Labor Day Telethon hosted annually by Jerry Lewis since the mid-Sixties (up until the recent announcement that he’s being replaced as emcee next month). And while making a contribution to a worthy cause like “Jerry’s Kids” is certainly laudable, you still might not know what it’s like to live with MD on a day-to-day basis.
For this reason, may I suggest that, before tuning in to this year’s fundraiser, you read I Hate Muscular Dystrophy: Loving a Child with a Life-Altering Disease. Half-heartfelt memoir/half how-to primer, the book was written by Star Bobatoon whose son, Hurricane, was diagnosed with Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy (DMD) in 2001 at the tender age of 5.
Star was not only pregnant with her second child but employed as an attorney at the time, so the prospect of caring for a kid with a degenerative disease proved daunting, despite the presence of her very doting spouse, Mark. Thus, her initial response of “complete shutdown and denial” was understandable, given the profound effect the condition was about to exact on their lives and relationships with each other.
Eventually, the author came to make peace with the “exasperating characteristic” of DMD, reflecting that, “Just when you think you’ve got it handled, it changes…and “never for the better.” Nevertheless, as Hurricane’s muscles atrophied and he lost the ability to walk, her spirits have remained buoyed by a determination to help him make the most of the time he has left on Earth.
Having learned how to overcome depression in the face of his dire prognosis, Ms. Bobatoon lays out a 4-point plan, augmented by exercises and affirmations, for other families struggling to come to grips with MD or any other seemingly all-consuming affliction. Still, it is perhaps fitting to close with the Star’s moving summation that “Living with DMD has made me a stronger, more patient and more passionate person… It has led me to my purpose and for that I am grateful.”
Powerful proof that illness might sometimes serve as a blessing.

Eric Benét: The “Trinity Goodheart” Interview

with Kam Williams

Headline Benét’s Soiree

Born in Milwaukee on October 15, 1970, two-time Grammy-nominee Eric Benét is an actor, singer and songwriter whose music has been influenced by such R&B greats as Al Green, Sly Stone, Chaka Kahn and Marvin Gaye. His first professional break came back in the late Eighties while he was in a local group called Gerard.
Since then, Eric has struck gold on the R&B charts and released albums like True to Myself, A Day in the Life and Love and Life. He has collaborated with a range of highly respected artists, including Something for the People; Earth, Wind, and Fire; and Wynonna Judd. As an actor, he’s enjoyed recurring roles on the TV series “For Your Love,” “Half & Half” and “Kaya.”
Here, he talks about starring opposite Erica Gluck in his new film, Trinity Goodheart, a heartwarming family drama about a strained father-daughter relationship. The movie premieres on the GMC-TV Network on Saturday, August 20th at 9 PM ET/PT (8 PM CT).


Kam Williams: Hi Eric, thanks for the time. How’re you doing?
Eric Benét: I’m doing very well, thank you.

KW: I’ll be mixing in my questions with a lot I got from fans. The first is from Teresa Emerson who says: I love your music, Eric. Great to see you back in films. What interested you about this particular project?
EB: Well, my manager had read the script, and liked it a lot. And I finally got around to it after I was ambushed at a gig in Atlanta by the producers and the scriptwriter. They told me they felt I was perfect for the part. So, I took the initiative to read it that night and fell in love with it, because there were so many parallels between the main character’s life and my own. And I also liked how the story was so warm and about faith and how it reminded people that love and family are both worth fighting for.

KW: Felicia Haney says: This film has some similarities to your having been a single-dad with a young daughter in real life. Is that one of the reasons why you chose to do the film?
EB: I felt that if this was going to be my first male lead in a film, then it would be a great opportunity to latch onto since there were so many anchors in this character that I could sink my teeth into because of all the parallels with my life.

KW: Was that you really playing the sax in the movie?
EB: I did not actually play. I kind of just pantomimed, hoping that whoever really played the sax would sound good and coincide with what I was doing.

