the general is a british-irish crime film directed by john boorman about dublin crime boss martin cahill , who pulled off several daring heists in the early 1980s and attracted the attention of the garda síochána , ira , and ulster volunteer force .

the film was shot in 1997 and released in 1998 .

brendan gleeson plays cahill , adrian dunbar plays his friend noel curley , and jon voight plays inspector ned kenny .

the general ( 1998 film )

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general devereaux ( bruce willis ) delivers lines in 1998 in the siege echoed on september 11 , 2001 by president george w . bush .
the artist to take on the title track is yet to be announced . lea salonga sang reflection for the 1998 animated film .
the second major film from 1998 which was made in black & white , along with woody allen ' s celebrity . x
encyclopædia britannica articles are written in a neutral objective tone for a general audience .
1 ) mulan , 1998 . film . directed by tony bancroft and barry cook . u . s . a . walt disney pictures .
“make no mistake , we will hunt down the enemy , we will find the enemy and we will kill the enemy .
— actor bruce willis as general william devereaux the siege ( 1998 ) , 20th century fox
the general trailer 1998 director : john boorman starring : adrian dunbar , brendan gleeson , jon voight , maria doyle kennedy , angeline ball , sean mcginley official content from sony pictures home entertainment the real - life story of dublin folk hero and criminal martin cahill . pulling off a series of daring robberies that stunned 1980 ' s ireland attracts unwanted attention from the police , the ira , the uvf and even some of his own gang . movie , the general movie , the general trailer , the general 1998 , john boorman , adrian dunbar , brendan gleeson , jon voight , maria doyle kennedy , angeline ball , sean mcginley
arrest general devereaux , his entire command staff , and armed military sentries after a tense standoff .
a criative screenplay and terrific direction , just like the acting , the general is a great motion picture . fresh .
“this movie is not an anti - muslim but an anti - prejudice film , and shows the tragic consequences of racism
( mail & guardian online , worsdale , 1998 ) .
′colonia′ : film broaches atrocities of german - run sect in chile | film | dw | 14 . 09 . 2015
anti - villain : general deveraux , who will do anything and everything to ensure his country is safe .
from 1998 — have enlisted thousands of movie - industry names to come up with a consensus on the well - established classics .
1 . james wolcott ,
tanks for the memories ,
vanity fair ( august 1998 ) : pp . 70 - 76 .
( 1997 ) found spielberg in social historian mode . the film centres on the
now film director florian gallenberger has created a movie based on this dark chapter of history . the german film
colonia
premieres at the 40th toronto international film festival ( held from september 10 - 20 ) .
leo , john . “bigotry still has no place in world of art . ” the detroit news . 9 june 1998 ( p . a7 ) .
the siege ( 1998 ) is a film about terrorists attacking in new york city , made about three years before 9 / 11 . the film was directed by edward zwick . denzel washington , annette bening , and bruce willis play patriotic characters with different ideas about the best way to defend america from terrorists .
there ' s so many remakes , but mulan stood out . disney saw the writers ' spec , by lauren hynek and elizabeth martin . the idea is to take the legendary chinese ballad and the 1998 animated film and come up with something in bewteen .
while the siege did poorly in the domestic box - office when it was released in 1998 , audiences found it at rental stores in the aftermath of the 9 / 11 attack . the vhs version of the siege finished in the top 200 the week following the attack and was still in the top 250 a week later . the movie ' s dvd version also attracted renters ( video software dealers association , 2001 , september press release , no longer available online ) . though the film’s events are reminiscent of the events of 9 / 11 , the film still offers a typical action - adventure film ending which is more utopian than what occurred in the post - 9 / 11 social reality . as genre traditions require , the film’s conclusion reproduces and maintains the prevailing order that has been attacked . the film’s ending even restores racial justice , rejecting the film’s overzealous general’s attack on civil liberties , including the civil liberties of ethnic minorities . in addition , the film offers a true hollywood ending : the hero kills the foreign terrorist villain .
… ( 1995 ) , boorman wrote and directed the general ( 1998 ) , a biopic about the legendary irish criminal martin cahill , portrayed by brendan gleeson ; voight was cast as the policeman who has sworn to bring him to justice . the acclaimed crime drama earned boorman another best director award from cannes . he next helmed…
i believe my original issue with the disney version was it seemed more like “mulan goes to summer camp” because of the brevity of the story… not the length of the film but the passage of time depicted in the film .
in late july 1998 , steven spielberg landed on the american public with his world war ii film saving private ryan , which won the war of critics , veterans , scholars , historians , and the general moviegoing public . all that is left is the cleanup at the box office and the final awarding of medals such as the oscar for best picture . the bottom line of the positive critical evaluations is this : saving private ryan is a new and different world war ii combat film because it finally refutes the dishonesty of previous hollywood movies of the genre .
modern film news , which reported the film plans , has been out of business for more than two years . moreover , 90 percent of the protest mail that has been overwhelming our staff is addressed to the former attorney general , william j . scott , who has been out of office longer than four years .
also the film’s hero , fbi agent hubbard , is slightly hurt in an attack .
in an interview with moviefone , caro talked about her approach to remaking the film .
applebomb , peter . “in reversal , theater vows to stage play that drew threats . ” the new york times . 29 may 1998 ( p . a1 ) .
o’haire , patricia . “curtains for play depicting christ as gay . ” [ new york ] daily news . 22 may 1998 ( p . 7 ) .
reel , bill . “artistic freedom is not a license to commit or aid artistic assault . ” newsday . 2 june 1998 ( p . a40 ) .
founded in 1999 , senses of cinema is one of the first online film journals of its kind and has set the standard for professional , high quality film - related content on the internet .
future learning and skills – giving everyone the opportunity to build a lifelong relationship with film .
was probably spielberg’s least - successful film of the decade , and it received mixed reviews .
two years later . the film was acclaimed for its taut plotting and sharply drawn portrayals .
the general is a welcome return to basics for britain ' s most adventurous and visionary director , who has always stayed faithful to his love of cinema .
came into possession of the papers in 1971 , and the film follows the latter’s efforts to publish the material . hanks starred as
when 20th century fox released the siege in movie theaters in november 1998 , protesters challenged the film’s plot device of middle eastern villains motivated by their islamic faith . [ 1 ] [ open endnotes in new window ] even when the film was in production , arab - american organizations criticized it for reinforcing u . s . stereotypes of muslims and of islam as a religion of terrorism . as a result of this criticism and a meeting with representatives of arab - american organizations , the movie producers made some changes to the movie , but they did not change the script to replace the muslim terrorists with domestic terrorists , as had been suggested ( cnn , bay , 1998 , november 10 ) . the film’s director , edward zwick , defended the film by stating that art should be provocative . 20th century fox further defended the film by releasing a statement declaring :
in his book
colonia dignidad
( 1998 ) , the journalist gero gemballa wrote that the media ' s portrayal of the settlement remained surprisingly factual - practically no exaggerations or creepy legends were added to the descriptions .
plot summary :
an insane general triggers a path to nuclear holocaust that a war room full of politicians and generals frantically try to stop .
in this story , ping is the first name of the commanding general . he picks mulan for the not unimportant task of cutting through the battlefront and capturing leopard skin when they mount their next attack .
florian gallenberger ' s film
colonia ,
premiering at the toronto film festival , revisits the dark history of the colonia dignidad , a secretive german - founded colony in chile . the enclave ' s legacy remains controversial .
the office of the attorney general of the state of illnois respectfully requests your assistance in combating an international chain letter that is distressing hundreds and thousands of christians and those of other faiths as well .
in january 1985 ann landers published a letter from the attorney general’s office of illinois which tried to set the record straight . by then it was modern film news ( not modern people news ) who supposedly had offices in illinois , which is how that state got dragged into this issue ) . people were exhorted to write to attorney general william j . scott . . . a man who had last held that office four years earlier :
[ keynote ]
the physiology of momentary angels : towards a reception aesthetics of media
, international conference : philosophy and film / film and philosophy , university of the west of england & the arnolfini , bristol .
in the early incarnations of this call to arms , people were asked to fill out an attached form letter of protest and mail it to the attorney general of alabama . the message often contained the following postscript :
boorman directs gleeson in a good film . not great but good . worth a view .
before he was mad eye moody , before he took colin farrell to the woodshed
in bruges ,
before
the guard ,
the great irish actor brendan gleeson was the infamous irish crook known as
the general .
trilogy ) rather than live - action or pure animation . the film’s reception by both the box office and the critics was little more than
the general is a refined , traditional movie about a character who is never more traditional than when he imagines himself outside the law . it ' s a great paradox , but it barely comes alive on the screen .
when film critics are the only factor taken into account for such a list , however , the results skew in unexpected directions .
( as avner’s handler ) are just a few members of the international cast . the film’s strength is also its weakness : its
plot summary :
a silent film production company and cast make a difficult transition to sound .
and subsequently becomes obsessed with ufos . for the film , spielberg received his first academy award nomination for best director .
federal agent carl hanratty , who pursues abagnale for years and eventually bonds with his target . but the film belongs to
, the film enjoyed box - office success . it also received 12 oscar nominations , including best picture and director .
the tomatometer score — based on the opinions of hundreds of film and television critics — is a trusted measurement of critical recommendation for millions of fans . it represents the percentage of professional critic reviews that are positive for a given film or television show .
excellent film . keeps you gripped from the first scene . makes you very aware of the darker forces of the human psyche . well worth watching .
halfway through their trek to war , mulan and the soldiers come across a town that has been sacked by the invading hun army . it seems that the general , captain li’s father , is also lying somewhere in the remains of the village , together with the rest of the imperial army .
helped make the film provocative and often moving , but its inconsistent tone might be traced to spielberg’s and kubrick’s dueling sensibilities .
