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It’s the summer of “Blaxploitation, Baby!,” the latest festival hosted by Film Forum.

The indie theater announced the upcoming festival which will take place August 16 through August 22. The program celebrates the early ‘70s genre of Black cinema, and features films wth iconic movie stars Pam Grier, Richard Roundtree, Ron O’Neal, Tamara Dobson, Jim Brown, Vonetta McGee, Fred Williamson, Isaac Hayes, and more.

“Blaxploitation, Baby!” is dedicated to author and pioneering film historian Donald Bogle, who collaborated on Film Forum’s first Blaxploitation festival in 1995. Bogle credited Melvin Van Peebles’ filmography for helping to establish the genre. “Blaxploitation, Baby!” additionally ranges from works from directors such as Ossie Davis, Gordon Parks, and Gordon Parks Jr.

As well as the screenings, the festival will include the sales of critic and historian Odie Henderson’s “Black Caesars and Foxy Cleopatras: A History of Blaxploitation” and Donald Bogle’s acclaimed TCM book “Hollywood Black” at concessions.

Although he only made two fiction features, filmmaker Michael Roemer benefited greatly from an early rediscovery in the 1990s, thanks to the fortuitous unearthing of a film he made in 1969, The Plot Against Harry, a wry, dry comedy starring Martin Priest. His other film, 1964’s Nothing But a Man, is often compared by critics to the slicker, middle-America-friendly films that Sidney Poitier was making during the same era. Almost without exception, film about the minority experience in ’60s America were smoothed-over paeans to “the triumph of the human spirit,” starring or co-starring whites whose presence is required as witnesses, arbiters, and the final, thankful beneficiaries of growth and change. Bland but well-meaning, films like Guess Who’s Coming to Dinner? and A Patch of Blue, seeking to instruct the white moviegoer by giving them a diagrammatic path to sociopolitical enlightenment, had a funny habit of discounting, even nullifying, the Black experience.

A superb thriller is now better than ever on 4K. We’ve always known why it rewards viewings: it’s both thrilling and funny. When Robert Shaw, Martin Balsam and Hector Elizondo hijack a subway train, Walter Matthau must scramble to collect a ransom while trying to figure out how they’ll make their escape. Peter Stone’s dialogue is delightful — the loud & mouthy ’70s New Yorkers are hilariously abrasive — and lovable. “Who wants to know?!!!” Includes a Blu-ray disc and a new commentary.

The Taking of Pelham One Two Three 4K

4K Ultra HD + Blu-ray

Kl Studio Classics

1974 / Color B&w / 2:35 widescreen / 104 min. / Street Date December 20, 2022 / available through Kino Lorber / 39.95

Starring Walter Matthau, Robert Shaw, Martin Balsam, Hector Elizondo, Earl Hindman, James Broderick, Dick O’Neill, Lee Wallace, Tom Pedi, Jerry Stiller, Rudy Bond, Kenneth McMillan, Doris Roberts, Julius Harris,Robert Weil.

Cinematography Owen Roizman

Original Music David Shire...

Dino De Laurentiis took a lot of flack for his underwhelming remake of the incomparable 1933 horror classic, which he promoted into a monster-sized hit. Nothing could eclipse the original but the good casting still appeals. An honest ad campaign would have leaned on two points: See Jeff Bridges and Charles Grodin carry an insultingly ugly production like real stars! See ‘newcomer’ Jessica Lange play a sexualized ditz so well that she retains her dignity! …and most importantly, See the biggest special effects fraud ever perpetrated on movie screens! Umbrella Entertainment from Australia puts this one back in print, on Blu-ray.

King Kong (1976)

Region B Blu-ray

Umbrella Entertainment

1976 / Color / 2:35 widescreen / 134 min. / Street Date November 4, 2020 / Available at Umbrella Enertainment 19.95 (au)

Starring: Jeff Bridges, Charles Grodin, Jessica Lange, Rick Baker, Rene Auberjonois, Julius Harris, Jack O’Halloran, Ed Lauter, John Agar.

Cinematography: Richard Kline

Film Editor: Ralph E. Winters

Production design: Mario Chiari,...

Nathaniel Taylor, the actor who played Rollo Lawson on the 1970s sitcom “Sanford and Son,” died Feb. 27 at the Ronald Reagan UCLA Medical Center after suffering a heart attack. He was 80.

