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Tonya
"Cyniquian" Level Poster
Username: Tonya
Post Number: 6290
Registered: 07-2006
Rating: N/A
Votes: 0 (Vote!) | | Posted on Saturday, December 29, 2007 - 02:58 pm: | 
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Does Denzel always have to represent?
MARK ANTHONY NEAL
The Washington Post
For most of his career, Denzel Washington has been the epitome of a "race man" - a well-mannered, well-intentioned role model thoroughly committed to black uplift. He's maintaining that tradition in "The Great Debaters," a new film in which he plays a champion debate coach in the segregated South.
But his recent portrayal of the murderous Harlem drug lord Frank Lucas in "American Gangster," following his Oscar-winning performance as the corrupt cop Alonzo in "Training Day," has shaken his standing as a race man - and has prompted speculation that, after years of playing characters who symbolized African-Americans' mainstream acceptance, he's finally selling out to a commercial culture eager to make a buck off of portraying black men as thugs.
That's not how I see it. To me, the more important question that Washington's career choices raise is: Why, as the nation grows to appreciate the many different ways of being black, do we still need race men at all?
"Race man" is a term from the beginning of the 20th century that describes black men of stature and integrity who represented the best that African-Americans had to offer in the face of Jim Crow segregation. It has lost some of its resonance in a post-civil rights world, but it remains an unspoken measure of commitment to uplifting the race. Race men inspire pride; their work, their actions and their speech represent excellence instead of evoking shame and embarrassment. Thus the pundit Tavis Smiley and the Rev. Jesse Jackson (even with an illegitimate child) can be race men, whereas the comedian Dave Chappelle and the rapper/mogul Jay-Z can never be.
In his collaborations with director Spike Lee, Washington complicated the race-man ethos. No longer defined solely by their willingness to stand up for their race, characters such as Bleek Gilliam ("Mo' Better Blues"), Jake Shuttlesworth ("He Got Game") and Detective Keith Frazier ("Inside Man") represented the new race man, whose main emphasis was on being manly. These characters were self-absorbed and selfish and demanded the respect they thought they deserved. Still, many black audiences embraced them, if only because Washington had earned their trust, especially after his signature collaboration with Lee on the film "Malcolm X."
But that trust began to erode with Washington's portrayal of Alonzo in "Training Day." When he finally won the coveted Best Actor Oscar for that role, on the same night that Halle Berry won Best Actress, much was made of their being rewarded for portraying characters who demeaned African-Americans. And yet it was easy to give Washington a pass, because the Motion Picture Academy had ignored his more celebrated roles as Rubin "Hurricane" Carter and Malcolm X.
The cultural landscape has changed considerably since then. In the aftermath of the Don Imus debacle, hip-hop culture and rap music in particular have become litmus tests for the recent erosion of black culture's prestige.
Washington's desire to portray the gangster Lucas - the kind of character that has become a staple of so much commercial rap music - understandably raised eyebrows. In an interview with Men's Vogue, the actor defended his choices: "It's not about the black experience. It's more specific and selfish than that. It's what I feel like doing, not what I feel like people need."
The problem with the idea of the race man is not that too few strive to embody it but that it purports to define the kind of black body that can represent the whole race.
No one representation of blackness - positive or not - can encompass the complexity of black life. And what do we do with figures such as Oprah Winfrey or Sen. Barack Obama, both of whom challenge a tradition that expects black leadership to be incubated, as so many race men were, in the bosom of the black church? With Winfrey and Obama poised to revamp the very premise of mainstream political leadership in this country, perhaps it's time to give the race man the eulogy he deserves after more than a century of service. And let's give Denzel Washington some credit for finding value in our complexity.
• Mark Anthony Neal is a professor of African and African-American Studies at Duke University and the author of "New Black Man."
http://www.juneauempire.com/stories/122607/opi_20071226011.shtml
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Tonya
"Cyniquian" Level Poster
Username: Tonya
Post Number: 6291
Registered: 07-2006
Rating: 
Votes: 5 (Vote!) | | Posted on Saturday, December 29, 2007 - 03:21 pm: |
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Jay-Z is a sucker ass niggerr squirrel, so is that bucktooth rabbit-head sellout Dave Chappelle. But I agree with the premise of this article still.....Big-ups to the traditional Black male.
