+ DREAMGIRLS

Dreamgirls is a 2006 American musical film jointly produced and released by DreamWorks Pictures and Paramount Pictures. The film debuted in three special road show engagements beginning December 15, 2006, with a nationwide release on December 25, 2006 and a home video release on May 1, 2007. Dreamgirls won three awards at the 64th Golden Globe Awards ceremony in 2007, including Best Picture - Musical or Comedy, and won two Oscars at the 79th Academy Awards.

A period piece set in the 1960s and 1970s with a primarily African-American cast, Dreamgirls is adapted from the 1981 Broadway musical of the same name. The musical was based on the history and evolution of American R&B music during the eras of doo-wop, soul, the Motown Sound, funk, and disco. In addition, the stage musical contains several allusions to the lives and careers of Motown Records act The Supremes, a connection the film version expands upon.[2] Dreamgirls follows the lives of Effie White, Deena Jones, and Lorrell Robinson, three young women who form an R&B singing trio from Detroit, Michigan called "The Dreamettes". Thanks to manipulative agent and record executive Curtis Taylor, Jr., the Dreamettes become famous as the backing group for soul singer James "Thunder" Early. Conflict arises when Curtis transforms "The Dreamettes" into the pop-friendly "Dreams," particularly when he has Deena replace Effie as both lead singer of the group and as his romantic interest.

The film adaptation of Dreamgirls, which had been in development at various times during the 1980s and 1990s, stars Jamie Foxx, Beyoncé Knowles, and Eddie Murphy. The film also features Danny Glover, Jennifer Hudson, Anika Noni Rose, Keith Robinson, Sharon Leal, and Hinton Battle. Produced by Laurence Mark, Dreamgirls was written and directed for the screen by Bill Condon, screenwriter of the Academy Award-winning film adaptation of Chicago, working from the original Broadway book by Tom Eyen and the Broadway songs by Eyen and Henry Krieger. Four new songs, composed by Krieger with various lyricists, were added for this film. Jennifer Hudson, an American Idol alumna who made her film debut in Dreamgirls, won the 2007 Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress for her portrayal of Effie White.

 

+ PINK PANTHER

The Pink Panther is a 2006 comedy film. It is a reboot of the Pink Panther series. In this film, Inspector Jacques Clouseau (Steve Martin) is assigned to solve the murder of a famous football coach and the theft of the famous Pink Panther diamond. This film also stars Kevin Kline, Beyoncé Knowles, and Jean Reno.

The film opens with the French national soccer team’s victory over the Chinese national soccer team, the murder of French coach Yves Gluant (Jason Statham), and the disappearance of his Pink Panther diamond ring. Chief Inspector Charles Dreyfus (Kevin Kline), eager to win the Légion d'honneur (Legion of Honour; referred to as the "Medal of Honor" in the film), appoints the "most incompetent policeman" in France, Inspector Jacques Clouseau (Steve Martin), to the case as a diversion. Dreyfus has assembled a team of investigators to tackle the mystery in secret, planning to take over the case and win the Légion d'honneur. Dreyfus appoints Gendarme Gilbert Ponton (Jean Reno) to report on Clouseau's whereabouts at all times.

Clouseau makes only a little progress at first, bungling one situation after another. Bizu, a star player who hated Gluant and was the prime suspect, gets shot in the head. A witness hears him say "Oh, it's you", so Clouseau tells Ponton to gather all the people in Paris with the name "You". He interviews an old Cantonese woman and appears not to understand her (it is revealed later that he understood every word). While at a casino, with the intent of asking some questions of owner Raymond Larocque (Gluant's business partner), he encounters British Agent 006 Nigel Boswell (Clive Owen parodying James Bond). Boswell poses as Clouseau in order to conceal his identity and stop a robbery by the notorious Gas Masked Bandits. Thus, Clouseau gets credit for the deed, much to Dreyfus's annoyance.

