(CNN) Chef/author Eddie Huang makes his movie debut as the writer-director of "Boogie," a warmed-over collection of cinematic cliches that misses its shot what could have been a fertile premise, in don't-quit-your-day-job fashion. Like "Fresh Off the Boat," his autobiography that became the basis for an ABC series, Huang explores the immigrant experience through the eyes of the family's American-born son -- in this case, a basketball prodigy who prefers the nickname Boogie (newcomer Taylor Takahashi), and has the swagger to go with his on-court skills. Living in New York with his squabbling, unhappy parents, his dad (Perry Yung) has chosen basketball as the family's lottery ticket, dreaming of a future that will see his son in the NBA. So far, though, the college scholarship offers aren't rolling in, concerning Boogie's mom (Pamelyn Chee), and raising questions about not-so-subtle racism regarding the prospects of an Asian player. After that, though, everything about "Boogie" begins to fall apart, beginning with Boogie's romance with a classmate (Taylour Paige), which falls mostly flat thanks to all kinds of clunky dialogue. The same goes for the sports plot, which hinges on Boogie's inevitable showdown with the star of another school, Monk, played by rapper Bashar "Pop Smoke" Jackson, who was killed a year ago , and to whom the movie is dedicated. Taylor Takahashi and Pop Smoke in director Eddie Huang's 'Boogie' (David Giesbrecht / Focus Features). Along the way, Boogie clashes with his coach (Domenick Lombardozzi), while mom enlists a manager ("Once Upon a Time ... in Hollywood's" Mike Moh) to help try to maximize her son's chances, a situation that only creates further tension between the folks. Read More Huang has a knack for looking at Chinese-Americans in a way that exposes the inevitable conflicts between concerned parents and their very American kids, such as when Boogie's dad talks about visiting home, to ...
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‘Coming 2 America’ brings Eddie Murphy back, riding a wave of nostalgia
(CNN) "Coming 2 America" was clearly designed to be crowd-pleasing back when crowds were possible, and as such it's among the few movies redirected from theaters to streaming that have genuinely lost something because of it. That said, it's still a good deal of fun, reassembling old faces from the 1988 original while adding plenty of new ones. The first movie came at the height of Eddie Murphy's rise to box-office stardom, after a string of hits in the 1980s. The new film follows a rousing comeback with "Dolemite is My Name" and his triumphant Emmy-winning return to "Saturday Night Live," with more nostalgia -- including plans for another "Beverly Hills Cop" sequel -- yet to come. At its core, "Coming to America" presented a simple and sweet fairy tale, about a pampered prince traveling to Queens in search of true love. Yet the movie spent much of its time simply serving as a zany showcase for Murphy and Arsenio Hall, spending ample time in the makeup chair for their barber-shop characters and more. Directed by "Dolemite's" Craig Brewer, "Coming 2" reprises all of that, with a nicely cast next-generation element that essentially replays the plot from a different angle. As a bonus, the story (credited to a trio of writers) comes with a feminist hook, and a lesson, like the first film, about setting aside outdated traditions. Thirty-ish years later, Murphy's Prince Akeem is still happily married to Lisa (Shari Headley) with three talented daughters, the eldest of whom ( "If Beale Street Could Talk's" KiKi Layne) would seemingly make a perfect queen. Read More Arsenio Hall and Eddie Murphy are back in the barber shop in 'Coming 2 America' (Amazon Studios). Yet the law demands a male heir, and faced with a threat from the leader of a neighboring land, General Izzi (Wesley Snipes, reuniting after "Dolemite" and making the most of his comedic turn), Akeem is delighted to discover he unexpectedly has one, who he somewhat ...