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Moonsigns
AALBC .com Platinum Poster
Username: Moonsigns
Post Number: 2049
Registered: 07-2004
Rating:
Votes: 1 (Vote!) | | Posted on Saturday, December 29, 2007 - 03:54 pm: |
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Quite an interesting article.
When it comes to black men, like, say, Jay-Z, Dave Chappelle, or some other entertainer similiar to them, SOME black people claim that they don't "represent" black men. However, Denzel seems to be praised (by a lot) of black people, especially black women, as being the epitome of ("real") black manhood. When in truth, Jay Z types and Denzel types, are just two pieces of a much bigger (diverse) picture. They both represent something about the black community....and every "community" has their good and bad, givers and takers, etc., etc.
Now, of course, the media is biased, so that has to be considered - and also makes it understandable as to why SOME black people (and more specifically, SOME black women) want the Denzel types to be in the forefront. However, with that in mind, when all is said and done, Denzel is a man - who just happens to be black and just happens to be an incredible actor. And while his surface behavior seems to be upstanding, I don't think his choice of roles should be the measuring tool for how "black" he is - or is not. And I don't think he should have the responsibility of carrying the moral/ethical weight of his entire "race" on his shoulders. That's unfair.
I just enjoy watching him in his element. Almost every movie he stars in is great!
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Cynique
"Cyniquian" Level Poster
Username: Cynique
Post Number: 10991
Registered: 01-2004
Rating: N/A
Votes: 0 (Vote!) | | Posted on Saturday, December 29, 2007 - 04:33 pm: |
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What does Denzel owe his race? He carved his niche in Hollywood and earned the respect of his peers. He never became a token but always made the roles his own. He has paid his dues and deserves the luxury of being an actor first, and a black man second. |
Ntfs_encryption
"Cyniquian" Level Poster
Username: Ntfs_encryption
Post Number: 2921
Registered: 10-2005
Rating:
Votes: 1 (Vote!) | | Posted on Saturday, December 29, 2007 - 05:42 pm: |
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"What does Denzel owe his race?"
Absolutely nothing. The only thing he owes anyone is a good performance in whatever role he is playing.
" He carved his niche in Hollywood and earned the respect of his peers. He never became a token but always made the roles his own. He has paid his dues and deserves the luxury of being an actor first, and a black man second."
Thank you. The man is a good actor who has the luxury of picking and choosing whatever roles interest him. I've heard this moronic subject before -about him representing..... THE MAN REPERESENTS HIMSELF -A GOOD, FAIR OR BAD ACTOR! Got it? All of the mindless race representing hyperbole means nothing -only to those 25 brain cell Negroes how wallow and exist on a diet of race baiting, conspiracies and paranoia. End of subject......
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Abm
"Cyniquian" Level Poster
Username: Abm
Post Number: 9760
Registered: 04-2004
Rating: N/A
Votes: 0 (Vote!) | | Posted on Saturday, December 29, 2007 - 09:42 pm: |
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I don't know Denzel Washington motivations. But he has been a fine artist and professional. And if that means he's been such in an effort to appear to be a "good race man", well then, I suppose there are a lot WORSE things a Black man can desire to be and do.
The flack about Training Day never ceases to amaze me. Because I found Denzel's Alonzo to be a very engaging and entertaining character. (I have not seen American Gangster.)
Denzel's resume is far too varied and diverse to charge him with contributing to the denegration of image of Black men. |
Ntfs_encryption
"Cyniquian" Level Poster
Username: Ntfs_encryption
Post Number: 2922
Registered: 10-2005
Rating: N/A
Votes: 0 (Vote!) | | Posted on Monday, December 31, 2007 - 09:27 am: |
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"I don't know Denzel Washington motivations. But he has been a fine artist and professional. And if that means he's been such in an effort to appear to be a "good race man", well then, I suppose there are a lot WORSE things a Black man can desire to be and do."
Agree. But it amazes me how people seem to struggle with the reality that the man is an "actor". He is not a social, cultural or political activist. The character he portrays has nothing to do with him or a good or bad image for black men.
"The flack about Training Day never ceases to amaze me. Because I found Denzel's Alonzo to be a very engaging and entertaining character. (I have not seen American Gangster.)"
