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LOCKED Is Intense and Entertaining A talk with the Director

We caught up with the director of LOCKED David Yarovesky (Brightburn, Nightbooks), just before we screened the film with no spoilers. The film took nineteen days to shoot. Watch our quick interview. Synopsis: No escape. No …

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At a Screening of Dog Man the Movie

It was an enjoyable screening with two of the grandsons. The five year old said it was happy and sad at the same time. And he loved it! The twelve year old who has read …

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Unstoppable Streaming on Prime Video

Unstoppable is the inspiring true story of Anthony Robles (Jharrel Jerome) who was born with one leg but whose indomitable spirit and unbreakable resolve empowered him to defy the odds and pursue his dreams. With the …

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Sonic the Hedgehog 3 The Speed to the BoxOffice

“Sonic 3 will beat out Mufasa, for sure!” — JimmityCritic (12) Sonic the Hedgehog 3, what a fun evening with the grandkids it was. When you have a 12, 10 and 5 year-old clap their hands at the end …

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Mufasa: The Lion King the Prequel

Mufasa: The Lion King was entertaining and the production value was amazing to watch. Set in Africa, all-new film blends live-action filmmaking techniques with photoreal computer-generated imagery.  My 12 year-old grandson thought it was one …

LOCKED Is Intense and Entertaining A talk with the DirectorAt a Screening of Dog Man the MovieUnstoppable Streaming on Prime VideoSonic the Hedgehog 3 The Speed to the BoxOfficeMufasa: The Lion King the Prequel

Renée Victor: A Legend in the Making

Renée Victor
©2014 Angela María Ortíz S.

We had a chance to sit down recently with Renée Victor, an accomplished (and still growing!) Latina actress, voice-over artists and so much more.

You’ll recognize Renée at first glance, though you may not know why. Most remember her best from her work as Lupita on Weeds or the abuela in Paranormal Activity: The Marked Ones, but there’s so much more.

In our talk, we chatted about her childhood in San Antonio and being both Mexican and Italian. (Her mother’s family originated with the Spaniards who dominated the whole southeastern U.S.; they moved to Mexico from Louisiana).

The interview covers her voice over work in English and Spanish, her longtime love of dancing and singing, her recent works, her films with Robert Duvall (The Apostle, Assassination Tango) and a new one called A night in Old Mexico…not to mention her role as a cougar in an upcoming independent film, Entanglement. And TNT’s Major Crimes.

Her wide-ranging insights and adventures and the amazing amount of work she’s done and risk she’s taken makes for some fascinating viewing…and proves once again that working actors–especially Latinos–are much more than their imdb listing.

“The Night Shift,” with Freddy Rodríguez and Daniella Alonso, Arrives (finally) on NBC, Complete with Built-in Déjà Vu

Freddy Rodíguez

Back in the day, when NBC was the network to beat, one of the shiniest of his crown jewels, along with four hundred Law & Order spin-offs, was ER, the always engaging and often brilliant drama about life in a big-city emergency room. A wide range of stars passed through its doors, from George Clooney to Noah Wylie, from Juliana Margulies to Ming-Na Wen.

Daniella Alonso

You’ll be reminded of ER, over and over, when you watch The Night Shift. Everything about it is polished, sincere, and oh-so-familiar, except now the hospital administrator–Rodríguez himself–is not a brave crusader fighting to keep the hospital together, he’s a loathsome prick who yells at his staff and gets punched for it. And beyond the sideswipes at everything from Obamacare, there is a weirdly violent streak to this medical drama. They do mention the night shift is made up of ex-military types (so there’s a veiled insult in there somewhere), but in the first half hour the main character comes in all beat up, there’s a major wrestling match in the ER, and the aforementioned prick administrator gets punched out. And one of the doctors–the one who’s not an Afghanistan vet–is a mixed martial artist who, we see, can deliver a very efficient sleeper hold. (Whatever happened to the days that surgeons always wore gloves and wouldn’t shake hands for fear of damaging their fingers?)

All in all, the show has slipped in long after NBC’s other shows have folded up their tents for the night. It’s hard to remember the last time a series that premiere in April or May ever came back for a second shift (so to speak), excluding a few reality shows. (Rookie Blue on ABC, maybe, though that was produced and purchased, done and done, from Canadian television. This was not.)

Still: you can see Freddie Rodríguez at his nastiest, and very little of Daniella Alonso (so little it’s not entirely clear if she’s an intern, a resident, or a nurse). And it is just about the only new thing on NBC for a while. With so little original programming for the next few weeks–at least until the cable networks start their off-season–there aren’t a whole lot of alternatives.

Bella Thorne, Drew Barrymore, Adam Sandler are “Blended”

Bella Thorne

Blended is Adam Sandler and Drew Barrymore third movie together. In this comedy Sandler and Barrymore go on a blind date that doesn’t go so well. Who end up benefitting from the relationship that grows between the duo after they and their children from previous marriages find themselves stuck together, in a resort somewhere on the African continent. Young Latina actress Bella Thorne (Shake It Up!, Big Love) plays the oldest daughter of Sandler’s character. Terry Crews, Kevin Nealon, Wendi McLendon-Covey and many more are included in the fun.

