Sankofa Chicago - Powerful US Black History and Black Future Documentary

 

The past, present, and future of African Americans and Black Americans is often a hard topic for so many in the modern US. From the issue of Black history and how it is (or is not) taught in schools to contemporary problems like biased police practices or street violence, there are a lot of subjects that impact and shape the future of everyone, but especially children, in the same communities. Sankofa Chicago is a documentary by director and producer Vanessa Page Wright that wants to tackle these issues in a single, unified cinematography work.

The documentary focuses on the idea of Sankofa, a concept that underlines the need to know history to be able to comprehend the current time. Set in Chicago, a huge US city that embodies many successes but also massive challenges of the Black community, the film shares very personal narratives of people like local leaders, scholars, and ordinary individuals who experienced the US Black history as a part of their everyday lives.

Thanks to the huge experience of Wright, who is a former Talent Agent who switched to filmmaking, Sankofa Chicago really offers a unique mixture of voices from the past and voices of the future. The first belongs to people who experienced so much Black history firsthand, while the children of the film present their honest views of the present and their aspirations for an uncertain future.

All of this combines into a potent mixture that showcases the concept of Black history, not only as an academic notion but as a very real and alive aspect of so many US communities. That makes Sankofa Chicago a powerful documentary that is more than needed in the present day and age. Follow it on its official website and go see it as soon as you can!

MiP: The Journey Across the Universe - Unique Upcoming Cinematographic Experience

Independent films, especially short ones, often try to focus on everyday topics. However, other projects do the exact opposite and try to soar as high and as far as possible. MiP: The Journey Across the Universe is one such cinematographic undertaking and it promises a truly unique experience. Written and directed by Jason Wexler, the same short film was made in Blender and Element3D, while it uses the music of the legendary band Pink Floyd. Through the same tunes and sounds, it creates an intense psychedelic space-rock experience. Check out its trailer right here:

In the film, the main storyline revolves around MiP, a small alien robot that has the job of assisting evolution, including life on planet Earth. The film is a prequel to the movie VGHW, which came out in 2022, and which details the arrival of the same robot to our planet. You can watch the entire VGHW film here as well:

MiP: The Journey Across The Universe sets out to explore the nature and origin of MiP, but do it in an immersive and thought-provoking manner, especially thanks to the soundtrack of Pink Floyd. Clearly, Jason Wexler built a unique and touching experience and there is no doubt in my mind that all fans of exotic inner and outer spaces will enjoy the film immensely when it comes out on December 30th, 2023.

Two Paragraph Review: Last Sentinel (2023)

 

Great thing about sci-fi is the fact that you can do a lot with little. Coherence is a perfect example, which remains a fantastic movie years after its original release. However, there are still many other movies that simply fail to do much with its premise, leaving the viewers in the low-budget, low-expectation zone. They are straight to video material that is forgotten as soon as it is seen.

Last Sentinel is an odd film that kind of falls between these two categories. It is a story of a military outpost in an endless sea that has become planet Earth in the 2060s. Global war ensues among the two surviving landmasses even though the winner will turn into water sooner or later. In that gloomy setting, a cast of four manages to pull off an interesting thriller which is similar to a lifeboat scenario, but still has a big narrative element up its sleeve. Yet, at the same time, it never manages to pack a full punch to use its solid cast at any memorable level. Instead, the Last Sentinel is not as bad as it could first seem, but neither is it as good as it might have been with a few more risks in its original script

Two Paragraph Review: Luther: The Fallen Sun (2023)

The latest installment of the Lurther franchise is a great example of something no one asked for and where everyone got something very jumbled up. The mess that is Luther: The Fallen Sun ends in a completely unpalatable contraption that tries a lot of stuff but pulls off something like a bad fan-made sequel to the Hostel horror series.

In the film, Idris Elba returns as DCI John Lurther and gets back to the streets directly from prison in an effort to stop a serial killer. This killer, played by the wonderful (but ultimately useless for this film) Andy Serkis, has the capabilities of a large international terrorist organization. However, he wants to employ it for unclear and shifting goals, which kind of boil down to YouTube for pain and suffering. The movie’s big snow-covered finale leaves the viewers with the same thought as many actors probably had: what were the creators of this film actually thinking and what am I doing here?

Gus & Gia Puppet Show - Excellent Online-based Puppet Show

The world is seemingly changing at a staggering speed, but whatever the times might be, it still needs great entertainment content for kids. Today, like in any other time in history, the things that children enjoy while they grow up is one of the most important elements that shape them as futur adults. Here, some tried and tested formats often work better than any cutting-edge technology, which is why things like puppet shows still can completely enchant kids watching them. Gus & Gia Puppet Show is one such show and it manages to do a marvelous job. Check out one of the Gus & Gia episodes right here:

The entire show is a perfect example of a traditional puppet show that uses the best of modern tech. It is based on a Rumble and YouTube channel by the same name and offers amazing content for the entire family to enjoy. The show is based on the characters of Gus and Gia, brother and sister who love to read books, learn new things, talk with each other, and do so much more. The mixture offers viewers both a chance to enjoy their humor and pure entertainment, but also to learn interesting new things.

The show is produced and directed by Alexa Jade Lohman, while puppeteers are Jason Lohman as Gus, Kimberly Lohman as Gia. The entire family is beyond talented, creating previously works like the interesting Rescue, a film with a very somber but important topic. With Gus & Gia Puppet Show, the focus is completely different, but still offers incredibly high-quality content, in this case for the whole family to enjoy.

Find out more about the show on its official website and support it directly to keep it independent. Of course, before you do any of that, check out Gus & Gia Puppet Show on Rumble and YouTube right now and enjoy their numerous antics!

Two Paragraph Review: Knock at the Cabin (2023)

M. Night Shyamalan is one of the last truly wonderful Wheels of Fortune in Holywood when it comes to film quality. The man is just as capable of creating so-bad-it's-good stuff like The Happening as he is open to really impressive films like The Visit. Recently, he spun that cinematic wheel yet again.

Knock at the Cabin sits somewhat between those two categories at its start, but then slides into the awful territory quite easily. Through this tale of the ending of the world being steered by acts of voluntary violence and self-harm, the film tries to talk about love and sacrifice. Instead, it ends up talking about weird, clunky rituals with crappy gardening tools that are universe-forming for some reason, but still feel incredibly stupid. Thus, the latest film from M. Night Shyamalan is anything but impressive, even though a strong cast makes this spin of the wheel bearable to watch.