Go Memphis

"Avatar," "Star Trek," "District 9" -- the most familiar science-fiction movies of the past year have raised the bar for technical accomplishment, from their galaxy-spanning spacecraft to their computer-generated monsters. But science fiction is a genre of ideas more than effects, which is why clever filmmakers with limited resources continue to pursue strange visions of alternate worlds. Full story »

Look closely at the foreigners buzzing around a hospital tent above one of Haiti's biggest earthquake-refugee camps and a face stands out: There, carrying the box of supplies, that's Sean Penn. Full story »

The 28th MidSouthCon — an annual gathering of science fiction, fantasy, horror, comic book, anime and gaming aficionados — begins today and continues through Sunday at the Whispering Woods Hotel and Conference Center in Olive Branch. The convention — or "con," in fan lingo — is expected to attract up to 1,200 people from throughout the South and Midwest. "In some ways, it's a three-day costume party," said marketing coordinator Carlin Stuart. Full story »

Tickets go on sale at 10 a.m. Saturday (March 13) for “Star Wars in Concert,” a multimedia event inspired by George Lucas’ space blockbusters. The event is scheduled for 7 p.m. May 18 at FedExForum. Narrated in person by Anthony Daniels, the actor who portrayed the “protocol droid” C-3PO in the “Star Wars” movies, the event will feature a symphony orchestra and chorus performing music by composer John Williams from all six films. Full story »

What does it mean that a virtually all-black movie made the final cut of 10 for the best picture Oscar this year and would surely have made the traditional cut of five? “Precious’’ has no white stars. Its nominated director and screenwriter are black, as is the author of its source material (in case you haven’t heard, it’s “based on the novel ‘Push’ by Sapphire’’). The movie tells the story of an overweight, illiterate teenager, pregnant with her second child (both of which are her missing father’s). It’s grim and, up to a point, sad. Full story »

Sandra Bullock paid her dues in Hollywood for more than 20 years. She was rewarded Sunday, winning the Best Actress Oscar for playing Leigh Anne Tuohy, a tough white Memphian who adopted a black child in “The Blind Side.” Bullock had repeatedly said she didn’t think she was going to win, although the 45-year-old actress was a heavy favorite. “Did I really earn this, or did I just wear y’all down?” she said after accepting the golden statue from Sean Penn. Full story »

Producer, director, writer, actor and provocateur Spike Lee will give a free public talk on the image of black America and the politics of film and media at 7:30 p.m. March 17 in the Michael D. Rose Theatre at the University of Memphis. Lee’s Oscar-aftermath talk is perfectly timed for a movie season that has seen much debate about the portrayal of black characters in three of this year’s Best Picture nominees, “The Blind Side,” “Precious: Based on the Novel ‘Push’ by Sapphire” and “District 9.” Full story »

Memphis has long enjoyed a variety of unique cultural celebrations, from Africa in April to Memphis in May. Now, a group of local film fans and pop-culture enthusiasts have organized a festival dubbed "The Sivads of March." The event will serve as a public tribute to the late Watson Davis, the Malco ad executive who, as Sivad, "the Monster of Ceremonies," was host of the "Fantastic Features" horror movie program on WHBQ-TV Channel 13 from 1962 to 1972. Full story »

“Cop Out” is a clumsy postmodern buddy cop flick that stuffs as many genre references as it can into the ceaseless patter between Tracy Morgan and Bruce Willis. They play our paired police — detectives Paul Hodges and Jimmy Monroe, respectively — and they might as well be in different movies. Willis, a veteran of cop films like the “Die Hard” films and most recently “Surrogates,” is our unmistakable straight man. Almost charmingly, he’s actually trying to solve crimes. Full story »

Breck Eisner’s insane-in-the-membrane update of the George A. Romero cult horror movie “The Crazies” opens with a brief shot of fire, devastation and small-town apocalypse, followed by a title card that takes us back to the same Iowa farm community two days earlier. We see white-picket fences, clapboard houses and good neighbors, and hear birds warbling and Johnny Cash singing “We’ll Meet Again,” a song whose title hints at the nature of the alarming events about to transpire. Full story »

Crazy Heart (R, 112 min.) As "Bad Blake," a broke, alcoholic country singer-songwriter nicknamed "the Wrangler of Love," Best Actor nominee Jeff Bridges brings all his four decades of deceptively casual charm and unpretentious smarts to what is proving to be his signature role. Adapted by debuting director Scott Cooper from a novel by Thomas Cobb, the film is something of an anomaly on the current movie landscape. Full story »

In a contest for Best Local Charity Event, a likely nominee would be the annual Oscar Night America Party, a black-tie gala that benefits Ronald McDonald House Charities of Memphis. This year's ninth annual party -- one of 50 such events officially sanctioned by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences -- begins at 6 p.m. March 7 (Oscar night) at Minglewood Hall, 1555 Madison. Tickets are $100 each. Full story »

Vanity Fair’s annual Hollywood issue features Oscar-nominated actress Gabourey Sidibe on the inside, and not among the nine white ingenues on the cover. Whatever progress American society may be making, too few black films are released to provide the diversity that would make a more inclusive gallery of starlets a matter of course. With the notable exception of Sidibe’s “Precious,” nominated for best picture and best director, the roster of 2009 movies reflecting African-American life was thin and unimpressive. Full story »

Black Indians: An American Story (Not rated, 60 min.) James Earl Jones -- himself a "black Indian" -- narrates this 2001 documentary examining issues of racial identity among those with both Native American and African-American ancestry. 2 p.m. Sunday, the C.H. Nash Museum Theater at Chucalissa. Admission: free. Visit memphis.edu/chucalissa. Full story »

Producers of a family-friendly feature film now shooting in Shelby County are seeking extras today and Wednesday for sequences at the Agricenter Showplace Arena, 105 S. Germantown Parkway at Walnut Grove. The movie, which carries the working title “Fandango,” is the story of a champion rider, a plucky young girl and a top Paso Fino horse named Fandango. Full story »