As part of the recurring cast on “Sanford and Son,” Taylor appeared in 32 episodes from 1972 through 1977. Taylor’s character, Rollo Lawson, was Lamont Sanford’s best friend and often a target of Fred Sanford’s ire, who believed Rollo was a criminal since he had spent time in jail. Taylor went on to have a role as part of the main cast in season one of the short-lived “Sanford and Son” spinoff “Sanford,” which aired from March 1980 to June 1981.

Taylor also appeared in “Sanford and Son” star Redd Foxx’s eponymous sitcom, “The Redd Foxx Show,” as the first version of Jim-Jam. The series was canceled after 12 episodes due to low ratings.

In addition to his work in the “Sanford” universe,...

1986: Capitol's Clarissa found a voodoo doll in her bed.

1994: Gh's Bobbie & Tony mourned Bj on her birthday.

2010: The "Train Crash" episode of Emmerdale.

2011: One Life to Live's Cord & Tina revisited the past."The best prophet of the future is the past."

― Lord Byron

"Today in Soap Opera History" is a collection of the most memorable, interesting and influential events in the history of scripted, serialized programs. From birthdays and anniversaries to scandals and controversies, every day this column celebrates the soap opera in American culture.

On this date in...

1966: On Dark Shadows, Burke Devlin (Mitchell Ryan) told Carolyn (Nancy Barrett) that Roger Collins (Louis Edmonds) may have kept the expensive fountain pen for himself on the night Bill Malloy died.

1970: On Another World, Rachel (Robin Strasser) cried to Steve (George Reinholt) that their sick little boy, Jamie, would die as punishment for her sins.

Stars: Deborah Foreman, Sam J. Jones, Sean McClory, Howard Hesseman, E. G. Marshall, Penn Jillette, Teller, John O’Leary, Julius Harris, Laurie Main | Written and Directed by David Beaird

Casey Meadows (Deborah Foreman) is a young and free-spirited girl who although full of spunk and ambition – is trapped in a Californian restaurant cleaning dishes as well as trying to clean the crust off the idea of the American Dream. With seemingly no hope aside from sinking evermore deeper in to the scummy dishwater before her – Casey’s life may be on the up. One day at work, she receives a letter from a company named Brentwood Limousine Agency – the Rolls-Royce of Limousine Services – offering her a role as one of their drivers. Excited by the prospect of being part of such a prestigious organisation (and all that sick dough of course!), Casey takes no time in turning up for her first day of work.

A special edition of this confirmed '70s crowd pleaser?  I'm there. Robert Shaw has big plans to hijack a New York subway car, and subway cop Walter Matthau is determined to stop him. The Taking of Pelham One Two Three 42nd Anniversary Special Edition Blu-ray Kl Studio Classics 1974 / Color / 2:35 widescreen / 104 min. / Street Date July 5, 2016 / available through Kino Lorber / 29.95 1974 / Color / 2:35 widescreen / 104 min. / Street Date November 1, 2011 / 19.99 Starring Walter Matthau, Robert Shaw, Martin Balsam, Hector Elizondo, Earl Hindman, James Broderick, Dick O'Neill, Lee Wallace, Tom Pedi, Jerry Stiller, Rudy Bond, Kenneth McMillan, Doris Roberts, Julius Harris. Cinematography Owen Roizman Original Music David Shire Written by Peter Stone from the novel by John Godey Produced by Gabriel Katzka, Edgar J. Sherick Directed by Joseph Sargent

Reviewed by Glenn Erickson

I reviewed an MGM-Fox Blu-ray of United Artists' The Taking of Pelham One Two Three back in late 2011, and I can't...

It is no secret that Roger Moore holds the record as the actor who played James Bond the most, his tally an impressing 7. There are a bevy of reasons why this was the case, the most obvious being that each one of his films were massive financial successes, the only bump in the road being his second outing, The Man With the Golden Gun, which itself speaks to the immense stature of the franchise when the film that earns 97 million dollars is the ‘bump in the road.’ There was a shift in tone that permeated in the Bond films once Roger Moore took over the mantle from Sean Connery. Whereas the latter brought toughness and grittiness to his interpretation of the famous super spy all the while proving to be as smooth as butter, the former injected some light comedic flair. It was definitely still James Bond on the screen,...

The James Bond series - based on Ian Fleming's spy novels - is one of cinema's biggest ever film franchises, thrilling fans now for over half a century.

1962's Dr No and the following year's From Russia with Love lay the groundwork, but it was with 1964's Goldfinger that the 007 movies became a true global phenomenon.

