Roger Guenveur Smith Movies
An esteemed African-American playwright and actor whose roles almost invariably contend with the politics and dynamics of race (frequent collaborator Spike Lee once famously described him as a "racial cheerleader"), thespian Roger Guenveur Smith grew up in Berkeley and debuted onscreen in the late '80s. Over the ensuing years, Smith cultivated and sustained a reputation for tackling demanding, challenging, and thought-provoking assignments with immense aplomb. He achieved much of his success thanks to repeated collaborations with Lee, who cast him as Yoda in the musical School Daze (1988) and Smiley, the hipster street philosopher in Do the Right Thing (1989); in fact, Lee later noted that Smith was the one who devised the idea for the juxtaposed photographs of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. and Malcolm X in one of Thing's pivotal scenes. Meanwhile, Smith remained extremely active in regional theater, both by authoring his own efforts (such as a musical about Christopher Columbus that painted commonly accepted versions of the man's life story as historical revisionism) and by teaching drama to juvenile delinquents.As the years passed, Smith's onscreen activity crescendoed; he signed for plum roles in such contemporary classics as King of New York (1990), Deep Cover (1992), and Eve's Bayou (1997), and, significantly, extended his professional relationship with Lee to many additional projects. The celebrated director cast Smith in such features as Malcolm X (1992), Get on the Bus (1996), He Got Game (1998), and Summer of Sam (1999), all of which received considerable acclaim. Their actor-director working relationship culminated in the little-seen (but arguably brilliant) A Huey P. Newton Story (2001) -- a Lee-directed film of Smith's one-man stage show on the life of controversial Black Panther leader Huey P. Newton. The film preserves the original Smith-authored play, and stars the thespian as Newton; Lee augments the film with visual pyrotechnics and interpolates archival footage to give the feature depth and dimension. Unfortunately, the project failed to receive even a limited theatrical release, and premiered instead on the Black Starz cable network.
Thereafter, Smith continued his theatrical work (albeit very infrequently) with such plays as the 2003 Iceland, a psychological drama about four unrelated characters that debuted in Philadelphia. He also continued his frequent film roles, with assignments including Shade (2003), God's Waiting List (2006), Confessions of a Call Girl (2006), and Ridley Scott's American Gangster (2007). ~ Nathan Southern, All Movie Guide
A woman who sacrificed her shot at fame to focus on her family gets a second chance to live her dreams in this heartwarming comedy. Known to her friends as Miss E, Elestra Henton (Vanessa Bell Calloway) was a promising stand-up comedienne when she turned her back on the spotlight to save her marriage and raise her daughter. Years later, Miss E's marriage has failed, and she's estranged from her family. With nothing to fill the empty void at the center of her life, Miss E decides that the best cure for misery is laughter. She's determined to reclaim the career from the ruins, but in order to do so she'll first have to contend with her shady manager and ex-lover Bobby Felton (Roger Guenveur Smith), whose appearance back into Miss E's life sheds light on some long-suppressed family secrets. ~ Jason Buchanan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Vanessa Bell Calloway, Roger Guenveur Smith, (more)
The religious drama God's Waiting List concerns a brother and sister who have become business rivals. When a suspicious, horrific accident causes a serious injury to the sister, she begins to work on her relationship with the Almighty. However she can't shake the suspicion that her brother might be responsible for her condition. ~ Perry Seibert, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Nicki Micheaux, Roger Guenveur Smith, (more)
A hard-line junior senator with a tough anti-terrorism policy finds her outspoken politics have made her the target for a determined sleeper cell of murderous terrorists in a tense political thriller starring Lauren Holly, Lacey Chabert, and Angus MacFadyen. Maggie Davidson is a politician on a mission to make the American public feel safe on their own soil. When Davidson's plan to stomp out terrorism raises the ire of a dangerous group of terrorists just waiting for the right moment to strike, their plan to quiet her with a "dirty bomb" planted in the Mall of America leaves the entire city of Bloomington, MN, on high alert. ~ Jason Buchanan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Lauren Holly