KW: Irene Smalls says: You play a black, single father raising his child alone. This is definitely not the norm in the Black community where there are so many single-female headed households. She asks: What message do you want to communicate through your role?
EB: Irene’s right, it’s not the norm. But it was my reality. I was pretty much a single-father for most of my daughter India’s life. She’s 19 now, just finished her freshman year at USC, and she’s blossomed into an incredibly talented, beautiful, strong young woman. Looking back, were there things I could’ve done better? Yes, but I’m still pretty proud of myself for having raised such an amazing individual. Being a parent is not easy, but speaking for myself, it’s a wonderful blessing and the most rewarding job I’ve ever had.

KW: Teresa also asks: Will your daughter India be following you into the music business, and if so, how do you feel about it?
EB: India is an extremely talented singer/songwriter, and she is absolutely forging her own way musically. She’s majoring in music business and communications, and she’s been spending a lot of time in the studio while at school, so I think we’re going to see a whole lot from India in the future.

KW: Marcia Evans asks: What parenting skills have you employed raising your beautiful daughter, India, to produce such a healthy offspring. Do you have any parenting tips to share with single fathers?
EB: I have always tried to keep an honest, age-appropriate line of communication open with India, even during the teen years, a painful time of development when they usually shut down, and the last person they want to speak to is a parent. But India would always tell me what was going on, so I really encourage people to be as open with your children as you possibly can.

KW: Marcia goes on to say: The duets that you’ve done, like the one with Tamia, have been outstanding. So, she wants to know whether you’ve considered doing an entire album of duets, especially since love songs are what people are craving during these trying times.
EB: Hmm… That’s a good idea, but I don’t think I will ever do an entire duet album, because the logistics and scheduling get tough. I will continue to do two or three duets per album. And I agree with Marcia that those kinds of very nurturing melodies and lyrics are needed more so than ever right now and I’m definitely going to do my part to make sure more of those songs are out there.

KW: Finally, Marcia asks: How do you explain to India about real love, and how do you explain your songs with risqué lyrics to her?
EB: Hmm… as accurately as I possibly can. I explain that love’s an elusive, fragile and resilient thing. And as far as the lyrics, I say that part of being an adult is being sexual, and when you’re in a relationship, to express yourself that way is a beautiful thing.

KW: Harriet Pakula Teweles asks: Is there a recording artist you haven't worked with that you'd like to? And which of your recordings is your favorite?
EB: Every time I think about the first question, the answer generally turns out to be a living legend like Al Green, Aretha Franklin, Stevie Wonder or Chaka Khan. I would love to record with any one of them, because they helped shape and mold who I am creatively. As to Harriet’s second question, the answer changes with my mood. But right now, I’d have to say it’s a song I wrote called “Sometimes I Cry,” which audiences always really get into when I perform it at live shows.

KW: Larry Greenberg asks: When you played music producer T. Davis on the MTV series Kaya, was that character based on anyone you know from the music industry?
EB: [LOL] Yeah, I did base my character on a mosaic of a lot of the cocky, self-assured producers I’d worked with over the years. [Laughs some more]

KW: Legist/Editor Patricia Turnier asks: If you could back in time and speak to the Eric Benét of 1992, when your first album was released with the band called Benét, what advice would you give to yourself?
EB: Oh, that’s a great question! The #1 tip I would probably give myself is: “Enjoy every moment of this journey,” because back then I would really get caught up in the details of “Why aren’t we signed yet?” and “Why isn’t this happening faster?” I would have to tell myself that there’s always a reason why things happen. I’ve learned in my older age how to let it go when things don’t work out, because something incredible that I don’t know about yet is probably right around the corner.

KW: Patricia also asks: What is more challenging for you, singing or acting?
EB: Singing, for me, is like breathing air. Acting is a challenge. I find it difficult to switch gears emotionally.

