the films of the 2000s from Paul Proulx on Vimeo.

It’s 1:37 a.m., and I’ve spent much of the evening writing and/or talking about the publishing industry. My fingers are tired of typing. So, instead of posting words here, thought I’d share this 2000s movie montage clip by Paul Proulx. Can’t quite put my finger on why I found it so touching, but I did. Hope you enjoy it. (h/t N’Gai Croal)

If you see this note, you're reading my site via its RSS feed. If links, video clips, photos or other media don't work here, visit FUNKY BROWN CHICK via the link below:

The Films of the 2000s

Playboy is about sex. Playboy wants to be racy. And, in America — for several reasons — conversations about race & sex are often racy. However, lest we lose perspective, I was talking about Playboy. John Mayer, on the other hand, is a musician — not a respected commentator about topics related to either sexuality or ethnicity. In fact, if he were better informed about either topic, I highly doubt he would’ve said such ignorant remarks about race (i.e. comparing his cock to a white supremacist) or sexuality (i.e. he used the word “fags” to describe gay men and said he could “outgay” Perez Hilton). That’s classy, right? ;) Anyway. Moving right along.

I feel blessed to have guy friends, acquaintances and others who are black, Asian, Mexican, beefy & brown, Canadian, French Canadian, German and other nationalities and ethnicities. Those are pals. My boyfriends, lovers and fuck buddies span an equally wide spectrum. Why? That’s just how I roll.

So, when John Mayer said “I don’t think I open myself to [dating black women],” my immediate reaction was: Too bad for him  :)  Apparently, he’ll never experience the pleasures more open minded (and mature!) men like model Gabriel Aubry, film critic Roger Ebert, rockstar David Bowie, R&B crooner Robin Thicke, celebrity chef Wolfgang Puck, actors Justin Chambers, Chris Noth (a.k.a. Sex in the City’s “Big”), Robert DeNiro, Brad Pitt and so many others who have, ahem, dipped vanilla sticks in chocolate pudding. ;)

C’est tout. I’m already tired of this story. There are more pressing matters worthy of attention and many many interesting characters more deserving of a Manly Monday nod. Soooo, coming up next, a very musical Manly Monday selection to charm your ears. Stay tuned.

If you see this note, you're reading my site via its RSS feed. If links, video clips, photos or other media don't work here, visit FUNKY BROWN CHICK via the link below:

John Mayer’s Playboy Interview: A Reaction

In case you were wondering … Nope, no one’s paying me to plug her or otherwise endorse her stuff. I just like the music.

If you see this note, you're reading my site via its RSS feed. If links, video clips, photos or other media don't work here, visit FUNKY BROWN CHICK via the link below:

Santigold: Hot, Sexy Brown Woman Alert!!!

1. 2 Days in Paris (Similar: Broken English)
2. Bend It Like Beckham
3. Better Than Sex
4. Buddy (Tiny Norwegian film about fame & friendship)
5. Karakter
6. Cinema Paradiso
7. City of God
8. Europa Europa
9. Farinelli
10. Flirting
11. La Femme Nikita
12. Late Marriage
13. L’Auberge Espagnole
14. Love and Other Catastrophes
15. Love Serenade (Tiny Australian flick about dating)
16. Moolaadé
17. Muriel’s Wedding
18. Priceless
19. Rudo y Cursi
20. Run Lola Run
21. Stranded: I’ve Come from a Plane that Crashed on the Mountains (Similar: Touching the Void)
22. The Bubble
23. The Edukators
24. The Vanishing
25. Y tu mamá también

If you see this note, you're reading my site via its RSS feed. If links, video clips, photos or other media don't work here, visit FUNKY BROWN CHICK via the link below:

Top 25 Must-See Foreign Films (No dubbing!!)

I don’t owe a television. I watch everything online. I saw Lady Gaga’s MTV VMA performance, Jude Law’s “Poker Face” on Late Night with Jimmy Fallon and a bunch of other fun stuff right here on my computer screen.

If you haven’t already checked out YouTube movies, Hulu or Netflix’s wide selection of free films and TV shows, it’s worth it. Tons of news stuff, but it’s also nice to stumble upon old things I’ve forgotten. Take Moonstruck, for example. I saw the beginning of it on television AGES ago. It’s not necessarily something I’d go out of my way to rent. But, because it was free, I figured: Why the hell not? If you’d like to see it (again?), too, it’s available on Hulu for the next two weeks. Enjoy!

