John David Washington – ALLIANCE OF WOMEN FILM JOURNALISTS

THE PIANO LESSON – Review by Diane Carson

November 8, 2024 Diane Carson august wilson, Corey Hawkins, Danielle Deadwyler, denzel washington, John David Washington, Malcolm Washington, Michael Potts, netflix, Ray Fisher, samuel l. jackson, The Piano Lesson

Director Malcolm Washington’s adaptation of August Wilson’s The Piano Lesson infuses humor as an uplifting complement to the incisive and insightful commentary on racism, family ties, spirituality, and profound but endangered friendships. Set during the Great Migration, centered on the revered, inherited piano, the family’s and friends’ reactions differ. Boy Willie wants to sell it for, to him, a noble purpose: the dream of owning his own land as a free man. His sister, young widow Berniece, cannot fathom such disrespect for the spirits embodied in and carved into this venerated piano. Events and subplots punctuate their conflict: a potential romance, drinking and playing cards, a visit to a lively bar, and, most significantly, the presence of a credibly malevolent ghost that haunts their history.

Reviews

THE CREATOR – Review by Valerie Kalfrin

September 29, 2023September 30, 2023 Valerie Kalfrin Allison Janney, chris weitz, Gareth Edwards, gemma chan, John David Washington, The Creator

Gareth Edwards’ The Creator, is a mixed bag. It’s a visually stunning, intriguing tale with echoes of the Vietnam War and science-fiction classics such as 1982’s Blade Runner. Yet in crafting a world where artificial intelligence—and simulated people—have branched into every aspect of life, the film leaves little room for nuance. In a nutshell, most humans in The Creator are bad, and the good robots just want to live in peace.

Reviews

THE CREATOR – Review by Susan Granger

September 27, 2023September 30, 2023 Susan Granger Allison Janney, chris weitz, Gareth Edwards, gemma chan, John David Washington, The Creator

British filmmaker Gareth Edwards’ ambitious The Creator abounds with extraordinary visuals, utilizing the very best technology available today – which is why it’s a shame that he neglects to supply an intriguing plot to support his timely spectacle. It’s all about Hollywood’s current obsession with artificial intelligence, exploring AI’s utopian and dystopian possibilities.

Reviews

AMSTERDAM – Review by T.J. Callahan

October 4, 2022October 6, 2022 T. J. Callahan Amsterdam, anya taylor joy, christian bale, David O. Russell, John David Washington, Margot Robbie, rami malek, robert deniro

The cast of Amsterdam reads like an Irwin Allen disaster picture lineup…Christian Bale, Margot Robbie, John David Washington, Rami Malek, Robert DeNiro, Anya Taylor-Joy, Mike Myers, Michael Shannon, Chris Rock, Zoe Saldana, Ed Begley, Jr, Timothy Olyfant and Taylor Swift…and like the Poseidon Adventure, this film is a sinking ship that barely manages to stay afloat.

Reviews

MONSTER – Review by Martha K Baker

May 7, 2021May 7, 2021 Martha K. Baker (Archived Contributor) anthony mandler, jenifer hudson, Jennifer Ehle, John David Washington, kelvin harrison, monster, tim blake nelson

Monster is a remarkable film about a filmmaker, Steve Harmon. He is 17 and Black. He is bright, inquisitive, a good son to good parents. He is a model big brother. But the prosecutor at his trial labels Steve Harmon a monster. The voice of this so-called monster denies the label.

Reviews

MALCOLM & MARIE – Review by Susan Granger

February 24, 2021February 24, 2021 Susan Granger John David Washington, malcolm & marie, sam levinson, zendaya

After winning an Emmy as a stressed-out teenage addict on HBO’s Euphoria, Zendaya was ready to go to work on the second season – but then COVID-19 sent everyone home. So she decided to make a movie. Actually, she was approached by Sam Levinson, creator of Euphoria. He was working on a script about a rising director named Malcolm and his much-younger girl-friend Marie, who get into a long argument late at night after the Los Angeles premiere of his new movie.

Reviews

MALCOLM AND MARIE – Review by Martha K Baker

January 29, 2021January 29, 2021 Martha K. Baker (Archived Contributor) John David Washington, malcolm and marie, netflix, sam levinson, zendaya

The titular pugilists have retired to their glass house after the premiere of Malcolm’s movie. Wifelike Marie prepares mac ‘n’ cheese for her hungry man while he teases apart the evening.. Malcolm and Marie is Friday Night Fights without ring, gloves, or bloody blows. Love and hate pound a tattoo throughout and as terraced dynamics in Liberation over the credits.

Reviews

TENET – Review by Susan Granger

December 30, 2020January 3, 2021 Susan Granger Christopher Nolan, Clemence Poesy, Elizabeth Debicki, John David Washington, kenneth Branagh

Even the best filmmakers make colossal blunders, and this comes from Christopher Nolan (Inception, Memento, The Dark Knight trilogy). A $200+ million mistake on top of a miscalculation. In the midst of the pandemic, Nolan insisted that his sprawling, unfathomable sci-fi action-adventure be released in multiplexes despite the fact that people are more susceptible to the coronavirus when congregating indoors.

Reviews

TENET – Review by Leslie Combemale

September 8, 2020September 13, 2020 Leslie Combemale 0 Comments Christopher Nolan, Elizabeth Debicki, John David Washington, kenneth Branagh, Robert Pattinson, tenet

Fans of writer/director Christopher Nolan are not strangers to bent time, trippy constructs in physics, or highbrow filmmaking. Unfortunately, all that wizardry can’t make up for the lack of character development and mental gymnastics required to buy into and stick with the story of Tenet.

Reviews

BLACKkKLANSMAN – Review by Martha P. Nochimson

December 21, 2018 Martha P. Nochimson (Archived Contributor) 0 Comments Adam Driver, blackkklansman, eye on media, John David Washington, laura harrier, spike lee

In Blackkklansman, a movie with a title that makes it sound like it’s a Mel Brooks high concept farce from the 1970’s, Spike Lee Has dipped back into historical events that began in 1978 to hold the mirror up to the dangerous racial chaos of America in 2018. And it’s no farce. At the same time, both Lee’s film and the book of the same name on which it is based, a memoir by a black undercover police detective, Ron Stallworth, working in Colorado Springs, do create cognitive dissonance. A black man in the Klan? How?

← Previous