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Tuesday’s Overlooked: Much Ado About Nothing (1993)

In anticipation for my write up on Joss Whedon’s Much Ado About Nothing (opens nationwide on June 21), my post for this week is the Kenneth Branagh adaptation of the same play by William Shakespeare, which happens to be one of my favorite plays. Featuring an all star cast including Branagh, Emma Thompson, Denzel Washington, Keanu Reeves, Robert Shaw Leonard and a pre-Underworld Kate Beckinsale, this 1993 feature was made me fall in love with Shakespeare and Tuscany again (my first time was with the release of 1985’s A Room With a View).

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For those who do not know, Much Ado About Nothing is as it states on the tin, it is a frivolous, lighthearted comedy or at least as light as Shakespeare can go.

I cannot believe it is 20 years since its release!

Check out the trailer below:

Check out other great overlooked titles on Todd’s blog, Sweet Freedom!

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Tuesday’s Overlooked: Love & Basketball (2000)

This week’s selection has been mentioned previously on my blog but never at great length. It is the 2000 Sundance fan-favorite Love & Basketball, directed by Gina Bryce-Bythewood (P.S. We need to see much more of her)! This film has everything I need as both self-confessed tomboy who loves sports and as one who appreciates a great love story. Add to that a jamming soundtrack and this is a movie I will not soon ever forget – even to this day.
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The film covers the 20-year relationship between Monica (Sanaa Lathan) and Quincy (Omar Epps), who share a love and passionate rivalry for basketball and find their lives inexorably linked as a result.

Check out the trailer here:

For MORE overlooked gems, check out Todd Mason’s blog, Sweet Freedom.

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Tuesday’s Overlooked: The Josephine Baker Story (1991)

This week’s entry is another post in honor of Josephine Baker, who was born this week in 1906.

I previously mentioned a BBC documentary that will let you find out more about the legendary performer, but for me, as a youth, my first exposure to the impact of her life and world (including that beyond the world of entertainment) was captured in the 1991 biopic made for HBO. Lynne Whitfield stars as the icon who escaped abject poverty in the racially-charged South to become the toast of Paris.

Here are the opening credits for the film:

Granted I have not seen it in a while, so I am not sure how well it plays in a contemporary context. But I think this is a good entree into learning more about Ms. Baker.

Be sure to check out other films selected as overlooked on Todd Mason’s blog, Sweet Freedom.
josephine baker story

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