————-
UPDATE: Here’s the direct link to Moonstruck. Not sure why Hulu’s content won’t load above. Sent an email to their support desk and will keep you posted.

If you see this note, you're reading my site via its RSS feed. If links, video clips, photos or other media don't work here, visit FUNKY BROWN CHICK via the link below:

Free Romantic Comedy: Moonstruck

If you’ve been to Funky Brown Chick before, you know about Manly Mondays–weekly nods to men, masculine topics and other testosteronely bits. Also, if you’ve hung around here a while (and/or know me personally), you’re familiar with my love of film and you’re likely aware I used to work international affairs before moving to New York and pursuing a career that fed my passion for the written word. So, naturally, what better Manly Monday pick could I write about today than what Esquire magazine calls a “30-year-old case, on sex, justice, and the American way.” So, here we go …

It seems no one doubts Roman Polanski has had an incredibly unfair share of misfortune. A Jew having escaped wartime Kraków ghettos only to learn his mother would later perish in Auschwitz, his childhood wasn’t without horrors. He could’ve been a tortured soul when he came to the U.S. as adult and directed his first film, the occult flick Rosemary’s Baby. (I rented it ages ago and loved it. My reaction to it was similar to my impressions of reading Stephen King: “I’m probably taking in the product of a brilliant, albeit possibly disturbed, mind.”) In any case, Polanski’s misfortunes likely might’ve seemed to diminish as he career took off and he married the beautiful Sharon Tate. Nineteen months after the wedding, on August 8, 1969, his 8-1/2 month pregnant wife, Tate, was brutally murdered by Charles Manson’s gang. They weren’t targeting her. Out for blood, it was just dumb luck she was in the wrong place at the wrong time. Almost full term, her killer testified she got “sick of listening to her, pleading and begging, begging and pleading” to give birth to Polanski’s child before they took her life. Upon hearing the news of his bride and only baby’s death, I can only imagine Polanski must’ve felt cursed. What did he do to deserve such horrible fate? Sadly, the answer is probably: absolutely nothing. Life, unfortunately, isn’t fair.

Enter the rape of 13-year-old kid, Samantha Gailey. I’ve neither heard nor read anything that suggests he’s innocent. Gailey (now Geimer) testified he did it, and Polanski admitted his guilt. Having said all that, after watching confessions & testimonies contained in the documentary Roman Polanski: Wanted & Desired*, I get the impression no one believes Judge Rittenband gave Polanski a fair trial. Reporting for the Washington Post, critic Tom Shales has said, Rittenband’s “bungling of the case was so outrageous.” Of Polanski’s recent arrest, French Minister of Culture and Communication Frédéric Mitterrand commented he “strongly regrets that a new ordeal is being inflicted on someone who has already experienced so many of them.” Indeed. Although justice should be blind, I’m often sympathetic when people who — through no fault of their own — are unfairly burdened with extra heapings of the shittiest of life’s (mis)fortunes. They deserve a break. Though, the key phrase there is through no fault of their own. He pleaded guilty to raping a child, and life has its odd synchronicities. Quoting The Guardian: “Just as 13-year-old Samantha Gailey was unfortunate enough to run up against Polanski in horny, Austin Powers mode, so Polanski was unlucky to be then dragged before Rittenband.”

“So,” several friends have recently asked, “what do you think about this Polanski stuff?” I’m neither or judge nor a lawyer, so I’ll refrain from speculating about the legal technicalities of the case. I only know what I’ve seen in the press — which, of course, is not without its flaws. So, I guess my final answer isn’t resolute at all. I don’t know what to think of it yet because I’m still turning it around in my head. The incidents are truly unfortunate–for everyone involved. That said — whether you’re a bystander reading the news, a survivor of teen sexual abuse, someone with children of your own, a film buff who thinks Polanski got a raw deal, or whatever — I want to hear from you. As I’ve said many times, the world is most interesting when people respectfully disagree. Feel free to use the comments section below to do so.

———-
Psst! I highly recommend the documentary. It’s available (FREE!) streaming online to Netflix members. Click Roman Polanski: Wanted & Desired.