KW: Lisa Loving says: There are probably a lot of struggling young artists who are working at UPS and trying to break through into the music industry at the same time, like you did. What advice do you have for them besides, “Lift with your back?” EB: [LOL] I think the best advice I would give them is to always be working on your craft, because there are so many people out there with a dream similar to yours, a whole lot more than when I started.

KW: Lisa also says: You have lived through some real tragedy in your life. How did you deal with the grief?
EB: The way I’ve tried to grieve is by not holding it in. If you’re mourning, cry, scream and purge whatever is going on inside you emotionally. That’s part of the process. And keep those that love you very close as you go through it.

KW: Is there any question no one ever asks you, that you wish someone would?
EB: No, because one of the least enjoyable things for me to do is to talk about myself.

KW: The Tasha Smith question: Are you ever afraid?
EB: Yes.

KW: The Columbus Short question: Are you happy?
EB: Very happy!

KW: The Teri Emerson question: When was the last time you had a good laugh?
EB: I can’t even remember what we were talking about, but I had a lot of family in town recently and we shared a deep, gut-wrenching laugh in the kitchen before I left for New York.

KW: What is your guiltiest pleasure?
EB: Reality-TV shows like Hoarders.

KW: The bookworm Troy Johnson question: What was the last book you read?
EB: An old classic from Mickey Spillane’s Mike Hammer Series called “One Lonely Night.” http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/0451204255/ref=nosim/thslfofire-20

KW: The music maven Heather Covington question: What are you listening to on your iPod?
EB: The last song I listened to is one I just wrote called “Real Love” which is going to be on my next record.

KW: When you look in the mirror, what do you see?
EB: Contentment.

KW: Thanks again for the time, Eric, and best of luck with both Trinity Goodheart and the upcoming album.
EB: Thanks, Kam.

Trinity Goodheart is set make its world premiere on the GMC-TV Network on Saturday, August 20th at 9 PM ET/PT (8 PM CT) with additional airings on Sunday, August 21st and Monday, August 22nd at 9 PM ET/PT (8 PM CT).

Trinity Goodheart

Film Review by Kam Williams

Headline: Motherless Child Yearns for Reunion in Inspirational Family Flick

Trinity Goodheart (Erica Gluck) is inconsolable from the moment her mother (Kellin Watson) vanishes into thin air through the fateful day she finds half of a heart-shaped pendant lying on her bed. Convincing herself that the precious keepsake was delivered by a guardian angel on behalf of her long-lost mother, the desperate 12 year-old seizes on the discovery as a promising sign of a possible impending reunion. After all, the saying inscribed on the back of the torn locket prophesies, “Every broken heart longs to be whole again.”
Such wistful thinking is understandable given how immature her father, Jeremy (Eric Benet), has been behaving lately. The aspiring musician has barely been able to keep a roof over their heads since quitting his steady job at a bank. Consequently, he’s currently been reduced to playing his saxophone for tips on the streets of Boston.
The stressful situation has taken a toll on Trinity’s performance at school where the once straight-A student finds herself at risk of suspension because of a declining attendance record. The problem is that the precocious adolescent is smart enough to understand that she and her panhandling dad urgently need someone to lean on, despite the fact that he is too proud to approach his attorney parents for help.
They consider Jeremy the black sheep of the family since he failed to follow in their footsteps by attending law school like his brother did. Meanwhile, Jeremy is even more estranged from his well-to-do in-laws, The Hawthornes, who never gave him a chance just because they didn’t like the idea of a black man marrying their white daughter. Sadly, they even continued to refuse to reconcile after the birth of their only grandchild.
Over her father’s objections, Trinity secretly tracks down both sets of her grandparents on her own, reasonably expecting them to let bygones be bygones, if only for the sake of solving the mystery of her missing mother. However, when her surprisingly surfacing only stirs up old controversies, she decides to run away from home out of frustration, hitchhiking from Beantown to Buffalo, the place she suspects holds the key to her missing mom’s disappearance.
Thus unfolds Trinity Goodheart, a wholesome family flick based on a script by Rhonda Baraka. Though shot on a shoestring budget, Joanne Hock makes an impressive directorial debut with this modern morality play with an uplifting, if bittersweet message about forgiveness and the importance of family.
Much of the credit for the movie’s success must be attributed to the chemistry generated between its talented co-stars, Erica Gluck and Eric Benet, given that the story primarily revolves around their characters’ dysfunctional father-daughter relationship. Though an original production by the Gospel Music Channel Network, the film only hints at a faith-based agenda via light touches such as Trinity’s name and lines like, “Don’t forget to say your prayers.”
A present-day parable delivering a powerful reminder that much wisdom often still comes from the mouths of babes.

