'Black Magic for White Boys': Film Review

Jidenna has shared his latest single "Black Magic Hour," the first from the compilation project African On All Sides set to drop later this year. The album, alongside an accompanying documentary, hopes to seamlessly blend artists across a host of diasporic genres and industries in Africa, the U.S., Latin America, and the West Indies.

Affirming the legacy of two hustling entrepreneurs with an eye for talent and boundless energy for DIY marketing, Kat Alioshin's Animation Outlaws celebrates the colorful personalities known to fans only as Spike & Mike: two Californians who went from promoting rock shows to assembling a decades-long series of showcases for animated shorts.

Maggie Lee Chief Asia Film CriticImagine a Japanese version of “Pygmalion” in which the sculptor continues to caress slabs of marble even after Galatea has come to life. That is the unusual premise of “Romance Doll,” a marital drama in which a sex doll maker’s rapt obssession with his new prototype, leads to rejection of his human muse.

Identifying Features, from first-time director Fernanda Valadez, is like water in the desert for the mostly myopic genre of "la frontera" action films that depict the migration crisis at the southern border of the United States. Shot on location in rural Guanajuato, Mexico, this poignant film (which scooped two awards in the World Cinema Dramatic Competition at this year's Sundance fest and will be distributed in the U.S.

Lisa Kennedy Four Vietnam vets reunite for a mission, one that will lean on their wartime exploits but also expose more than a few old tensions.

Dennis Harvey Film CriticSnarled loops of time travel have proved a surprisingly versatile and rewarding fantasy-cinema trope in recent years, from the big-budget likes of “Edge of Tomorrow” to such enterprising indies as “Predestination,” not to mention comedies (“Palm Springs”), horror (“Happy Death Day”), romance (“Before I Fall”) and more.

The timing couldn't be more fortuitous for the release of Mary Mazzio's uplifting documentary about the nation's first African American high school rowing team, which feels almost like a tonic for these troubled times. Narrated by Common and including NBA greats Grant Hill and Dwyane Wade among its executive producers, A Most Beautiful Thing, scheduled to open in theaters, powerfully demonstrates the healing potential of sports and the ways it can help bridge societal divides.

The Recording Academy has partnered with Color of Change, the nation's largest online racial justice organization, to promote social change within the music industry. To kick off the partnership, the Recording Academy has made a $1 million donation to the non-profit. The organizations will work together to identify key opportunities to drive change in the music i

In a COVID-19-less world, we would be two months removed from Marvel Studios’ “Black Widow.” Unfortunately, we don’t live in this paradise and the global pandemic has kept movie theaters shut down for months, pushing the superhero film to November. But with the light at the end of the tunnel coming soon for cinemas (hopefully, at least), we can start looking ahead to “Black Widow” and what seems to be less of a prequel/filler film and more of a new beginning.

Maggie Lee Chief Asia Film CriticEye-popping action steals the show in “Lupin III: The First,” the first computer-animated feature entry in the classic franchise about the French gentleman thief and master of disguise.

One of two offerings this year from Mexican filmmaker Gerardo Naranjo, Viena and the Fantomes looks to be the less likely to please fans of his much-admired 2011 Miss Bala (remade as a much-less-admired Gina Rodriguez vehicle last year): While his Mexico-set Kokoloko (a virtual Tribeca fest entry awaiting distribution) reportedly returns to tales of gang violence, Viena throws its heroine out on tour with a rock band as something between a roadie and a groupie.

Billboard hope to uplift and empower African Americans during this cloudy and dubious time. For the month of June, Billboard had artists provide a playlist designed to remedy the heartaches endured by the Black community.Newly-signed Warner Records vocalist Bren Joy is the last artist to whip up a hearty playlist for us, one that centers on finding "love ourselves and our community as a whole.""During these times, it’s extremely important to feel and embrace.

Billboard hope to uplift and empower African Americans during this cloudy and dubious time. For the month of June, Billboard had artists provide a playlist designed to remedy the heartaches endured by the Black community.Fresh off the release of his latest Lyrics to Go episode No.

Dino-Ray Ramos Associate Editor/ReporterWomen and Film, Los Angeles and The Black List unveiled the participants of the​ 2020 Feature Lab and Residency on Monday. The annual program is an expansion of the original writing lab which is a joint effort between WIF and The Black List.The program provides mentorship and career opportunities to seven rising women screenwriters over the course of a year.

Guy Lodge Film CriticSullenly adrift between an unhappy childhood and an adult future that promises little, an introverted 14-year-old boy is lured all too easily into the world of county lines drug trafficking: a practice that sees vulnerable youths recruited by gangs to ferry drugs from cities to rural areas, with no protection on the other side.

To make his feature documentary about the rise of the alt-right movement, Daniel Lombroso embedded himself and became friendly with three of its leading figures. For that, he deserves our sympathy.

This year, Black Music Month took a different turn. Because of the horrific deaths of George Floyd, Ahmaud Arbery, Breonna Taylor, and more at the hands of police, we at Billboard hope to uplift and empower African Americans during this cloudy and dubious time. Every Monday, Wednesday, and Friday for the remainder of the month, an artist will provide a playlist designed to remedy the heartaches endured by the Black community.

Get Carter and was a major investor in the 2004 Tom Hanks animated film The Polar Express.

A coalition of artists and music industry executives has come together in the US to demand action is taken to deal with “long-standing racial inequities in the business”.The Black Music Action Coalition wants music and streaming companies to make tangible commitments to address inequities within their own organisations.