Race, Power & Politics (BOOK REVIEW)

 

Race, Power & Politics:

Memoirs of an ACORN Whistleblower

As told by Marcel Reid

to Michael McCray, Esquire, CPA

Foreword by Tom Devine

American Banner Books

Paperback, $19.99

364 pages

ISBN: 978-0-9846906-7-1

           

Book Review by Kam Williams

“There is a lot to learn from this book. If you are feeling cynical and discouraged that you can’t fight the powerful, read it! If you want to learn the tactics of effective guerilla activism, read it!

If you want to learn the intricacies of how corporate abuses of power can threaten our families’ bodies and health, read this book! If you want to feel the price of hypocrisy, read it!”

-- Excerpted from the Foreword (pgs. iii-iv)

            The Association of Community Organizations for Reform Now, aka ACORN, was founded in 1970 with the goal of attaining higher wages, better education and decent housing for the poor. Over the years, the activism-oriented non-profit operated mostly under the radar, gradually growing into a formidable force to be reckoned with by virtue of its half a million members and over a thousand chapters spread all across the country.

            Yet, the charity collapsed in just a matter of months in the wake of a damaging video shot with a hidden camera by a couple of conservative bloggers posing as a pimp and a prostitute. Released to the press in the fall of 2009, the deceptively-edited footage appeared to show street-level ACORN employees being tricked into instructing the visitors how to cheat the IRS.

            ACORN had only garnered national attention during the previous year’s presidential campaign when candidate Barack Obama’s work as a community organizer came to light. Most people blame the controversial grassroots outfit’s subsequent demise on its being targeted by Republicans because of the critical role it played in getting out the vote for the successful Democratic candidate.

            However, according to Race, Power & Politics, there were already plenty of signs that ACORN was on the brink of imploding on its own. A persuasive case is made in this “as told to” memoir dictated to African-American attorney Michael McCray by fellow, former board member Marcel Reid, a whistleblower who ostensibly knew where the proverbial bodies were buried. 

            Apparently, in spite of its longstanding image as an advocate for the disadvantaged and disenfranchised, ACORN was pretty much riddled with corruption from top to bottom. At the upper echelon, you had flamboyant executive Dale Rathke padding his expense account with pricey flights on the Concorde, $2,000 a night suites at the Waldorf-Astoria, $700 meals at fancy French restaurants, and shopping sprees at luxury boutiques like Gucci and Neiman Marcus. By the time that crook was finally terminated, he had embezzled about a million dollars.

            Meanwhile, even some rank-and-file employees treated ACORN like a personal ATM machine, such as the secretary who thought nothing of having her hair extensions done right in the office on company time. A shameful tale of wholesale hypocrisy at the expense of the poor apt to have Saul Alinsky, the godfather of community organizing, spinning in his grave. 

Mario & Mandela Van Peebles

Mario & Mandela Van Peebles

The “We the Party” Interview

with Kam Williams

Father and Son Discuss Coming-of-Age Comedy

            Mario Van Peebles was born in Mexico City on January 15, 1957 to Maria Marx and the legendary actor/director/composer/scriptwriter Melvin Van Peebles. Heo made his acting debut as a teenager in his father’s film Sweet Sweetback’s Badasssss Song (1971), before embarking on an enduring career as a thespian marked by memorable outings in everything from New Jack City (1991) to playing Stokely Carmichael in Panther (1995) to impersonating Malcolm X in Ali (2001).

            Mario has also stepped behind the camera to direct a number of films, most notably, New Jack City, Panther, Badasssss! (2003) and Posse (1993). His latest offering, We the Party, is a bit of a family affair, in that it stars his 18 year-old son, Mandela, and features his father and four other children, Makaylo, Maya, Morgana and Marley, in supporting roles.

            Here, Mario and Mandela talk about the movie, a coming-of-age comedy which might be best thought of as an African-American variation on American Pie (1999). 

Kam Williams: Hi Mario and Mandela, thanks for the interview. You know, back in ’79, I had the honor of running part of the Boston Marathon alongside Melvin Van Peebles. Your father’s one of my idols.

Mario: Cool, man. When you met him did you go, “Come on feet! Do your Thing!” like his character did in Sweet Sweetback? [LOL]

KW: I’m sure I did. What interested you in making We the Party?

Mario: Half of it came from just witnessing the party all around me. I had this cool constituency of five teenagers growing up, listening to all this new music and dealing with all the “isms” that are still alive. They’re trying to climb through: lookism… classism… sexism… racism. Then they literally threw a huge party at the house for one of their birthdays.

