“Seriously Red” was written by Krew Boylan to take the greatest possible advantage of the talents of its star…Krew Boylan, with an assist from the infinite talents of the iconic superstar Krew Boylan cosplays as throughout the film: Dolly Parton. Dolly famously said, as quoted in the film, “Find out who you are and be that on purpose.” In “Seriously Red,” Boylan takes a while to follow that advice, as the first part is about becoming a better Dolly and it is only near the end that she begins to think about what it means to be a better Red. Significantly, “Red” like her curly hair, is her character’s nickname, but as Dolly, she hides it under a big, pouffy blonde wig.

Red’s job is valuing houses for sale and we can see in the first scene that she is sympathetic to the homeowner and also that she can’t wait to get to what she really loves, dressing as Dolly for an office party. The only other person in costume, though, is the Elvis impersonator hired to emcee the event (Rose Byrne, a close friend of Boylan’s and a co-producer on the film). Red braves it out and clearly enjoys the reaction from the crowd. But the next day, it turns out that her ebullience went too far. She is fired for inappropriate behavior, including grabbing the crotches of some of the attendees.

And so, she begins to explore the possibility of making a living as a full-time Dolly Parton impersonator. Channeling Dolly gives her courage and soon she is a success, especially when she teams up with a man so deeply into his Kenny Rogers impersonation that he will not give out his real name. He is Kenny offstage as well as on (Daniel Webber). He is drawn to Dolly; all he sees is Dolly, not Red. And that is fine with Red…for a while.

Boylan has the creamy skin and bright blue eyes to shine in the Dolly moments. The musical numbers, presented with sweetness and sincerity, are a lot of fun. The real life scenes are not as lively or effectively staged, including a detour to get breast augmentation surgery and encounters with Red’s disapproving mother, old friend who is growing impatient, and the people she deals with as she becomes more successful. Bobby Cannavale (also a co-producer) is so good as an impresario of impersonators (and former Neil Diamond performer) we wish we could see more of him, and learn more about the cosplayers on stage and in the audience. Like Red herself, the movie is more confident and appealing when it’s all dressed up in spangles and a high blonde wig. Dolly knows that it’s what is inside that counts. Boylen has not yet learned that lesson.

Parents should know that his film has nudity and sexual references and situations, cosmetic surgery, and strong language.

Family discussion: If you were going to be a celebrity impersonator, who would you be? Why was it hard for Red to be happy being herself?

If you like this, try: “Dumpling” and “Outrageous” and Dolly Parton films like “Steel Magnolias” and “9 to 5”

It was The Woman King that edged out all of the competition at The Black Reel Awards this year. With six wins out of the fourteen nominations, The Woman King nabbed wins for Outstanding Film, Outstanding Director, Outstanding Ensemble, Breakthrough Actress, Outstanding Score and Outstanding Editing.

Gina Prince-Bythewood’s sweeping epic that focused on the women warriors of Dahomey, narrowly overtook Marvel’s superhero film, Black Panther: Wakanda Forever which garnered 5 Black Reel wins of its own.

Going into the night, Wakanda Forever was tied with The Woman King with fourteen award nominations. With her third Black Reel Award win for Outstanding Costume Design for Black Panther: Wakanda Forever, Ruth E. Carter became the most decorated technical award winner in Black Reel history.

Legendary actress Angela Bassett also made Black Reel history, becoming the first woman ever to win an acting and honorary award in the same year. Ms. Bassett won Outstanding Supporting Actress for her work in Black Panther: Wakanda Forever and also received the prestigious Sidney Poitier Trailblazer Award recognizing her career of acting excellence. Bassett joins Jamie Foxx, the only other person to be honored, claiming the Vanguard award and the Outstanding Actor award for Ray in 2005.

Independent studio A24, received 10 nominations for The Inspection and cashed in four wins, thanks to Jeremy Pope receiving two awards (Outstanding Actor and Breakthrough Actor). Not to be outdone by the Pope, writer-director Elegance Bratton also took home two awards for Outstanding Independent Film & First Screenplay.