The flack was silly and groundless. I was stunned to hear it. The character he played was ruthless and hard core. No different than the hard boiled characters someone like Jack Nicholson, John Travolta, Harvey Keitel, Anthony Hopkins or Christopher Walken has played. IT'S JUST A ROLE IN A MOVIE NOT AN ELECTED INDIVIDUAL WHO REPRESENTS A GROUP.
"Denzel's resume is far too varied and diverse to charge him with contributing to the denegration of image of Black men."
Bro, the entire idea that the characters he portrays in movies denigrate black men as a group is stoopid and embarrassing. I can't say it any other way. The paranoic race conspiracy Negroes are worse that the things they condemn.
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Chrishayden
"Cyniquian" Level Poster
Username: Chrishayden
Post Number: 6005
Registered: 03-2004
Rating: N/A
Votes: 0 (Vote!) | | Posted on Monday, December 31, 2007 - 10:17 am: |
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He never became a token but always made the roles his own.
(Then again there was that one where he was playing George Segal's son. Sheer Buckwheat)
He has paid his dues and deserves the luxury of being an actor first, and a black man second.
(He deserves nothing. I agree that he can play whatever roles he wants. As an artist, I believe that the duty of the artist is to his or herself first--to survive. To create.
If he takes nothing but positive roles, a la Ciciely Tyson, he will starve to death, because white folks and self loathing negroes dont' want to see that.
However--when he does something we don't like, we ain't got to kiss his ass about it.
That said, the only way I would down him for his roles in Training Day and American Gangster is if the roles were not real--and they had a basis in truth.
Frank Lucas was real, as were the black cops who were working for Shug Knight at Death Row.
Show business is just a step above prostitution. Sooner or later they will have you showing your monkey ass because they like it.
He should take his money and his awards and be satisfied. |
Chrishayden
"Cyniquian" Level Poster
Username: Chrishayden
Post Number: 6006
Registered: 03-2004
Rating: N/A
Votes: 0 (Vote!) | | Posted on Monday, December 31, 2007 - 10:43 am: |
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And speaking of Denzel representing, isn't he in that new Oprah movie about the debaters that is tanking at the box office?
"nuff said. |
Abm
"Cyniquian" Level Poster
Username: Abm
Post Number: 9763
Registered: 04-2004
Rating: N/A
Votes: 0 (Vote!) | | Posted on Monday, December 31, 2007 - 10:47 am: |
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Ntfs: "...it amazes me how people seem to struggle with the reality that the man is an "actor". He is not a social, cultural or political activist. The character he portrays has nothing to do with him or a good or bad image for black men."
I agree. Moreover, very FEW of our social, cultural and political activist's have had records that are above reproach. Paul Robeson, MLK, Malcolm X, Adam Clayton Powell Jr., etc. had feet of clay.
Ntfs: "The flack was silly and groundless. I was stunned to hear it. The character he played was ruthless and hard core. No different than the hard boiled characters someone like Jack Nicholson, John Travolta, Harvey Keitel, Anthony Hopkins or Christopher Walken has played."
Indeed. And, arguably, the greatest cinematic acting performance of the last 40 years was Al Pacino's splendidly Machiavellian portrayal of The Godfather's Don Michael Corleone.
The role of villian provides a director and actor with opportunities to plumb and make manifest areas of the human psyche, motivations and experience that often are not achievable via the protagonist.
Ntfs: "I can't say it any other way. The paranoic race conspiracy Negroes are worse that the things they condemn."
Well. There is long and painful HISTORY that proceeds this that Black foks are NOT responsible. So, perhaps, I am not as condemnatory of Negroes who engage in such as you. And I believe part of what comes with being rich and famous is you're going to be greatly criticized. But everyone deserves to be judged fairly.
I think what I admire most about Denzel Washington is that he does not appear to be bothered and encumbered by what some many others have expected of him the last +15 years. If anything, he seems to be inspired and empowered by it. |
Chrishayden
"Cyniquian" Level Poster
Username: Chrishayden
Post Number: 6008
Registered: 03-2004
Rating: N/A
Votes: 0 (Vote!) | | Posted on Monday, December 31, 2007 - 11:10 am: |
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I agree. Moreover, very FEW of our social, cultural and political activist's have had records that are above reproach. Paul Robeson, MLK, Malcolm X, Adam Clayton Powell Jr., etc. had feet of clay.