Mandela: Yeah, one of my brothers and I have our birthdays around the same time, and my father wasn’t giving us as big an allowance as others in our age group. So, we figured we should pool our money, hire a DJ, hire security, order some pizza and refreshments, and charge $10 a head. It was amazing! We had at least 500 people show up.  

KW: Wow!

Mario: But it never got out of control like Project X because “dad” was there. I patrolled the premises with my video camera, and tried to keep the hormones from raging out of control. The way these kids behave, it sort of looks like safe sex out there on the floor. The last time I danced liked that I had a baby 9 months Iater. So, inspired by real events, I started piecing the story together piece by piece.

KW: How true to life is the movie?

Mandela: A lot of the movie was inspired by real life, but some of it is fiction. For instance, I would get so mad, if my brother really got a car and I didn’t.

KW: How similar are you to your character, Hendrix?

Mandela: He’s the same kind of kid as me. He’s stylish, but he’s not the coolest kid or the weirdest kid. He’s kind of in his own world.

KW: Mandela, Harriet Pakula Teweles asks: Was it weird being directed by your dad?

Mandela: No, it wasn’t, because I’ve been directed by him almost my whole life. That’s 18 years. However, it was important to know the difference between my dad and Mario Van Peebles, the director. You gotta show up early… you gotta know your lines… and I had to set an example for the other actors, so they could see that even the director’s son was always prepared and very professional.   

KW: Mario, was it hard keeping egos in check when you have stars like Snoop Dogg, Salli Richardson, Michael Jai White and Tony Lister in support roles.

MVP: One of the cool things about the adults in the movie is we’ve all been doing it for a minute. Salli, Tiny and I have been working together since Posse. And Snoop’s been The Doggfather for awhile. So, we’re all pretty secure within ourselves. On top of that, it wasn’t just my badass crew in the movie, it was Snoop’s son [Corde Broadus], P. Diddy’s son [Quincy Brown], a Wayan’s kid [Gregg], and a lot of talented youngsters from That’s So Raven and Hannah Montana, plus some professional music and dance crews. So, the adults were happy to be a part of a cool movie being made that had some nutritional value. And I think they also knew that when you make an independent movie like We the Party, you really have to put the money on the screen. That’s why I only paid myself ten dollars to write it and one dollar to direct it. No one was there for the money in the first place. That was the wrong reason to be on the set. Understand that Hollywood tends to be a little reductive in its portrayals of people of color. It might get behind a couple filmmakers who are doing goofy comedies, which is fine, but I also want kids of all colors to have an alternative. I want our kids to be able to go to the movies to see something that is relevant to them that also has something to say. There’s no reason to be afraid to continue a conversation that society has already started with a young audience. So, if they’ve already been hit with hyper-sexuality and hyper materialism, it’s okay to let them know in the context of a movie that they might not be able to buy their sense of self at the mall. Like I say in the classroom scene, the people we really respect aren’t the big shoppers like the Kardashians, but the people who stand for something. Martin Luther King and Malcolm X weren’t big consumers. You couldn’t sell Mother Teresa breast implants. You couldn’t sell Gandhi a new car. That’s a long answer, but once my cast saw that level of consciousness in a script aimed at young adults, they jumped at the chance to be a part of delivering a positive message. They were attracted to the project for content reasons, not for ego reasons.

KW: That reminds me of how your dad’s film, Sweet Sweetback, was taught in one of my black studies courses when I went to Cornell.

Mario: Kam, you’re hitting on a real important point that’s often lost in the conversation when we talk about Blaxploitation Era cinema. What Melvin Van Peebles really created was Black Power Cinema. He made the first definitive film where a brother transforms from a hustler into a revolutionary and goes up against the system. Hollywood saw that movie make money, and made Shaft, a private eye who was working with The Man, instead of against The Man. And Superfly came later, which was about a guy who was dealing drugs to his own people for The Man. So, although the films after Sweetback still featured empowered black leads, they were only icing on the cake, because the revolutionary core had been drained from the cake. Consequently, black people are today still trying to recover from the Blaxploitation Era’s drug dealer as a hip guy mentality. The Hollywood industry prefers to support cinema that doesn’t threaten the status quo as opposed to promoting material that might raise consciousness. Even reality-TV shows dupe viewers into believing they’re exercising an important choice when they’re given a chance to vote for this or that next Pop Idol. But the truth is, they’re really only exercising distraction. Do you understand what I’m saying?

KW: Yep. Is there any question no one ever asks you, that you wish someone would?

