"Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom": A Lesson in Blues
With raw and unapologetic performances by Viola Davis and Chadwick Boseman, stories about the hardships of Black musicians are weaved in with The Blues.

The film tells the tale of a man who gets involved in smuggling. Hasan works as a steward on a ship. During their trip to Marseilles, he makes a deal with an Armenian man to smuggle goods into İstanbul. He brings the goods with his friend Yakup to İstanbul without being caught at customs. Several times, he calls furrier Nubar who is to receive the goods, yet he cannot reach him. This worries Hasan and Yakup who want to deliver the goods without being caught. Unable to contact Nubar, Hasan goes to the shop of the other partner, Leon. He learns that Nubar has been arrested after a tip off was made. Leon is also afraid and tells Hasan to take the goods back. Wanting to get the job done, Hasan will make the deal he wants with Leon. (Meltem İşler Sevindi)
With raw and unapologetic performances by Viola Davis and Chadwick Boseman, stories about the hardships of Black musicians are weaved in with The Blues.
Two Summers ago, on May 27th, 2022, the theatrical cinematic realms were re-awakened from their post-COVID dormant state of being by a little film titled "Top Gun: Maverick". It re-introduced us to the absolute elation of seeing not only a highly anticipated (and, granted, 36 years in the making!) sequel, but the return of the quintessential Summer blockbuster to witness on the BIG screen again.
World-famous drag queen Trixie Mattel shares a year of her life with the world in this vulnerable and uplifting documentary.
The new biopic 'Elvis' highlights the beginning and end of the career of this rock and roll legend. The audience is taken on this journey knowing the tragic ending but not so much about what led him there. A large topic of discussion is the influences on Elvis that made him who he was as a singer, musician, and performer, which were blues, gospel, and country. Many of the songs that rose him to fame were songs by Black artists he heard growing up in primarily Black settings.
“Reboot” can be crass and has much room to improve, but with investments of time and care, could flower out of the seed of a vision.