Sharlene Whyte Talks About the Significance of ‘Small Axe’ and Her Role in ‘Education’

December 17, 2020November 5, 2021 Jamal Michel

Amazon Prime Video has released the official trailer for Education, the fifth and final film in Steve McQueen’s Small Axe anthology series. Small Axe premiered with Mangrove starring Letitia Wright and Shaun Parkes on November 20, followed by Lovers Rock on November 27 featuring Micheal Ward and Amarah-Jae St. Aubyn.

Interview, Movies, Streaming1 Comment

NOC Interview: ‘Small Axe’ Star Sheyi Cole Talks ‘Alex Wheatle’

December 9, 2020May 15, 2021 Jamal Michel

With his bold and multifaceted Small Axe anthology, Steve McQueen has made the films of the moment. Three of the five films — Lovers Rock, Mangrove, and Red, White and Blue — have premiered to a great reception at the NYFF. The films capture vividly the lives of London’s West Indian community in the 1970s and ’80s and their force of will against systemic racism and discrimination. “I dedicate these films to George Floyd, and all the other black people that have been murdered, seen or unseen, because of who they are, in the U.S., U.K. and elsewhere,” the director said in May.

Interview, Movies, Streaming

NOC Interview: ‘Small Axe’ Star Kenyah Sandy Talks About His Lead Role

December 17, 2020May 15, 2021 Jamal Michel

Legendary director Steve McQueen’s Small Axe is an anthology series comprised of five original films set from the late 1960s to the mid 1980s that tell personal stories from London’s West Indian community, whose lives have been shaped by their own force of will despite rampant racism and discrimination. The title is derived from the African proverb, “If you are the big tree, we are the small axe.”

Movies, Reviews, Streaming

Steve McQueen Highlights Necessary Histories with New Documentaries

September 25, 2021September 25, 2021 Jamal Michel

Director Steve McQueen’s newest Prime Video documentaries on West Indian and Caribbean life in 20^th century London are necessary viewing. In a style similar to Ava DuVernay’s 13^th, the Academy Award-winning director stitches together archival footage and thoughtful interviews that spotlight the violent history of some of London’s most vulnerable communities. Subnormal: A British Scandal, Black Power: A British Story of Resistance, and Uprising document the racially motivated atrocities that plagued black and brown neighborhoods across London in the 1960s, ‘70s, and ‘80s, and captures the delicate maneuverings of McQueen’s cinematic eye.

Streaming, Television

Academy Award-Winning Director Steve McQueen’s New Documentaries

August 31, 2021September 1, 2021 Jamal Michel

The masterful work of Academy Award winning director Steve McQueen spans an impressive set of genres, from films to anthology series, and now the 12 Years a Slave director has three new documentaries coming to Amazon Prime. Last year, we spoke to the talented leads in McQueen’s anthology Small Axe that examined the real-life experiences of West Indians living in mid-20th century London.

Movies, Streaming1 Comment

Highlights from the 42nd Hawai’i International Film Festival’s Virtual Program

November 25, 2022November 26, 2022 Lauren Lola

For the third consecutive year of its 42-year run, the Hawai’i International Film Festival has a large selection of films available to view virtually. With titles ranging from Hawaii, the mainland, the overall Asia-Pacific region, and other parts of the world, there are so many for viewers to watch from the comfort of home, each of which expressing voices and stories of all kinds.

Streaming, Television

Jesse Plemons Joins Elizabeth Olsen in the Max Original ‘Love and Death’

June 1, 2021June 11, 2021 Sophia Soto

Jesse Plemons is set to star opposite Elizabeth Olsen in the new Max Original limited series Love and Death as “Allan Gore.” Olsen was previously announced to portray “Candy Montgomery.” Love and Death is produced by Lionsgate. Executive producers include David E. Kelley (who will also write the series) through David E. Kelley Productions, Nicole Kidman and Per Saari through Blossom Films, Lesli Linka Glatter (director of the series), Scott Brown and Megan Creydt through Texas Monthly, Matthew Tinker, Michael Klick, and Helen Verno.