[ guest speaker ]
the transposition of the figure of sally bowles from novel to play to the film cabaret
, the arts graduate forum , university of warwick .
genre has never quite been a strength of irish cinema , but if there’s one particular set of tropes to which the country’s filmmakers have adapted well it’s those of the gangster picture . arguably the best of the bunch—certainly before in bruges—is the general , john boorman’s biography of dublin gang leader martin cahill , played with unending hilarity by a career - best brendan gleeson . boorman earned the best director award at cannes , and it’s not hard to see why : shot in splendid monochrome , the general has the visual feel of a film noir , cinematographer seamus deasy’s gripping use of shadow doing far more to suggest the moral complexity of this story than ever does…
the poster got this film made it look super serious so i had always put this film off and in reality it has very few serious moments to it and rather most of the hijinks that he does are played for laughs and to show how clever he is rather than the idiot that they hope he is . i ' m curious if a much more serious film like i expected would have made me like this film more or like it less . brendan is great in this role .
chum ehelepola has been cast in the role of ramtish , who , along with skatch , are a con - artist duo in the film .
thanks for replying ! haha i agree with you about the jumpcuts in the film…and i won’t lie…i was slightly confused when the opening scene was showing an ukrainian man with long blonde hair singing opera…but i’m glad you agree that is still a good film . you too ! 🙂
niki caro will helm the film , while ‘crouching tiger’ producer bill kong is joining as executive producer , according to hollywood reporter .
our understanding was she served for more than a decade and rose in rank to commander or general . also , like with the wei version , her comrades learned of her gender only after the fact rather than during her time in the army . once i got past that issue ( and her lack of fighting prowess ) , i was able to enjoy the disney film for what it was…entertainment .
the siege was not the first , nor the last , hollywood film to portray arab terrorism as a threat to the united states . arabs as well as other foreigners and ethnic minorities are familiar villains from action adventure films , which have been hollywood’s main domestic and foreign products since the 1980s ( maltby , 1998 ) . as neale ( 2000 : p . 52 ) points out , the term “action - adventure” primarily refers to the action films of the 1980s and 1990s , and they all have common ingredients :
: while the military is portrayed as doing the best as they can and the general in charge of the operation and the cia officer attending to it have major doubts about their operation , they ' re still trampling on basic human rights , as opposed to the fbi ' s attempt to handle the situation as cleanly and humanely as possible .
. as cinque , the leader of the africans , djimon hounsou gave a memorable performance . the film was well received critically , but it did only modest business at the box - office .
yes , non - existent . there never was such a film in production , but petitions likes these were circulated anyway :
a great irish film . . . the fact that its in black and white just makes it better . brendan gleeson is on top form .
in contradiction to a more traditional hollywood portrayal of terrorist villains , the film’s foreign villains are not insane individuals but people who have a clear terror campaign as well as clear plans of how to carry it out . they present a threat to u . s . society that is uncomfortable to viewers in the sense that the threat the film describes is believable . in fact this true u . s . nightmare was realized in a similar but even more horrifying form on september 11 , 2001 , when nearly 3 , 000 lives were lost . real life imitated this 1998 film when in the aftermath of the 9 / 11 attack , many civil liberties were lost as a result of government responses to a terrorist attack against the u . s . on its own soil .
plot summary :
a film following the lives of two inner - city chicago boys who struggle to become college basketball players on the road to going professional .
the film has little of the visual dazzle often associated with boorman ' s movies , but the somber , black - and - white cinematography helps even out the often larger - than - life tone .
boorman’s choice of the retro format of b & w and widescreen gives the film a certain distance and stylization . but in its vigor and use of music and songs , “the general” at times reaches back to his first feature , “catch us if you can” ( 1965 ) , and — in its harder , more violent moments — to his classic , california - set gangster movie , “point blank” ( 1967 ) .
by later the same day the radio station [ in gadsen , alabama ] personnel had attempted to contact modern people news and had been in touch with the alabama attorney general’s office . following these efforts at verification , a statement was read on the air saying that although the attorney general had received between two and three thousand letters over a period of several weeks concerning the supposed gay - jesus movie , no evidence could be found that such a project ever existed . modern people news , it was stated , seemed to have either gone out of business or changed their name .
a non - film version of a work similar to the one described in the petition was produced in 1998 , when terrance mcnally’s dramatic offering corpus christi began previews at the manhattan theater club in new york . as described by the new york times , the production “retells the biblical story of a jesus - like figure — from his birth in a texas flea - bag hotel with people having profane , violent sex in a room next door , to his crucifixion as ‘king of the queers’ in a manner with the potential to offend many people . ”
the ten canoes agreement recognizes the ramingining community’s property rights for all artefacts and sets made for the film . these materials were included in a recent multi - media art / cultural exhibition .
played a doctor’s aide whom frank romances . a critical and commercial hit , the film was adapted into a well - received broadway musical in 2011 .
during the scene where deveraux is describing what the occupation of new york would entail , he distinctly mentions the
m16a1 assault rifle
; the army had upgraded to the m16a2 years before the events of the film . or devereaux is still used to referring to the older weapon .
had long fascinated spielberg , who had acquired film rights from hergé’s widow in the early 1980s only to have them lapse when the project failed to develop . but with filmmaker
as a flight attendant . the film plays like a fable , right up to the happy ending , although it was based on a real - life incident that found a man stranded in the
by the time mulan has joined the army , the majority of the bandit army has been wiped out by general xiu ping . all that’s left is for them to lure leopard skin out of his hideout in some steep cliffs by firing a catapult . once he reveals himself , it’s up to mulan to capture him .
when the film was shown theaters , it was in black and white but when it aired on american cable television networks , it was shown in color .
the ballad of narayama
is a japanese film of great beauty and elegant artifice , telling a story of startling cruelty . what a space it opens…
on may 5 , 1988 , relatives of the young people detained in the colonia dignidad demonstrated in front of the settlement . the founder of the sect , paul schäfer , claimed he wanted to build an original christian community there . in reality , during general pinochet ' s dictatorship , the colony served as a branch of the chilean secret service dirección de inteligencia nacional ( dina ) .
there was uproar at the idea of changing this , disney was forced to confirm it was not
whitewashing
the film and said it the main role and all primary roles will be chinese .
for the microcosm of its effect on a single california family . henry thomas gave a strong performance as the boy who discovers and befriends the stranded alien , and dee wallace portrayed his sympathetic mom . the film also featured
this innovative film , designed exclusively for gay audiences , goes into excruciating detail concerning the erotic career of jesus christ . the ads for the film show the face of the savior ( with a cross glistening in one eye ) while the headline inquires ‘are you curious about his sexual life ? ’ filmmaker ed d . louie satisfies that curiosity by showing us that the son of man was a voracious homosexual . ( after all , why did he spend all that time hanging around with the apostles ? ) the central character of the film is actually a young gay male in contemporary america whose sexual obsession with jesus helps him to understand the “hidden meaning” of the gospels .
… ( 1998 ) , which was directed by steven spielberg , and cast away ( 2000 ) . additional dramatic roles came in apollo 13 ( 1995 ) , the green mile ( 1999 ) , and road to perdition ( 2002 ) . in the blockbuster toy story series ( 1995 , 1999 , 2010 ) , hanks provided the voice of the animated cowboy woody . …
the siege clearly takes a much darker approach to terrorism than any other film with terrorist themes that was in the annual top fifty domestic box - office in the two decades prior to the september 11 , 2001 attack . [ 2 ] it largely relies on creating a mood and fear of terrorism . its focus is on the aftermath and social consequences of terrorist attacks rather than on reveling in portraying explosive fireworks , bloody massacres or detailed killings of villains . the film does portray one bus explosion as it happens and some minor counterterrorism attacks in new york city , but it also addresses the emotional impact of terrorist attacks by showing the after - attack destruction of the film’s terrorist attacks . this includes showing the attacks’ human toll and how that impacts society and some of the film’s main characters .