Excellent (4 stars)
Unrated
Running time: 84 Minutes
Distributor: GMC Network (Gospel Music Channel)

Trinity Goodheart is set make its world premiere on the GMC-TV Network on Saturday, August 20th at 9 PM ET/PT (8 PM CT) with additional airings on Sunday, August 21st and Monday, August 22nd at 9 PM ET/PT (8 PM CT).

Final Destination 5

Film Review by Kam Williams

Headline: Premonition Dooms Colleagues in High Body-Count Horror Flick

Fair warning: Final Destination 5 is a relentlessly-gruesome horror flick of no redeeming value which splatters loads of blood and guts virtually right in your face courtesy of the genre’s best 3-D special effects since Piranha. Provided you have a strong stomach and an appetite for such gratutous gore, this high attrition-rate affair does knock off its characters in shocking, scream-inducing fashion.
As the film unfolds, we are introduced to 25 employees of Presage Paper Corporation preparing to spend the weekend together at a corporate retreat. Among the motley ensemble is Sam (Nicholas D’Agosto) who is considering leaving the company to pursue his dream of becoming a chef in Paris where he has just been offered an internship at a 5-star restaurant.
Because of his recent poor sales numbers, he is encouraged to quit by his best friend, Peter (Miles Fisher), although that possibility doesn’t sit well with his girlfriend, Molly (Emma Bell). In fact, she breaks up with Sam just before they all board the bus. Also of consequence are intern Candice (Ellen Wroe); blind as a bat Olivia (Jacqueline MacInnes Wood); womanizer Isaac (P.J. Byrne); assistant plant manager Nathan (Arlen Escarpata); and their hard-boiled boss, Dennis (David Koechner).
En route to the getaway, the bus becomes stuck on a suspension bridge undergoing construction repairs. Sam suddenly has an ominous premonition and alerts his colleagues. They jump up and scramble to safety before wires start snapping, the roadway disappears and the bus and other cars plummet into the river below.
86 people die in the freak accident, including 17 from Presage Paper, although the aforementioned 8 miraculously manage to escape. However, at the memorial service, an uninvited, shadowy figure (Tony Todd) among the mourners eerily warns the survivors in a creepy whisper that “Death doesn’t like to be cheated.”
The grieving octet reluctantly returns to the office to stare at the empty cubicles of the dearly departed while awaiting grisly fates as each is knocked-off one-by-one in the order of Sam’s prescient vision. There isn’t much of a plot to what ensues, but plenty of senseless vivisection to satiate the bloodlust demo.
Death takes no holiday!

Very Good (3 stars)
Rated R for profanity and gruesome violence.
Running time: 92 minutes
Distributor: New Line Cinema

Top Ten DVD List for August 16th

This Week’s DVD Releases
by Kam Williams

Headline: Top Ten DVD List for August 16th

Jane Eyre


Masquerades


The Grace Card


Idiots & Angels


The Conspirator


Lavell Crawford: Can a Brother Get Some Love?


Shirley Adams


Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Season Nine


Fanboy and Chum Chum: Brain Freeze


September 11th: Memorial Edition



Honorable Mention

The Best and the Brightest


Something Borrowed


Hoodwinked Too! Hood vs. Evil


Damn! Is the Price of Fame Too Damn High?