Mario: Well, it’s fun talking to you, Kam since you saw the movie and you’re touching on some good points. 

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

Mario: I see a brother who’s been blessed in many ways. One, in that I was raised by a guy who had a good sense of humor about life. He gets the joke of life, has great people skills, and knows how to make things happen. He not only taught me how to play basketball but how to own the team. Secondly, my mother was able to show me the mountain by taking me to auditions, and my father was then able to teach me how to climb it. I also see a person who has arrived at a point in life where I’m learning from my children, my homegrown, teenage think tank. And now I’m functioning as the connective tissue between them and my parents, which is a really cool place to be. 

KW: Thanks again for the time, Mario and Mandela, and best of luck with the film.

Mandela: Thanks, Kam.

Mario: Cool, man, we’ll talk to you next time, brother.   

To see a trailer for We the Party, visit:  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=h0W9i6GvfPE 

To order a copy of We the Party on DVD, visit: 

http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/B007TAAZP4/ref=nosim/thslfofire-20

We the Party (DVD REVIEW)

 

We the Party

DVD Review by Kam Williams

DVD Features African-American Answer to American Pie

            It’s hard to ignore the parallels between We the Party and American Pie (1999). After all, the latter revolved around a quartet of horny, high school students competing to lose their virginity before graduation, and we find the testosterone-driven quintet at the center of We the Party in pursuit of the same rite of passage shortly before their senior prom.

            However, despite sharing that deceptively-identical point of departure, We the Party actually proceeds to morph into something far more substantial than males merely bonding around the attempt to mate indiscriminately. For, this inner-city dramedy seamlessly blends that rather raunchy theme with a timely cautionary tale about the pitfalls of failing to plan for one’s future. Plus, it has some inspired comedy and a cutting-edge score, featuring performances by a number of emerging hip-hop acts, including Pink Dollaz, The New Boyz and The Rej3ctz. 

            Unfolding like a 21^st Century answer to such African-American cinematic classics as House Party (1990) and Love Jones (1997), We the Party effectively captures the angst and aspirations of the Millennial Generation. Written and directed by Mario Van Peebles, the film stars his son, Mandela, as Hendrix Sutton, a kid more concerned with buying a flashy automobile and finding a girlfriend than with getting good grades and going on to college.

            This unfortunate focus frustrates his divorced parents to no end. After all, Hendrix’s father (Mario Van Peebles) teaches at his high school where his mom (Salli Richardson) is the principal. So, the slick slacker has to listen to endless lectures about the consequences of not applying himself academically.

            Still, Hendrix’s dad’s warning that “Minimum effort now means minimum wage later,” only falls on deaf ears since the recipient is a teenager with raging hormones. After all, his head has been hopelessly turned by cute classmate Cheyenne (Simone Battle). Yet, to land the girl of his dreams, he not only has to compete with a handsome jock, but he has to convince her “Ro-bro-cop” of a father (Michael Jai White) that his intentions are honorable.

            Meanwhile, Hendrix’s motley posse, Quicktime (Moises Arias), Chowder (Patrick Cage II), Que (Ryan Vigil) and Obama (Makaylo Van Peebles) are experiencing their own unique relationship drama during their separate searches for sexual satisfaction. Be forewarned, much of the R-rated humor here ventures to the crude, like when the boys mount a tiny camera on a shoe in order to look up girls’ dresses; and the language is both profane and peppered with the N-word.

            Look for Snoop Dogg, Tiny Lister and the director’s legendary father, Melvin Van Peebles, in supporting roles, although they’re not the reason to see We the Party. What makes the movie worth its while is its anti-materialistic message that one’s character is of far more import than where you live, what kind of car you drive, and your sexual conquests.    

            The African-American answer to American Pie!

Very Good (3 stars)

Rated R for profanity, sexuality, ethnic slurs and teen drug use.

Running time: 104 minutes

Distributor: Xlrator Media

DVD Extras: Feature-length commentary by director Mario Van Peebles, and stars Mandela and Makaylo Van Peebles, 4 music videos from the film, and the theatrical trailer.

To see a trailer for We the Party, visit:  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=h0W9i6GvfPE

Detropia (FILM REVIEW)

Detropia

Film Review by Kam Williams

Cautionary Expose’ Warns of Detroit’s Impending Demise 

            Heidi Ewing and Rachel Grady are a couple of inspired filmmakers who have kept their finger on the pulse since founding Loki Films a decade ago. Among the frequent collaborators’ timely offerings are such critically-acclaimed documentaries as Oscar-nominated Jesus Camp (2006), the NAACP Image Award-winning The Boys of Baraka (2005) and the Peabody Award-winning 12^th & Delaware (2010).