, though only a fraction of it derives from the original short story . the film was both a box - office and a critical success , though complaints about the somewhat pat ending were not uncommon .
rarely has a veteran filmmaker rejuvenated his career to such startling effect as john boorman with “the general , ” a fresh - off - the - slab biopic of maverick irish crime lord martin cahill that both challenges and entertains the audience at a variety of levels , as well as reviving the vitality of the helmer’s earliest , mid - ’60s pics . though the movie [ … ]
based on a legend from medieval china , mulan is the story of a girl who disguises herself as a man and goes to war in place of her father . at the time of the film’s release in 1998 , it was widely rumoured that the chinese government banned it because they were so insulted by disney’s interpretation . in actual fact , they were in a sulk because miramax had backed a film about the dalai lama , and refused to distribute any disney films at all . ironically , mulan was used as a bargaining chip by disney to help smooth over their relations , and while this succeeded , the film didn’t . despite taking $ 300 million elsewhere , mulan proved to be a substantial flop in the country of its heroine . the reason ? other than it having a rubbish release date , it seems that disney was just as adept at disguising the title character . so , how different is their version from the source text ?
there is a certain honor in sticking to your guns , even if they are the wrong guns . martin cahill , the subject of john boorman ' s
the general ,
was for many years the most famous professional criminal in ireland , a man who copied robin hood , up to a point : he stole from the rich and gave to himself .
jesus and his disciples are going to be portrayed as homosexual in a soon - to - be - released film . see example ( s )
[ guest speaker ]
anatomy of reading
, departmental seminar , department of literature , film , and theatre studies , university of essex .
the film paints martin as a robin hood of sorts , keeping his buddies on a payroll while collecting thousands ( if not millions , who knows ) for himself .
was nominated for 11 academy awards , including best picture , and spielberg won his second academy award as best director . the film was the biggest commercial success of any release in the united states that year .
and it did . the manhattan theater club’s announcement of the play as part of its fall season was greeted with bomb threats promising to “burn the place to the ground” if the production opened . in may 1998 the theatre announced it was pulling “corpus christi” from its line - up . a week later it changed its mind , reinstating the play to its fall roster . caught between cries of censorship on one side and outraged sensibilities on the other , the theatre had to make a choice .
de heer’s collaboration with the yolngu people of ramingining began in 2000 when australian screen icon david gulpilil was cast as the lead in de heer’s film the tracker . at their first meeting in adelaide , gulpilil invited de heer to meet with him among his family in ramingining , to see his traditional lands and to make a film with him set in this area of north east arnhem land . de heer first visited ramingining in late 2000 . in 2003 , he and gulpilil began working together on a film , meeting with a number of gulpilil’s influential contemporaries to discuss ideas for it . all agreed the film should be set in “old times” , and initially they settled on the idea of some kind of aboriginal story that would end with the massacre of the yolngu characters by white invaders . this plan was abandoned , however , when gulpilil insisted that the film should centre on ten canoes . according to gulpilil :
, spielberg’s film captures the president’s complex psychology , a blend of good humour and cynical despair . although some critics complained that it took a few historical shortcuts and underplayed the role of abolitionists outside
[ plenary ]
the movie - minded reader
, interdisciplinary workshop : engaging with film : perspectives on cinematic literacy , institute of advanced study , university of warwick .
watch the chinese film hua mulan that has subtitles , and they do an excellent version of it that’s quite accurate from the research i’ve done . i think it also creates a stronger character for mulan
all this can easily be applied to the film , where transitions that in literature took centuries have come about in a decade . in cinematic practice , particularly in russia , this change - over has partially become established reality . some of the players whom we meet in russian films are not actors in our sense but people who portray themselves and primarily in their own work process . in western europe the capitalistic exploitation of the film denies consideration to modern man’s legitimate claim to being reproduced . under these circumstances the film industry is trying hard to spur the interest of the masses through illusion - promoting spectacles and dubious speculations .
as wasko ( 1994 ) points out , hollywood films are foremost commodities and have been recognized as such for a long time . in today’s extremely competitive market economy , media conglomerates , whose subsidiaries film studios are , fight against losses by investing in products and formulas that have brought profits in the past , such as films of the action - adventure genre . film genres regularly follow the traditional classical hollywood cinema narrative structure but also respond to the prevailing political environment , as well as to changes in public opinion and audience interests . this is also the case with the action - adventure film genre .
twice , general devereaux refers to
the president invoking the war powers act .
the wpa is not presidential authority for waging war or using the military ( which comes from congress ) , but it is in fact a rule passed by congress in 1973 ( after vietnam ) that severely limits a president ' s ability to unilaterally use military force without congressional authorization .
mexican standoff : near the end of the movie between the fbi and the 101st airborne .
in the meeting at capitol hill , among general devereaux ' s medal ribbons is a silver star with a v on it . the v ribbon device may be used on certain medals to denote valor or combat service , but it should not be on a silver star because that medal is only awarded for valor in combat .
crew : camera ( b & w , panavision widescreen ) , seamus deasy ; editor , ron davis ; music , richie buckley ; production designer , derek wallace ; costume designer , maeve paterson ; sound ( dolby digital ) , brendan deasy , douglas e . turner ; assistant director , kevan barker ; casting , jina jay . reviewed at warners preview theater , london , april 30 , 1998 . ( in cannes film festival , competing . ) running time : 123 min .
…in the early 1970s , were steven spielberg and martin scorsese . in addition to jurassic park , spielberg’s works in the 1990s include schindler’s list ( 1993 , winner of an academy award for best picture ) , amistad ( 1997 ) , and saving private ryan ( 1998 ) , with a . i . artificial intelligence ( 2001 ) and munich ( 2005 ) among his subsequent…
ten canoes ( rolf de heer , 2006 ) is australia’s most ambitious and most expensive cross - cultural film project to date . the balanda and the bark canoes ( molly reynolds , tania nehme and rolf de heer , 2006 ) that takes us behind the scenes of this film to provide invaluable insight into the extraordinary processes of collaboration between balanda ( “white - fella” ) , director rolf de heer and the yolngu people of ramingining .
cassandra truth : general devereaux himself warns his superiors not to use him or his troops in new york city , as he knows that extremely strict martial law and the extreme force the military requires to carry out its operations would result in human rights violations , if not worse . they ignore his protests and everything goes to hell .
, to wreak havoc on the populace after having been interred underground for thousands of years ( a touch unique to spielberg’s version ) —the film’s approach to the story rarely generated excitement in its audiences , who may have been primed for more action than watching cruise hiding in a farmhouse with a nutty survivor ( tim robbins ) . the film was a box - office success , though some critical dissent was registered .
the distracted person , too , can form habits . more , the ability to master certain tasks in a state of distraction proves that their solution has become a matter of habit . distraction as provided by art presents a covert control of the extent to which new tasks have become soluble by apperception . since , moreover , individuals are tempted to avoid such tasks , art will tackle the most difficult and most important ones where it is able to mobilize the masses . today it does so in the film . reception in a state of distraction , which is increasing noticeably in all fields of art and is symptomatic of profound changes in apperception , finds in the film its true means of exercise . the film with its shock effect meets this mode of reception halfway . the film makes the cult value recede into the background not only by putting the public in the position of the critic , but also by the fact that at the movies this position requires no attention . the public is an examiner , but an absent - minded one .
. in : film analysis : a norton reader . editors : geiger , j . and rutsky , rl . , . norton . 43 - 62 . 9780393979831
the fbi , cia , nypd and u . s . army all become involved . the plot portrays conflicts and distrust among these agencies ' representatives , reflecting real life trouble among the country’s some fifty counterterrorist agencies . the film’s protagonist , anthony “hub” hubbard ( played by denzel washington ) leads a joint fbi / nypd antiterrorist force . he works in partial co - operation with a cia operative , elise kraft / sharon bridger ( played by annette bening ) , who first introduces herself as elise kraft , hiding her real name as well as her own close connections to the suspected arab terrorists . general devereaux ( played by bruce willis ) further complicates hubbard’s efforts when the general implements martial law . the narrative emphasizes the unsavory aspects of devereaux ' character , especially showing that he has no respect for the u . s . constitution , that he is over - zealous in trying to resolve the matter his own way , and that he had been the brains behind the muslim religious leader’s capture , which he has kept a secret from the president .
this piece about an upcoming “gay jesus film” is one of those examples that demonstrates a good petition never goes away , even when the issue it addresses has long since been settled ( or was never really an issue in the first place ) . the “gay jesus film” petition first hit the fan in 1984 , and by the end of 1985 more than a million christians had written protest letters in an attempt to have the non - existent movie it referenced banned .
. in : new takes in film - philosophy . editors : carel , h . and tuck , g . , . palgrave macmillan . 154 - 170 . 9780230294851
for the film , what matters primarily is that the actor represents himself to the public before the camera , rather than representing someone else . one of the first to sense the actor’s metamorphosis by this form of testing was pirandello . though his remarks on the subject in his novel si gira were limited to the negative aspects of the question and to the silent film only , this hardly impairs their validity . for in this respect , the sound film did not change anything essential . what matters is that the part is acted not for an audience but for a mechanical contrivance – in the case of the sound film , for two of them . “the film actor , ” wrote pirandello , “feels as if in exile – exiled not only from the stage but also from himself . with a vague sense of discomfort he feels inexplicable emptiness : his body loses its corporeality , it evaporates , it is deprived of reality , life , voice , and the noises caused by his moving about , in order to be changed into a mute image , flickering an instant on the screen , then vanishing into silence . . . . the projector will play with his shadow before the public , and he himself must be content to play before the camera . ” this situation might also be characterized as follows : for the first time – and this is the effect of the film – man has to operate with his whole living person , yet forgoing its aura . for aura is tied to his presence ; there can be no replica of it . the aura which , on the stage , emanates from macbeth , cannot be separated for the spectators from that of the actor . however , the singularity of the shot in the studio is that the camera is substituted for the public . consequently , the aura that envelops the actor vanishes , and with it the aura of the figure he portrays .