Judge throws out murder convictions, releases men jailed for 24 years
A New York state judge on Friday threw out murder convictions of three men who had been jailed for 24 years. Justice Joseph A. Zayas reprimanded prosecutors for withholding evidence in the 1996 case that could have cast doubt on the guilt of George Bell, 44, Gary Johnson Gary Earl Johnson On The Trail: Making sense of Super Poll Sunday Polarized campaign leaves little room for third-party hopefuls The Memo: Trump retains narrow path to victory MORE ,46, and Rohan Bolt 59, who were all found guilty in the murders of an off-duty NYPD police officer Charles Davis and Ira "Mike" Epstein. According to multiple reports, prosecutors in the case failed to file police reports connecting the killings to other men who were part of a local robbery ring. ADVERTISEMENT "The District Attorney's Office deliberately withheld from the defense credible information of third-party guilt that is evidence that others may have committed these crimes. This exculpatory information was in the prosecution's possession, and had in fact been investigated and documented by the lead prosecutor at Mr. Bell's trial," Zayas said, according to CNN. He also stated that the prosecution had “completely abdicated its truth-seeking role in these cases," according to the reports. Five witnesses reportedly gave accounts of the crime in 1996 that directly contradicted the men's confessions. Lawyers stated that they believed Johnson, Bell and Bolt's confessions were coerced, according to multiple reports. Current Queens District Attorney Melinda Katz also agreed with Zayas in throwing out the convictions but stated that more investigation will be done in order to determine guilt or innocence. “I cannot stand behind these convictions,” Katz said in a statement on Friday , according to The New York Times. “However, there is at this time insufficient evidence of actual innocence and therefore we are taking this opportunity to re-evaluate and examine the ...
Record 10,373 Foreign Criminals Eligible for Deportation Are Roaming Britain’s Streets Free
The number of foreign criminals living free in communities throughout the United Kingdom has hit a record high, with over 10,000 criminals roaming the streets despite being eligible for deportation. Home Office figures revealed that some 10,373 foreign criminals have been released from prison yet have so far skirted deportation — meaning the number of foreign national offenders living in British communities has hit the highest level in recorded history. While the pandemic has made deportations more difficult, the drop in deportations predates the coronavirus. The number of foreign national offenders remaining in the country has dramatically risen since 2012 when, officially, fewer than 4,000 were living in Britain. In the year leading up to September, only 3,374 criminals were kicked out of the country, representing a drop of a third over the previous year period, The Times reports . Last year, nearly 2,600 foreign criminals were released from prison rather than being deported, meaning that on average seven foreign criminals were set free onto British streets per day. There are also currently around 9,000 foreign national offenders currently imprisoned in the country, accounting for over a tenth of the total prison population. David Spencer, of the Centre for Crime Prevention, told the Daily Mail : “It is an outrage that so many convicted foreign criminals have been left free to roam our streets.” “The Home Secretary [Priti Patel] needs to ensure that, where possible, all foreign criminals are returned to their home country once they have served their time,” he added. The failure to deport foreign criminals has come at a cost in blood. Last year, for example, Libyan national Khairi Saadallah stabbed three men to death in a radical Islamic terror attack just sixteen days after being released from prison. British Govt Failed to Deport 45 Convicted Terrorists After Release From Prison: Report https://t.co/s6p3V4MzeY — ...
‘Coming 2 America’ Review: A Rerun of the Original Written by Unfunny Woketards
Coming 2 America , Amazon’s sequel to Eddie Murphy’s 1988 smash, is unfunny, poorly acted, and a woke lecture about how wrong we were to enjoy the sexist and insensitive original. Imagine if in 1988, Hollywood released sequels to Abbott and Costello Meet the Mummy, or My Sister Eileen , or We’re No Angels. Imagine Hollywood, in 1988, pumping out sequels to 33-year-old comedies released in 1955. Well, that’s exactly what happened with Coming to America . The original is 33-years-old, Eddie Murphy turns 60 this year, Arsenio Hall just turned 65, and it’s a humiliating disaster for all involved. Let’s face it, the original, like everything Murphy touched in the 80s, might have been a smash-hit, but it’s nothing terribly special. It’s charming and funny and has its inspired moments, but other than presenting a flourishing and fictional African country thirty years before Black Panther’s Wakanda, there’s nothing terribly memorable that had us begging for a sequel. How many romantic comedies produce successful sequels? The story’s over. Happily ever after, and all that… What was best about the first Coming to America was its R-rating and the edgy moments that came with that, primarily in the form of the different characters Arsenio and Murphy portrayed under all of The Great Stan Winston’s latex. Watch below: What’s so pathetic about Coming 2 America is how it apologizes for and shames the original for daring to be offensive. Watching Murphy’s Prince/King Joffer basically lecture the old guys in the barbershop (played by Arsenio and Murphy) about how it’s wrong to touch women without their permission, is downright dispiriting. Later on, another character will attack Arsenio’s hilarious (and now neutered) Reverend Brown as “sexist.” Unfortunately, that’s the least of it. Coming 2 America ‘s central plot is obnoxiously political, all about defeating the dreaded patriarchy of Zamunda. Worse still, it’s full of contrived and ...