If you see this note, you're reading my site via its RSS feed. If links, video clips, photos or other media don't work here, visit FUNKY BROWN CHICK via the link below:

Sex Crimes: What Should Happen to Roman Polanski?

You know Hulu, Netflix and Youtube offer free, feature-length movies online right? Lots of the offerings include documentaries, biographies and other films related about sexuality, sex politics and great other topics. If you liked MILK, you’ll probably like this documentary: The Times of Harvey Milk

If you see this note, you're reading my site via its RSS feed. If links, video clips, photos or other media don't work here, visit FUNKY BROWN CHICK via the link below:

Free Movie: The Times of Harvey Milk [Streaming]

Too fucking cute!! Why didn’t anyone tell me about this onscreen blasian coupling? In the clip below, I think ABC should change their advertising: [insert manly newscaster voice] Coming this fall … Flash Forward! The most intriguing show on ABC … AND we give you blasian love!! ;)

————
Photos: Gabby Union on BET and John Cho on The Insider.

If you see this note, you're reading my site via its RSS feed. If links, video clips, photos or other media don't work here, visit FUNKY BROWN CHICK via the link below:

Black Women + Asian Men = Blasian Hot Dating

Speaking of publishing, I get a lot of email from Funky Brown Chick readers with questions about sex and relationships — though many messages are often about “writing.” If you’re interesting in sparking your creativity to create a book, poem, painting, new design or whatever, I recommend the workbook The Artist’s Way. It’s an easy read and it includes a bunch of exercises and activities. In particular, I was/am a big believer in their “artist dates.” The idea behind it is kind of like: Heeey, if you expend a lot of creative energy, you need to do something to replace that and build up your reservoirs again. Read a new book. See a play. Go to a movie. Check out a new TV show.

So, I just got a tip about CBS’ steamy drama, The Good Wife, with Julianna Margulies and Chris Noth, right? Here’s one of the YouTube videos about the show (made to look as if Noth’s character is an actual American politician):

Given The Good Wife is supposedly set in Chicago — a city almost 60% comprised of people of color — it would’ve been nice to see a browner cast. That said, I’m still kind of curious about that show because I’m totally intrigued (yet, admittedly, somewhat baffled) by the “stand by your man” politician wives who support their spouses through extremely public political sex scandals. Interested to see how they’ll play the scene out in the CBS drama.

I don’t watch traditional cable because Hulu, Current TV, Netflix and many of the major networks offer free, legal and high-quality programming online. I’m always excited about discovering new-to-me shows, movies or whatever. So, if CBS makes The Good Wife available streaming on their website, I’ll likely watch it. If they don’t, I won’t. But, enough about me and what I’m watching. I want to know about you. Chances are, if you like my site — and, by default, the topics I write about or (at the very least) hearing the goofy ruminations of a neurotic, funky, brown-skinned woman in New York — we might have a few things in common or, maybe, share similar interests. I’d love to know if you’ve stumbled across anything particularly fun (TV, blog, movie, whatever) recently. If so, feel free to post your jewels it in the comments section. Tell me: What do you like to watch?

If you see this note, you're reading my site via its RSS feed. If links, video clips, photos or other media don't work here, visit FUNKY BROWN CHICK via the link below:

Tell Me: Do You Like to Watch?

My matchmaker emailed me last night. We’re meeting up this weekend to get the love juice flowing. In the meantime, since we’re on the subject of romance and dating, I want to tell you about a really good romantic comedy. Last night I went to Angelika Film Center for the opening of Fox Searchlight’s movie Adam directed by Max Mayer starring Hugh Dancy, Peter Gallagher, Rose Byrne, Frankie Faison and others. If you have a chance to see it, you should. At the moment, it’s only showing in New York and Los Angeles … but shhh, I got a tip that Fox Searchlight is showing FREE advanced screenings in other cities. Click here to RSVP. At last night’s opening, Hugh Dancy and Max Mayer were there in person. (See pics on my Flickr.) If you don’t know the story line, basically Adam is about a 29-year-old guy with Asperger’s who falls in love with his neighbor. I’m a pop culture junkie. I see A LOT of movies, read a lot of books and consume other forms of entertainment. I rarely write reviews on this site. So, when I do, it’s because I really really loved the project. Such was the case with Adam. Here’s why.