the artistic performance of a stage actor is definitely presented to the public by the actor in person ; that of the screen actor , however , is presented by a camera , with a twofold consequence . the camera that presents the performance of the film actor to the public need not respect the performance as an integral whole . guided by the cameraman , the camera continually changes its position with respect to the performance . the sequence of positional views which the editor composes from the material supplied him constitutes the completed film . it comprises certain factors of movement which are in reality those of the camera , not to mention special camera angles , close - ups , etc . hence , the performance of the actor is subjected to a series of optical tests . this is the first consequence of the fact that the actor’s performance is presented by means of a camera . also , the film actor lacks the opportunity of the stage actor to adjust to the audience during his performance , since he does not present his performance to the audience in person . this permits the audience to take the position of a critic , without experiencing any personal contact with the actor . the audience’s identification with the actor is really an identification with the camera . consequently the audience takes the position of the camera ; its approach is that of testing . this is not the approach to which cult values may be exposed .
as a deadly russian agent and ray winstone as a british agent who secretly is in the pay of the soviets and double - crosses indy . deliberately made with a retro style , the film found favour with audiences , becoming the third biggest movie at the box - office that year .
essentially , disney’s enemy comes from outside and is an invading force , whereas wei’s is an uprising and a threat to the emperor’s ego . in addition , the film shows us the huns attacking the great wall and the emperor’s reaction ; the play simply sees mulan stand in front of the audience and give a monologue . which brings us to the title character .
boorman ' s film is shot in wide - screen black and white , and as it often does , black and white emphasizes the characters and the story , instead of setting them awash in atmosphere . and boorman ' s narrative style has a nice offhand feel about it . instead of explaining everything in neat little simpleminded setups , he lets us discover for ourselves that cahill is living with both women . as the general unfolds his devious criminal schemes , we see them as they develop , instead of getting those cliched crime movie chalk talks .
although the action - adventure classification as a film genre did not become part of the popular culture until the 1980s , the 1960s had already introduced spectacular non - stop action with the screen arrival of james bond . the bond films , which at very first were considered to be b - films in the u . s . , set the standard for big - event action - adventure films which have repeated ingredients , including a simplified characterization of villains , usually foreign and to some degree insane . at the end of each film the white hero returns the balance of power , the last shot showing bond’s departure from the screen with his latest female conquest .
a talented team of hollywood directors and writers enlisted in the armed services and were assigned to the film units that created them , including frank capra , john huston , john ford , george stevens , and william wyler .
classic , which had already been adapted into a highly regarded film in 1953 . despite a number of effective set pieces , including the opening scene—in which giant alien tripods emerge from underneath the streets of modern - day newark ,
thanks for the comment and tip ! i actually have this film and i agree , especially the end decision . it could have been really cheesy at some points but they kept it just right . the editing was a bit hap - hazard though !
from an alluring appearance or persuasive structure of sound the work of art of the dadaists became an instrument of ballistics . it hit the spectator like a bullet , it happened to him , thus acquiring a tactile quality . it promoted a demand for the film , the distracting element of which is also primarily tactile , being based on changes of place and focus which periodically assail the spectator . let us compare the screen on which a film unfolds with the canvas of a painting . the painting invites the spectator to contemplation ; before it the spectator can abandon himself to his associations . before the movie frame he cannot do so . no sooner has his eye grasped a scene than it is already changed . it cannot be arrested . duhamel , who detests the film and knows nothing of its significance , though something of its structure , notes this circumstance as follows : “i can no longer think what i want to think . my thoughts have been replaced by moving images . ” the spectator’s process of association in view of these images is indeed interrupted by their constant , sudden change . this constitutes the shock effect of the film , which , like all shocks , should be cushioned by heightened presence of mind . by means of its technical structure , the film has taken the physical shock effect out of the wrappers in which dadaism had , as it were , kept it inside the moral shock effect .
3 . james agee ,
review of guadalcanal diary ,
the nation ( november 13 , 1943 ) . reprinted in agee on film ( boston : beacon press , 1958 ) , p . 59 .
[ guest speaker ]
cross - media histories - why book history matters to film history , and vice versa
, the history and language of print culture research seminar , university of salford , manchester .
the non - existence of a “gay jesus film” did not stem the ire of those who heard about it . blasphemy — even the mere hint of it — is enough to mobilize good christian soldiers everywhere . in 1988 , martin scorsese’s the last temptation of christ reaped massive publicity — and long lines at the box office — after fundamentalist christians picketed theaters . the uproar wasn’t over a gay jesus , merely one who both questioned his fate and who had a dream about a sexual relationship with mary magdalene . the film remains controversial to this day .
the fbi / nypd task force is baffled by the terrorist demand to “release him . ” imitating real life problems in cooperation between some fifty counterterrorism agencies , as discussed by the 9 / 11 commission report , the film’s hero soon learns the difficulty of sharing information and getting cooperation between different government agencies in counterterrorism .
corpus christi is undoubtedly the “play that went on for a while but never stopped” referred to in the current petition , but there are still no plans to make a movie out of it . the 2010 release corpus christi : playing with redemption is often mistakenly cited as a film version of the play corpus christi , but it is not ; it’s a documentary about the controversy surrounding one particular troupe’s production of the play , not a movie version of the play itself . likewise , the 2006 dvd release entitled corpus christi is simply a documentary about the historical figure of jesus , not a film version of the similarly titled play .
but the siege still relies on the use of film villains familiar from other films on terrorism , that is , terrorists who are on a crusade against the united states . however , the script then revolves around the threats that come from government responses to terrorism , that is , responses that damage civil liberties and civil society . the plot ' s conclusion deals with what happens to citizens and society when the u . s . government sees the country as a target of terrorists attacks and takes action to protect the country , but does it using such extreme actions that u . s . citizens themselves become targets . in other words , the main threat in the film is not actually international terrorism per se . rather , the plot explores how shifts in the country’s foreign policy can work against its own security , in this particular film bringing old u . s . allies to the u . s . to attack the country on its own soil .
the original movie was based on the chinese legend , and kept the characters in tune with the legend .
, and arliss howard—and returnee jeff goldblum , who again plays a scientist who knows this manipulation of nature for profit is both crass and morally indefensible . there are numerous thrills , and the dinosaur special effects equal those of the earlier film .
a special u . s . military task force captures a fundamentalist islamic cleric , a terrorist leader , in a covert operation . this sets the film’s events , terrorist attacks on new york city , in motion .
a thief , pursued by an old friend from the neighborhood , evades the cops and the ira . brendan gleeson is fantastic as the eponymous character ; he ' s both awkward and wily , not looking the part of the thief but pulling it off believably . the rest of the supporting cast supports gleeson admirably , but even jon voight doesn ' t deliver a stand - out performance . the story is fairly basic - - a crime drama in which the criminal cleverly eludes his pursuers - - and i can ' t say that by the end of the film i cared about the characters . the film is so evenly presented that i wondered what it was saying . what is unique about this criminal that we haven ' t seen before besides his physique ( compare gleeson to george clooney ' s danny ocean ) ? overall , there ' s not a lot to feel strongly about in this film except gleeson ' s superb performance .
my opinion of the film has changed over the years and i appreciate it for what it is . my two year old grandson watches it several times a day and enjoys it because of the music and animation / artwork . one of the things i find interesting is , it remains one of the few disney films where the villain’s end is the direct result of the hero’s actions rather than the classic disney “fall” to his death .
crime drama about irish gangster martin cahill ( brendan gleeson ) who became known as ' the general ' after co - ordinating a series of armed robberies in dublin during the 1980s . hailed in some quarters as a folk - hero for his defiance against the authorities , martin pulls one job too many when he steals paintings belonging to the beit collection . with the police , headed by ned kenny ( jon voight ) , closing in , cahill ' s problems are multiplied by the increasing interest of the ira in his activities .


the cohens and kellys in hollywood is a 1932 american comedy film directed by john francis dillon and written by howard j. green .

the film stars george sidney , charles murray , june clyde , norman foster , esther howard and emma dunn .

the film was released on march 28 , 1932 , by universal pictures .

the cohens and kellys in hollywood

the cohens and the kellys invade a hollywood studio after kitty becomes the darling of the studio .
the cohens and kellys in hollywood . 1932 . directed by john francis dillon | moma
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cohens and kellys in hollywood . 1932 . usa . directed by john francis dillon
the cohens and kellys in hollywood . 1932 . usa . directed by john francis dillon . 75 min .
the cohens and kellys in hollywood was reproduced on premium heavy stock paper which captures all of the vivid colors and details of the original .
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the cohen and kelly families have been the best of friends in the small town of hillsboro for years . moe and sarah cohen ' s son melville , who is in love with michael and maggie kelly ' s daughter kitty , sends her picture to continental productions in hollywood after they advertise for new actresses . kitty wins a contract with the company , and her family moves to hollywood , where they meet with success and buy a mansion . after receiving a postcard from the kellys saying
wish you were here ,
the cohens sell their theatre in hillsboro and move to hollywood , but are snubbed on arrival by the now snobbish kellys . kelly loses all his money on kitty ' s next picture , which is a flop because kitty ' s voice does not register well for the new sound films . now the tables turn , and it is the cohens who experience success , but relations are no longer friendly between the two families . melville sells his songs to motion pictures until songs are no longer a fad in films , and the cohens once again go broke . chesterfield , who was a butler for both families at different times , opens an elocution school and now it is his turn for wealth . the cohens buy back their old jalopy and return to hillsboro . on the way , they rescue the kellys , whose car broke down , and upon renewing their friendship , they return to the happy life in hillsboro they once knew .
this comedy is part of the five - movie series
the cohens and kellys .
in this entry , sidney ' s son foster is in love with an aspiring actress and tries to get her a screen test . he succeeds and a star is born . unfortunately , the actress forgets all about poor foster now that she is hobknobbing with the rich and famous . when talkies become the rage , the star ' s career immediately bombs and her memory returns . she returns to foster . several famed actors make cameos in the film including boris karloff , and tom mix .