Carter (Roger Guenveur Smith) is a fed-up public defender who decides to take on the corrupt system the only way he knows how. He sets up a law office in the inner city and begins organizing and activist group in the hopes of exposing the dishonest powers that work behind the scenes. There are those who like the system the way it is, however, and they make Carter's mission a dangerous one. His girlfriend, fearing for her two small children, is reluctant to follow him into the depths of the city's malfeasance, and Carter is learning that making a serious difference in the world might come at a hefty price. ~ Cammila Albertson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Roger Guenveur Smith, Monica Calhoun, (more)
- 2003
First-time filmmaker Harry Davis directs the drama MVP from a screenplay by award-winning filmmaker Greg Pak, filmed entirely in southeastern Michigan. Wood Harris stars as Tony Smalls, a public defender in Detroit. Fed up with the legal system, he wants to quit being an attorney and leave town. His sister Nia (N'Bushe Wright), however, convinces him stay and defend her boyfriend Big Boy (Christian Mathis). This proves to be complicated by the fact that Big Boy is the supposed leader of the gang known as MVP. Tony finds that the case strains his relationship with his wife Kim (Melle Powers). Also starring Roger Guenveur Smith, MVP was shown at the Sundance Film Festival in 2004 as part of the American Spectrum competition. ~ Andrea LeVasseur, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Wood Harris, N'Bushe Wright, (more)
Co-created by actor George Clooney and director Steve Soderbergh, the ten-part HBO series K Street was a docudrama about a political consulting firm in Washington. Each episode was based on a late-breaking political story, and each was edited just before telecast for the sake of topicality. It was often difficult to discern the line between fiction and reality, notably in an early episode wherein presidential candidate Howard Dean was provided with a witty retort by real-life political advisors James Carville and Paul Begala just before an important debate -- and indeed, this was the joke that turned out to be the highlight of the actual debate. Carville, his wife, Mary Matalin, and Michael Deaver, genuine professional D.C. consultants all, were among the executive producers of the series, appearing as "themselves" along with the fictional consulting crew, played by John Slattery, Mary McCormack, and Roger G. Smith. Filmed on location in the nation's capital (a fact that caused some controversy when the producers -- and their cameras -- were summarily booted out of the Senate building), K Street debuted September 14, 2003. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- James Carville, Mary Matalin, (more)
- 2002
- Add Unchained Memories: Readings from the Slave Narratives to QueueAdd Unchained Memories: Readings from the Slave Narratives to top of Queue
Among the tasks undertaken by the WPA's Federal Writers' Project in the 1930s was to transcribe the memories of those former African-American slaves who were still living. The result was a massive collection of notes, documents, and recordings, all of which found their way into the Library of Congress. Co-produced by the Library and the HBO cable channel, Unchained Memories: Readings From the Slave Narratives features a truly impressive array of black actors and actresses verbally recreating the reminiscences of those who lived under the yoke of slavery. The performers themselves appeared in modern dress, standing before a neutral background as they read from the transcripts, while directors Ed Bell and Thomas Lennon complemented the words with vivid and disturbing images culled from contemporary photographs of the years 1850-1935. Tied in with a traveling museum exhibit of photos and recordings, Unchained Memories was telecast during Black History Month, 2003. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
Spike Lee directed this made-for-cable adaptation of Roger Guenveur Smith's one-man show about the life and times of Huey P. Newton, who as one of the founders and key strategists of the Black Panther Party was among the most respected and feared figures in the Black Power movement of the late '60s and early '70s. A Huey P. Newton Story combines footage of Smith's play being performed before a live audience (featuring Smith, a member of Spike Lee's stock company, in the title role) with newsreel clips of Newton and his contemporaries at the height of their notoriety. A Huey P. Newton Story had its world premiere on the Black Starz premium cable network on June 18, 2001; the film was later shown on the PBS and African Heritage networks. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Roger Guenveur Smith