All the stars came out to celebrate the 23rd Annual Black Reel Awards. Presenters included: Courtney B. Vance, Ruth E. Carter, Colman Domingo, Tasha Smith, Kasi Lemmons, Salli Richardson-Whitfield, Quvenzhané Wallis, Jasmine Cephas Jones, Cory Hardrict, Cassie Freeman, Cheryl Dunye, Quintessa Swindell, Saddiq Saunderson, and Jahi Winston.

23rd Black Reel Award Winners
OUTSTANDING FILM
The Woman King | Viola Davis, Maria Bello, Cathy Schulman & Julius Tennon, producers
OUTSTANDING ACTOR
Jeremy Pope | The Inspection
OUTSTANDING ACTRESS
Danielle Deadwyler | Till
OUTSTANDING DIRECTOR
Gina Prince-Bythewood | The Woman King
OUTSTANDING SUPPORTING ACTOR
Brian Tyree Henry | Causeway
OUTSTANDING SUPPORTING ACTRESS
Angela Bassett | Black Panther: Wakanda Forever
OUTSTANDING SCREENPLAY
Till | Chinonye Chukwu, Michael Reilly & Keith Beauchamp, writers
OUTSTANDING DOCUMENTARY FEATURE
Sidney | Reginald Hudlin, director
OUTSTANDING INTERNATIONAL FILM
Saint Omer (France) | Alice Diop
OUTSTANDING ENSEMBLE
The Woman King | Aisha Coley, casting director
OUTSTANDING VOICE PERFORMANCE
Zoe Saldana | Avatar: The Way of Water
OUTSTANDING SCORE
The Woman King | Terence Blanchard, composer

OUTSTANDING ORIGINAL SONG
“Lift Me Up” (Black Panther: Wakanda Forever) | Rihanna (performer/writer), Ryan Coogler (writer), Ludwig Gorannson (writer),
OUTSTANDING SOUNDTRACK
Black Panther: Wakanda Forever
OUTSTANDING INDEPENDENT FILM
The Inspection | Elegance Bratton, director
OUTSTANDING SHORT FILM
NORTH STAR | P.J. Palmer, director
OUTSTANDING EMERGING DIRECTOR
Nikyatu Jusu | Nanny
OUTSTANDING BREAKTHROUGH ACTOR
Jeremy Pope | The Inspection
OUTSTANDING BREAKTHROUGH ACTRESS
Thuso Mbedu | The Woman King
OUTSTANDING FIRST SCREENPLAY
The Inspection | Elegance Bratton, writer
OUTSTANDING CINEMATOGRAPHY
NOPE | Hoyte van Hoytema, cinematographer
OUTSTANDING COSTUME DESIGN
Black Panther: Wakanda Forever | Ruth E. Carter, costume designer
OUTSTANDING EDITING
The Woman King | Terilyn A. Shropshire, editor
OUTSTANDING PRODUCTION DESIGN
Black Panther: Wakanda Forever | Hannah Beachler, production designer
Follow the 23rd Annual Black Reel Awards on Twitter and Instagram @BlackReelAwards and on Facebook at TheBlackReelAwards.

About the Black Reel Awards (The Bolts)
The Black Reels are an annual American awards ceremony hosted by the Foundation for the Augmentation of African-Americans in Film (FAAAF). The awards recognize the excellence of African Americans and the cinematic achievements of the African diaspora in the global film industry, as assessed by the Foundation’s voting membership. The Black Reels are the oldest cinema-exclusive awards ceremony for African Americans. Instagram / Twitter / Facebook / YouTube / BlackReelAwards.com
(WASHINGTON, DC – February 6, 2023) – The stars turned out unlike ever before to witness the coronation of the new kings and queens at the 23rd Annual Black Reel Awards!
It was The Woman King that edged out all of the competition at The Black Reel Awards this year. With six wins out of the fourteen nominations, The Woman King nabbed wins for Outstanding Film, Outstanding Director, Outstanding Ensemble, Breakthrough Actress , Outstanding Score and Outstanding Editing.
Gina Prince-Bythewood’s sweeping epic that focused on the women warriors of Dahomey, narrowly overtook Marvel’s superhero film, Black Panther: Wakanda Forever which garnered 5 Black Reel wins of its own. Going into the night, Wakanda Forever was tied with The Woman King with fourteen award nominations. With her third Black Reel Award win for Outstanding Costume Design for Black Panther: Wakanda Forever, the fantastic Ruth E. Carter became the most decorated technical award winner in Black Reel history.
Speaking of history, legendary actress Angela Bassett also made Black Reel history, becoming the first woman ever to win an acting and honorary award in the same year. Ms. Bassett won Outstanding Supporting Actress for her work in Black Panther: Wakanda Forever and also received the prestigious Sidney Poitier Trailblazer Award recognizing her career of acting excellence. Bassett joins Jamie Foxx, the only other person to be honored, claiming the Vanguard award and the Outstanding Actor award for Ray in 2005.

