isaac hayes Tagged Articles at Cinematical

Yesterday I had the absolute privilege of watching Escape From New York on the big screen and with a great crowd, courtesy of the Castro Theatre and San Francisco's long-running and uniformly fantastic Midnites for Maniacs program (with an assist from the Alamo Drafthouse Rolling Roadshow). This was awesome. What a great movie to watch with an audience that gets it. Because let's face it: seen today (and maybe even seen in 1981 -- I wouldn't really know), Escape from New York is weird. You need a bunch of people who are "in on the joke" -- and who are at the same time aware that it's actually not a joke at all.

Nothing illustrates that seeming paradox -- John Carpenter's patented way of blending borderline kitsch with undeniable badassitude -- better than this wonderful scene from Escape from New York. Having enlisted Ernest Borgnine's Cabbie, Harry Dean Stanton's Brain, and Brain's squeeze Maggie (Andrienne Barbeau), Snake gets ready to make a run for it when Cabbie announces that the Duke (Isaac Hayes) and his entourage are rolling into the neighborhood. And roll in they do, in a Lincoln outfitted with four exterior chandeliers and a disco ball, set to Carpenter's trademark techno, pulsating score.

That this turns out awesome instead of ludicrous -- that it makes us grin and dig in for the rest of the flick instead of laugh derisively and turn on it -- is one of the miracles of the modern cinema. I'm not sure Escape from New York is Carpenter's best film, but it's probably his most virtuosic accomplishment. That the bleak, moralistic ending manages to pack an emotional punch despite the utter insanity of the preceding 100 minutes is all the more impressive.

Watch the scene after the jump -- and then pop in the DVD.

No matter what else happens in Soul Men, it's hard not to be moved by the posthumous performances of Bernie Mac and Isaac Hayes, especially when they appear onscreen together, and more so when, in one scene, they leave a room together. At other times, however, Mac is at the top of his comedic game. He has the power to make us forget that anything is wrong in the world, including the fact that it has lost two of its best and brightest.

In Soul Men, Mac plays Floyd Henderson, one third of a legendary 1960s soul music trio. In the 1970s, the group's lead singer Marcus Hooks (played in flashbacks and photos by John Legend) embarked upon a solo career, leaving Floyd and his bandmate Louis Hinds (Samuel L. Jackson) in the lurch. They tried to continue alone, but quickly broke up due to "creative differences," i.e. they fought over a woman. Now Marcus has passed away and Floyd and Louis have been invited to perform in a tribute show at the Apollo. And since Louis doesn't fly, they must drive cross-country, which gives them plenty of time to fight and bicker. (Isaac Hayes appears relatively briefly, as himself, at the tribute.)

What a pity it is that we lost both comedian Bernie Mac and musician Isaac Hayes in such short order, and what a stroke of good fortune that they both happened to have completed their roles in the upcoming comedy, Soul Men, in which Mac's character tries to get Samuel L. Jackson to join him for a televised reunion concert.

Yahoo! Movies has released the trailer for the film, and it reflects both the best tendencies of director Malcolm D. Lee and his worst as a writer (though he isn't credited as one here). There's the good-natured nostalgia of something like 2005's Roll Bounce, balanced out with the mean-spirited and utterly un-hilarious antics of this year's Welcome Home, Roscoe Jenkins (I'm sure that if there could've been room for Jennifer Coolidge in that gem, she would've removed her dentures for fellatio there instead).

In all fairness, the writing duo that is credited were last responsible for Man of the House, so maybe we shouldn't be so surprised. I'd like to think that Mac and Jackson could make the most of the material regardless, but we can't say for sure until November 7, when Soul Men tentatively opens opposite Role Models and Madagascar: Escape 2 Africa -- for which Mac lent his voice.

Last weekend we lost two great stars, actor/comedian Bernie Mac (1957-2008) and Oscar-winning songwriter/actor Isaac Hayes (1942-2008), who both appear in the upcoming Soul Men (pictured above), out this November. For more on their respective deaths, see Erik's and William's posts.

Actor and playwright George Furth (1932-2008) died August 11 in Santa Monica, California. I'll always remember him best as the anti-Cannonballer spoilsport Arthur J. Foyt in The Cannonball Run. He also appears memorably in Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid, Blazing Saddles and Shampoo. (AP)

Where would the montage sequence be without Cyndi Lauper's "Girls Just Want to Have Fun"? And what about the movie that borrowed the title, Girls Just Want to Have Fun? Robert Hazard (1948-2008), who wrote the tune, died August 5 in Boston. (Variety)

"Love means never having to say you're sorry." This famous line came to us partly by way of Howard G. Minsky (1914-2008) who received an Oscar nomination for producing Love Story. He died August 10 in Palm Beach, Florida. (Variety)

Bernie Brillstein (1931-2008), formerly half of production team Brillstein-Grey Entertainment, executive produced Ghostbusters, Ghostbusters II, The Blues Brothers, Spies Like Us, The Cable Guy, Bulletproof, Happy Gilmore, Summer Rental, Dragnet, Up the Academy, Neighbors, Doctor Detroit, Continental Divide, The Celluloid Closet, What Planet Are You From? and Run Ronnie Run and produced The Replacement Killers and Jiminy Glick in Lalawood. He died of chronic pulmonary disease August 7, in New York City. (NY Times)

Oscar-nominated record producer Jerry Wexler (1917-2008), who was portrayed by Richard Schiff in the movie Ray, died of congenital heart disease August 15, in Sarasota, Florida. He also worked on soundtracks for The Wiz, The Cotton Club and Pretty Baby (for which he received the Academy Award nom) and co-wrote the Aretha Franklin tune "(You Make Me Feel Like) A Natural Woman". (AP)

For me, it started with the deaths of comedic greats like Lucille Ball and Jackie Gleason. Death had become real and tangible, making the world and showbusiness finite. Since then, the numbers have gradually increased. We're slowly walking into the period where memorials and tributes aren't relegated to actors before our time, but to the names and faces that shaped our views of entertainment -- the people who we have spent so much time with on the big screen, and within the comfort of our own homes.

