Pictured: Ryan Reynolds (“One”) Photo by: Christian Black/Netflix
Michael Bay brings us 6 Underground based on the premise:
What’s the best part of being dead?
It isn’t escaping your boss or ex or deleting your criminal record.
The best part about being dead is the freedom.
The freedom to fight the injustice and evil that lurk in our world with no one or anything to slow you down or tell you “no.”
With Bay’s classic style, 6 Underground introduces a new action hero—six individuals, each the very best in their field, from around the globe.
Pictured: Melanie Laurent (“Two”) Photo Courtesy of Netflix
The leader, Ryan Reynolds, hired them for their skill and desire to delete their pasts to change the future. The vigilante squad intends to ensure that they take down notorious criminals and evil dictators. While the leader and his fellow operatives are no longer remembered, their actions damn sure will be.
One is the leader, played by Reynolds. He’s a billionaire making his fortune through technology. He’s seeking redemption for former mistakes. Two, played by Melanie Laurent, is a former CIA operative. Three, played by Manuel Garcia-Rulfo, is a hitman. Four, played by Ben Hardy, is a parkour specialist. Five, played by Adria Arjona, is a doctor. Six, played by Dave Franco, is a driver and getaway expert.
Pictured: Manuel Garcia-Rulfo (“Three”) Photo by: Christian Black/Netflix
Directed by Barry Jenkins, If Beale Street Could Talk, is set in early-1970s Harlem as a timeless and moving love story of both a couple’s unbreakable bond and the African-American family’s empowering embrace, as told through the eyes of 19-year old Tish Rivers, played by KiKi Layne. Tish is a daughter and wife-to-be. She vividly recalls the passion, respect and trust connect her and her artist fiancé Alonzo Hunt, who goes by the nickname Fonny, played by Stephan James. Friends since childhood, the devoted couple dream of a future together but their plans are derailed when Fonny is arrested for a crime he did not commit.
The movie clip shows how sharp and poignant the movie comes across.
The second poster shows the love story and the bonding of the main characters.
Tish knows that Fonny is innocent, and is mindful that his good friend Daniel Carty, played by Brian Tyree Henry, was recently freed after an unjust incarceration. Fonny’s mother, played by Aunjanue Ellis, clings to her devotion to God and his father, played by Michael Beach, struggles with feelings of powerlessness. Tish’s earthly father Joseph, played by Colman Domingo, and fierce older sister Ernestine, played by Teyonah Parris, hold steadfast in their support. Even more anxious to clear Fonny’s name is Tish’s deeply compassionate mother Sharon, played by Regina King, readying to put herself on the line for her daughter and future son-in-law’s happiness.
The undercurrents fill the story including the couple’s unborn child, whose arrival will herald new joys and challenges. Facing the unexpected prospect of parenthood and holding down a job without her partner at her side. Tish must adjust her perspective on the realities of her existence. She visits Fonny regularly, trying to shore up his spirit even as prison takes its toll. As the weeks turn to months, Tish reaffirms their hopes and resilience, relying on familial and inner strength.
If Beale Street Could Talk is based on a book by James Baldwin, charting the vivid emotional currents navigated in an unforgiving and racially biased world as the Jenkins poetically crosses time frames to show how love and humanity endure.
The talented cast also includes Brian Tyree Henry, Michael Beach, Ed Skrein, Diego Luna, Dave Franco, and Pedro Pascal.
The song playing in the background might seem cheesy to some but I like it because it shows how poetic and deep their lives are intertwined. Just beautiful – true love.
Jenkins won an Oscar for directing Moonlight and Beale Street is his beautiful and poetic follow up. Watch the movie and be transformed.
The Blu-ray and DVD are hitting the streets with streaming available as well. The movie is poetry. If you haven’t seen it yet, now is your chance. It’s a beautiful love story about bigotry and family. Both disc sets have deleted scenes and featurettes about the making of the movie.