REASON #1: I dated a guy who probably had Asperger’s. Interestingly, I didn’t know it when I met him. We linked up in grad school, and I liked him because he was one the most honest, pure-hearted and free-spirited guys I’d ever met. He didn’t get wrapped up in life’s stupid bullshit, and he said exactly whatever was on his mind. After we’d been dating for a while, he told me (when he was a child) teachers and others thought he’d never go on to university and he wasn’t able to learn like other students. This was decades ago; so, no one ever said the word “Asperger’s,” they said things like delayed cognitive development, hyperactive, not focused, socially awkward, gets caught in his own thoughts, etc. As I mentioned, we met in grad school. Pigeonholing be damned, he finished school and now teaches at a university. He wasn’t dumb or disabled or very dissimilar from others around him. Hmm, sometimes I think we live in the “syndrome era.” Much like homosexuality used to be classified as a mental disease, I think we’ll eventually “normalize” a lot of what are now called “symptoms.” Like, for exactly, Asperger’s and autism.

REASON #2. I’ve recently eliminated the word “retarded” from my vocabulary. I’m not perfect. I’ve done and said stupid shit that later made me think, “Twanna, you’re an asshole.” About a month ago, at my place, I hosted a drinks with a group of girlfriends. I made a stupid joke about “sleeping with retards” and I later thought: “I should probably eliminate the word ‘retard’ from my vocabulary. It’s not useful or positive and it wasn’t created to make anyone feel better about themselves.” So I did.

REASON #3. I love independent film. Before Netflix was created, back when I still lived in my small Illinois town, I used to go to Blockbuster to rent movies. It didn’t take long before I’d seen every (I’m not exaggerating) foreign and independent film on the shelf. I like seeing stories of pain, courage, love, failure, chaos and humanity reflected on screens. Adam delivers all of this and more in spades. Even if you don’t like indie film, trust me, Adam is the “one to watch.” Every now and then, the little guys (indies) get attention (Juno. Lost in Translation. Blah, blah, blah.) because they spoon feed audiences a Hollywood story in an independent package. Adam doesn’t do that; however, I still think it will be the breakout indie for a different reason: if you haven’t already noticed, box offices LOVE beautiful actors playing characters with conditions. Leonardo DiCaprio in What’s Eating Gilbert Grape? Kristen Stewart in The Cake Eaters. Johnny Depp in Edward Scissorhands. Being a pretty face is easy. Taking on a challenging role is hard.

REASON #4. Speaking of pretty faces, I think the lead male actor is gorgeous gorgeous gorgeous. HOT DAMN HUGH DANCY IS ATTRACTIVE!!! Seriously, when he walked up to the stage after last night’s viewing, the woman next to me gasped. When, he open his mouth and a British accent tumbled out, she did it again and sighed, “[GASP!] Oh, wow, and he’s British?!?!?!” Hang on tight, Claire Danes. HANG ON TIGHT! ;)

REASON #5. I’m a sucker for good romantic comedies. Love ‘em. Love ‘em. Love ‘em. And, they’re even better when they aren’t predictable and wrapped in pretty packages, dipped in saccharine, topped with a row bow marked and stamped with a sign that says, “IMAGINATION NOT NEEDED. WE’LL TELL YOU EXACTLY WHERE THIS JOURNEY IS GOING.” Critics agree and love this film, too. “Adam is a cut above most romances and boasts an intriguing conclusion. One comes away with a sense of hope, leavened by realism” and the film “never makes a misstep.” Want an even stronger endorsement? The New York Times says:

Playing a character who is mentally disabled can be a fast track to Oscar or to oblivion, and rare is the actor who can resist the statuette-winning, Hanks-Hoffman strategy of mannered tics and mechanical talk… [making] the performance of Hugh Dancy in the charming romantic comedy ‘Adam’ is all the more impressive [...] The humor is delicate, and the performances sweet and sure.

See the movie. Okay, enough praise for Adam. Trailer is below. Buy movie tickets online.

———–
Photo and video credit: Film still appears on the Adam website.

If you see this note, you're reading my site via its RSS feed. If links, video clips, photos or other media don't work here, visit FUNKY BROWN CHICK via the link below:

GREAT Romantic Comedy Alert: Adam (Film Review)