A 50th anniversary Blu-ray re-issue of the Sean Connery classic is available to buy from today (Monday, September 22). To mark the occasion, Digital Spy explores how Goldfinger shaped Bond as we know and love him.

1. The Extravagant Pre-Titles Sequence

The previous film, From Russia with Love, was in fact the first Bond to feature a pre-titles sequence. But that scene, which saw Robert Shaw's Red Grant stalk and kill a 007 impersonator, was short and simple - and didn't even feature the real Bond.

Goldfinger was the first film to take full advantage...

Chicago – What to Watch is back! Miss us? Every week, we roll out 5-10 of the latest films and TV shows to be released on DVD, Blu-ray, and various streaming services. This week’s highlights include a few classics, a cult hit, a couple of recent comedies, and a family flick. In the order we’d advise buying or renting them…

The Vivien Leigh Anniversary Collection

Photo credit: Cohen Media Group

“The Vivien Leigh Anniversary Collection”

Another Wtw, another Cohen Media Group release. Seriously, the good folks at Cohen have been doing an amazing job of finding relatively obscure classics and recent foreign films and polishing them like they’re beloved worldwide. They’re rivaling Criterion and Scream Factory as studios for which every release truly matters. Their latest is a collection of four early films from the legendary Vivien Leigh, an actress best-known for “Gone with the Wind” and a true Hollywood icon.

It won’t take a historian to convince you how turbulent the political atmosphere was in the 1960s — simply look at the American cinema for proof. There had been an influx of the film with the residue of McCarthyism (The Manchurian Candidate), spy thrillers with the looming threat of the Russians (From Russia with Love), and the deep-seated fear of nuclear apocalypse (Dr. Strangelove). These were films about professionals and about the jobs the men in high positions carried out with our voices and votes at a passive distance. The United States’ personal struggle, one dealt with on a day-to-day basis by the average citizen, was the civil rights movement, a stark attempt of reconciliation of the nation’s troubled past by affirming a real equality for black citizens — a cultural as well as legal battle. Cinema’s visual representation for African Americans at this point was throwing Sidney Poitier into a Hollywood production,...

He fled the Nazis for a British boarding school – then made a shocking drama about segregation in the deep south. Michael Roemer talks fate, family and sadistic governesses

The first time Michael Roemer set foot in the American south, something pinged in his brain. He had never been there before; he grew up in Germany and Britain, but that day in segregated Alabama in the early 1960s, "I recognised everything. It was immediate. I said, 'Oh, I know this. I know what this feels like.'"

In the last 10 days, I have seen three films by Roemer: two documentaries and Nothing But a Man, his first feature, shot in 1963. The documentaries – Dying, a short piece following three people in the last few months of their lives; and Cortile Cascino, a study of a slum in Palermo, Sicily – are 40 years old and hard to get hold of. Nothing But a Man...

Blue Jasmine | Prisoners | Greedy Lying Bastards | Mister John | Hannah Arendt | Runner Runner | It's A Lot | Girl Most Likely | Smash & Grab: The Story Of The Pink Panther | Austenland

Blue Jasmine (12A)

(Woody Allen, 2013, Us) Cate Blanchett, Alec Baldwin, Peter Sarsgaard. 98 mins

In the downward trajectory of late-era Allen comes a startling spike to remind us how great he still can be, especially when it comes to women's roles. This show belongs to Blanchett, playing a Manhattan one-percenter brought down to earth. Propped up by alcohol, drugs and her sister, she's an accident that's already happening, and a magnificent, tragicomic creation.

Prisoners (15)

(Denis Villeneuve, 2013, Us) Hugh Jackman, Jake Gyllenhaal, Paul Dano. 153 mins

A kidnapping case refuses to crack in this weighty, slippery whodunit.

Greedy Lying Bastards (12A)

(Craig Scott Rosebraugh, 2012, Us) 90 mins

Climate-change deniers get a dose of their own medicine, as this impassioned doc lays out a history of hypocrisy.

Mister John (15)

(Christine Molloy,...

We’ve known that Blue Underground has been working on bringing the Maniac Cop sequels to Blu-ray, but now we have an official release date, cover art, and details on extras.Both movies will be available on November 19th in separate Blu-ray/DVD combo packs. Each movie has been digitally remastered, optimized for D-Box systems, and comes with a number of bonus features:

Maniac Cop 2: The “Maniac Cop” is back from the dead and stalking the streets of New York once more. Officer Matt Cordell was once a hero, but after being framed by corrupt superiors and brutally assaulted in prison, he sets out on a macabre mission of vengeance, teaming up with a vicious serial killer to track down those that wronged him and make them pay… with their lives!