The biggest surprise among the acting Oscar nominations this year was Andrea Riseborough as Best Actress. There were three reasons awards-predictors did not expect to hear her name. First, the movie she starred in, “To Leslie,” was made for under one million dollars and made about $30,000. Very few people saw it. This is the kind of film that is overlooked, possibly a candidate for a Spirit award but not in the same category as big-budget, big-stars Oscar movies. Second, there was no big-budget FYC (“For your consideration”) publicity campaign to make sure Academy voters saw it. Third, her performance got unprecedented support from industry insiders like Gwyneth Paltrow who took to social media to urge Academy voters to consider her.

The part that is not a surprise for anyone who has seen her is that Riseborough’s performance was extraordinary. She always is. You may have seen her before but not realized it because she inhabits every role so completely it is easy to forget it is the same actress.

There is some controversy about the way her nomination was supported. One social media post compared her to another actor, which is not allowed under the rules. But that has nothing to do with Riseborough, who did nothing wrong. Whatever happens to the nomination, I hope audiences watch “To Leslie” and seek out some of her other performance. Here are some I especially recommend.

Luxor

I interviewed Riseborough and the director of this quiet film about one-time lovers finding each other in Egypt’s historic city.

Oblivion

Riseborough starred opposite Tom Cruise in a film set in 2077. A veteran assigned to extract Earth’s remaining resources begins to question what he knows about his mission and himself.

She was a hairdresser who becomes romantically involved with Billie Jean King in “Battle of the Sexes.”

She plays an awful mother in “Matilda: The Musical”

She was a woman who might be a lost daughter who was kidnapped as a child in “Nancy”

And she was the daughter of the title character in “The Death of Stalin”

Amira, a Muslim Black stylist and costume designer (Lauren London) and Ezra, a Jewish white guy with a boring job in finance who would rather be a podcaster (Jonah Hill) fall in love in “You People,” a comic contest between two equally offensive sets of parents. Her parents (Nia Long and Eddie Murphy as Fatima and Akbar) disapprove and try to undermine the relationship. His parents (Julia Louis-Dreyfuss and David Duchovny ask Shelly and Arnold) are clueless about the cringe-inducing, reductionist racism of their attempts to welcome Amira. Falling somewhere down the spectrum from the tragedy of “Romeo and Juliet” and the sincere if stilted drama of “Guess Who’s Coming to Dinner,” this film, co-written by star Hill and director Kenya Barrios (“Black-ish”) plays it for comedy, with an exceptionally strong supporting cast. And it is not afraid to include some stinging commentary amid the romance and the laughs.

It gets off to a strong start with Ezra and his podcast co-host Mo (Sam Jay) laughing about their fantasy versions of Barack Obama, clearly improvised. The jokes are more outrageous than funny, but it is a delight to hear the two riff off of each other with witty affection. We then see Ezra at Yom Kippur services with his parents, who gently disapprove of what he is wearing (casual kicks) and not wearing (a kipper head covering). The meet-cute is when he gets into what he thinks is his Uber, but what turns out to be Amira, who has gotten lost. After a moment of panic, they hit it off and soon they are dating. They share the same shoe game and commitment to supporting one another. And they just enjoy spending time together. And then it becomes time to to meet the parents.

The surprise in the film is Eddie Murphy, who plays it absolutely straight as Amira’s dignified father and makes Akbar into one of the movie’s highlights. There’s no winking at the audience, no wild exaggeration, and the more serious he is, the funnier he is, especially when one of his ploys backfires. He leaves the goofiness in the more than capable hands of Mike Epps (as Akbar’s brother), “Black-ish” star Anthony Anderson, the always terrific Sam Jay, and more. Murphy, the real-life father of 10 children, knows all too well what it is to measure a suitor against his expectations, and this is one of his best roles.

