Salim Akil Movies

A talented young woman is torn between her dreams and her family in this musical. Sparkle (Jordin Sparks) has been blessed with a beautiful voice and a gift for songwriting, but she's afraid to perform her songs in public, in part because her mother Emma (Whitney Houston), a former entertainer whose career brought her nothing but heartache, refuses to allow her daughters to sing outside of church. But Sparkle persuades her older sibling Sister (Carmen Ejogo) to sing one of her tunes at a talent show, and the reaction proves that Sister has star quality and Sparkle can write potential hits. An ambitious would-be manager, Stix (Derek Luke), persuades Sparkle and Sister to form a singing group with their sibling Dolores (Tika Sumpter), but while the act clicks wit audiences, the sisters have to contend with their angry mother, Sister gets caught up in a destructive relationship with a short-tempered comedian (Mike Epps), and Sparkle finds herself falling in love with Stix. Based on the 1976 musical of the same name, Sparkle proved to be the last major project for Whitney Houston, who died while the film was in post-production; it was also the first feature film for American Idol champion Sparks. ~ Mark Deming, Rovi

"Drylongso" is an African-American expression meaning "ordinary," or "getting by with very little." The film Drylongso, which premiered in the American Spectrum series of the 1999 Sundance Film Festival, is the story of a young woman in just that situation. Pica is a woman who can't find meaning in her own life. Living in Oakland, CA, she's tired of her job at an illegal poster distribution center. Unable to complete a photography project on herself at school, she grabs a Polaroid camera and decides to document the existence of young black men, whom she feels are a breed on the verge of becoming extinct. Through this project, she meets many colorful characters, including Tobi, a black woman dressed as a man. Pica also suffers after the death of her boyfriend. Through it all, Pica learns the importance of her own existence and finds her own place in the world. This film is a powerful tribute to the strength of the African-American culture. ~ Arthur Borman, Rovi