Believing that Gluant's girlfriend Xania (Beyoncé Knowles) knows more than she has revealed, Clouseau follows her to New York City. He tries to perfect a flawless American accent but has no success (despite hiring the best dialect coach in the world). Before he can return to France, his bag is switched by a French agent working for Dreyfus while he waits in line at airport security. The new bag, which contains several weapons (including a flail, a pocket knife, a grenade, and a revolver), sets off the metal detector; after he refuses to empty his pockets, which contain hamburgers, he is arrested. Clouseau initially tries to tell the airport staff about the hamburgers, but no one understands his ridiculous accent. Upon Clouseau's return to France, Dreyfus insults him and strips him of his inspector rank, preparing to win the case. Based on his evidence -- that the poison that killed Gluant was derived from Chinese herbs -- Dreyfus deduces that the killer is a Chinese envoy named Dr. Pang, whom he plans on arresting at the upcoming Presidential Ball. Dreyfus orders the event planners to remove Clouseau's name from the guest list.

Having returned home, Clouseau finds a photo of his arrest on the Internet. He sees something significant in the photo, and immediately makes his way to the Élysée Palace with Ponton, where they sneak into Presidential Ball. They are able to prevent the murder of Xania by pursuing and capturing the real killer, who turns out to be Yuri, an ex-Soviet soldier who was the French soccer team's trainer. Clouseau reveals that the Cantonese woman "reminded" Clouseau that all soccer trainers must be skilled in Chinese medicine; furthermore, Bizu was shot in the occipital lobe of the brain, a location that would be known to Yuri from his training in the Russian military (even though in the film the shot was actually into the frontal lobe, as the occipital lobe is at the back of the head). Xania is revealed to have the Pink Panther diamond, sewn into the lining of her purse. Gluant gave it to her as an engagement ring just before his death, and she is therefore entitled to it under French law. Clouseau declares that it was the photo of his arrest that revealed everything to him. When he enlarged it he saw the ring in the monitor of the airport's x-ray scanner. Dreyfus makes a clumsy attempt to take credit, saying his arrest of the Chinese envoy was a ploy to draw out the real killer. For his success, Clouseau wins the Medal of Honor.

 

+ FIGHTING TEMPATIONS

The Fighting Temptations is a 2003 comedy film produced by Paramount Pictures and MTV Films. It stars Cuba Gooding Jr. and singer Beyonce Knowles as they attempt to revive a town's choir traditions in a modern society.

New York City advertising executive Darrin Hill (played by Cuba Gooding, Jr.), who is about to land a big account, has his life turned upside down when it's revealed that he has lied about having a college degree. After being fired, his life is further shaken by being unable to repay his debts. Now on the run, he is called back to his southern town roots when his aunt dies. At the reading of the will, he learns he has been asked to assume the mantle of choir director of his aunt's home church and if he can get the choir in the Gospel Explosion in Columbus, GA, he will inherit stock worth $150,000. Unfortunately the choir is not in very good shape and he has to start recruiting townsfolk, not all of whom are interested. He also finds himself competing with one of his mother's friends and sister of the town preacher Paulina Pritchett (played by LaTanya Richardson) who is secretly scheming to take over the choir herself and has a grudge against Darrin's mother for not staying true to her church roots and singing "secular" music. Among others, he gets three prisoners to join but his biggest coup is recruiting secular singer Lilly (Beyoncé Knowles) who sings at one of the local night clubs as his mother did, to join; he also starts courting her. While Hill's efforts are initially scorned and resisted, he and Lilly eventually whip the ragtag crew into shape and win the Explosion-and each other's hearts.

 

+AUSTIN POWERS GOLDMEMBER

Austin Powers in Goldmember, released in 2002, is the third film of the Austin Powers series starring Mike Myers in the title role. The movie was directed by Jay Roach, and co-written by Mike Myers and Michael McCullers. Myers also plays the roles of Dr. Evil, Goldmember and Fat Bastard. The movie co-stars Beyoncé Knowles, Robert Wagner, Seth Green, Michael York, Verne Troyer, Michael Caine and Fred Savage. There are a number of cameo appearances including Britney Spears, Quincy Jones, Katie Couric, Nathan Lane and The Osbournes.

In a self-parody of the Austin Powers series, there is a film within the film. Austin Powers is featured in a bio-pic called Austinpussy directed by Steven Spielberg and starring Tom Cruise as Austin Powers, Gwyneth Paltrow as Dixie Normous, Kevin Spacey as Dr. Evil, Danny DeVito as Mini-Me, and John Travolta as Goldmember.

Goldmember is a loose parody of the James Bond movies Goldfinger and You Only Live Twice also incorporating elements of the The Spy Who Loved Me. The film took in approximately $288 million from movie tickets worldwide.