“X-Men: Days of Future Past” Hits a Zillion Theaters with one Lone Kind-of-Latino Superhero in the Mix

The handsome and talented Adan Canto is recruited to play a Brazilian mutant named Sunspot. Let the controversy begin.

Everybody knows that X-Men: Days of Future Past is premiering this weekend (Thursday night/Friday morning, actually), and almost everybody knows it’s an attempt to use a version of a classic X-Men comic arc to stitch together the two highly disparate version of the X-Men that have appeared in film over the last fifteen years or so. In the middle of the geek-fest stands Adan Canto, playing a young mutant from Brazil who can channel solar energy into super-energy. Or something like that.

There’s been some discussion in the fan- and Latino community about whether or not Sunspot really is a Latino, since he speaks Portuguese rather than Spanish, and whether it’s appropriate that Canto, who was born in Mexico, is the right actor to play him. It smells of fanboy nitpicking in general, and it masks the even less pleasant fact that there are almost no American Latino superheroes in the comics, and even fewer–that is to say, none–in the various film and TV versions of the DC and Marvel Universes.

If you need to catch up on the whole “who is/what is” of the X-Men franchise, enjoy this eight-minute presentation, including a glimpse of Sunspot–whatever his ethnicity–along with a breakdown of the complicated plot. And let’s see just how much of Adan Canto we actually see in a movie that’s filled to the brim and more with super-stars. And we mean that literally.

“Gang Related” Finally Arrives–But is it Too Late?

Ramon Rodriguez

Almost a year ago, in the “up fronts” for the 2013-14 season, we talked about the five programs on broadcast and cable that were actually showcasing Latino stars and Latino storylines: Devious Maids, The Fosters, The Bridge, Welcome to the Family…and Gang Related. Four of those titles have long since appeared; three of them have done well enough both critically and in terms of ratings to warrant a second season; only Welcome to the Family has permanently disappeared…but now, finally, Gang Related appears as the very, very last of the Fox “mid season,” even as the last of the shows that premiered in the fall are closing up shop.

Jay Hernandez

It looks like an interesting premise: in this “gritty new action drama,” Ramon Rodriguez plays a rising star in the Los Angeles Police Department who is forced to go undercover to bust up one of L.A. Most dangerous gangs–and one populated by old friends and family members. He has to balance “two allegiances, two father figures, and two families,” as his own sense of loyalty is challenged and he must determine “which side of the law he’s really on.” A range of talented and ethnically diverse actors are joining Rodriguez, from Lost veteran Terry O’Quinn to a host of Latino including Emilio Rivera, Jay Hernandez, Carlos Gómez, Reynaldo Gallegos, and Luis Moncado.

Gang Related Ramon Rodriguez, RZA, Inbar Lavi,
Sung Kang and Terry O’Quinn

Still, Fox’ timing is odd, to say the least. It’s not unheard of to premiere a brand-new show in May, in the twilight zone between finales and summer replacements. In fact, NBC’s bringing a couple forward (including one featuring a Latino–the medical drama The Night Shift has Freddie Rodríguez as part of the ensemble), but it’s hard to remember the last time one of those actually caught fire. And yes, they are giving it the added jolt of premiering after the finale of American Idol, though it’s questionable if the millions of fans of a music competition will be interested in a solemn drama about police and L.A. street gangs. And additional publicity and promotion for the show is pretty thin, especially when compared to Fox’ other recent debut, the return of 24.

So we shall see. Whatever showcase the drama has will begin on Thursday May 22, and will continue for as long as the viewers show up. Let’s see how it goes…

A Latino Action Hero? Édgar Ramírez will be “Bodhi” in the Remake of “Point Break”

Édgar Ramírez

Ramirez has been in a dozen action pictures, but now he finally takes center stage in a wildly “re-made” version of the cult classic

Most reports still have the “in negotiations” escape clause attached, but it look like Édgar Ramírez is being tapped to star in the upcoming “re-creation” of the classic 1991 action-thriller Point Break. He’ll play Bodhi, the character made famous by Patrick Swayze in Kathryn Bigelow’s original film.

(Think about all that for a moment: Point Break, the film that helped to make the careers of Swayze, Bigelow, and Keanu Reeves, is going to be close to twenty-five years old by the time the remake hits the screens in August 2015. Meanwhile Bigelow has gone on to become arguably the most respected female director working in film today, with films like The Hurt Locker and Zero Dark Thirty. You have to wonder if Bigelow had something to do with the selection of Ramírez after Gerard Butler left the project; Ramírez was part of her multi-award-winning Zero Dark Thirty.)

L-r: Édgar Ramírez, Robert De Niro and Rubén Blades
Hands of Stone

Though Ramírez himself has appeared in a number of action/adventure/thriller films, including The Bourne Ultimatum and Wrath of the Titans, this is the first time he’s likely to appear above the title, along with relative newcomer Luke Bracey, who will take on the role made famous by Reeves. Before that appears, we’ll see Ramírez as Roberto Duran in Hands of Stone, as a renegade priest in the possession/horror film Deliver Us From Evil with Eric Bana, and in the new Bryan Cranston thriller Holland, Michigan, coming in 2015 as well.