(Why would he have to have feet of clay because he took a role that made some black folks uncomfortable?
He hasn't said anything like--"Lemme take this role this will f*ck the N****as up!" Has he?
He did it for the dough, like everybody else. |
Chrishayden
"Cyniquian" Level Poster
Username: Chrishayden
Post Number: 6009
Registered: 03-2004
Rating: N/A
Votes: 0 (Vote!) | | Posted on Monday, December 31, 2007 - 11:13 am: |
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Sooner or later they will have you showing your monkey ass because they like it.
(I remember Denzel refused to do nude scenes for Spike Lee, saying that he was a married man.
But then there was that movie, "Biko" where he was naked in the cell and the camera was right on his big ole naked ass!
Never say never, I guess) |
Cynique
"Cyniquian" Level Poster
Username: Cynique
Post Number: 10994
Registered: 01-2004
Rating: N/A
Votes: 0 (Vote!) | | Posted on Monday, December 31, 2007 - 12:04 pm: |
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Denzel also refused to let them put a romantic spin on his relationship with Julia Roberts in "The Pelican Brief". She was just salivating at the prospect but he said he didn't want to appear on screen kissing America's sweetheart. Translated: I ain't spoiling my image among black women and white men by kissing that white woman. |
Enchanted
AALBC .com Platinum Poster
Username: Enchanted
Post Number: 1099
Registered: 11-2005
Rating: 
Votes: 6 (Vote!) | | Posted on Monday, December 31, 2007 - 03:52 pm: |
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this is stupid article. even Denzels villain movie sends a message "dont do this!" very loud n clear an being a 'race man' is why he is #1 because all human being respect nothing more than authentisity (sp) that why Aretha with 500 pounds an shot to hell voice cant be dethroned it is why over-acting Angela Bassett get mor elove an respect then Halle. Smartest move Denzel ever made was to be 'race man' becuase now he goes in history not just a movie star but a black leader. no other black actor has ever made so many importance black films an stood for the black family. the whole article is stupid because there is no controversy men sellouts like Mark Anthony Neal (yuk!) are jus jealous of Denzel becauze he lacks their insecurity n being black men. |
Cynique
"Cyniquian" Level Poster
Username: Cynique
Post Number: 11005
Registered: 01-2004
Rating: N/A
Votes: 0 (Vote!) | | Posted on Tuesday, January 01, 2008 - 01:47 pm: |
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It doesn't matter what others say. Does Denzel, himself, consider himself a "race man"? I think not. I think he considers himself an actor who is true to his craft and the roles he chooses are more about character, than race. And the fact that his career choices have put him at the top of his game and allow him to command a 20 million a picture salary is his reward for this approach.
And I also don't agree that his latest "project" is tanking at the box office. It's a low budget film and will probably earn enough to end up in the black. |
Enchanted
AALBC .com Platinum Poster
Username: Enchanted
Post Number: 1100
Registered: 11-2005
Rating: N/A
Votes: 0 (Vote!) | | Posted on Tuesday, January 01, 2008 - 04:22 pm: |
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cynique Denzel has calld himself a 'race man' on two separte Barbara Walters specials his words not the medias he said his father was one an he wanted too play Malcolm for that reason also he an Spike lee did so many movies together for shared vision. I already said the rest of what you said.the article is stupid an pointless because there is no controversy an Denzel is Denzel hes never changed. |
Cynique
"Cyniquian" Level Poster
Username: Cynique
Post Number: 11006
Registered: 01-2004
Rating: N/A
Votes: 0 (Vote!) | | Posted on Tuesday, January 01, 2008 - 05:38 pm: |
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Is that so? It's hard to tell what you're saying.  |
Yvettep
AALBC .com Platinum Poster
Username: Yvettep
Post Number: 2507
Registered: 01-2005
Rating: N/A
Votes: 0 (Vote!) | | Posted on Tuesday, January 01, 2008 - 11:27 pm: |
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Enchanted, I think you may be missing the point of MAN's piece. He is not saying that Washington is no longer "representing," but is reporting--accurately--that critique of others. His articles are often, IMO, very insightful and spot-on in terms of capturing the pulse of contemporary mass opinion of Black popular culture. They are also usually pretty accessible even as they can be pretty scholarly as well. I think his last paragraph makes his point. (One that I agree with.)