            The talented pair’s latest tour de force is Detropia, a pessimistic expose’ chronicling the blight which has permeated Detroit, an enveloping decay heralding the perhaps impending demise of a once prestigious metropolis. Whether a cautionary tale or already a post mortem, the picture is most reminiscent of Michael Moore’s Roger & Me (1989).

            However, instead of searching for a missing, Michigan auto industry executive responsible for outsourcing, Ewing & Grady simply sought to preserve for posterity stark images of a ghost town resulting from callous, corporate cost-cutting measures. Detropia carefully constructs an impressionistic cinematic collage of a disturbing dystopia, alternating back and forth between arresting tableaus of an aging, urban exoskeleton and the plaintive laments of citizens swept up in a desperate struggling for survival.

            For instance, we learn that so many manufacturing jobs have been downsized that half of Detroit’s population has disappeared into thin air. Consequently, it is easy to find entire city blocks virtually abandoned, where only a handful of homes remain occupied.   

            Exasperated Mayor Dave Bing, a former NBA star with the Detroit Pistons, freely acknowledges that he has 40 square miles of vacant land on his hands. And equally-frustrated George McGregor, President of a United Auto Workers Local 22, finds himself stuck between a rock and a hard place trying to negotiate with a multinational company more than willing to relocate union jobs to Mexico.

            Still, not all have lost hope in the midst of the misery. Consider the pranksters who altered the sign above a shuttered “AUTO PARTS” store to read “UTOPIA.” Then there are the picketing, performance artists dressed like decadent 1%ers who satirize the rich by demanding money of perturbed passersby.   

            A simultaneously surrealistic and sobering warning that the Motor City’s host of woes might be coming soon to a town near you.

Excellent (4 stars)

Unrated

Running time: 90 minutes

Distributor: Loki Films

To see a trailer for Detropia, visit: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6X1xZO95m2s 

Top Ten DVD Releases for 7-24-12

This Week’s DVD Releases

by Kam Williams

Top Ten DVD List for July 24^th                             

Inspector Morse 25^th Anniversary Collection

Masterpiece Mystery: Inspector Lewis – Series Five

Footnote

Kino Classics Presents: They Made Me a Fugitive

Friends with Kids

The Untouchables – Season Four, Volume One

The Girl from the Naked Eye

Silent House

Children’s Hospital – The Complete Third Season

On the Inside

Honorable Mention

My Way

Masterpiece Mystery: Endeavour

The Girl from the Naked Eye (DVD REVIEW)

 

The Girl from the Naked Eye

DVD Review by Kam Williams

Jason Yee Stars in Grisly Revenge Chopsocky

            Jake (Jason Yee) is a guy who let his gambling debts spiral out of control. Consequently, he’s lucky his bookie was willing to let him work off his debt by serving as a chauffeur and bodyguard for a mob-owned escort service run by a pimp named Simon (Ron Yuan) out of a whorehouse called the Naked Eye.

            Over the course of his brief tenure there, Jake develops feelings for a sweet, 16 year-old runaway (Samantha Streets), the proverbial hooker with a heart of gold. However, before their relationship has a chance to blossom, Sandy turns up dead.

            In the wake of the grim discovery, it becomes clear that nobody’s interested in solving the gruesome murder. So, Jake decides to take the law into his own hands, and proceeds to leave a bloody trail in his quest for the truth.

            That is the basic plotline of The Girl from the Naked Eye, an ambitious neo-noir by 25 year-old David Ren, a wunderkind who shot his directorial debut while still a teenager, aka the romantic comedy Shanghai Kiss (2007). Here, he makes the most of a modest budget via a visually-captivating whodunit laced with highly-stylized martial arts action.

            The movie’s play-by-play is narrated pulp fiction-style by the picture’s revenge-minded protagonist played by Jason Yee. The former World Kick-Boxing Champ also orchestrated the acrobatic fight sequences, and proves himself far more adapt at delivering punches than delivering dialogue.

            A compelling chopsocky made in America, featuring a homegrown matinee idol who might very well blossom into the next Bruce Lee.

Very Good (3 stars)

Rated R for violence, sexuality, ethnic slurs and pervasive profanity.

Running time: 84 minutes

Distributor: Millennium Media

Kam's movie Kapsules for 7-27-12

OPENING THIS WEEK

Kam's Kapsules:      

Weekly Previews That Make Choosing a Film Fun         

by Kam Williams

For movies opening July 27, 2012

BIG BUDGET FILMS

Step Up Revolution (PG-13 for profanity and sensuality) 4^th installment in the hip-hop, street dance series, set in Miami, revolves around the classically-trained daughter (Kathryn McCormick) of a wealthy businessman (Peter Gallagher) who falls in love with a flash mob choreographer (Ryan Guzman) trying to save his ‘hood from a developer’s wrecking ball. With Adam Sevani, Stephen Boss and Chadd Smith.

The Watch (R for violence, graphic sexuality and pervasive profanity) Sci-fi comedy about members of a neighborhood crime watch (Ben Stiller, Vince Vaughn, Jonah Hill and Richard Ayoade) who get more than they bargained for when they find themselves having to defend the planet from an alien invasion. With Rosemarie DeWitt, Will Forte and R. Lee Ermey.

INDEPENDENT & FOREIGN FILMS

Ai Weiwei: Never Sorry (R for profanity) Bamboo Curtain biopic about Beijing contemporary artist/political activist Ai Weiwei, a controversial democracy and human rights advocate who has been censored for publicly criticizing the Chinese government. Includes appearances by Danging Chen, Ying Gao and Changwei Gu. (In English and Mandarin with subtitles)

Big Boys Gone Bananas (Unrated) Free speech documentary about the legal battle mounted by the Dole Corporation to prevent a pair of filmmakers from airing an expose’ they made about the company’s poisoning of Nicaraguan farm workers. With Alex Rivera, Alfonso Allende, Arvid Jurjaks and Bernt Hermele. (In English and Swedish with subtitles)

Falling Overnight (Unrated) Bittersweet love story about a 22 year-old cancer patient (Parker Croft) who shares a one-night stand with a pretty photographer (Emilia Zoryan) the day before he’s scheduled for brain surgery. Cast includes Jake Olson, Elizabeth Levin and Bubba Ganter.

Killer Joe (NC-17 for nudity, brutality, graphic sexuality and disturbing violence) Oscar-winner William Friedkin (for The French Connection) directs this screen adaptation of Tracy Letts’ play of the same name about a cash-strapped gambler (Emile Hirsch) indebted to the mob who hires a cop (Matthew McConaughey) to murder his mother for her life insurance. With Gina Gershon, Juno Temple and Thomas Haden Church.

Klown (R for profanity, drug use, frontal nudity and graphic sexuality) Unlikely buddy comedy about a daddy-to-be (Frank Hvam) who takes his pregnant fiancee’s (Mia Lyhne) 12 year-old nephew (Marcuz Jess Petersen) on a wild canoe trip to prove himself ready for fatherhood. Featuring Casper Christensen, Mads Lisby and Tina Bilsbo. (In Danish with subtitles) 

The Lion of Judah (PG for mature themes) Faith-based animated adventure about the attempt of a brave lamb (Georgina Cordova) along with his stable mates to avoid the sacrificial altar at Easter time. Voice cast includes Michael Madsen (Virginia’s brother), Scott Eastwood (Clint’s son), Omar Benson Miller and the late Ernest Borgnine.

Planet of Snail (Unrated) Endearing documentary chronicling the day-to-day struggle to survive of deaf and blind Young-Chan and his wife, Soon-ho, who suffers from a debilitating spinal disease. (In Korean with subtitles)

Rites of Spring (Unrated) Payback horror flick about a gang of kidnappers whose plan to kidnap the daughter of a wealthy businessman goes horribly wrong when they have the tables turned on them by a relentless killing machine. Principal cast includes AJ Bowen, Anessa Ramsey, Marco St. John and Hannah Bryan.

Ruby Sparks (R for profanity, sexual references and drug use) Mind-over-matter romantic comedy about a lonely novelist with writer’s block (Paul Dano) who magically materializes the perfect mate for himself by willing one of his character (Zoe Kazan) to life. With Antonio Banderas, Annette Bening, Elliott Gould and Steve Coogan. (In English and French with subtitles)

Sacrifice (Unrated) Screen adaptation of the play “The Orphan of Zhao,” a historical drama, set in ancient China, about the sole survivor (Zhao Wenhau) of a massacre who is raised like a son by an embittered doctor (Ge You) and trained to avenge the murder of their entire clan. With Xueqi Wang, Bingbing Fan and Xiaoming Huang. (In Mandarin with subtitles)

Searching for Sugar Man (Unrated) Flash in the pan documentary about a couple of diehard fans from South Africa who embark on a search for the whereabouts of Sixto Rodriquez, a one-hit wonder from Detroit remembered for the 1967 single, “I’ll Slip Away.”