Indie Spotlight: Ataque de Panico (Panic Attack)

From ONTD

Back on November 20, The Hollywood Reporter pointed out Uruguayan filmmaker Fede Alvarez's 2009 short Ataque de Panico (Panic Attack) after the sub-5-minute short made its way onto YouTube and became an instant online phenomenon.

Now, Variety is reporting Sam Raimi's Ghost House Pictures has made a seven-figure deal with Alvarez to direct his pitch for a feature length alien invasion film. Of course, this deal is prompting people to ask if we are looking at the next Neill Blomkamp, the South African director of this summer's breakout hit District 9.

Alvarez made Panic Attack through his commercial production house at a cost between $300-$500 about an apocalyptic robot attack. Following the online storm of attention, he made a trip to Hollywood, where he met with every major agency, management firm and law firm that responded to the short–and a big deal.

The film Alvarez agreed to make at Ghost House is an original idea for an alien invasion and not based on the short as the production house is now seeking a screenwriter to pen the script based on the helmer's pitch.

If this doesn't have potential filmmakers realizing the power of the Internet it should, as a once unknown Uruguayan commercials director is now rubbing elbows with Sam Raimi and prepping his own feature film all based on the short you can watch above.

Multiple Offenses: Christian Side Hug

There are soo many things that are wrong with the video above. First of all, the thug posturing and the lyrical content don't match at all and at first I thought it was all in comedy....but it seems to more appropriately point towards caricature (and not in a good way). Second, what the hell (excuse my french) is a Christian Side Hug and what exactly is it good for......chastity!!!!????? Third, what kind of event exactly is this and where is it held.....probably somewhere where there are very few african americans to get offended by the general look. I'm all for a positive message in music, but no "front hugging" ya hear.....and that goes for front hugging hip hop music too.

Brandy's Back in the Bathroom

Between Brandy singing in the bathroom and Shanice putting it down vocally in her living room, I would have to say that there is a real disconnect with artist who seemingly lip sync it up for public appearances and phone it in on wax. Brandy should really consider recording her next album in there...real talk!!

Live Music Corner: Alicia Keys - Empire State of Mind II

As my other half would tell you, I spend a great deal of time basing on Alicia Keys, but "The Element of Freedom" is shaping up to be an album that I am def checking for. Its amazing how much Alicia Keys has grown as an artist and in this clip of her live performance of "Empire State of Mind II" akeys kills it. Cop her new CD when its released in December.

Judge Rules Hurricane Katrina a Myopian Affair

by Hip Hop Wired

There is no doubt that Hurricane Katrina was a storm of colossal proportions, a rarity even in the current climate of super-charged storm fronts, but it is the ruling of a judge that has given a target for all of those affected my the damage left in its wake.

In a monumental ruling, U.S. District Judge Stanwood R. Duval declared that the government, via negligence on the part of the Army Corp of Engineers, is directly responsible for many of the issues that people encountered after the winds settled.

In his 156-page decision, Judge Duval proceeded to rip the Army and U.S. Government a new one, using words such as “myopia, insouciance, and shortsightedness,” to describe the corps quality of work ethics.

“For more than 40 years the corps had known that a crucial levee protecting suburban St. Bernard Parish and the Lower 9th Ward neighborhood would be compromised by deterioration of the channel. The corps had a myriad of way to address the problem but failed to do so.”

On the same day, Judge Duvall awarded $719,000 to a group of flood victims that sued the government in April of 2006.

The ruling creates a clear path for anyone effected by Katrina whom would like to take legal action against the government in the storm's aftermath.

With the inefficiency that was FEMA, I am sure that there will be more lawsuits in the near future.

"Precious" Memories, Hope Fulfilled

Precious is the kind of movie that is hard to shake off and for good reason, the movie is powerful in its exemplification of hope as a tool for human survival, is finely acted (against type nonetheless), and provides a break out role for a budding star who defies Hollywood convention. However, its true power comes in its audacity to tell a story that at first appears to be culturally specific and central and yet proves to be universal by its sheer will to make the human condition a color blind affair. The movie is bold in its description of the hell that precious must endure everyday, but never forgets to provide a flicker of light at the end of the tunnel both for the titular character and the audience.

What's also important to note is that this movie appeared in only 18 theaters when I saw it and raked in an impressive 1.8 million dollars averaging about 100,000 dollars per theater which in this day and age is impressive. Surely Oprah Winfrey and Tyler Perry's monikers on the marquee made a huge impact on the receipts, but its wholly unnecessary as I feel that "Precious" is the type of movie that would have found an audience regardless for its themes prove to topical and universal for audiences not to take note. And note they did as the 11:00pm screening I caught at Magic Johnson theaters seem to tell the hard truth about just how topical precious is.

I have to admit, that I was a little apprehensive about seeing "Precious" maybe in the same way I was apprehensive about seeing "Hotel Rwanda." You pretty much go in knowing that you are going to be witnessing some pretty gruesome material, but what threw me off about precious was its refusal to settle in the morose. The film is quite entertaining and funny on its own terms. And the audience at Magic Johnson theater all seemed to be laughing with a keen familiarity about these scenes. However, there were times when I thought the laughter was just flat out rude and ultimately telling as audiences seemed to fine humor in some of the more darker aspects of the story and especially the abuse. What I ultimately discovered is that the laughter revealed an awareness about these situation that may have been too uncomfortable for some to bear. I have to admit, that minus some of the particulars, Mo'Nique's rendition of Mary is a pretty spot on impersonation of my sister. Lazy, unmotivated, having my niece wait on her hand and foot. The abuse in that situation was more verbal as my sister did everything in her power to ruin my niece's self esteem. However, it may be the casual display of how the abuse transpires between Precious and her mother, Mary, in the story that gave way to chuckles. Its so spot on and unflinching that at first its almost too real to process....making Mo'Nique presence in it read as comedy since audiences are not use to seeing her in a dramatic role. And ohh does Mo'Nique kill it. She is soo good in "Precious" that its hard not to imagine her as a shoo in for the academy awards.

And speaking of performances, Lee Daniels is a true auteur when it comes to performances. I'm not sure how or why he chose to employ the likes of Lenny Kravitz, Sherri Shepherd, Mariah Carey, Paula Patton, and Mo'Nique and place them all in the same movie, but the casting stunt couldn't have worked better as everyone sheds their star personas and instantly blend into the "Precious" backdrop. Gabby Sidibe deserves her own mention as (since she is relatively unknown) it was initially hard to separate the performer from the person, but once you see Ms. Sidibe in interviews you realize just how different she is from this character and just how masterfully she creates and makes you believe this world exists for this girl. It truly is a break out role and you'd be hard pressed to fine another actress who could have pulled this off so effortlessly (just to provide scope, at one point singer Brandy was pitched as "Precious Jones" - that would have been just flat out silly).

What I ultimately appreciated about "Precious" the movie is that it doesn't try to pretend that everything ends up with candy and flowers for Precious the human being. There are several developments in the story that make you feel like giving up, but as more and more complications ensue, you see a twinkle of hope in this young girls eyes, as she struggles to find herself, then does, to great avail, and declares her independence amongst the individuals she trusted who ultimately tried to seal her fate. Its a great story of hope and its one that hit home with me especially. I still need to watch this movie again as in all the chuckling and laughter I missed a lot of the subtlety the story has to offer, but I am proud of this film for nothing more than being a tool for somebody somewhere to watch and know that no hell is permanent and a happy ending is just not relegated to the things that happen only in the movies.