Hinton Battle Movies

Director Dan Pritzker takes the helm for this silent film centered on a life-changing experience in the childhood of famed jazz musician Louis Armstrong. Young Louis (Anthony Coleman) longs to become a famous trumpet player. Louis' life takes an unexpected twist, however, when the ambitious young musician has a chance encounter with the beautiful Grace (Shanti Lowry) and her infant daughter, Jasmine. It seems that Grace has gotten involved with the malevolent Judge Perry (Jackie Earle Haley), a local politician on the road to becoming governor. Should word of their relationship get out, Judge Perry's political ambitions will go up in flames. As Judge Perry attempts to intimidate Grace into silence, young Louis finds his passion for jazz growing. ~ Jason Buchanan, Rovi

Director Bill Condon brings Tom Eyen's Tony award-winning Broadway musical to the big screen in a tale of dreams, stardom, and the high cost of success in the cutthroat recording industry. The time is the 1960s, and singers Effie (Jennifer Hudson), Lorrell (Anika Noni Rose), and Deena (Beyoncé Knowles) are about to find out just what it's like to have their wildest dreams come true. Discovered at a local talent show by ambitious manager Curtis Taylor Jr. (Jamie Foxx), the trio known as "the Dreamettes" is soon offered the once-in-a-lifetime opportunity of opening for popular singer James "Thunder" Early (Eddie Murphy). Subsequently molded into an unstoppable hit machine by Taylor and propelled into the spotlight as "the Dreams," the girls quickly find their bid for the big time taking priority over personal friendship as Taylor edges out the ultra-talented Effie so that the more beautiful Deena can become the face of the group. Now, as the crossover act continues to dominate the airwaves, the small-town girls with big-city dreams slowly begin to realize that the true cost of fame may be higher than any of them ever anticipated.

~ Jason Buchanan, Rovi

Buffy (Sarah Michelle Gellar) and the gang find themselves singing out their feelings in this musical episode of Buffy the Vampire Slayer. The weirdness begins when Buffy interrupts her patrol to sing about post-resurrection angst. The next day, she learns that all of Sunnydale has become a great big Broadway musical. She and her friends float out various theories, but it turns out a musical demon named Sweet (Hinton Battle) has cast a nefarious spell over the town. As the enchantment forces various unfortunates to sing and dance until they burst into flames, the main characters find themselves expressing their deepest emotions. Tara (Amber Benson) sings a tender love song to Willow (Alyson Hannigan). Xander (Nicholas Brendon) and Anya (Emma Caulfield) share a comical duet about their marriage misgivings. Spike (James Marsters) belts out a heavy metal number about his love/hate relationship with Buffy. Giles (Anthony Stewart Head) croons pensively about Buffy's need for independence. And Dawn (Michelle Trachtenberg) dances a ballet of loneliness. Dawn also accidentally reveals that Willow cast a spell of forgetfulness over Tara (see "All the Way"). Soon, Tara and Giles are harmonizing about the need to leave Willow and Buffy for their own good. Just when it seems that these tangled emotions will cause the Scoobies to combust, however, Sweet arrives to make Dawn his underworld bride. While rescuing her sister, Buffy reveals the truth she's been hiding from her friends -- when they brought her back to life, they wrenched her not from Hell, but from Heaven. The anguished Slayer then almost dances herself into fiery oblivion -- until Spike intercedes and begs her to live. Once Sweet is vanquished, the entire cast sings an uncertain song about what the future may hold. Then Spike and the Slayer sneak out and share an unexpected kiss. Originally broadcast November 6, 2001, on UPN, "Once More, With Feeling" marked episode 107 of the cult-favorite series. Several minutes longer than a typical hour-long Buffy episode, the musical had to be trimmed for subsequent airings and syndication. A cast album was also released. ~ Brian J. Dillard, Rovi

A French boy goes to Virginia and finds love with an intelligent black girl in this nostalgic French drama set in 1955, and based on the popular 1986 novel by Philippe Labro. The movie was filmed in both Paris and Virginia. The film contains many references to blues and jazz, Faulkner, Chandler and Salinger. The French student Phillippe Le Clerc meets many interesting characters when he becomes a foreign exchange student in a Virginia college. Of all the people he meets, the one he loves the most is April, a highly educated "Negro girl," who must clean faculty houses when she is not in school. ~ Sandra Brennan, Rovi

In this comedy, the members of the Shakers, an aspiring rock band, perform at a series of weird and wacky weddings. ~ Iotis Erlewine, Rovi