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small town america : the cohens own a movie theater ; the kellys own a diner . kitty kelly and maurice cohen are young lovers ; maurice sends kitty ' s picture to a movie studio , and they accept her and make her a star . soon , the kelly family is living the high life ; they write a postcard to the cohens , who take a polite
wish you were here
as an invitation to sell everything . the kellys shun the cohens , who they now see as gauche . but when sound films are introduced , kitty is no longer a star , and composer maurice suddenly makes his family rich ( for a while ) .
check out highlights from some of the best recent trailers including mandy , the predator , zoe , and the king of thieves .
review : the usual sidney / murray , jewish / irish business rivalry is downplayed in this
cohens and kellys
entry , the filmmakers paying more attention to foster ' s devotion to aspiring actress clyde . with father sidney owning a movie house , son foster finagles a scre… ( more )
the usual sidney / murray , jewish / irish business rivalry is downplayed in this
cohens and kellys
entry , the filmmakers paying more attention to foster ' s devotion to aspiring actress clyde . with father sidney owning a movie house , son foster finagles a screen test for his beloved , and soon clyde is a popular screen star . she forgets her former beau when . . . read more
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calhoun is best known for her roles in the films bagdad cafe , the players club , the salon , the best man , and its sequel the best man holiday as well as two biopic miniseries such as rebbie jackson on the jacksons : an american dream and patricia tresvant , mother of ralph tresvant on the new edition story .

calhoun was nominated for an emmy award for her performance in the cbs schoolbreak special " different worlds : a story of interracial love " ( 1993 ) .

she was nominated for naacp image award for outstanding actress in a motion picture for her portrayal of mia morgan in the 1999 comedy-drama film the best man .2017 bet new eddition story portrayl of ms tresvant , ralph 's mother .

monica calhoun

calhoun ' s lawyer denies everything in santa monica court . neither she nor calhoun is present at the session .
monica calhoun blind son is all grown up . he’s much older & gorgeous !
monica calhoun : wow . . . . . strong ? ? ? ? ?
monica calhoun : hands down . when i grow up . ha ha ha .
monica calhoun :
very very
worthy . . . . . . .
monica calhoun : of who they are & why they make the choices they make .
monica calhoun : its just very interesting . . . . . . . . .
monica calhoun : wow . . . . . . . . she was amazing .
monica calhoun : both , cause theyre one in the same . theres no difference .
monica calhoun : he he he . . . . . okay ? ! ? !
monica calhoun : you & i know thats part of the game . . . . .
monica calhoun : wow . thats a hard one to just . . i say both .
monica calhoun : so my perception on the world & things is just a little bit different .
monica calhoun’s height is 5 ft 4 in and she weighs approximately 118 lbs . ( source )
monica calhoun 14th annual pan african film festival , at the director ' s guild of america .
monica calhoun : that ' s it . that is correct , sir . ha ha . . .
monica calhoun : it wasnt even like that . . it was a
surprise
more less ,
monica calhoun played mrs . wood in the season two grey ' s anatomy episode break on through .
monica calhoun : basically . and then you have . . . . of course . . . . .
monica calhoun : i couldnt even really tell you . . . . . to be real honest with you ?
we asked monica calhoun ( mia sullivan ) what she ' d like to see happen if a third film is made .
, produced in 1992 and starring morris chestnut and monica calhoun . in 2011 , green was awarded an honorary doctorate by the
born lorine monica p . calhoun in philadelphia , pennsylvania , calhoun is the daughter of lorine w . calhoun . calhoun , her mother and brother moved to los angeles , california when she was a young child to launch her acting career . calhoun is an alumna of los angeles county high school for the arts ( class of 1989 ) .
monica calhoun : and , you know . . . . teaching him things that ive learned & then vice versa , somewhat .
monica calhoun : yeah . they were together forever , regardless of whatever it was that theyd been through , they stayed together !
monica calhoun was born on july 29 , 1971 in philadelphia , pennsylvania , usa . she is an actress and producer , known for
monica calhoun : and , so . . . . . to say that
boomerang
wasn ' t realistic ? ! ? !
willie sr . and monica calhoun , a nurse , have been together 27 years - since high school . the family is tight .
* monicas into souxie & the banchies . . and all kinds of shit *
monica calhoun : so , when i auditioned for the school for the arts , i could only pick one major , so i picked theater .
monica calhoun : i mean its all in perception . it depends on what that person s relationship . . . . is all about at home .
monica calhoun : somewhat & also the way i grew up is just a little bit different than everybody else , because my brother was born blind .
monica calhoun : my compassion & my sensitivity are heightened because of my brothers blindness . . . . . and spending a lot of time with him
monica is a beautiful actress and i love all her work that she has done in all her projects particularly trois 2 : pandaora’s box . stay strong monica for you and your son .
monica calhoun : right ? ? ! ? my mother had a choice of whether to go to college in new york or go to college in the virgin islands .
monica calhoun : see . . . . heres the thing whats interesting about
the best man
is i dont believe that it was totally a
black
film .
her third daughter , lorri marie , is born at st . john ' s hospital in santa monica
monica calhoun : patience in watching these people that volunteer to work with children that have some sort of impairment . to teach them how to water ski or whatever the activity was .
she has some famous classmates – anthony anderson graduated alongside monica calhoun from the los angeles county high school for arts . other famous classmates include shondrella avery , tammy townsend and jenna elfman .
monica calhoun : i love d both of them . that husband & wife team . . . . that was just . . . . . they are / were an example of .
monica calhoun is an actress best known for her roles in the films bagdad cafe , the players club , the salon , the best man , and its sequel the best man holiday .
ok , here ' s another thing willie calhoun can ' t do : defend .
1 . calhoun graduated from los angeles county high school for the arts in 1989 .
monica calhoun : being able to listen & understand or try , trying to understand & have an empathetic view of what a person is . . . . . . as opposed to being
judgmental
2 . monica calhoun was able to work with award winning actor blair underwood , r & b singer shanice wilson and fame director and producer , chris stokes ( he’s got game ) on a television pilot .
calhoun : i’ll come back as a ghost and whisper in everybody’s ears ( laughs ) .
monica calhoun played an amazing role in the best man holiday as mia sullivan , lance sullivan’s ( morris chesnut ) wife . born in philadelphia , calhoun started her acting career in 1985 and with over 18 movies and 28 television roles under her belt , she’s had a very commendable career . read on for more . – joi pearson
she dated a famous man – over the years , monica calhoun was rumored to be linked with miguel nunez , jr . who has starred in many films such as juwanna man , life , and the return of the living dead .
such a great article ! i always wondered why monica calhoun didn’t do more acting . peace and blessings to her family ! i am a teacher of students with educational and special needs . may god continue to bless and keep them !
part of what makes us love the best man films is the chemistry between castmates—how familiar they feel to us . it ' s a chemistry that actress monica calhoun ( mia sullivan ) says mirrors the real life relationships between her castmates .
marries actor rory calhoun in santa barbara , california . he ' s 26 ; she ' s 19 .
i was serious , too ,
calhoun said .
and not that much has changed .
calhoun : and everything that she did was for him and to restore his friendship with his best friend .
monica calhoun was born on july 29 , 1971 in philadelphia , pennsylvania , usa . she is an actress and producer , known for the best man ( 1999 ) , the best man holiday ( 2013 ) and the players club ( 1998 ) .
monica calhoun is an american film and television actress . she is best known for her roles in the films the players club , the best man , and the salon . she is a graduate of the los angeles county high school for the arts .
monica calhoun : which is a
priceless
thing with a director . they know their project from top to bottom & you know , as a director . . . . . that is your job to know exactly what you want out of everybody !
she and calhoun see middle of the night and then go to el morocco . she ' s expecting again .
calhoun : you can come back as a ghost and say , “don’t go down the alley” ( laughs ) .
she said she will pull a mia – when monica calhoun sat down with fellow actor morris chestnut to talk about their new film the best man holiday , she was noted as saying that she would retaliate and cheat on her man if he cheated on her .
monica calhoun : and , they have a summer program , where they take the kids either swimming or water skiing . . . . . just different little things . . . . . . so , i got a chance experience life on a different level .
she and calhoun honeymoon at david o . selznick ' s arrowhead lodge , then go bear - hunting in northern california
monica calhoun : this is my job ; its a career its not just a . . you know what ? people have told me that i was pretty , and um people have told me that you know , i have great personality , so im gonna go to hollywood .
