Igor Chillik Movies
- 2003
Something of a cross-breed between American Idol and The Real World, this cable TV reality series drew its participants from five different cities: Miami, London, Atlanta, Philadelphia, and New York. Though the young ladies chosen were undeniably talented musically, it was the purpose of the series to instruct them in the intricacies of "diva behavior." To that end, the girls lived in the same penthouse apartment for two months, where they were drilled by such pop-artist experts as Patti LaBelle, Gloria Estefan, Lisa Stansfield, Kelly Rowland of Destiny's Child, and the two surviving members of TLC. After a live talent showcase, the five semi-finalists were whittled down to three, with the viewers voting for the ultimate winner on the final episode. Born to Diva originally ran from April 28 to May 22, 2003. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi
"Christmas Can Be Such a Bitch" was the tasteful advertising tag line for this updated and revised TV-movie adaptation of Dickens' oft-filmed fable A Christmas Carol. This time around, Victorian penny-pincher Ebenezer Scrooge as been transformed into a beautiful, imperious, foul-mouthed pop singer named Ebony (Vanessa L. Williams). Lording it over her staff in general and her long-suffering manager and former boyfriend Bob Cratchett (Brian McNamara) in particular, Ebony intends to callously exploit the Yuletide season by staging a charity Christmas concert "on behalf of the homeless," an act of "generosity" designed mainly to up her popularity and increase her own bank account. Inevitably, on the eve of the concert, the contentious Ebony is visited by a number of spirits who persuade her to change her ways before it's too late. Chilli of TLC is seen as the ghost of Ebony's former singing partner Marli Jacob while Duran Duran's John Taylor shows up as the Spirit of Christmas Present. No better or worse than any other "improved" version of the Dickens original, A Diva's Christmas Carol was filmed in Montréal and telecast over VH1 on December 13, 2000. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi
