Betty and Coretta
I want to apologize for our absences. As you know, life gets clustered and busy. But I have been paying attention to your lives and blogs, even if I haven't made my presence known and I know the same goes for the fellows.
I have watched more interesting, better done, better written, and read better material in my absence, but I really wanted to see if you guys had any opinion on this film or Topic. Two Strong Sisters brought together by tragedy. Betty Shabazz, the widow of the changing and less violent preaching (at his end....which ultimately is what got him killed) Malcolm X and of course the non-stop force of peace and energy not just for the black movement but the woman's movement, Coretta Scott King.
Ironically enough, in this film released last week, Coretta is played with outstanding and reliable eloquence and strength (as usual) by Angela Bassett who TWENTY YEARS AGO played Betty Shabazz in Malcolm X, starring Denzel Washington. I'm telling you either that woman is a vampire or found what Ponce De Leon could not, because she looks like two years, not two decades have passed!!
I knew more about Dr. King than I did Malcolm X, I am ashamed to admit. Yet after this film, I did some research and reading. That's how I discovered that he was gunned down by his OWN PEOPLE simply because he wanted to start preaching a little more about peace, as most of the world did in '64 and '65. I was very shocked by this. I am such a history buff yet somehow that event had escaped my knowledge until now. If the film's aim was to enlighten some 'white folk' to some important Black History, than Bravo, well done.
HOWEVER, even with Angela Bassett as the widow King and a beautiful Mary J. Blidge as Malcolm's widow (she even co-produced) this is still a LIFETIME movie and will try to catch that feminine audience. It's their demographic PLUS it's a tale of a friendship between two VERY important, strong, and beautiful woman. So if you feel like you see some soap seeping in....recall the source. I will make one last observation: Malik Yoba, whom we knew as "Bill" from the show "Alphas" played Dr. King SOOOOO well, and it's 80 percent with his voice. The interesting thing, is they don't show him preaching, they show him at home, talking in his normal tone of voice, with his family. And CHILLS went all through my body throughout his short, but truly memorable performance. GREAT casting choice... Fantastic!
Any other thoughts of movies that anyone would recommend, whether they deal with Black History Month or not?!? It's the Cineaste way of asking 'Read any good books lately?!?'
I miss and love you all.
::Flashes the peace-sign...then her knickers::
Zuzu
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