her son – monica calhoun gave the whole world a clue as to why she may have slowed down in the acting business - the reason may be due to her son . she appeared with him arm in arm on the red carpet at the best man holiday premiere . it appears that he may be a special needs child , suffering from blindness . people took to her instagram account and saw more pictures of the young man who appears to be around 9 - 11 years old . upon doing further research , we came across an article from the virgin islands daily news , dated march 11 , 1976 , which shows a young monica calhoun with her mother and brother who happens to be blind . so we wonder if the ailment that monica calhoun’s son is suffering from is hereditary in nature . you can read more about it here .
oklahoma city - - at the lowest point in willie calhoun ' s 22 years , he ended up in san quentin .
she did the big chop – everyone was enamored with monica calhoun’s new hairstyle . at the la premiere of the best man holiday , the actress showed off a super short hair cut . many believe that she made the big chop as a way to signify that she is starting over .
tags : celebrity interview , facebook , harold perrineau , malcolm d . lee , melissa desousa , monica calhoun , morris chestnut , movies , myspace , nia long , pennsylvania , philadelphia , regina hall , sanaa lathan , taye diggs , terrence howard , the best man , the best man holiday
she and calhoun attend pat boone ' s opening at the cocoanut grove . she laughingly denies that she is expecting another baby .
excellent movie . enjoyed the cast , writing and pace . cute date flick and it was nice to see ms calhoun again !
appears at ciro’s in an act with dancer billy daniel . there has been gossip that all is not well between her and calhoun .
calhoun : it was cathartic to go through that process , to own up for the role of possibly or potentially destroying a friendship .
monica calhoun : so if you understand the business & you know who you are , what you want and what you dont want , what you will go for and what you wont go for . when you know how to shut off your exploration period of a situation . possibly we co uld go further . . . .
her divorce is granted in santa monica superior court on grounds of irreconcilable differences . he ' s 47 ; she ' s 40 . she ' s granted custody of her three children .
monica calhoun : i went though a couple things and it was all alphabetized and i was trippin off of that . . . . . it was alphabetized . and then i said , you know what ? let me see who this person is . [ prince ] and , then went through album after , album after album ,
monica calhoun : yeah , cause whats interesting in the black community . . . . . there are social structures . you have your
ghetto people
, you have your college grads , undergrads , master degree toting people that live in the belief that they are better than the people that haven ' t sought higher education .
columnist harrison carroll notes her and calhoun excited at the captain ' s table .
oil tests being made at their ojai ranch . . .
calhoun throws a surprise party for her at the beverly hills hotel ' s lanai room . guy madison and sheila connolly are noted showing up together .
monica calhoun : and i , didnt expect to be there at all . i asked a friend of mine to take me , & he was like , uh . i so after an hour went by . . . . he called me back and said , ok , im coming to scoop you up and we just go see what happens .
monica ' s teen son and brother ( not pictured ) are blind . when monica brought her son as her ' date ' to the premiere of
the best man holiday
a few years ago , it was the first time the public learned that he was blind . since then folks have fallen in love with the young man who always shows love to his mom on social media .
is again sued for divorce by calhoun in santa monica after 20 years of marriage . he accuses her of adultery with tv personality james allan trudeau , host of a children ' s program called
mr . wishbones ,
and asks for custody of their children , cindy frances , 12 ; tami elizabeth , 9 ; and lorri marie , 8 .
texas rangers : willie calhoun jr . , the gem of the yu darvish deal , needed a visit to a notorious california prison to rediscover baseball | sportsday
3 . calhoun has also played some protagonists roles such as in hbo special called daddy’s girl or daddy’s home and cbs schoolbreak special “what about your friends” .
it shook my confidence ,
calhoun said .
it made me think that maybe i really do suck . i was pretty much over baseball .
pg ( 1982 ) trois 2 : pandora & # 39 ; s box 8 pm ( tv1 ) a psychiatrist ( monica calhoun ) has an affair . r ( 2002 ) wyatt earp 8 pm ( hist ) kevin costner plays the legendary lawman in this epic . pg - 13 ( 1994 ) the transporter 8 : 15 pm ( max ) thriller about a courier ( jason
johnson tells about hollywood party freeze :
corinne calvet ' s snubbing of lita baron . corinne once dated lita ' s hubby , rory calhoun . . .
in an amended counter - complaint to calhoun ' s divorce suit she accuses him of adultery with betty grable , eight other women specifically named , and 70
jane does .
she also lists starlet vitina marcus as a co - respondent in the complaint . calhoun recently directed grable on the london stage in hello , dolly .
chestnut : to be honest , i was focused on monica the whole time in the movie because throughout my performance everything was for her . everything that my character did , everything that he was , was for her .
she and calhoun are off to korea to entertain the troops . others in their group are walter pidgeon , paul douglas , jan sterling , debbie reynolds and keenan wynn .
last week , actress monica calhoun showed off a super cute crop at the la premiere of the best man holiday . the actress has been a little under the radar since her tv series diary of a single mom ended in 2011 . so this look could be a big chop , a refresh of an already natural style , a de - weaving . . . so many options . but we do know we love the youth - ifying haircut on calhoun . what do you think ? are you excited for the next best man ? let us know in the comments below .
q : monica , you had your big scene where you kind of had to own up to your part in breaking up the friendship between lance and harper . how is that for you as a woman and for your role ?
columnist jimmy fidler tells that
the long and short of hollywood romance : six foot four inch rory calhoun and isabelita , four feet , eleven inches tall . . .
the early report from wood is that calhoun has an accurate arm with a quick release . the biggest project : improving his reactions and reads and getting a better first step .
her romance with calhoun is reported getting more and more serious .
he used to date all the pretty girls but lately he is concentrating on the brand new miss baron .
monica calhoun : and , they find a camaraderie with similar people that have the same backgrounds & therefore excluding the next person , that might be ten times more intelligent . . . . . but they dont have that degree or they didnt go to that special school or make it into that special white school , but they ' re more smarter and have the job that the educated wished they had ? ! ? ! ?
after nearly 15 years apart , morris chestnut , taye diggs , regina hall , terrence howard , sanaa lathan , nia long , harold perrineau , monica calhoun and melissa de sousa reprise their career - launching roles in “the best man holiday . ” written and directed by malcolm d . lee , the sequel and long - awaited next chapter to his groundbreaking hit movie , “the best man , ” opens in theaters this friday .
actress , monica calhoun , is known for her many acting roles , including “the best man , ” “the players club , ” and many more , but what she isn’t widely known as , is the loving mother of her special needs child , who happens to share the same disability as her brother . the close relationship she has with her son is a beautiful thing to see and she often posts about their relationship on social media…
monica calhoun : alright . its going to go on ! we going to start working on some shit . . . . . cause , its like , i dont make any apologies . . . . cause i know that when an actor or someone else says , hey , i want to sing & they think that its aw shit , i can make some money style , you know . but you know who i am !
monica calhoun was born on july 29 , 1971 in philadelphia , pennsylvania . she moved cross country with her family to california where as a child , she worked with famed director f . gary gray . monica is best known for her roles in the films , the best man , players club , bagdad café , and s ister act 2 : back in the habit– the latter film she got to work alongside her acting idol , whoopi goldberg . she went on to appear in films with other notable stars but in the late 90’s / early 2000’s , her appearances on and off screen slowed down considerably . there is a reason for that . read on to find out why .
monica calhoun : i mean . . . . its nothing wrong . . . . if you call that being an over - achiever or if you call that having high ambitions . its nothing wrong with wanting to wanting to be that . but when you . . . i remember you used to joke about this , when you lose your soul in process , when you find that
your soul is on the back of a milk carton
an example of his thought process : last weekend , he faced his former oklahoma city teammates for the first time since the trade . in his first at - bat , former rangers prospect wilmer font tried to
quick pitch
calhoun to throw off his timing . calhoun was a bit late on a fastball and grounded to the right side . he smiled at the dodgers dugout , knowing haselman had ordered the quick pitch .
when asked by a scout several years ago his best position on the field , calhoun responded :
i play three hole ,
referring to the spot often saved for a lineup ' s most dangerous hitter .
johnson tells :
rory calhoun insisted so lita baron called off all her nightclub stints to await the stork in december . the calhouns had a 1949 date cancelled and aren ' t taking any chances this time .
i just want 2 say keep being strong u r doing a damn gud job and n the best man was so touching specially after i lost a brother from cancer n march i cryed like a baby but monica keep ur head up thank u for being the person u r bless . …
round rock express left fielder willie calhoun poses for a portrait at the oklahoma city dodgers ' chickasaw bricktown ballpark on sunday , august 13 , 2017 in oklahoma city , oklahoma . ( ryan michalesko / the dallas morning news )
monica calhoun : and , i used to spend my summers in philadelphia , we moved so far away from family , & my grandmother had 11 children . so , imagine the cousins & the extended cousins & so on & so forth . my mom would send me back there in the summer & my uncle was a dj ! he had just about every record that you could think about . . . . he had it , you know what i mean ? in his basement . he just had all of it .
your never going to write another novel ( taye diggs ) , your football career will eventually end and you will be left with nothing ( morris chestnut ) , your single - minded career drive is going to leave you with no person life ( nia long ) , your ex - stripper wife made a sex tape which is going to destroy the liberal enclave you have fashioned out of nothing ( harold perrineau ) , your going to be really nice person and great mother and die at an early age from cancer ( monica calhoun ) .
