Category Archives: biography

“Bolden” Man Who Invented Jazz: Trailer, Clips & Poster

based on a book, biography, true stories, , , , , , , , ,

Directed by Dan Pritzker, Bolden follows the tragic life of Buddy Bolden, played by Gary Carr, an unsung inventor of jazz. The movie is filled with compelling images. It’s a story worth telling since his life ended up in a mental asylum. They were placed under their tragic and brutal treatment, never released, and died twenty-five years later.

According to production notes, little biographical information is known about Bolden, and no recordings of his music are available anywhere – tragically gone.

Pritzker uses fragmented memories of Bolden’s past against the political and social context in which his revolutionary music was conceived. The movie is about passion, greed, and a musical genius in the early 1900s in New Orleans.

Wynton Marsalis, who is also one of the producers, wrote, arranged, and performed the movie’s original music. The dance scene in the sweatshop looks promising.

The movie co-stars Erik LaRay Harvey, Yaya DaCosta, Ian McShane, and Michael Rooker. You can also see McShane in Hellboy. He plays men who are outraged in both movies.

The next run of movie clips shows how the movie is not linear but told in flashbacks. My favorite is the “Seamstress Dance” clip. The “Clapping Out” clip is my next favorite. Though there is not much information about Bolden, the movie is told as if Bolden is a mythical character, a legend.

Ron Howard’s “Pavarotti: Genius Is Forever” Trailer, Featurettes, Clips & Poster

biography, documentary, legend, music, true stories,

Ron Howard brought together the same filmmaking team that forged the documentary The Beatles: Eight Days A Week – The Touring Years. Pavarotti takes the opera star’s talent, personality, and forbearance by lifting the curtain on the icon. We understand how he brought opera to the people.

The Oscar winner Howard trailer puts us in the front row for an “exploration of The Voice… The Man… The Legend. Luciano Pavarotti gave his life to music and a voice to the world. This cinematic event features history-making performances and intimate interviews, including never-before-seen footage.”

They all brought Dolby ATMOS technology into production, a fancy way of saying a whole new technology that makes the presentation even better.

The movie clip shows Princess Diana in the audience, outside in the pouring rain. She looks delighted and spectacular—a memorable moment in this extraordinary documentary.

The following featurettes show Pavarotti’s ambition and desire to spread opera worldwide. He wanted to give it to the people, as he felt opera was for the people.

The following two movie clips are about Bono’s relationship with Pavarotti and how he was a master at developing relationships with anyone.

“The White Crow” Movie Clips & Poster

based on a book, biography, drama

Directed by Ralph Fiennes, The White Crow follows the life of Soviet ballet dancer Rudolf Nureyev, played by Oleg Ivenko, and his defection to the Western world in 1961. The story is told in flashbacks with distinguishable ballet scenes.

Ralph Fiennes also stars in the movie as Pushkin. The movie is based on the book by
Julie Kavanagh called Rudolf Nureyev: The Life and the screenplay by David Hare. Hare wrote the screenplays for The Hours and The Reader, which Fiennes starred in the latter.

The three movie clips show scenes from the movie but the movie trailer is not available yet. It is hard to tell what is happening in the clips. I am guessing, Nureyev is not happy, and he defects from Russia. Pushkin is a prominent male ballet teacher, and Nureyev and him do not get along.

“Rocketman” Poster, Elton and Taron Duet, Clips, Trailers & Featurettes

biography, drama, fantasy, music, , , ,
Notice the poster says “based on a true fantasy.”

Riding on the heels of Queen’s bio-pic, Bohemian Rhapsody, Dexter Fletcher takes on another British icon, Elton John, played by Taron Egerton. Rocketman is promoted as an epic musical fantasy about the incredible human story of Elton John’s breakthrough years.

Following the fantastical journey of morphing from the icon from a shy piano prodigy Reginald Dwight into international superstar Elton John. The studio is calling it an inspirational story with plenty of Elton John’s most beloved songs and performed by Egerton. You might recall Egerton dazzling us with his great archery skills in the recent Robin Hood.

The movie brings us to the familiar story of how a small-town boy became one of the most iconic figures in pop culture. The movie includes stars Jamie Bell as Elton’s longtime lyricist and writing partner Bernie Taupin, Richard Madden as Elton’s first manager, John Reid, and Bryce Dallas Howard as Elton’s mother Sheila Farebrother.

Take a look at the movie trailers and see if it suits your fancy. The first one is brief, and the second one offers more details about movie. The featurette talks about Egerton’s singing. He sounds like Elton John for real.

First trailer released .
Second trailer has more of the fantasy aspect of the story.
It’s amazing how much Egerton sounds like Elton John.

The next featurette is about the costumes. Costumes are all about Elton John.

The following clips tell us more about the movie and the life of Elton John. He definitely had his highs and his lows. Bryce Dallas Howard as his mother is smooth and flamboyant as his mother would be. She looks like she is having fun playing this role.

A poignant moment in music history is when Elton and Taron sing together in front of a huge audience at an Elton John’s concert. A magical moment for all of us, this clip compels me to see the movie.

The featurette is about the song Elton John’s lyrists Bernie Taupin wrote for the movie called “Love Me Again.” Egerton does vocals with John and John comments of Egerton’s vocal skills.

“Tolkien” Poster, Interviews, Featurettes, Clips and Trailers

biography, drama, , , , , , , , ,

Directed by Dome Karukoski, Tolkien follows the formative years of J.R.R. Tolkien, played by Nicholas Hoult. The movie explores the orphaned author as he finds friendship, love and artistic inspiration among a group of fellow outcasts at school.

Tolkien falls in love with Edith Bratt, played by Lilly Collins.

This takes him into the outbreak of World War I, which threatens to tear the “fellowship” apart. All of these experiences would inspire Tolkien to write his famous Middle-Earth novels.

Dome Karukoski is from Finland and has directed several movies and television series in Finland.

The rest of the cast includes Laura Donnelly of Outlander, Colm Meaney, Anthony Boyle, Patrick Gibson, Tom Glynn-Carney, Craig Roberts, Genevieve O’Reilly, and Pam Ferris.

The second trailer is much better and gives a flavor of adventure. The feeling of his fellowship with his boyhood friends is strong. I am curious, though, about who Donnelly plays in the movie. We don’t see her in the trailers yet; her character is not listed.

The music is powerful in this trailer, giving the sense of adventure and conquer.

Two interviews are posted with the director and lead actor. I am impressed with how the director created the fellowship on the set and how Hoult researched Tolkien’s life during the time this movie takes place – such a poignant time in his life.

The featurette tells us nothing about the story, but the two main actors talk about Tolkien’s influence on them in general. Collin talks about her favorite scene relating to the ring. We all know how important the call is in Tolkien’s stories.

I saw a movie clip that showed a whimsical scene, which is so delightful. I tried to share it with you, but the studios blocked it. I am mentioning the clip because it is an adorable scene illustrating how Tolkien worked his imagination. The woman he loved encouraged him to tell his fantasy stories.

The movie is also a love story about a writer getting inspiration from the one he loves. The next featurette says it best.

The more I see about this movie, the more interested I am in seeing it in movie theaters. The following two features tell what the film covers and how it relates to Tolkien, the writer.