Campbell Scott is both star and co-director of this elaborate (albeit economically produced) four-hour TV version of Shakespeare's immortal tragedy Hamlet, Prince of Denmark. The film is based on Scott's earlier theatrical production of the same play, with several of the same actors repeating their same roles. Updated to 1900 New York, the text remains substantially the same as it has always been: Hamlet (Scott), the "melancholy" Danish prince, discovers to his horror that his late father, the King, was murdered by his brother (and Hamlet's uncle) Claudius (Jamey Sheridan), who upon ascending to the throne, added insult to injury by wedding Hamlet's mother, Gertrude (Blair Brown). Though his desire for revenge is strong, Hamlet does not want any more bloodshed, and concocts an elaborate scheme to "catch the conscience" of Claudius and force him into a confession. Part of this scheme involves Hamlet's feigned descent into madness -- which, as interpreted by Scott, may not be as "feigned" as he thinks it is. Caught in the middle of this intrigue is Hamlet's lady love, Ophelia (Lisa Gay Hamilton), daughter of Claudius' chief consul, Polonius (played in the manner of a protocol-conscious Victorian diplomat by Roscoe Lee Browne). Some of the choices made by Scott in adapting Hamlet to the screen -- the turn-of-the-century setting; the utilization of black actors in the roles of Polonius, Ophelia, and Laertes (who is played by Roger Guenveur Smith); the casting of Byron Jennings to play both the Ghost of Hamlet's father and the Player King, who pretends to be the father -- were applauded by the critics. Other innovations, notably the use of slow jazz music throughout the action, and Hamlet's violent treatment of poor Ophelia during the "Get thee to a nunnery" scene, were not so enthusiastically received. Whatever the case, Scott does a remarkable job with a tiny budget and a slim 29-day shooting schedule. In addition to the actors' lilting interpretation of the Shakespearean dialogue and soliloquies, the film boasts a truly exciting climactic duel, shot in long takes without the use of stunt doubles. Initially produced for a theatrical release, this Hamlet made its American debut as a cable TV miniseries on the Odyssey Channel, beginning December 10, 2000. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Campbell Scott, Blair Brown, (more)
Produced for cable's BET network, Incognito can be described as an African-American variation of the sort of TV-movie fare that had previously been the exclusive province of such Caucasian actresses as Victoria Principal and Cheryl Ladd. Wealthy, gorgeous female executive Erin Courtland (Allison Dean) is raped by a lowlife named Derek Scanlon (Phil Morris), who manages to elude arrest and begins stalking the harried heroine. When it becomes obvious that Erin's sniveling fiancé Quinn (Roger Guenveur Smith) will be of no help to her whatsoever, Erin's dad Marcus (Ron Glass) engages the services of bulked-up bodyguard Jake Hunter (Richard T. Jones). To be sure, a romance ensues, with all the attendant clichés of this sort of formula film fare, albeit with fascinating side glances at such Afrocentric topics as sickle-cell anemia and social unrest. Adapted from a novel by Francis Ray, Incognito made its TV debut on September 17, 1999. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Allison Dean, Richard T. Jones, (more)
- 1995
This biopic chronicles the extraordinary life of O.J. Simpson, former football Hall-of-Famer who in 1994 was accused (and eventually acquitted) of brutally murdering his ex-wife and her friend Ronald Goldman. As the trial was still on-going at the time this film was made, the story ends with Simpson's arrest. ~ Iotis Erlewine, All Movie Guide
- 1991
Eldin (Robert Pastorelli), the house painter who seems to have made Murphy's apartment his permanent port of call, is "discovered" by the elite of the Washington art world. Before long, he is being wined-and-cheesed by the upper circles of the cognoscenti, and has been granted his first showing at a prestigious art gallery. And is Murphy (Candice Bergen) thrilled and delighted by all this? Of course...not. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1990