No one representation of blackness - positive or not - can encompass the complexity of black life.... And let's give Denzel Washington some credit for finding value in our complexity.
I do agree though, that a "eulogy" for the "race man" is not called for. I kinda like the old term and what it represented in terms of a certain authenticity of self presentation. (Though NOT by any means, representing some sort of "perfection" or being above reproach in all areas of life.)
I guess I would change MAN's assertion that we do not need to do away with the race man (or race woman), but merely expand our definition of what/who one is and can be.
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Enchanted
AALBC .com Platinum Poster
Username: Enchanted
Post Number: 1103
Registered: 11-2005
Rating: 
Votes: 1 (Vote!) | | Posted on Wednesday, January 02, 2008 - 12:14 am: |
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the article is stupid Miss Yvette becaus nobody is calling Denzel a sellout an ther is no controversy among mass moviegoers Denzel has power enuf to control his image even in villain movies an notice his message to blacks always prevails "American Gangster" is a fable saying #1-dont do this #2--this what a true sellout is Mark Anthony Neal needd something to write about an create a controvery that dont exist because notice both Denzels new movies R nominated for Golden Globe "Best Picture" an notice blackwomen filln up the boxoffice "AG" opened #1 an "Debaters" is up for Best Picture Yo MAN's esssays have often told a differnt story of who Neal is then what you say an its no wonder he want to get rid of "race men" because such men make him insecure I credit some of Neals more stupid comments in the pass to his YOUTH an have notised he's growing mor mature but this article still makes no sense Denzel cant undo his career--p. blank he stood for black people an black family an hes still Denzel an when it come to the black communty the "race man" will always be the most respectd just like white folks will always consider John Wayne, clint eastwood an Willie Nelson to be God, Denzel is our "cowboy". GOT THAT? |
Ntfs_encryption
"Cyniquian" Level Poster
Username: Ntfs_encryption
Post Number: 2928
Registered: 10-2005
Rating: N/A
Votes: 0 (Vote!) | | Posted on Wednesday, January 02, 2008 - 01:35 pm: |
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"the article is stupid Miss Yvette becaus nobody is calling Denzel a sellout an ther is no controversy among mass moviegoers Denzel has power enuf to control his image even in villain movies an notice his message..........respectd just like white folks will always consider John Wayne, clint eastwood an Willie Nelson to be God, Denzel is our "cowboy". GOT THAT?"
 ........?????????
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Cynique
"Cyniquian" Level Poster
Username: Cynique
Post Number: 11014
Registered: 01-2004
Rating: N/A
Votes: 0 (Vote!) | | Posted on Wednesday, January 02, 2008 - 01:43 pm: |
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Enchanted needs to make new years resolution to make an effort to write coherently. Of course it would help if she could think coherently. |
Chrishayden
"Cyniquian" Level Poster
Username: Chrishayden
Post Number: 6024
Registered: 03-2004
Rating: N/A
Votes: 0 (Vote!) | | Posted on Wednesday, January 02, 2008 - 02:05 pm: |
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Translated: I ain't spoiling my image among black women and white men by kissing that white woman.
(Nope: Translated, I don't want to wind up like Jim Brown and OJ Simpson.
I have heard that they have wasted no time behind the curtain, however. Remember how close she was on him when he won that Oscar for training day? |
Enchanted
AALBC .com Platinum Poster
Username: Enchanted
Post Number: 1104
Registered: 11-2005
Rating: N/A
Votes: 0 (Vote!) | | Posted on Wednesday, January 02, 2008 - 04:31 pm: |
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And John wayne an clint eastwood had plenty fo black women SO WHAT! clint eastwood stuck it to vonetta mcgee from ny to la duirng press tour for their movie an two maids of the duke claim babies an he left a fortune to one of them black maids SO WHAT! if denzel did his dirt with Sanaa lathan an Julie Roberts he did it smart now STOP pitting down denzel that is OUR cowboy an blacks need to hold something sacred sometime leave Denzel alone people jus tshut up |
Enchanted
AALBC .com Platinum Poster
Username: Enchanted
Post Number: 1105
Registered: 11-2005
Rating: N/A
Votes: 0 (Vote!) | | Posted on Wednesday, January 02, 2008 - 04:32 pm: |
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! |
Cynique
"Cyniquian" Level Poster
Username: Cynique
Post Number: 11025
Registered: 01-2004
Rating: N/A
Votes: 0 (Vote!) | | Posted on Wednesday, January 02, 2008 - 04:46 pm: |
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Who on this thread actually put Denzel down? Not only can't you write, but you can't read and interpret, "enchanted".  |
Toubobie
Veteran Poster
Username: Toubobie
Post Number: 319
Registered: 08-2005
Rating: N/A
Votes: 0 (Vote!) | | Posted on Thursday, January 03, 2008 - 02:02 pm: |
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in tinsel town denzel's days are numbered... he has exhausted every possible sellable character dimension that he could even remotely pull off. he's washed up... and he's a mediocre director, at best. the debaters gg nomination was political.