The movie starts with Austin watching a movie preview starring Tom Cruise as Austin Powers, directed by Steven Spielberg. Austin accepts the compliment and goes on his usual dance in the beginning until he and his group stumble on Britney Spears in the middle of a music video shoot (for her song "Boys"). Austin and Britney start a dance off until Britney turns out to be a fembot when twin machine gun barrels pop out of her leather top. She tries to kill Austin but fails, and Austin uses his mojo to make her head blow up. The year is 2002. In his new underground lair behind the famous Hollywood sign, Dr. Evil outlines his latest evil plan. Using a time machine he will go back to 1975 and bring back a Dutchman, Johan van der Smut (alias Goldmember), who had developed a cold fusion unit for a tractor beam. He intends to use the tractor beam to pull a golden meteor into the Earth to strike and melt the polar ice caps and cause global flooding. However, the plot is discovered by the British Secret Service, and Austin leads an assault team to arrest Dr. Evil and place him in a maximum security prison. Austin is knighted for his services but is disappointed when his father (the famous super-spy Nigel Powers) fails to attend the investiture. However, he later learns that his father was kidnapped from his yacht and that some of the crew have had their genitals painted with gold. It was immediately revealed to Austin that Nigel was kidnapped after he skipped out on the knighting ceremony. In search of answers, Austin visits the imprisoned Dr. Evil, who tells him that the insane Goldmember is behind the abduction and on condition that he is transferred to a normal prison, reveals that he is in 1975.Traveling back to 1975, Austin infiltrates Goldmember's roller disco club "Studio 69" and begins the search. Austin meets up with Foxxy Cleopatra—an old flame and FBI agent—who is working undercover in the club. Austin locates his father but before they can escape they are delivered into Goldmember’s inner sanctum. Goldmember abducts Nigel to 2002 in Dr. Evil’s time machine. Austin and Foxxy give chase in the MOD’s time-travel device. Back in 2002, Frau Farbissina visits Dr. Evil is in his normal prison and tells him that his son, Scott, wants to take over the family business and has started becoming evil to the point of losing his hair. By way of a kiss, Frau passes a key to Dr. Evil. The other prisoners are encouraged to start a riot, which distracts the guards and permits Dr. Evil and Mini-Me to escape. A British Intelligence mole in Dr. Evil’s organization informs Austin that Dr. Evil has moved to a new lair somewhere near Tokyo, Japan. Austin and Foxxy fly to Tokyo where they are informed that Dr. Evil's henchman Fat Bastard is wrestling at the Asahi Sumo Arena. Slipping into the changing rooms, Austin confronts Fat Bastard and manages to subdue him after a botched wire-assisted jump. Fat Bastard confesses that a Japanese businessman, Mr. Roboto, is making some sort of contraption for Dr. Evil. Dr. Evil’s new lair is a submarine lurking in Tokyo Bay. Goldmember tells Dr. Evil that they have the ultimate insurance policy in Austin Power’s father. Mini-Me escorts Nigel to his cell but he starts to subvert Mini-Me. Later, Scott presents his father with a pair of sharks with laser beams attached to their heads. Overjoyed, Dr. Evil professes his love for his son and seats Scott at his right hand, displacing Mini-Me, who leaves dejected. Austin and Foxxy meet with Mr. Roboto, who pleads ignorance about Nigel’s whereabouts. Unconvinced by his denial, Austin and Foxxy infiltrate Roboto's factory where the command unit for the tractor beam is being loaded in Goldmember's car. Roboto hands Goldmember a golden key which is needed to activate the beam. Foxxy confronts Goldmember, but Nigel is about to have an "unfortunate smelting accident" and Goldmember escapes as Nigel is being rescued. They chase Goldmember through Tokyo, but he reaches the safety of Dr. Evil's sub which departs before they can apprehend him. Austin and Nigel dispute the course of action but cannot agree, and go their separate ways. In Austin’s hotel, the mole has arranged the defection of Mini-Me. Austin, Foxxy and Mini-Me (now an Austin Mini) use Nigel's spy car in submarine mode to reach Dr. Evil’s lair and gain entry. Foxxy splits up from Austin and Mini-Me, and they begin to search the sub. In the control room, Dr. Evil threatens the World Organization with a global flood. To prove he isn't bluffing, he uses the tractor beam to pull a satellite out of orbit. Following the successful trial of the beam, Roboto demands a bonus which Dr. Evil refuses. Becoming more evil, Scott takes over and disposes of Roboto in the shark tank. Adopting a disguise Austin and Mini-Me are waylaid by the medical officer but obtain a plan of the vessel. Rumbled by the MO, Mini-Me escapes and meets up with Foxxy while Austin is taken to the control room. Dr. Evil offers to show Austin his plan before killing him, but the activation key is missing. Foxxy and Mini-Me enter with guns and the missing key. Austin now threatens Dr. Evil at gunpoint, but his father intervenes and reveals that Dr. Evil and Austin are brothers, separated at an early age during an assassination attempt. The three are reconciled, but Scott interrupts, angry that now that he's finally become evil his father is turning good. Declaring that he hates them all, he vows revenge and leaves. However, Goldmember intends to complete the destruction of the world. Although Foxxy throws the activation key into the shark tank Goldmember has a spare, his gold-plated penis. As Goldmember begins to activate the tractor beam, Dr. Evil reverses the polarity of the cold fusion unit, which electrocutes and kills Goldmember and destroys the meteor. Alone in Dr. Evil's Hollywood lair, a completely bald, maniacal Scott declares that he will get Austin Powers.

