The 1990's: New Stars, New Filmmakers, and a New African American Cinema

1
The 1990's New Stars, New Filmmakers, and a New
African American Cinema

• Group Members Shayla Solomon, Courtney
  Tokarczyk, and David GanserPresentation Date
  Monday, November 20, 2006Chapter TenPages
  378- 433

2
The Bodyguard

• The Bodyguard (1992)- A thriller/melodrama with a
  romance between a black pop star and her white
  bodyguard.
  
• Directed by Mick Jackson.
• Starred Whitney Houston and Kevin Coster.
• Grossed over 122 million in the United States
  and 247 million abroad.
  
• Lured audiences into theaters with the idea of an
  interracial romance.
  
• Soundtrack was very sucessful, 2nd best selling
  soundtrack of all time.
  

3
Set It Off

• Set It Off (1996)- A heist drama about four close
  friends from Los Angeles who decide to plan and
  execute a bank robbery. They each decide to do it
  for different reasons, but all four want better
  for themselves and their families than what
  racist L.A. can provide.
• Directed by F. Gary Gray
• Starred Jada Pinkett Smith, Queen Latifah, Vivica
  A. Fox and Kimberly Elise.
  
• Box office sucess that appealed to female and
  male movie goers.
  
• Won Best Director, Actress, and Sountrack at the
  1997 Acapulco Black Film Festival.

4
Soul Food

• Soul Food (1997)- The film centers on the trials
  of an extended African-American family, held
  together by longstanding family traditions which
  begin to fade as serious problems take center
  stage.
• Produced by Kenneth "Babyface" Edmonds, Tracey
  Edmounds, and Robert Teitel.
  
• Directed by George Tillman Jr
• Starred Vanessa L. Williams, Vivica A. Fox, Nia
  Long, and Mekhi Phifer.
  
• Grossed 43 million on its intial release. Earned
  over 70 million during its original theatrical
  run.
  
• Soundtrack featured a top 10 hit in 1997 and two
  top 20 hits that same year.

5
Love Jones

• Love Jones (1997)- Modern day black romance that
  prided itself on its intelligence and its cool
  sophistication. Appealed to young college and
  post grad age generation.

6
Beloved

• Beloved (1998)- Adaption of Toni Morrison's
  Pulitzer Prize winning novel. Oprah Winfrey
  Co-Produced and starred in this film. Most
  expensive film then ever made about the African
  American Experience. Shot on a budget of 53
  million with an estimated 30 million spent for
  marketing.

7

• Rush Hour (1998)- Cost 35 million and grossed 241
  million worldwide.

• Why Do Fools Fall in Love (1998)- Dramatized the
  life of 1950's music star Frankie Lymon.

• Love and Basketball (2000)

8
MOST SIGNIFICANT PEOPLE
9
Chris Tucker

• Chris Tucker- Perceived within the film industry
  as a comic who could appeal to international
  audiences. Rush Hour 's sucess immediately put
  him within the ranks of the 20 million-a-picture
  deal. Soon became one of the highest paid African
  American actors to then work in films.
• Rush Hour (1998)
• Rush Hour 2 (2001)
• House Party (1990)
• Friday (1995)

Films

• Dead Presidents (1995)
• Jackie Brown (1997)
• Fifth Element (1997)
• Money Talks (1997)

10
Cuba Gooding

• Cuba Gooding- Received an Oscar for Best
  Supporting Actor of 1996 for his
  near-over-the-top performance as the
  hyperkinetic, show-me-the-money football player
  in Jerry Maguire.
• Jerry Maguire (1996)
• Boyz N the Hood (1991)
• A Few Good Men (1992)
• Instinct (1999)
• As Good as It Gets (1997)

Films

• What Dreams May Come (1998)
• Chill Factor (1999)
• Men of Honor (2000)
• Peral Harbor (2001)
• Rat Race (2001)

11
Denzel Washington

• Denzel Washington- Leading Man, Occasional
  Romantic Hero, Enduring Superstar. Most
  successful actor during this time. Referred to as
  the preeminent black actor of the 90's.
• Training Day (2001)
• Malcom X (1992)
• Much Ado about Nothing (1993)
• Mo Better Blues (1990)
• Pelican Vrief (1993)
• Philadelphia (1993)

Films

• Crimson Tide (1995)
• Courage under Fire (1996)
• The Siege (1998)
• He Got Game (1998)
• Fallen (1998)
• The Hurricane (1999)
• Bone Collector (2001)
• Rember the Titans (2001)

12
Eddie Murphy

• Eddie Murphy- Born in Brooklyn, New York, this
  comedian and actor received a Golden Globe
  nomination for best actor in a comedy for his
  performance in Beverly Hills Cop (1984), as well
  as Trading Places (1983), The Nutty Professor
  (1996).
• He is a well-known voice actor and voiced
  Thurgood Stubbs in The PJs, Donkey in the Shrek
  (2001) series and the dragon, Mushu, in Disney's
  Mulan (1998).