Robert Davi (License To Kill), Claudia Christian (The Hidden), Michael Lerner (Barton Fink), Laurene Landon (Hundra), Leo Rossi...

After all the debates, controversies, and stereotype accusations have cleared, looking back on Blaxploitation cinema today it’s easy to see healthy portions of the crime and action genres. Using these genres and the struggles of the black community, these films were created for those that wanted to see African American characters on the big screen not taking shit from the man, “getting over”, and–above all else—being the heroes in movies. In the documentary Baad Asssss Cinema, Samuel L. Jackson gives his take on the heroes of Blaxploitation: “We were tired of seeing the righteous black man. And all of a sudden we had guys who were…us. Or guys who did the things we wanted those guys to do.”

The unsung supporting players in these films that backed Fred Williamson and Pam Grier and many other stars were people acting and making a living off of it.

It is no secret that Roger Moore holds the record as the actor who played James Bond the most, his tally an impressing 7. There are a bevy of reasons why this was the case, the most obvious being that each one of his films were massive financial successes, the only bump in the road being his second outing, The Man With the Golden Gun, which itself speaks to the immense stature of the franchise when the film that earns 97 million dollars is the ‘bump in the road.’ There was a shift in tone that permeated in the Bond films once Roger Moore took over the mantle from Sean Connery. Whereas the latter brought toughness and grittiness to his interpretation of the famous super spy all the while proving to be as smooth as butter, the former injected some light comedic flair. It was definitely still James Bond on the screen,...

James Bond 007 Declassified File #8: "Live And Let Die" This series will trace the cinema history of James Bond, while also examining Ian Fleming's original novels as source material and examining how faithful (or not) the films have been to his work. Directed by Guy Hamilton Screenplay by Tom Mankiewicz Produced by Harry Saltzman and Albert R. Broccoli Characters / Cast James Bond / Roger Moore Dr. Kananga aka Mr. Big / Yaphet Kotto Solitaire / Jane Seymour Tee Hee Johnson / Julius Harris Felix Leiter / David Hedison Rosie Carver / Gloria Hendry Baron Samedi / Geoffrey Holder Quarrel...

The folks behind the St. Louis Black Film Festival Presents a Classic Black Film Double Feature for Black History Month at Landmark’s Tivoli Theater (6350 Delmar in St. Louis’ Loop) each Thursday in February. Last year the St. Louis Black Film Festival presented a series of new films by black filmmakers, but this year are going back into the vaults and digging out some vintage cinema for audiences with an interest in black history to enjoy on the big screen.

The final offerings for festival are screened this Thursday, February 23rd. The movies are A Raisin In The Sun at 5pm and Super Fly at 7pm.

A Raisin In The Sun (1961) is based on the first play on Broadway ever written by a black woman, Lorraine Hansberry and some of the events written in A Raisin In The Sun were experienced by her personally, most particularly her own family’s...

I consider myself fairly versed in Black/Black cast films, especially obscure tv ones, so it came to my surprise to find Booker, a 1984 movie about Booker T. Washington’s youth in the South at the end of the Civil War and after, directed by now-super Director/Producer/Exec. Producer Stan Lathan and starring no other than ‘Dudley’ from Diff’rent Strokes, regular S&A commenter Shavar Ross. Also starring some of my favorite actors like LeVar Burton, Cch Pounder and Julius Harris, it also starred notables like Thalmus Rasulala, Shelly Duvall & Judge Reinhold.

coincidentally, the best image I could get is from Shavar Ross' website

The synopsis and some history, as quoted from Booker’s IMDb listing:

Set in the 1860’s South, Booker is the impassioned story of the boy who struggled through slavery to found the Tuskegee Institute. Through the eyes of nine-year-old Booker T. Washington, viewers...

Sundance Channel will be kicking off its Black History Month in February with Harry Roemer's 1964 drama "Nothing But a Man" and an original five-part series "Brick City."

On February 2, the network will start the celebration with "Nothing But a Man." Considered to be one of film's finest explorations of black life in America, the film centers on an African American man who wants to be treated as "nothing but a man," instead of just a boy. Ivan Dixon, Abbey Lincoln, Julius Harris, and Gloria Foster star.

After the film, the first installment of "Brick City" will air at 7 p.m. Et/Pt. The original series will capture the daily drama of Newark, New Jersey residents.

The series will run throughout all Tuesdays of February.