Joyful Noise - 2012

Alcon Entertainment, Farrell Paura Productions, Gospel Truth Pictures

Directed by Todd Graff

Cast:

• Vi Rise Hill – Queen Latifah
• G. G. Sparrow – Dolly Parton
• Olivia Hill – Keke Palmer
• Randy Garrity – Jeremy Jordan
• Walter Hill – Dexter Darden
• Pastor Dale – Courtney B. Vance
• Marcus Hill – Jesse L. Martin
• Bernard Sparrow – Kris Kristofferson

Story: A small town church choir competes every year in the “Joyful Noise” national choir competition. After the loss of their director, Pastor Dale must choose a new leader. The committee chooses, Vi Rose Hill, the assistant director, over G. G. Sparrow, the director's widow and the major supporter of the church. Vi Rose is a single mother, raising two teenagers alone, and she is very rigid and stubborn person. Olivia, her daughter, is a good girl who is not allowed to date at 16 years old and is attracted to G. G.'s grandson. G. G. is a member of the choir and wants to introduce more modern music and styles to the choir, and when her grandson, Randy, comes to live with her, she hopes his involvement will help to sway the tide in her direction. But Vi Rose and Pastor Dale are unconvinced, and G. G., Randy, Olivia, and the rest of the choir must overcome many hurdles to get Vi Rose to see the light.

Review: A return to a Great Family film without cartoons! Lots of great music, incredibly beautiful scenery, exceptional performances, and that's all in the first five minutes! Seriously, a movie like this comes along once every couple of years, and the words “feel good” are usually attached to the comments made by the critics. If you can't feel good after seeing this, you need to have someone check your pulse and respiration. Queen Latifah, the former rapper who has come far beyond her humble beginning, is wonderful as Vi Rose Hill, a mother trying to raise two children in this scary world. Dolly Parton shines out as the old country woman who has seen all the changes, lost her husband of many years, and is still keeping the faith. Her charm shines through in every scene she is in, and that means you get a lot of down home country charm. Add in the veteran actors, Courtney B. Vance as the pragmatic pastor of this small town flock, and Jessie L. Martin as the absent husband of Vi Rose, trying to support his family in a troubled economy. Newcomers Keke Palmer and Jeremy Jordan are terrific as the teens who are trying to figure out their place and what to do about the attraction they feel. The plot is fresh, the dialog fun, and the film keeps your interest without once having to shoot anyone or blow up anything. Rated PG-13 (?) for a supposedly sexual reference, I personally think every member of the family will be tapping their toes and singing along where they can. Collectible, well, too soon to tell, but I have a copy.

Blade: Trinity - 2004

New Line Cinema, Shawn Danielle Productions Ltd., Amen Ra Films

Written and Directed by David S. Goyer

Cast:

• Blade – Wesley Snipes
• Whistler – Kris Kristofferson
• Hannibal King – Ryan Reynolds
• Abigail Whistler – Jessica Biel
• Danica Talos – Parker Posey
• Drake – Dominic Purcell
• Jarko Grimwood – Paul “Triple H” Levesque
• Dr. Edgar Vance – John Michael Higgins
• Ray Cumberland – James Remar
• Sommerfield – Natasha Lyonne
• Zoey – Ginger Broatch (as Haili Page)

Story: The Vampires, as usual, are up to no good. Not only have they finally located the final resting place of Drake, the original Vampire (known as Dracula or Dagon), but they've managed to set up Blade so he kills a familiar, and they get it on tape. So now Blade has to deal with law enforcement as well as Vampires, and when they raid his base, they capture him while Whistler is killed in the process. Blade is being held in police headquarters when a group of vampire hunters named the Night Stalkers intervenes for a rescue. When they complete the rescue, Blade discovers Whistler was in cahoots with this group as backup for Blade in case something happened to him. The group includes an ex-vampire named Hannibal King and an adept archer named Abigail Whistler...Whistler's daughter. This group is tech savvy and has advanced weaponry and a plan to thwart the vampire nation, a biological weapon called Daystar. The only problem? The DNA from the turned vampires is too thinned out to be of use. Unwittingly, the vampires have brought back the only source of vampire DNA pure enough to make Daystar effective: Drake.

Review: Wesley Snipes and Kris Kristofferson reprise their roles and the hybrid vampire hunter and his partner / armorer. While this film lacks some of the more visceral elements of the first two, it makes up in action what it lacks in darkness. Dominic Purcell is perfect in the role of Drake, the true immortal who is risen from his sleep by the desperate Danica Talos, played by Parker Posey. Parker does a nice job if you take into account a vampire like that might be a bit on the emo side, and the sarcasm between her and her former lover, played nicely by Ryan Reynolds, plays a major part of the script. Reynolds role is non-stop smart ass, and it suits him well. Triple H does an adequate job as the strong arm vampire, but my advice to Paul is not to give up his day job. Jessica Biel shines as Whistler's daughter, and her acting is one of the saving graces of the film. All in all, we do have to remember this is a comic book based in an alternate universe (Canada qualifies, I do believe) and the characters are two dimensional, which is expected. The cinematography and photography are great, the action scenes are exceptional, and we get the impression Blade may not come back to the screen. But who knows, there may be another threat coming up soon. Rated R for violence, language, and brief nudity (Jessica Biel in the shower....oh yeah), this is a collectible is you are a fan of Blade or just a fan of the comic (graphic novel) genre.