Upset over the romance between Dwayne (Kadeem Hardison) and Kinu (Alisa Gyse-Dickens), Whitley (Jasmine Guy) tries to make Dwayne jealous by going out with his pal Ron (Darryl M. Bell)--with startling results. Meanwhile, Freddie (Cree Summer) is nervous about writing an essay explaining why she wants to take an African-American studies class taught by the distinguished Prof. Howard Randolph (Roger Gueneveur Smith). And there's an unpleasantly awkward moment when Freddie's caucasian cousin Matthew (Andrew Lowery) pays her a visit. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1990
In this spoof of The Twilight Zone, Walter (Sinbad) uses his best Rod Serling voice to narrate the misadventures of his friends when they take on their mid-terms and enter. . ."The Exam Zone." For starters, Whitley (Jasmine Guy) has a devil of a time finding a peaceful, quiet place to cram for her accounting exam. Also, Dwayne ends up in the doghouse when, while substitute-teaching for Col. Taylor (Glynn Turman), he allows Taylor's irresponsible son Terrence (Cory Tyler) to go astray. And finally, Freddie (Cree Summer) hears weeeeeird voices just before an African-American Studies test. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1990
Dwayne's renewed romance with Whitley (Jasmine Guy) is having an adverse effect on his academic performance: indeed, for the first time in his life he actually receives a "C". Worried about what the future holds, Dwayne (Kadeem Hardison) has a series of visions in which he runs the gamut from overachiever to lazy slob--and in each scenario, he is all alone. Meanwhile, Whitley volunteers her services as director for the video time capsule being produced by Ron (Darryl M. Bell) and Freddie (Cree Summer). ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1990
Even though Dwayne (Kadeem Hardison) and Whitley (Jasmine Guy) are on the verge of getting back together, Dwayne may mess up the reconciliation by dwelling on the past. Elsewhere, Ron (Darryl M. Bell) disses homeless people in history class, only to be forced to eat his words when he meets Ray Nay (Lee Weaver), a shabby street person who'd once been a successful entrepreneur. Featured in a small role is Michael Ralph, in the first of several nondescript Different World assignments before he settled into the part of Kim's (Charnele Brown) boyfriend Spencer Boyer. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1990
Freddie (Cree Summer) takes it upon herself to find a permanent home for Alex Webb (T. J. Evans), a foster child she's met at the Community Center. When it becomes painfully obvious that most adoptive couples prefer babies, Alex runs away. The boy is provided temporary shelter by Ron (Darryl M. Bell) and Dwayne (Kadeem Hardison), an act of generosity that may get them in hot water with Walter (Sinbad). The episode comes to a surprising conclusion thanks to the prickly Prof. Randolph (Roger Guenveur Smith). ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
Director Ridley Scott spins this yarn concerning a Harlem drug kingpin (Denzel Washington) who smuggles heroin into the country by hiding it in the bodies of U.S. soldiers killed during battle in Vietnam. There was a time when no one noticed reserved driver Frank Lucas (Washington), but when the criminal kingpin he was charged with transporting through the city streets suddenly dies, Lucas seizes the opportunity to build his own criminal empire. In the following months, Lucas solidifies his status as Harlem's most innovative drug dealer by delivering a product that is purer than the competitors' and cheaper, as well. When innovative businessman Lukas attempts to go semi-legit by becoming one of the Manhattan borough's biggest civil supporters, however, street-savvy outcast cop Ritchie Roberts (Russell Crowe) begins to sense a sizable shift in the hierarchy of the drug underworld. But Roberts is one of the few honest detectives operating within a corrupt system, and as he sets out to investigate the case, crooked detective Trupo (Josh Brolin) does everything in his power to compromise the integrity of his idealistic counterpart. Upon clearing all of the usual Mafia-connected suspects, Roberts begins to believe that a previously unknown black power player has come out of the woodwork to dominate the local drug trade. While Roberts and Lucas may be operating on opposite sides of the law, the one thing that both men have in common is a strict code of ethics that separates them from their opportunistic colleagues. Now, as a confrontation between the two men becomes inevitable and the fate of each becomes inexorably tied to the other, it gradually becomes apparent that only one of them will emerge from the conflict victorious. ~ Jason Buchanan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Denzel Washington, Russell Crowe, (more)
