Theater and Movies

Details: Written by Kam Williams; Published: 09 May 2014

Kam reviews Chef, God's Pocket, Stage Fright, Legends of Oz: Dorothy’s Return, Neighbors, App, The Rescuers and more…

Details: Written by Jonathan Landrum Jr., Associated Press; Published: 09 May 2014

Lee says his wife persuaded him to “She's Gotta Have It,” will make great television.

This April 29, 2014 file photo shows filmmaker and avid basketball fan Spike Lee at a news conference by NBA Commissioner Adam Silver in New York announcing that Los Angeles Clippers owner Donald Sterling has been banned for life by the league. Lee says his wife convinced him to turn his 1986 film “She's Gotta Have It” into a television series for Showtime. The original story focused on a woman's relationship with three men, exploring the issues of race, sexuality and gentrification in the neighborhood of Brooklyn. Showtime will decide whether the show gets picked up or not. (AP Photo/Kathy Willens, File)

ATLANTA (AP) — Spike Lee says his wife persuaded him to adapt his 1986 film, “She's Gotta Have It,” for television.

“For years, my wife Tonya (Lewis) kept telling me, 'That would make a great TV show,'“ Lee said in an interview Thursday night. “Then I went to Showtime with the first initial meeting and we sold the idea. That's not something that happens every day.”

Lee wants to adapt the movie into a half-hour comedy series. The original story focused on a woman's relationship with three men, exploring the issues of race, sexuality and gentrification in the neighborhood of Brooklyn, New York.

The film was a breakthrough project for Lee, and helped ignite the independent film movement.

Lee expects to take a contemporary look at the characters and plot for the adaptation. He's working on the pilot and feels confident about creating a strong script.

Showtime will decide whether the show gets picked up.

“I've always been confident in my ability, but it's not to be my decision alone,” said the 57-year-old Lee. “All I can do is write the best pilot I can write. Hopefully, God willing, the people and powers-to-be at Showtime can say, 'We like it Spike, let's shoot the pilot.'“

Lee has also finished the script and is seeking more financial backing for the sequel to his 1988 film, “School Daze,” based on life at Atlanta's historically black colleges.

He said he wants to explore the current issues faced by black college students.

“Anytime I walk the streets, people say how much they like to see them (the colleges) again,” he said. “It'll be very interesting to revisit Mission College 25 years later. It's different than what students were dealing with in 1988 when that film came out. The world has changed.”

Details: Written by Kam Williams; Published: 07 May 2014

Emily Jean Stone was born on November 6, 1988 in Scottsdale, Arizona where she started acting at an early age. With her striking beauty and sincere talent, the Golden Globe-nominated actress (for Easy A) has claimed her place as one of Hollywood’s most sought after actresses.

She recently wrapped filming a still untitled Cameron Crowe project opposite Bradley Cooper and Alec Baldwin which will be released on Christmas Day 2014. She just finished shooting the Woody Allen film Magic in the Moonlight in which she stars opposite Collin Firth, also set for release later this year.

Besides The Amazing Spider-Man 2, Emma will soon be seen in the dark comedy Birdman, starring opposite Zack Galifinakis, Michael Keaton and Edward Norton. Previously, she lent her voice to the hit animated film, The Croods. And she will soon reprise her role as the voice of Eep for the sequel, which will hit theaters in July of 2019.

Emma’s additional film credits include the period drama Gangster Squad; Easy A, the award-winning drama The Help; the romantic comedy Crazy, Stupid, Love; Friends with Benefits; Paperman; the animated comedy, Marmaduke; Zombieland; the romantic comedy Ghosts of Girlfriends Past; The House Bunny; The Rocker; and the ensemble comedy Superbad.

When not filming, Emma is an advocate for Stand Up To Cancer (SU2C), a groundbreaking initiative created to accelerate innovative cancer research that will get new therapies to patients quickly and save lives now. Laura Ziskin, the late producer of The Amazing Spider-Man, started the organization and got Emma involved.

In addition to SU2C, Stone is also an ambassador for Gilda’s Club New York City. Named for Gilda Radner, the late comedian and original cast member of SNL, Gilda’s Club offers a place where people dealing with cancer can join together to build social and emotional support. Stone has become an active member in the Gilda’s Club community and continues to do so by engaging with their younger departments for children and teens.

Here, she talks about her latest movie, Spider-Man 2, where she reprised her role as Spider-Man’s love interest Gwen Stacy.

Kam Williams: Hi Emma, thanks for the interview. I’m honored to have this opportunity to speak with you.

Emma Stone: Oh, thank you, Kam!

KW: I’ve admired your versatility and so much of your work, from Superbad to Zombieland to Easy A to Crazy, Stupid, Love to The Help to Gangster Squad to Spider-Man.

ES: Thanks.

KW: Now, I have a lot of questions for you from fans which I’m going to mix in with my own. Editor/Legist Patricia Turnier would like to know how it was reuniting with the cast and crew to do Spider-Man 2.

ES: It was so great! I had never worked with the same cast and crew twice in a row before. So, I had a really good time. We had a nice rapport and trust among all of us, and with the new cast members as well, like Dane [DeHaan] and Jamie [Foxx]. It was a blast!