monica calhoun : man ! i was talking with somebody the other day . and we were talking about
set it off
. . . . . and , her scene when it was time for her to go . she just . you you were ready , you were there at that moment . you were ready for it and you knew it was going to happen but how was she going to do it and how was she going to take it ? and , f . gary grays direction in capturing that , was just .
next time up , font tried the same thing . calhoun , who is generously listed at 5 - 8 , was ready . he rifled a ball off the right field wall for a triple . another smile at the dodgers dugout .
i am the mother of a son that have needs that are special . i’m also a educator of children who have needs that are special . from day one i asked god to help me . he has been with me every step . i will be praying for monica her son and her whole family .
awh monica you are a beautiful women inside and out . my husband had a stroke in 2012 . i know what it is like to put other people needs first . i am praying for you and your son ! your entire family . keep your faith god is awesome . my husband went back to work !
monica , if i dont hear an album from you soon , that would besooo un - cool . . . . . because i didn ' t know you had thangs like that . and to go 3 and a half hours straight ; thats like recording for 3 hours and you were right there with me ,
johnson writes :
lots of lifted eyebrows on the casting of corinne calvet and rory calhoun as co - stars in powder river . they were a mighty romantic twosome before corinne married john bromfield and rory hitched up with lita baron .
columnist dorothy kilgallen reports that
calhoun plans to prove he ' s not having trouble with his wife , lita baron , by showing up at a ringside table when she opens her singing engagement here at the saint regis . . .
monica calhoun : but during that time , even though i was doing theater at high school , i was in a choir with h . e . barnum & we were traveling everywhere . . . . . . . doing shows here & there . . . . you know , its the cute little kids thing . . . . . . so i had the cute little kid voice , cute little solos ! and , because of h . b . s relationships i did session work with jeffrey osborne , donna summer , quincy jones , stevie wonder .
monica calhoun : thats what i hope to do . . . . . cause its my 9 - 5 ! ! except , its 24 hours , 7 days a week . im always taking in information trying to understand people & the nature of who they are . . . . . . and why they do the things that they do . . . . . . so , whenever i encounter a person like that in a script , i have something to draw on . . . . considering thats not necessarily my lifestyle & thats not necessarily who i am or what
i
do .
spend a few minutes now with willie shawn lamont calhoun jr . , or those who have spent significant time with him , and it ' s hard to envision a kid once so down on himself and the game that he was willing to give it up .
round rock express left fielder willie calhoun swings at a pitch during a match - up between the express and the oklahoma city dodgers at chickasaw bricktown ballpark on monday , august 14 , 2017 in oklahoma city , oklahoma . ( ryan michalesko / the dallas morning news )
monica calhoun : and , also how they approach work & their reasons behind working & what they do ! ! its like , you know people go to school to become lawyers and doctors & so forth . . . . . there are
other
professions . those , to be specific . . . they go to school for those things & theyre trained in those areas & when youre trained to know and understand the difference between . . . . . . . what your boundaries are & also set your own boundaries , you wont have problems separating
fiction
from reality . does that make sense ?
monica calhoun : right ! and , in terms of being here in los angeles & witnessing people that move here from out of state , that say : i gonna make it big , im gonna be big . im this and that . . . . this is how i need to play the game . this is how i should play the game . i gotta run with this crowd or be around this crowd . and , i gotta dress this way , i gotta act this way , i gotta fuck this person , i gotta act like i have this sort of background in order to fit here there and
round rock express left fielder willie calhoun reaches to catch a fly ball during a match - up between the express and the oklahoma city dodgers at chickasaw bricktown ballpark on sunday , august 13 , 2017 in oklahoma city , oklahoma . ( ryan michalesko / the dallas morning news )
monica calhoun : you know what i noticed ? when we were working , that anger was still there . you carried a lot of the anger that i slept with your best friend , and so it was difficult trying to chip away at that wall that gets you to balance it out . you made me work for your warmth . you made me work for wanting to be friendly around everyone for the holidays . i saw that tension and the emotion that you are talking about , pulling and driving for what was to come a little bit later on . there’s so many things that we all go through in our lives that are pulled from that .
carroll adds :
nora is half - mexican and proud of it . that ' s one of the reasons she got so hot . and she and betsy wynn were driving away from the calhoun home before rory slipped and put his arm through the glass on the front door .
monica calhoun : again , that goes back to . . . . . . if you got 5 films that are being made , and those 5 films are specifically catering to the african american community and if its about dollars & cents and theyre gonna go , there somebody at the studio is gonna go ok check the stats . . i cant even say it right now . . check the stats on who is the hottest in the community or who everybody knows and theyre gonna go with that person because they feel like that person is going to bring in the dollars and cents . whereas . . . . you get a brand new filmmaker that will take the chance and hire a fresh face .
columnist mike connolly tells that
corinne calvet went to stanley kramer and urged him to sign lita baron , rory calhoun ' s spouse , for the role of the spanish girl in the pride and the passion , with cary grant and frank sinatra , and kramer may just do it . . .
monica calhoun : details ! ! actors that pay attention to details . wonderful , and directors that pay attention to an actors details . and know and understand that whatever it is that that actor is doing is not necessarily . . they can see and directors or photography they can see what an actor is doing and go , you know what we need to push in and pull in with this because theres going on behind her eyes . theres something that shes doing that really drives the point home . and then an editor that can pick up exactly what her intention was and then edit the scene so where it it tells a complete story . thats priceless filmmaking . robert deniro , jack nicholson ? ? ? ?
calhoun co - starred with actor flex alexander in the short - lived series , where i live , and appeared in pacific station . she appeared in several sitcoms including bagdad cafe ( tv series - starring role ) , the wayans bros . , a different world and the jamie foxx show . her film work includes portraying the cousin of actress lisaraye in ice cube ' s directorial debut the players club ; the best man ; love & basketball and 2007 ' s the salon with vivica fox . in 2009 robert townsend directed calhoun in diary of a single mom , season i , ii and iii ( 2008–10 ) .
monica calhoun : and , even still , ya know ? cause as human beings were always still growing & learning about ourselves in life lessons . my background , specifically , my childhood [ to a certain degree ] , i was sheltered from a lot of things and thats why sometimes its easy for people to kind of take advantage of a situation . . or a thought process or believe that i dont necessarily know much , about some things . but , eventually because of how i grew up , i understand & have known the difference between right and wrong , & its up to me whether
i
want to explore . . . . wrong . . . . and if
i
want to explore right .
calhoun ' s father , willie sr . , a corrections officer at the prison , agreed to take his son on a tour . willie had long been interested in the place . he thought maybe a career in law enforcement was his best option . his father agreed to the tour , but with other unspoken intentions .
it fires me up ,
calhoun said .
i ' ve heard it all my life . it just keeps adding me and pushing me . i hear stuff that i supposedly can ' t do and inside my head i ' m like laughing . i want to prove people shouldn ' t look over me .
14 years since making his directorial debut in the romantic comedy - drama , “the best man , ” malcolm d . lee has fulfilled fans long - awaited request with the film’s sequel , “the best man holiday . ” the christmas - themed follow - up finds lee reuniting with the ensemble cast , which includes morris chestnut , nia long , sanaa lathan , monica calhoun , melissa de sousa , terrence howard , and regina hall , at their characters regroup for a holiday retreat filled with laughs and a bit of misfortune along the way . during a recent interview with the huffington post , lee opened up on directing and producing the project , in addition to his thoughts on the resurgence of black films in theaters and the reason why most studios refuse to release soundtracks . read more . . . more on pop culture
mrs calhoun really think that your a beautiful person on the outside . and i can feel in my heart that your more beautiful on the inside . just wanted to say i enjoy your work as an actress . an 1 day i wish to see you in person just to get a nice teddy bear hug . down in the 504 . stay sweet . glenn
with all that talent , how exactly did willie calhoun jr . - - he goes by
june ,
short for
junior ,
around family and friends - - end up dodging debris in east block of california ' s oldest prison , talking to death row inmates and life - long criminals in a homemade version of the
scared straight
program ?
we can’t wait ! the sequel to “the best man” arrives before thanksgiving this year ! after nearly 15 years apart , taye diggs , nia long , morris chestnut , harold perrineau , terrence howard , sanaa lathan , monica calhoun , melissa de sousa and regina hall reprise their career - launching roles in the best man holiday , the long - awaited next chapter to the film that ushered in a new era of comedy . when the college friends finally reunite over the christmas holidays , they will discover just how easy it is for long - forgotten rivalries and romances to be ignited . malcolm d . lee returns to write and direct this sequel to his directorial debut . sean daniel ( the mummy franchise ) will produce alongside lee for the sean daniel company . watch # thebestmanholiday trailer below and see the film in theaters everywhere november 15 ! photos and video courtesy universal pictures
i wanted him to see the uglier side of life and what that had to offer ,
willie calhoun sr . said this week .
i wanted him to hear what they ' d do for another chance . i wanted him to keep pushing . you can always get a job , but i didn ' t want him to give up on his dream .
calhoun : the script spoke to me too because you’ve got to think about it . the college friends that met in college have stayed friends , and to see them years later and how their lives have developed i thought would be very interesting . also , mia’s and lance’s journey and what they were going through , i thought that would be interesting and challenging for me as an actress .
