isaiah washington Tagged Articles at Cinematical
Isaiah Washington Joins the 'Patriots'
Filed under: Drama », Sports », Casting », The Weinstein Co. »
It can't feel great to be known as the guy who blew a primetime career simply because he couldn't keep his big mouth shut. But, there is still hope for Isaiah Washington, and The Hollywood Reporter announced he has picked up his first feature film role since being fired from Grey's Anatomy. Washington has now signed to star opposite Forrest Whitaker in Tim Story's sports drama, Patriots.Patriots is based on the true story of Al Collins (played by Whitaker); a high school basketball coach. After the disaster of Hurricane Katrina, Collins put together a local team consisting of kids displaced from their schools and homes, and led them to the state championships. Washington will play the assistant coach who helps lead the squad to the championships.
I can't be the only one getting tired of all these inspirational sports movies. It's gotten to the point where they are bleeding together into one long Hallmark Movie of the Week, but for the ESPN set. Although, I should have expected nothing less from the writers behind Remember the Titans and The Great Debaters (debating is kind of a sport, right?). Patriots will begin shooting on location in New Orleans later this week, and will arrive in theaters later this year.
Review: The Amateurs
Filed under: Comedy », Romance », Casting », New Releases », Theatrical Reviews », Scripts », Distribution », Exhibition », New in Theaters »
Filmed in the summer of 2004, The Amateurs has been in the can for over three years. The movie's title has gone through several changes, and imdb still lists it as The Moguls. The film has had a whopping six release dates going back to 2005, but it finally sputters into theaters today -- in Los Angeles and Dallas, anyway. Movies often have distribution trouble (you can read more about the problems this one faced in the Los Angeles Times), but the struggle of The Amateurs surprised me because it had all the makings of a sleeper hit. It's got a killer premise (think The Full Monty with porno) and an amazing cast. The film's struggle surprised me...until I saw it.
A queasy mixture of Boogie Nights sleaze and Patch Adams sentimentality, The Amateurs takes place in the small town of Butterface Fields (ho-HO!). That's where you'll find Andy Sargentee (Jeff Bridges, in shaggy dog Lebowski mode), a divorced dad who is down on his luck. His son (Alex D. Linz) is now living with a wealthy stepfather (the typically solid Steven Weber), and this makes Sargentee insecure. He's got to make some money, and fast. So, naturally, he decides to enlist the help of his friends and make an amateur porno flick.
Grey's Anatomy's Troubled Star Isaiah Washington Will Lead 'The Least of These'
Filed under: Independent », Thrillers », Casting », Religious », Cinematical Indie »
I'm of the mind that actors struggling with bigoted feelings should cook up a new way to get past them. This whole "two seconds of therapy and I'm a new man!" plan is just plain hooey. PR reps prep them, and It's so flipping removed from sincere that I still get surprised when people think that PR stunts equals making amends. My solution: all these actors should star in a movie where they play themselves, and have to go through the process fictionally, on film (however, we'd all know how it would tie into the truth). Then, it's guaranteed to be a longer process, and the people could tap into their humility and really put themselves out there. We love when people make fun of themselves, so what better way to forgive? And heck, they'd make money to do it, which they could keep for their 10th car, or donate to a charity that helps the people they chastised.Alas, my dream world is not our reality, and that's not going to happen. However, Isaiah Washington does have a movie part set up, and seems to be moving past his Grey's Anatomy foibles. He's going to star in writer and director Nathan Scoggins first feature-length film and indie thriller, The Least of These. He will play a priest with a troubled past who is sent to a Catholic boarding school when one of his fellow priests mysteriously disappears. I can only hope that this Catholic stint won't have him spewing any sort of sexuality diatribes, because that would just be creepy and ill-placed. Washington's last film was 2005's The Moguls, and the one before that -- Trois 3: The Escort. So, beyond his Grey career he's got some decent indie fare and some truly terrible jobs as well. Production will begin this June in L.A.
Jeremy Renner Wants To Be An Avenger
Directors We Love: Jim Jarmusch
Indie Roundup: 'Sweetgrass,' 'Clarkworld,' 'Broken Embraces'
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Watch: Famous 'Matrix' Scene Re-Created with LEGOs
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