But we're not just losing people to age. 2008 has been a heavy year for Hollywood, losing both rising stars and big names with long careers. Considering the fact that we just lost two more, I wanted to take a moment and look back at this year's shockers. Some of these men were young, some of these men were older, but all of them have left this earth too soon.

According to the Associated Press, 65-year-old singer-songwriter Isaac Hayes has passed away after being found unresponsive in his Memphis, TN home.

An indelible influence on the world of music, a pop culture icon besides for his work as Chef on "South Park" and in its full-length feature, Hayes will be most fondly remembered in the world of film for his award-winning theme to Shaft and his role as 'The Duke' in Escape from New York.

Hayes showed up in his fair share of other movies, apparently including a cameo as himself in the upcoming comedy Soul Men, starring Samuel L. Jackson and the late Bernie Mac -- this after making an appearance on "The Bernie Mac Show" in 2005 and an uncredited cameo in the 2000 version of Shaft, starring Jackson.

I have an unfortunate knee-jerk reaction to the title Soul Men. Almost against my will, my mind is flung back to that 1986 C. Thomas Howell atrocity Soul Man, in which rich white kid Howell tried to pass himself off as black man to secure a scholarship. (Excuse me while I try to calm down the tremors shaking through my body.)

Happily for everybody, Malcolm D. Lee's Soul Men bears no relation to that earlier film. Samuel L. Jackson and Bernie Mac star as two feuding back-up singers who reunite for a tribute concert. Jessica Barnes detailed the plot and gave us a look at the first picture from the production a few months ago, a back stage shot with Isaac Hayes, who is playing himself. Cinematical has received the great-looking image above, showing the Soul Men in performance.

Reportedly, Jackson and Mac are doing their own singing and, even though they're playing back-up singers, I'm hoping we get to hear them solo -- or duet. Jackson was mighty impressive as a blues guitar player and singer in Craig Brewer's Black Snake Moan, even if that movie is better remembered for Christina Ricci's naked display of her physical assets than Jackson's musical prowess. I can't remember Bernie Mac singing in any of his roles, but he's such a great stand-up presence that I can really see him excelling in this part.

Are you ready to watch Sam and Bernie as the new Soul Men when the film opens on November 14?

So am I the only one who thinks that in the first picture for the musical comedy Soul Men, Samuel L. Jackson looks a lot like good old Ordell Robbie? But I guess there are only so many different hairstyles and beards you can try before you start running into some repeats. The first picture for Malcolm D. Little's film has popped up on the official site of music legend and former 'Chef' Isaac Hayes. Hayes, who will appear in the film as himself, stars alongside Jackson, Bernie Mac, Sean Hayes (Will and Grace), and Sharon Leal.

Soul Men centers on two feuding back-up singers named Louis (Jackson) and Floyd (Mac). When their band splits, Louis and Floyd go there separate ways with varying degrees of success. More precisely, Louis robs banks and becomes a convict and Floyd becomes a laundromat baron and retires in style. When the leader of their former band dies, the two men put aside their bad blood and go on a road trip to the Apollo Theater to hold a tribute concert.

When I first blogged about Samuel L. Jackson and Bernie Mac hitting the road together in the new film Soul Men last September, I likened it to A Mighty Wind. Now they're getting one of the film's actors, some Hayes, and a bunch of musicians. The Hollywood Reporter has posted that the kooky Jennifer Coolidge and Isaac Hayes have signed on, along with Sean Hayes (that Will & Grace dude, not an Isaac relative). Also joining the mix are musician John Legend, Affion Crockett (Welcome Home, Roscoe Jenkins), Adam Herschman (Walk Hard), Fatso Fasano (Weeds), and Jackie Long (The Comebacks).

So, Jackson and Mac are former bandmates who have to reunite when their third, who will be played by Legend, passes away. "The pair fight with each other all the way across the country when they're forced to take a road trip together for a reunion concert." Coolidge will play Mac's love interest, Isaac will play himself in what I imagine will be some sort of short stint or cameo, and the other Hayes will take on the typical "obnoxious manager" role. As for the rest, there's no word on who they're playing.

The comedy is currently filming in Shreveport, Memphis, and LA, and producers are hoping to release this in October. So, what say you? Are you ready for a little male Soul?

With the recent brouhaha over Isaac Hayes leaving South Park, maybe it's time to remember his earlier days, when he played live-action characters instead of the animated Chef. Think of early Isaac Hayes and you might think of the theme from Shaft. However, Hayes doesn't actually appear in the 1971 movie for which he composed the Oscar-winning song. His first onscreen role was in the movie Truck Turner, a 1974 blaxploitation picture in which he had the title role. Yes, "Truck Turner" is a name, not a description.

Blaxploitation.com has posted a number of screenshots from this American-International flick, if you want a better idea of the plot. The cast includes Nichelle Nichols, Yaphet Kotto, Scatman Crothers, and the ubiquitous Dick Miller. And it's available on DVD. Perhaps now would be an excellent time to host your own Hayes movie retrospective night, including not only Truck Turner but Three Tough Guys, Escape from New York, and most recently Hustle and Flow. I'd rather think of Hayes as a bad-ass musician than as part of all this Scientology vs. South Park silliness.