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Cynique
"Cyniquian" Level Poster
Username: Cynique
Post Number: 11038
Registered: 01-2004
Rating: N/A
Votes: 0 (Vote!) | | Posted on Thursday, January 03, 2008 - 04:13 pm: |
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If, indeed, Denzel is washed up, he's had a good run, and he's in good company because the movies of many of yesterday's superstars are no longer box office blockbusters. It's a new day, a new audience, and a new field of young players. |
Abm
"Cyniquian" Level Poster
Username: Abm
Post Number: 9771
Registered: 04-2004
Rating: N/A
Votes: 0 (Vote!) | | Posted on Saturday, January 05, 2008 - 10:37 am: |
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"in tinsel town denzel's days are numbered... he has exhausted every possible sellable character dimension that he could even remotely pull off. he's washed up... and he's a mediocre director, at best. the debaters gg nomination was political."
There was a recent poll done of the nation's movie theater owners where they rank the actors/actress with the biggest box office drawing power of 2007. Denzel ranked fifth behind only Johnny Depp, Will Smith, George Clooney and Matt Damon. (No females, White or Black, made the top 10.)
Hardly sounds like Denzel is "washed up". |
Chrishayden
"Cyniquian" Level Poster
Username: Chrishayden
Post Number: 6050
Registered: 03-2004
Rating: N/A
Votes: 0 (Vote!) | | Posted on Saturday, January 05, 2008 - 10:57 am: |
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STOP pitting down denzel that is OUR cowboy an blacks need to hold something sacred sometime leave Denzel alone people jus tshut up
(F*ck Denzel Washington. He ain't sh*t. His mama ain't sh*t.
He is an actor. He makes his living pretending emotions and saying words that other people wrote down and made up for him. He wouldn't pee on you if you were on fire.
I get tired of Negroes lapping the asses of these entertainers. The white folks are right. You ain't ready. |
Cynique
"Cyniquian" Level Poster
Username: Cynique
Post Number: 11073
Registered: 01-2004
Rating: N/A
Votes: 0 (Vote!) | | Posted on Saturday, January 05, 2008 - 02:16 pm: |
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A nonentity loser like you, chrishayden, certainly can't compare anything you've done to what Denzel has accomplished on and off the screen. You're pathetic. |
Toubobie
Veteran Poster
Username: Toubobie
Post Number: 322
Registered: 08-2005
Rating:
Votes: 1 (Vote!) | | Posted on Sunday, January 06, 2008 - 03:30 am: |
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"Hardly sounds like Denzel is "washed up"."
if u base his star power on a "recent poll" when the guy has a movie out, then perhaps he would appear to be "popular" to the general public.
this guy is a rude $ss, out-of-touch, crusty F*CK! Denzel's name does not pull the power it used to and deal makers are catching on. Sure the Weinsteins backed him on this last project, but that's moreso bc of the "O" factor than his own brokering. You can't tell me you don't notice a difference in his career over the past 10 years. He's not "hot," lukewarm at best.
that NASTY jack $ss is indeed "washed up." i'll enjoy watching him fizzle. |
Abm
"Cyniquian" Level Poster
Username: Abm
Post Number: 9785
Registered: 04-2004
Rating: N/A
Votes: 0 (Vote!) | | Posted on Sunday, January 06, 2008 - 05:01 am: |
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Toubobie,
Let’s cut the bullshvt biases and kick some actual-factuals.