 

+ CARMEN HIP HOPERA

Carmen: A Hip Hopera is an MTV production from 2001 starring Beyoncé Knowles, Mos Def, Rah Digga, Wyclef Jean, Mekhi Phifer, Da Brat, Joy Bryant, Jermaine Dupri and Lil' Bow Wow, directed by Robert Townsend. It is based on Georges Bizet's opera, Carmen, but set in Philadelphia and Los Angeles in modern times.

The movie received mainly negative reviews. To date, it is the second major attempt at an African-American adaptation of the opera (the first being the critically acclaimed Carmen Jones which has been selected for the inclusion into the American National Film Registry).

Carmen Brown (Beyoncé Knowles) is a seductive, aspiring actress who causes trouble everywhere she goes. She gets involved with Derek Hill (Mekhi Phifer), who is engaged to the cocktail waitress, Caela (Reagan Gomez-Preston). At Lou's Bar, Carmen gets into a fight with a jealous woman. The crooked Lieutenant Miller (Mos Def) orders Hill to bring Carmen to jail. Carmen tries unsuccessfully to seduce Hill, but she convinces him to let her stop at her apartment to change clothes. There, she puts on lingerie and wins him over. He is caught in the morning (with Carmen no where to be found) by Lieutenant Miller, who brings Caela with him as he arrests Hill. Caela slaps Hill and tells him she hates him. While in jail, Hill cannot stop thinking about Carmen. She writes him a letter, and he shares his obsession with cellmates Bow Wow and Jermaine Dupri. While Hill is in jail, Carmen meets the famous rapper Blaze (Casey Lee) at a nightclub, The Spot. He wants to bring her to Los Angeles, but succeeds only in bringing her best friends. Carmen promises to meet them in LA once Hill is out of jail. Unfortunately, Hill is facing a year of probation once he gets out. However, after he punches the lieutenant in the face during an argument at the bar, he and Carmen flee Los Angeles. Things in Los Angeles don't go well. Carmen can't find an acting job, and Hill's fugitive status prevents him from obtaining employment. She runs into her best friends, Rasheeda (Rah Digga) and Nikki (Joy Bryant), who are being treated like royalty by Blaze. The three of them have their tarot cards read by a psychic (Wyclef Jean). Rasheeda and Nikki receive favorable fortunes, but Carmen's cards read "ruin," "sorrow" and "death." She decides that it's time for a change. She goes to Blaze's rehearsal and wins an invitation to be his date to his next concert. Shortly afterwards, Carmen breaks up with Hill and moves in with her friends in a house apparently owned by Blaze. She feels that she shouldn't give up her life for him, even though he did for her. Much like his counterpart in the original opera, Hill is devastated. He also learns from Caela, who hates him but still loves him, that he is in danger. Since Hill knows how crooked he is, Miller wants to get rid of him. But Hill goes to Carmen to try to win her over and make her leave with him. Carmen doesn't want to leave and tells Hill that she is staying. While they were arguing, Miller was watching them and then shoots Carmen in the back twice with a silenced gun. The movie ends at Blaze's concert and in tragedy.

thx: wikipedia.en

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