13
Eddie Murphy cont.

• He has starred in many films
• Beverly Hills Cop (1984)
• Harlem Nights (1989)
• Another 48 Hours (1990)
• Boomerang (1992)
• Daddy Day Care(2003)

• Vampire in Brooklyn (1995)
• Metro (1997)
• Dr. Dolittle (1998)
• Holy Man (1998)
• The Adventures of Pluto Nash (2002)
• I Spy (2002)
• The Distinguished Gentleman (1992)

14
Eddie Murphy cont.

• Murphy also has starred in a large number of
  sequels including
  
• Beverly Hills Cop II (1987)
• Another 48 Hrs. (1990)
• Beverly Hills Cop III (1994)
• Dr. Dolittle 2 (2001)
• Nutty Professor II
• The Klumps (2000)
• Shrek 2 (2004)
• and the upcoming Shrek the Third (2007)

15
Laurence Fishburne-

• Laurence Fishburne- Born in Augusta, GA and
  reared in Brooklyn. He is the son of a
  corrections officer and a schoolteacher mother.
  At the age of twelve Fishburne acted as a child
  in a TV soap and was seen in movies at the age of
  fourteen.
• Boys N the Hood (1991)
• Deep Cover (1992)
• Othello (1995)
• The Matrix (1999)
• The Matrix Revolutions (2003)
• The Matrix Reloaded (2003)

Films

• Biker Boys (2003)
• Assault on Precinct 13 (2005)
• Mission Impossible III (2006)
• Akeelah and the Bee (2006).
• What's Love Got to Do With It (1992)

16
Morgan Freeman

• Morgan Freeman- Born in Memphis Tennessee,
  character actor turned star. Perceived as someone
  that could not be messed with. Persona was a
  smooth malted blend of intelligence, assurance,
  and a keen self awareness. Freeman appeared in
  countless films and nominated numerous times.
• In 1987 he was nominated for his role in the
  movie Street Smart, 1989 nominated for his
  stellar performance in Driving Miss Daisy, 1994
  leading role in Shawshank Redemption. In 2004 a
  well deserved Oscar was awarded to him for his
  supporting role in Million Dollar Baby. In 1997,
  Freeman, together with Lori McCreary, founded the
  movie production company Revelations
  Entertainment.
• In 2006 Freeman was honored at the 1st
  Mississippi's Best Awards in Jackson, Mississippi
  with the Lifetime Achievement Award award for his
  tireless works on and off the big screen.

17
Morgan Freeman Cont.

• Lucky Number Slevin (2005)
• War of the Worlds (Narrator)
• March of the Penguins (Narrator)
• Batman Begins (2005)
• Unleashed (2005)
• Outbreak (1995)
• Se7en (1995)

• Million Dollar Baby (2004)
• Bruce Almighty (2003)
• The Sum of All Fears (2002)
• High Crimes (2002)
• Along Came a Spider (2001)
• Deep Impact (1998)
• Amistad (1997)
• Kiss The Girls (1997)
• Chain Reaction (1996)
• The Shawshank Redemption (1994)

18
Samuel L. Jackson

• Samuel L. Jackson- Came to fame in the early
  1990s, after a series of well-reviewed
  performances, and has since become a major film
  star and cultural icon, having appeared in a
  large number of high-grossing films.
• Jackson's films have grossed between 2.1 billion
  (as either lead actor or co-lead actor) this has
  placed him as the 7th highest-grossing actor (as
  strictly lead).
• His performance in Jungle Fever was so acclaimed
  that the 1991 Cannes Film Festival created a
  "Supporting Actor" award just for him. Along with
  that award, he has won many others, including a
  Silver Berlin Bear, A BAFTA Film Award, and two
  Independent Spirit Awards.
• Jackson is perhaps best known for his roles in
  the Quentin Tarantino movies Pulp Fiction (for
  which he received an Academy Award nomination for
  Best Supporting Actor) and Jackie Brown, the
  Spike Lee movies Do The Right Thing, Mo' Better
  Blues and Jungle Fever, his role in the 2000
  version of Shaft and as Jedi Mace Windu in the
  Star Wars prequel trilogy.

19
Significant Terms/ Concepts

• African American Cinema
• African American Women Films
• Melodrama
• Historical Drama
• Male Dominated Industry
• New Generation Actors

20
Historical Context

• No other African American actress before Houston,
  not even Whoopi Goldberg during her brief period
  as the highest paid woman in films, was viewed by
  the studios as a genuine box office mega-star.
  In the mid and late 1990s, Whitney Houston was
  the only African American actress whom the
  studios were willing to create movies around to
  finance almost anything in which she appeared.
• Set It Off touched on the need for films about
  African American women
  
• Oprah Winfrey had become one of the most famous
  women in America, and a true cultural phenomenon
  who was written about and discussed continually
  
• Beloved proved to be the most expensive film then
  ever made about the African American experience

21
Historical Content Cont.

• Rapper Tupac Shakur, became a cul figure after
  being shot to death in 1996
  
• A new generation of actors such as Will Smith,
  Martin Lawrence, Chris Tucker, and Cuba Gooding
  Jr. emerged as stars
  
• Hollywood anointed Will Smith the Black Star du
  Jour
  
• Samuel L. Jackson had become an authentic movie
  star (the kind of actor audiences were really
  glad to see make it)
  
• Halle Berry was the first African American woman
  to win an Oscar for Best Actress in the movie
  Monsters Ball
  
• Sidney Poitier was awarded a special Oscar for
  his trailblazing career
  
• Denzel Washington won an Oscar for Best Actor for
  his role in Training Day