Here are Denzel Washinton’s last 5 movies prior to The Great Debaters: Man on Fire (2004), The Manchurian Candidate (2004), Inside Man (2006), Déjà vu (2006) and American Gangster (2007).
Key any of those 5 titles into the Search Site menu of http://www.boxofficemojo.com, look at the Production Budget and compare those dollars to those of the Total Lifetime Grosses. You will see that everyone one of those movies made MORE money than what they cost their studios/producers to make. Some have earned near or more than TWICE what they cost to make.
These returns are remarkable given that ALL but Déjà vu are R-rated films which typically earn LESS because teenagers - PRIME moviegoers - cannot see the movies sans adult escort.
And this does NOT include video sales/rentals, pay per view, cable, DirectTV, satellite, etc.
The BUSINESS of Hollywood will continue to support a star who brings in the kind of 'cheddah' Denzel Washington churns, Toobooty. |
Cynique
"Cyniquian" Level Poster
Username: Cynique
Post Number: 11084
Registered: 01-2004
Rating: N/A
Votes: 0 (Vote!) | | Posted on Sunday, January 06, 2008 - 04:55 pm: |
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Toubobie, I'd be interested in hearing your assessment of Will Smith? Is he the inocuous nice guy that he seems to be? Would it be fair to say that, as both black and white actors go, Will is currently "The Man"?
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Toubobie
Veteran Poster
Username: Toubobie
Post Number: 325
Registered: 08-2005
Rating: N/A
Votes: 0 (Vote!) | | Posted on Monday, January 07, 2008 - 01:31 am: |
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a b(owel) m(ovement)...
there are some of us in here who KNOW the facts about that snake, while you continue to lap up what some news publications may insist. what a puppet you are.
abm, what does denzel take home after the producers and studios get their cut? what kind of deals does that buffoon broker? in his favor?
continue to lick his good for nothing $ss. typical ego-based black man response--ready to defend a g*tdam loser at every turn.
and i'll continue to be "biased" cause i just love it when you read and respond, jackass. exposing these b*tches is my PLEASURE!
Cynique,
Will Smith is the BIGGEST sham ever to happen to film. he's downright embarrassing to watch, a waste of flesh. The pursuit of happiness and i am legend could have done much better had a SKILLED actor played the roles. the people have been dupped, but as with denzel, they'll all soon find out his b*tch $ss (wink) |
Cynique
"Cyniquian" Level Poster
Username: Cynique
Post Number: 11100
Registered: 01-2004
Rating: N/A
Votes: 0 (Vote!) | | Posted on Monday, January 07, 2008 - 11:56 am: |
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A Bowel Movement?
As for Will Smith, I don't how much better his last movie could have done. It broke all kinds of records. Will, with his "every man" persona apparently appeals to audiences who don't require "heavy emoting". |
Abm
"Cyniquian" Level Poster
Username: Abm
Post Number: 9799
Registered: 04-2004
Rating: N/A
Votes: 0 (Vote!) | | Posted on Tuesday, January 08, 2008 - 12:08 am: |
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Toubobie,
My ONLY view of Denzel Washington is his film making skills which seem quite admirable by any reasonable standard of judgement.
I'm in NO position to debate about the quality of PERSON Washington is. And I certainly don't know jacksh*t about YOU for me to be especially influenced by your reproofs of him.
But I did find your a b(owel) m(ovement)... humorous. It reminds me of a similar exchange I had here a few years back: http://www.thumperscorner.com/discus/messages/11223/1489.html?1091643268. |
Yvettep
AALBC .com Platinum Poster
Username: Yvettep
Post Number: 2523
Registered: 01-2005
Rating: N/A
Votes: 0 (Vote!) | | Posted on Tuesday, January 08, 2008 - 07:49 am: |
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LOL: "not your common doo doo"... LOL
Now, if there is one thing I have from raising two little kids, it's some potty jokes.
For example:
Q: Why did Tigger stick his head down the toilet?
A: He was looking for Pooh.
LOLOL
O-kaaaay, moving on... |
Jmho
Veteran Poster
Username: Jmho
Post Number: 324
Registered: 03-2004
Rating: N/A
Votes: 0 (Vote!) | | Posted on Tuesday, January 08, 2008 - 11:30 am: |
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For those who are interested, Denzel will be on the Tavis Smiley Show tonight, on PBS. |
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