Music video director Brad Furman teams with Josh and Jonas Pate, the creators of the NBC series Surface, for this independent drama tracing an armored truck driver's efforts to track down the thief who shot him during a heist, changing his life forever. John Leguizamo stars as the driver who must endure months of rehabilitation before setting out to track down the gunman, and Tyrese Gibson plays the man responsible for pulling the trigger. Rosie Perez and Bobby Cannavale co-star in a thriller that was shot guerrilla-style in the Latino neighborhoods of Los Angeles. ~ Jason Buchanan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- John Leguizamo, Rosie Perez, (more)
A wandering mercenary sets out on a bullet-riddled path of revenge after being blackmailed into staging a daring prison break and subsequently being double-crossed in this explosive action entry starring American martial arts icon Steven Seagal. John Seeger (Seagal) is a soldier of fortune with a reputation for getting the job done. When the son of a billionaire arms dealer is locked away in a South African prison with little hope for freedom, the enraged father uses his far-reaching power and influence to force Seeger into a daring rescue mission. There's much more to this adventure than Seeger knows, though, and upon discovering that he has been hung out to dry by the manipulative extortionist, Seeger sets out to prove that when it comes to the matters of honor, you simply don't mess with the best in the business. ~ Jason Buchanan, All Movie Guide
Shade, the first feature film from real-life card shark Damian Nieman, who wrote and directed the picture, stars Gabriel Byrne and Thandie Newton as a duo of con artists looking to beat the "Dean" (Sylvester Stallone), a legendary card shark, in a high-stakes poker game. Their first step is hiring two fellow tricksters -- Jamie Foxx and Stuart Townsend -- to provide the smooth talking and to procure the necessary funds. Unfortunately, Larry (Foxx) blows his hand and finds himself with 85,000 dollars worth of debt owed to a local crime boss. Shade premiered at the 2003 CineVegas film festival and also features Dina Merrill and Melanie Griffith. ~ Tracie Cooper, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Stuart Townsend, Gabriel Byrne, (more)
Rap star and actor Ice Cube produces, co-writes, and stars in this comic crime thriller that reunites him with his Next Friday (1999) co-star Mike Epps in the 48 Hrs. (1982) mold. Cube plays Bucum Jackson, a Miami bounty hunter for Martinez Bail Bonds who's tired of his dangerous, unprofitable profession and wants to start his own private investigation firm. Lacking stake money, Bucum is forced to hunt down a small-time grafter named Reggie Wright (Epps), a fast-talking confidence man who's crossed his path before. Except that this time, Wright tries to avoid his pursuer by hiding in a van being driven by a pair of murderous diamond thieves who've just made off with 20 million dollars worth of stones. They're in the employ of lethal crime lord and yacht broker Williamson (Tommy Flanagan), someone that neither Reggie nor Bucum is anxious to cross, but it seems that Reggie left his wallet in the van, a wallet containing a winning lottery ticket worth 60 million dollars. The hunt is on for big money as the mismatched duo tries to outfox a wily syndicate for both the ticket and the precious gems. The directorial debut of music video director Kevin Bray, All About the Benjamins (2002) co-stars Eva Mendes, Carmen Chaplin, Valarie Rae Miller, Jeff Chase, Roger Guenveur Smith, Anthony Michael Hall, and Lil' Bow Wow. ~ Karl Williams, All Movie Guide
In this teenage horror film, a young man avoids the hand of death, only to find that he can't get away from it so easily. On the way to Paris with his high-school French club, Alex Browning (Devon Sawa) has a vivid premonition of the plane crashing and killing all its passengers. After Alex and some other passengers demand to be let off the flight, his premonition turns out to be true, and the jet explodes during takeoff. While the FBI is convinced that Alex was involved in some kind of foul play, the passengers who got off the flight are all dying in horrible ways, as if whoever determined that the passengers would perish is punishing those who cheated death. Final Destination marked the feature directorial debut of James Wong, a producer and director for the TV series The X Files. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Devon Sawa, Amanda Detmer, (more)