Julia Louis-Dreyfus has a lot of fun with the role of Ezra’s mother, who tries so hard to show she is an ally that she over-corrects, while her husband tries to show how hip he is by talking about how much he likes rapper Xzibit. Instead of getting to know Amira by, for example, asking her about her work, she chatters about looking forward to brown grandchildren and goes woke Karen on a spa attendant she mistakenly thinks was racist. The white side of the cast also has an exceptionally strong group in supporting and cameo roles, from legends Hal Linden, Richard Benjamin, Rhea Perlman, and Elliott Gould to younger familiar faces Rob Huebel and Bryan Greenburg. Look for Romy Reiner (daughter of Rob, granddaughter of Carl) on a date with Ezra, director Barris as an airplane passenger, and a sign advertising London’s late activist/rapper romantic partner, Nipsey Hustle, who also has a song on the soundtrack.

The script is uneven at times. The bachelor party in Las Vegas and bachelorette party at a spa do not work as well as the sections at home. But as the characters discover, good will and a sharp sense of humor can overcome a lot of obstacles.

Parents should know that this film includes very strong and crude language, sexual references and non-explicit situations, drinking and drugs, and a visit to a strip club in Las Vegas.

Family discussion: How would your family react to a new boyfriend or girlfriend? How would you have handled the meeting of the parents? What made them change their minds?

If you like this, try: “This Christmas” with Lauren London and “Superbad” with Jonah Hill

Keep this in mind as you evaluate my comments — I do not even try to resist the allure of Jennifer Lopez. So if you can, you may not be willing to surrender to the ridiculousness of this action romantic comedy about a destination wedding interrupted by violent pirates. Let me put it this way: you will probably enjoy the film if you’re okay with the fact that over the course of the film, as lawyer and bride-to-be Darcy (Lopez) is being chased by masked bad guys with military-style weapons, her pouffy bridal gown is ever-so-fetchingly shredded, her hair adorably tousled, and her maquillage (the word “make-up” cannot adequately convey the perfection) is perpetually exquisite, even has she and the groom are chased through the jungle, handcuffed, and clutching a live grenade.

Darcy and her fiancé Tom (Josh Duhamel) have brought their families and friends to a Philippene island for their wedding. (With this film and January 13’s “Plane,” the Philippines should probably consult a tourism marketing firm.) This has put a lot of stress on everyone, especially because Tom, a minor league baseball designated hitter recently released at age 40, is overly fixated on making every detail perfect and neglecting his bride. Darcy’s wealthy father, Robert (Cheech Marin), has brought his woo-woo vibes and auras girlfriend, Harriet (D’Arcy Carden of “The Good Place”). His elegant ex-wife, Darcy’s mother, Renata (Sonia Braga) wants to stay as far away from them as possible. Tom’s parents are the unfiltered, boundary-trespassing Carol (Jennifer Coolidge) and the perpetually videoing every minute Larry (Steve Coulter).

Ramping up the stress level is the surprise arrival of Darcy’s former fiancé, Sean (Lenny Kravitz), who now works for Darcy’s father and is something of a surrogate son. He arrives by helicopter and insists on giving a toast at the rehearsal dinner. The next morning, as the guests are in their chairs on the beach waiting for the ceremony to begin, Tom and Darcy are on another part of the island breaking up.

This is why they are not there when the pirates arrive and take everyone else hostage, making them gather in the infinity pool while they send a search party to kidnap the bride and groom. They tell Robert they will not release them until he transfers $45 million to them. He says he will not to anything until they prove that Darcy is safe. Tom and Darcy have to find a way to take on heavily armed, trained group with no weapons, training, protective gear, or idea what they’re doing.

The balance of humor and action is uneven, and it does not even try to make sense. But the overall tone is lighthearted, and, as I said, Lopez is, as always, hard to resist.

Parents should know that this film includes terrorist-style peril and violence with military-grade weapons, chases, and explosions. Chaacters are injured and killed, in light-hearted fashion when they are bad guys, and there are some grisly images. Chacters uses strong and crude language with sexual references and a non-explicit sexual situation.

Family discussion: Whose family was more difficult? Was the twist a surprise? What did the attack reveal to Darcy and Tom about themselves and each other?

If you like this, try: “Wedding Season”