KW: Patricia also asks: Are you at all like Gwen?

ES: In some ways, yes, since I find things about myself that can relate to every character that I’ve played. So, yeah. But in other ways, maybe not as much. [Laughs]

KW: Harriet Pakula-Teweles asks: What’s the difference between a screen romance with a super-hero and one with an ordinary leading man?

ES: Well, I think Peter Parker in some ways is both because he’s a regular high school student, now college student, who happens to have this other life as Spider-Man. It’s sort of one and the same and this point. They’re pretty symbiotic. They’re inseparable!

KW: Harriet also asks: With so many classic films being redone, is there a remake you'd like to star in?

ES: No, not one I could think of off the top of my head. If there’s a classic I’m tempted to redo, it’s because I loved the original so much. But I wouldn’t really want to mess with it.

KW: Lisa Loving asks: Did you ever wish you had a superpower in the film, considering the fact that several other characters did? Or were you happy not to, since superheroes and villains tend to be jerkier than normal people?

ES: I feel like Gwen’s mind, her intelligence is her superpower, and her heart, too. I think if there’s any superpower I’d want her to have it would be invisibility, so she could advise Spider-Man while remaining unseen, and not get so swept up into his antics.

KW: Environmental activist Grace Sinden asks: How different was acting in Spider-Man 2 for you from the original, and is Spider-Man 3 in the works?

ES: I know Spider-Man 3 is in the works. They’re already working on it now. Spider-Man 2 was different in the sense that the original was kind of just setting the table of the story while the second movie was sort of getting into the feast. So, it felt like we were all finding our footing on the first movie and getting to know each other and what kind of story we wanted to tell in our version of Spider-Man. Now, in the second one, we knew what the tone was, so we were able to dive deeper into the real heart and meat of the story.

KW: Grace also says: Watching a panel discussion you were on about the Spider-Man costumes, I heard that you are opposed to gender stereotypes. Is that the case?

ES: [Chuckles] It’s interesting how that whole conversation, which was just a simple conversation, has become a big deal. No, I don’t really believe in gender stereotyping, but I was genuinely just asking for a clarification of the definition of it in that circumstance.

KW: A lotta guys didn’t exactly send in questions, but asked for dates or just went on about you, like Gil Cretney who said: “Love that girl!” and Richie the Intern who gushed: “She’s really attractive!”

ES: [Giggles] That’s nice!

KW: Obama biographer Dinesh Sharma asks: Why did you recently refer to yourself as a “bland, basic bitch” in Vogue?

ES: [LOL] Because that was a comment I read about me once, and I thought it was kind of funny.

KW: Attorney Bernadette Beekman asks: Who was your favorite superhero growing up?
ES: I loved the Tim Burton Batman movies, so I’d have to say Michael Keaton. I also enjoyed Beetlejuice, so I guess Michael Keaton characters were my superheroes.

KW: Bernadette also asks: Is there someone who does superhuman things in real life that you admire?

ES: Lot’s of people! Anyone who’s making a huge impact or speaking out about what they believe in or who’s brave enough to be themselves is a superhero to me.

KW: Pat says: I love the character Pippi Longstocking. Would you consider playing her onscreen? I think you would be perfect for the part.

ES: Well that’s very nice of you to say, Pat. Of course I would!

KW: The Ling-Ju Yen question: What is your earliest childhood memory?

ES: Hmm… That’s a good question. [Pauses to reflect] I don’t really have one that I revisit. It’s kind of a haze of memories of the first house my family lived in, like being in the living room and the bedroom at about 2 or 3 maybe. But I don’t really remember anything too vividly.

KW: What is your favorite dish to cook?

ES: I like to bake, but I haven’t gotten all that great at cooking. So, pasta is usually my “go to” dish. I’m really good at making Kraft macaroni and cheese. [Chuckles]

KW: Do you spice it up, or just follow the instructions on the box?

ES: I don’t use any milk, but I add too much butter for human consumption. It’s pretty damn good! It’s my dad’s college recipe. He ate it every day for a year.

KW: The Uduak Oduok question: Who is your favorite clothes designer?

ES: I don’t really have one favorite. I have a few.

KW: The bookworm Troy Johnson question: What was the last book you read?

ES: I just finished re-reading The Four Agreements.

I’m reading Lolita now for the first time. And I’m trying to get back into The Goldfinch. I started reading it, but put it down after about 150 pages. I’m going to try to finish it, because people seem to really love that book.

KW: The music maven Heather Covington question: What was the last song you listened to?

ES: “Cigarettes and Coffee” by Otis Redding.

KW: If you could have one wish instantly granted, what would that be for?

ES: I’d wish for an infinite amount of wishes.

KW: Thanks again for the time, Emma, and best of luck with the film.

ES: Thank you very, very much, Kam. It was nice to talk with you.

Details: Written by by Kam Williams; Published: 05 May 2014

Three tired moms take a break from domestic duties in this faith-based family comedy

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Details: Written by Kam Williams Special To The Skanner News; Published: 01 May 2014

Weekly previews that make choosing a film fun

Details: Written by Helen Silvis; Published: 28 April 2014

Melissa Lowery knew how rough life can be for a Black girl in White suburbia. So when her own daughter came home in tears, she decided to document the problem...