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About The skanner. (Portland, Or.) 1975-2014 | View Entire Issue (July 22, 2015)
Arts & Entertainment Kam’s Kapsules: Movies Opening This Friday, July 24 BIG BUDGET FILMS Paper Towns (PG-13 for profanity, sexuality, under- age drinking and partial nudity) Adaptation of John Green’s young adult novel, set in Orlando, about a teen- ager (Nat Wolff) who enlists the help of his friends to solve the mysterious disap- pearance of the next-door neighbor (Cara Delevingne) he has a crush on. Cast in- cludes Halston Sage, Austin Abrams, Jaz Sinclair and Justice Smith. Pixels (PG-13 for profan- ity and suggestive content) Sci-fi comedy revolving around a trio of retro-gamers (Adam Sandler, Peter Din- klage and Josh Gad) recruit- ed by the President of the United States (Kevin James) to save the day when the planet is attacked by aliens who fight like the monsters in classic arcade games like Space Invaders, Pac-Man and Donkey Kong. With Michelle Monaghan, Jane Krakowski, Dan Aykroyd and Affion Crockett. Southpaw (R for violence and pervasive profanity) Jake Gyllenhaal plays the title character in this bit- tersweet tale of redemption Kam’s Capsules Movie Reviews by Kam Williams about a disgraced boxer who attempts to win back his championship belt with the help of a crafty veteran trainer (Forest Whitaker). Support cast includes Ra- chel McAdams, 50 Cent, Naomie Harris and Oona Laurence. INDEPENDENT & FOREIGN FILMS Capital C (Unrated) Crowdfunding documen- tary exploring the benefits and pitfalls of financing an entrepreneurial enterprise by pitching a plethora of potential investors via social networking. Five Star (Unrated) Gang- sta saga, set in Brooklyn, in- spired by the real life story of a member of the Bloods (James Grant) who decided to adopt the son (John Diaz) of his murdered mentor. With Wanda Nobles Colon, Jasmine Burgos, Larry Bo- ‘Five Star’ stars James Grant (left) as a member of the Bloods who decides to adopt the son (played by John Diaz, right) of his murdered mentor. gad and Richard Bird. A Gay Girl in Damascus (Unrated) LBGT-themed documentary exposing an Arab blogger who falsely claimed to be kidnapped and persecuted by Syrian authorities for being a lesbi- an. (In English, French and Arabic with subtitles) Lucky Stiff (Unrated) Ad- Book Review: ‘Talking Back: Voices of Color’ Talking Back: Voices of Color Edited by Nellie Wong Red Letter Press Paperback, $15.00 240 pages, Illustrated ISBN: 978-0-932323-32-3 by Kam Williams For The Skanner News “As a feminist of Chinese-American roots, my disrespected skin color and low-paid status as a secretarial work- er shocked me into a realization that I’ve embraced now for many years: the knowledge that racist, sexist, anti-queer, anti-trans, anti-worker discrimination leveled against one is leveled against all. “We must seek integration into revolu- tionary change, not into business-as-usu- al capitalist America that puts people of color and women in chains. That’s what’s necessary. Through this collection, read- ers are given a rare jewel: a gem ablaze with the colors of working-class voices, rather than abstractions from lofty aca- demic towers. “The offerings... speak out [about] the fight for quality public education, repro- ductive justice and freedom of expres- sion, and an end to police violence and war... and much more. To whom do we talk back? To those who will silence us... These voices of color matter. They need to be heard.” -- Excerpted from the Introduction (page 10) N ellie Wong was born in Oakland, Calif., at a time when Chinese women and girls were uniformly raised to obey rather than question au- thority. Consequently, she would dutiful- ly marry, have kids and take employment as a secretary, all in accordance with nar- rowly-defined cultural expectations. However, Nellie finally started to shed society’s shackles in the 1970s when she started taking courses in writing and feminist and Asian-American studies at San Francisco State University. Curious- ly, that path in pursuit of personal libera- tion simultaneously made her very aware that members of other minority groups were also marginalized, whether Black, Brown, indigenous, lesbian, gay or trans- gender. Nellie subsequently not only found her voice as a politically-motivated poet, but she got involved in the liberation movement as an organizer and activist. And over the ensuing decades she has remained an unrepentant advocate for social justice. So, it only makes sense that at 80 years of age, she’d serve as editor for Talking Back: Voices of Color. The book is a col- lection of enlightening essays authored by a rainbow coalition of next generation firebrands exploring a litany of hot-but- ton issues ranging from racism and fem- inism to terrorism and immigration to education and sexual preference. Global in scope, the opus not only ad- dresses the concerns of the oppressed in the U.S. but of folks as far afield as the Middle East, Australia, Central America, Europe, Asia, Canada, South America and even Australia. Leave it to Nellie to sum up the tome’s simple aim ever so eloquently by quoting the late James Baldwin who, as she’s quick to point out, was both Black and gay: “You write to change the world.” Hear, hear! aptation of the Off-Broad- way musical comedy re- volving around a bachelor (Dominic Marsh) who ventures to Monte Carlo to claim an $8 million inheri- tance from the recently-de- ceased, rich uncle (Don Amendolia) he never knew he had. With Jason Alexan- der, Dennis Farina and Pa- mela Shaw. The Outrageous Sophie Tucker (unrated) Rever- ential biopic chronicling the life and times of the legendary vaudeville icon (1887-1966) who wowed audiences from the turn of the 20th Century through the mid-Sixties. Featuring See MOVIES on page 7 Film Review: ‘Tango Negro’ Examines the African Roots of the Tango by Kam Williams For The Skanner News T he word “tango” means “sun” in Con- golese. Given that derivation, it comes as no surprise that the dance thought of as South Ameri- can might be traced back to Africa. That explains the mission of Tango Negro, a labor of love marking the writing and directorial debut of Dom Pedro. What makes the project of educational value country, immigration was encouraged by settlers from Italy, France, Lebanon and Syria. Thus, it is argued in Tango Negro that “the history of the Americas is an absolute lie, from the extermination of the indigenous peoples to the destruction of African cultures.” And it is further stipulated that this shameful legacy “will have to be ac- knowledged for reconcilia- tion to occur.” Besides the revisionist lessons, this informative documentary includes nu- tedly hard to find any dark- skinned citizens. Ole! Ole! Ole! Very Good HHH Unrated In Spanish, French and En- glish with subtitles Running time: 93 minutes ‘The history of the Americas is an absolute lie’ is the fact that Argentina, the country most closely associated with Tango, has generally been averse to ad- mitting its African heritage. Truth be told, a post-slav- ery purge of Blacks there resulted in a whitening of the region by the early 20th Century. For, while the descendants of Con- golese slaves were being slaughtered or run out of the merous songs and per- formances of the Tango. Unfortunately, the music proves to be the low point of the picture, due to its woe- fully low production values. Nevertheless, three “Ole’s” to director Dom Pedro for daring to raise the taboo subject right in Buenos Ai- res, an ethnically-cleansed environ where it’s admit- View movie trailers at TheSkanner.com July 22, 2015 The Portland Skanner Page 5