Elvira’s Movie Macabre: The Terror / Eegah!

Idiots & Angels DVD

DVD Review by Kam Williams

Headline: Animated Amorality Play Pitting Good vs. Evil Arrives on DVD

Angel is a morally-bankrupt individual who miraculously wakes up with wings grown on his back one day. When he ventures down to Bart’s Bar, his favorite haunt, all the regulars tease him about his new appendages.
At first, he decides to have them surgically removed by his doctor, at least until the envious physician comes to covet them. And then, Angel suddenly discovers that he can fly, so he tries to put his newfound talent to use for some selfish purposes. But when that avaricious endeavor is frustrated because the wings seem to have a mind of their own, he impulsively takes a chainsaw and simply slices them off all on his own, before returning hangout at his favorite saloon.
This bizarre chain of events jumpstarts Idiot & Angels, a mindbending, animated adventure written and directed by Bill Plympton. The plot of his imaginatively-illustrated, dialogue-free fantasy proceeds to thicken upon the introduction of a blonde temptress leading to a little love triangle.
A cartoon designed with adults in mind, Idiots and Angels is a delightful yarn revolving around an age-old showdown between good and evil. Credit Plympton for thoroughly engaging the viewer via a novel overhaul of a Biblical-style allegory about one of the Ten Commandments.
Thou shalt not covet thy neighbor’s wife except, perhaps, if her husband is a physically-abusive idiot.

Very Good (3 stars)
Unrated
Running time: 78 minutes
Studio: Passion River Films

The Grace Card DVD

DVD Review by Kam Williams

Headline: Faith-Based Tale of Reconciliation and Redemption Released on DVD

17 years ago, Mac (Michael Joiner) and Sara McDonald (Joy Parmer Moore) were left devastated by the loss of a child as a victim of crime. But where Sara’s grief led her to focus on the needs of their surviving son (Robert Erickson), her embittered husband lost his faith and gradually grew emotionally estranged from the rest of the family.
Furthermore, because the man who killed their little boy was black, Mac developed a prejudiced attitude which only ended up sabotaging his career as a member of the Memphis Police Department. Recently, the veteran cop’s resentment turned to rage when he was passed over for a promotion in favor of an African-American with less seniority.
To add insult to injury, he found himself assigned that officer as his partner, a development setting up a potentially-combustible situation. For having to share a squad car with a bigot was likely to test the patience of even a mild-mannered, part-time pastor like Sam Wright (Mike Higgenbottom). And predictably enough, Mac is bothered not only by the Sergeant’s skin color but by his superior’s humming of Gospel hymns while they’re out on patrol.
This tinder box of a premise provides the intriguing point of departure for The Grace Card, a faith-based fable of Biblical proportions certain to resonate with the Christian community as well as those in search of wholesome family fare. The picture is narrated by Lou Gossett, Jr., who doles out helpful spiritual counsel as the voice of reason in a pivotal role as sage elder George Wright.
The escalating tension has his grandson praying (“Lord, don’t let me kill my partner!”) for self-control and contemplating retiring from the force to pursue what he feels is his true calling as a preacher in the pulpit full-time. Grandpa George recommends compassion, and playing “The Grace Card” rather than “The Race Card,” because, “You can never underestimate the power of grace.”
Sam hesitantly heeds the advice to stick it out with Mac, which allows for a mutual shot at reconciliation and redemption. Inspiring and uplifting, this modern morality play serves as a telling reminder about the real meaning of forgiveness.

Excellent (3.5 stars)
Rated PG-13 for violence and mature themes.
Running time: 102 minutes
Distributor: Sony Pictures Home Entertainment
DVD Extras: Deleted scenes, outtakes, “Healing Begins” music video, commentary with the director, the executive producer, and actor Michael Joiner, and featurettes entitled “Wayne Returns” and “Starting a Grace Awakening.”