Interestingly, Ramírez is as well-known for his dramatic roles as his action work, including his roles in The Counselor, in the Che miniseries and as the lead in Carlos the Jackal. We can hope he’ll have the chance to bring as much humanity as action to the remake–a remake that reportedly abandons the surfing world for extreme sports, while retaining the premise of the FBI agent infiltrating that world to stop an international heist.

For years, there has been a call from the Latino community for the development of a true Latino “action hero,” like Schwarzenegger or Willis. Maybe this is the ‘break’ we’ve all been waiting for. Principle photography begins later this year; the release date has recently been set for August 7, 2015.

We are Sharing the “Jane the Virgin” Trailer

Gina Rodriguez
and Andrea Navedo

It’s nice to see some very talented Latinas in this trailer and as leads in the show, Jane the Virgin starring Gina Rodriguez as Jane, Andrea Navedo and Ivonne Coll. Check out our previous post here.

A Second TV Series for the Fall Stars a Latina: “Cristela”

Cristela Alonso

Cristela Alonzo has been the talk of Hollywood this season, with a development deal and a ‘secret’ pilot made on the set of Last Man Standing. Now the best possible outcome: Cristela has been announced as a new half-hour sitcom on ABC, only the second new show for Fall ’14 with a Latino in the lead. (the other is the CW’s new show, Jane the Virgin, starring Gina Rodriguez.)

Created by Cristela Alonzo and Kevin Hench, Alonzo stars as a sixth-year law student who gets an unpaid internship at a prestigious law firm only to discover that her working class Mexican-American family isn’t entirely supportive of her upward mobility. Carlos Ponce, Terri Hoyos (Cold Case), Andrew Leeds and Sam McMurray (Scandal, The Fosters, Raising Arizona) co-star.

More details will emerge, but congratulations to Cristela for making it to the big leagues–and so fast!

Latinos off TV: An Awesomely Sad Night of the Finales on Tuesday

Daniella Pineda The Originals

If there’s ever been a time to warm up the DVR, this is the night. There are eight shows with Latinos in the mix offering up their season–and in some cases, series–finale.

We know it all had to end, but did it have to end so fast? Check out this Night of Farewells:

8:00
ABC: Marvel’s Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D., though mostly without Latinos in the cast, it’s a favorite…and like most of tonight’s finales, it’ll be back next season.

CBS: NCIS is one of the highest-rated shows on the nets, and when Cote de Pablo was part of the time, it was also the home of one powerful Latina. Zeva may have retired, but the show remains popular…and tonight’s finale just makes you want for more come September.

CW: Daniella Pineda and the rest of the cast of The Originals say goodbye for the summer.

Al Madrigal and David Walton
About a Boy

FOX: Lea Michele and maybe Naya Rivera (if she isn’t edited out at the last moment) will be singin’ and dancing’ all night long for Glee’s season finale, and they’ll both back bin September for one more year.

NBC: It’s not a finale, but the clock is ticking on The Voice as the Semi-Finalists get their results and more talented singers fall (though this cycle there’s not a Latino left standing even now).

9:00
NBC: About a Boy isn’t a finale–heck, it only started a few weeks ago!–but it is new and renewed, which means Al Madrigal gets to keep his job another year.

ABC: The Goldbergs has their season finale tonight too, but they will return with Hayley Orrantia as a 80s teenager next fall.

Sarah Shahi
Person of Interest

9:30
ABC: Natalie Morales bids a bittersweet farewell as Trophy Wife sinks slowly into the sunset. And sad to say, this one won’t be back.

NBC: Look for another new episode of About a Boy as NBC fills out its schedule till the summer shows kick in.

10:00
CBS:  Sarah Shahi is beautiful, deadly, and without remorse in the season finale of Person of Interest. It’s been a heck of a year; we can’t wait until September!

NBC: Monica Raymund and Joe Minoso puts down their medical skills and hose for the season in the finale of Chicago Fire, but here, too: back in the fall.

That’s seven finales and a few with a week or two to go…which mean hasta luego to some of our favorite shows for at least a few months. Thanks heaven the return and premiere of a passel of cable shows are about to premiere…

Kyla Garcia Breaks through: She’s in this Week’s “Marvel’s Agent of S.H.I.E.L.D.” Finale

Kyla Garcia

Last, September of last year, we told the story of Kyla Garcia and her growing success in Hollywood. Time for an update…and it’s all good news.

Kyla will be making her TV debut on Tuesday, May 13 at 8PM, playing “Mrs. Zeller” on the season finale, of ABC’s Marvel Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. as Mrs. Zeller. “I also just wrote my first one woman-show,” she told us. “It will premiere in June at the Hollywood Fringe Festival. It’s entitled “The Mermaid Who Learned How to Fly.” So many exciting updates since the slam!”

Here’s our original story about Kyla and her work. Congratulations!

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