monica calhoun completely disappears into any role she’s graced the screen to play . in movies like the players club , the best man and the webseries diary of a single mom , the character actress regularly wows critics and audiences . here , urltoken chats with her about the best man holiday , which hits blu - ray and dvd on february 11 , and much more . your character mia’s storyline in the best man holiday is heartbreaking . what did you think of her story when you got the script ? i welcomed the challenge as an actress . to go to that place of life and death and internal struggle and wanting to make everything perfect so life could begin the healing and forgiveness process . i welcomed that challenge to pull everything together to be that matriarch , the head of the house , that strong female character . even in her strength and her weakness mia still maintained and was strong for everyone .
chestnut : i remember when we were in rehearsals and we were going through it , because we rehearsed before we went to toronto , and it’s more of the same . she and i had to deal with a lot of stuff in this movie and we really have to take ourselves there . it actually started in rehearsals , and just revisiting that piece of it all . just the way monica is and what she says and the way she looks at me , it really affects me throughout rehearsals and throughout the scenes .
from the time he got his first big break on the television series moesha , white has been on an upward trajectory , fortunate to play diverse roles in both television and film , including notable characters in scandal , mistresses , the family stone , and chicago fire . currently , he stars in bob johnson’s urban movie channel’s no regrets , which he produced , appearing opposite monica calhoun , loretta devine , sharon leal , jackie christie , amin joseph , and others . he also has two upcoming movies : amateur , a netflix mandalay theatrical production that will be released in theaters this spring and co - stars sharon leal , michael rainey , jr . , and josh charles . the second movie , the lift , is a dramatic thriller that he produced with damon dash and co - stars claudia jordan and columbus short . this summer , white makes his debut on season 5 of showtime’s ray donovan , along with regular cast member pooch hall and others .
monica calhoun : thats why its really important for black people african american people that have money to understand the power of distribution . distribution in terms of owning a theater in ohio , a movie theater in arizona . that way when a fairly decent film that has been made without the hands of the studio with the independent , have gone through the independent process , they have some place to showcase their film . and the next step is just promoting that film . whatever grassroots promoting that can be done in order for people to know that that film exists then somehow the money and go and recycle back into the community and not only that , we must understand its another way of opening up who we are as a people and the different levels of who we are . i like to laugh just as much as the next person , but , i also like to cry and i like to think . and thats what attracts me to acting and also singing .
monica calhoun : but , he had this class and i was more interested in what he had to say on the business end than the acting class ; not being arrogant and saying , oh i know everything i need to know about acting but , it was more less it was fascinating the way he structured the class . . . . . . he invited different people in from the industry ; people that handled financing , people that were on the publicity end , agents , directors , and producers and gave them the floor and allowed them to speak on their experiences and how they entered hollywood and where they see hollywood going and what is it that we need to do to look for in hollywood for us and how to go about getting our or carving our path or map . and basically those different kinds of people that he pulled in it showed you what you needed to really pay attention to . and it reiterated that phrase that you always hear ; its not show business , its the business of show .
in a paternity suit filed in los angeles , her husband is named father of a girl , nathena , born on january 26 , 1959 , to starlet and tv actress vitina marcus . 26 - year - old marcus retains the right to ask support for the child later . the suit will be settled for an undisclosed sum in april 1966 , calhoun still denying being the father . the settlement figure is rumored to be $ 5 , 000 .
at the film’s recent press day , we sat down with chestnut and calhoun to talk to them about reprising their characters , the film’s emotional storyline , preparing physically as well as emotionally for their roles , repairing the broken friendship between lance and harper , learning the dance moves for the rousing christmas eve scene , keeping a straight face throughout the complicated choreography , their real life holiday traditions , the proudest moment in their career so far , and the possibility of a third film .
how many beautiful black people can you fit on a magazine cover ? plenty . that ' s just what ebony accomplished for its november issue featuring the star - studded cast of
best man holiday .
in fact , there was too much gorgeousness for just one cover so they made two . the leading ladies - - sanaa lathan , nia long , regina hall , monica calhoun and melissa desousa - - look stunning dressed in cream and white hued ethereal gowns for the first cover . we ' re pretty sure all that cleavage sanaa is showing will boost ticket sales . and we see you with all that leg , nia ! wowzas . as for the fellas ? terrence howard , taye diggs , morris chestnut and harold perrineau are suited up and looking super fine for the second cover . the dapper dudes are sure to delight fans when their long awaited on - screen reunion hits theaters on november 15 . in the meantime , feast your eyes on ebony ' s november covers . amazing , right ? and if you think those stars look good , check out the ones in the slideshow bel . . .
columnist harrison carroll tells about a big , new feud raging between her and nora haymes :
the girls had a terrific verbal set at the calhoun home . and the evening had started in such a disarming fashion . nora and betsy wynn , on invitation , dropped over to the calhouns . nora made some remark about lita being mexican and lita insisted she was spanish . from there , things really began popping . the names lita called her two guests can ' t be printed here .
throughout the years , there have been marriages , children and divorces – not to mention all the love and heartbreak that accompany a life well lived – but the group has not been able to manage a proper get - together since lance ( chestnut ) and mia’s ( calhoun ) wedding . but that’s all about to be remedied . when the college friends finally reunite over the christmas holidays , they will discover just how easy it is for long - forgotten rivalries and passionate romances to be reignited .
it was the best of times ( the best man ) , it was the worst of times ( the best man holiday ) … it was the epoch of belief ( morris chestnut ’s lance ) , it was the epoch of incredulity ( taye diggs ’ harper ) , it was the season of light ( chestnut breaking the all time rushing record ) , it was the season of darkness ( his wife mia dying three days later ) , it was the spring of hope ( a baby being born the following spring ) , it was the winter of despair ( again mia ( monica calhoun ) is dying for the entirety of the movie ) , we had everything before us ( the best man when these characters were still young and full of hope ) , we had nothing before us ( the best man holiday where all their life plans have epic failed ) , we were all going direct to heaven ( obvi ) , we were all going direct the other way — in short , the period was so far like the present period , that some of its noisiest authorities insisted on its being received , for good or for evil , in the superlative degree of comparison only ( movie critics ) .
beverly hills , calif . ( ap ) — back in 2012 , while filming
the best man holiday ,
morris chestnut and nia long became increasingly nostalgic . it had been 14 years since the release of malcolm d . lee ' s 1999 hit ,
the best man ,
and 21 years since the actors were first - time co - stars in john singleton ' s street - life classic
boyz n the hood .
there was a moment when we were shooting in a limo and nia looked at me and said , ' you are a man now ! '
recalled chestnut with a chuckle during a recent interview .
we are in such different places in our lives and careers now . we ' re fortunate to still be here .
chestnut , long and the entire original cast of
the best man
— taye diggs , terrence howard , sanaa lathan , harold perrineau , regina hall , monica calhoun and melissa de sousa — return in the christmas - themed
the best man holiday ,
opening friday . although other follow - up films have come years after their originals — september ' s
riddick ,
for example — the long - awaited
best man
reunion . . .
it was december of 2014 . calhoun had just been academically dismissed from the university of arizona and its baseball team . he had stopped going to classes regularly after struggling to deal with the death of his grandmother , to whom he was close . he thought maybe all the disparaging comments he ' d heard about himself as a player - that he was too small , too slow and without a position - were perhaps accurate . he thought there weren ' t a lot of attractive options for him . it was one of life ' s tipping - point moments .
and all the while his paternal grandmother was in the final stages of a five - year long fight with cancer . to understand the full depth of this , you must understand how close the calhoun family is . when his brother - in - law became paralyzed , willie sr . , invited him to live with his family . teenage willie jr . often took care of his uncle . willie sr . also adopted his niece . the first tattoo willie jr . ever got was the name of his younger sister , jayden , across his chest above his heart .
calhoun : it’s really difficult for me to answer that question , because the past 20 something odd years , i’ve had a roller coaster effect . i’ve worked in the industry on several different levels , so the proudest moment i could say… i got several because each experience is different , but i will solidify this film as one of the proudest moments , because to go from knowing these folks when we were just basically kids and now we are grown and we’re able to have… well , i’m still working on having grown up conversations ( laughs ) and i’m still working on creating a different sort of family life as opposed to the family life that i have right now . you have to hook me up with the traditions and a good handsome friend .
chestnut : it was very difficult . with this particular movie , it’s 14 years later and the character still needs to be playing football , so it was really challenging for me physically to have to be in great shape . then malcolm said that he wanted me to take my shirt off , and there were a couple of other explicit scenes that we didn’t get to shoot . so it was tough for me emotionally and physically because i really couldn’t eat . i lost a lot of weight for that movie just because i still had to portray the football player who is still in shape . but fortunately , malcolm gave me enough in this movie to where i could convey how far i feel that i’ve come , and i’m still growing as an actor in a lot of those scenes . it was really challenging . even when i first read the script , i said , “oh man . he’s really emotional and there are so many emotional things . ” it’s really hard to do that in an ensemble movie because you’re there and everybody’s talking about , “yeah we had a good time last night , and tonight were going to the club” and all that stuff , and i had to be over in my little corner just kind of focusing on what i needed to do to get to that place . but monica and i were there together so i think it worked .