Ten years after Eric Garner’s strangulation death on Staten Island, a new film seeks justice and maybe even an Oscar.
The short doc by New Yorker Brad Bailey is called “Her Fight, Her Name: The Story of Gwen Carr and Eric Garner”. It tells the story of Gwen Carr’s tireless efforts to keep her son’s case alive. There was a screening in Manhattan earlier this week.
“I stopped long after his death. To this day, I have never watched that video,” Carr says.
Garner, arrested by police on suspicion of selling “loose” cigarettes, was filmed by a passerby as he was put in a chokehold by Staten Island cops. He died after saying “I can’t breathe” 11 times.
A series of protests followed, and then-Mayor Bill de Blasio promised action. One of the officers involved was eventually fired.
“The film is about a tragedy that shaped our national discourse through the lens of motherhood and resilience,” said director Bailey.
Carr added: “It doesn’t make any sense that someone else is telling it and you’re an extra in your own story.”
And for other victims, Carr says, “As long as they have a mother, they have a voice.” »
We’ll find out if Oscar voters hear that voice on December 17, when the shortlists of nominees are announced. A mother is probably keeping her fingers crossed.
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Baseball fans who remember David Justice helping the Yankees win the World Series in 2000 will see his daughter, Raquel Justice, in “Dexter: Original Sin.”
Raquel, 20, a final year student at LMU (Loyola Marymount University) in Los Angeles, plays Sofia, who attracts the attention of young Dexter (Patrick Gibson) with her looks and quick wit.
It’s not the biggest role, but she’s in eight of the 10 episodes of Paramount+ premiering December 13. “My face will be widely shown,” she laughed. The new series, set in Miami 15 years before the original series, shows young Dexter learning to control his bloodthirsty urges.
Under the guidance of his father, Harry (played by Christian Slater), he adopts a code to help him find and kill people who deserve to be eliminated.
Raquel, who started playing at the age of 12, is expected to spend her final semester in Spain. So maybe there will be a second season.
“I hope so and I hope I’m in,” she said.
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If Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie could stop fighting, they could star in a movie together about the Martinez Hotel in Cannes.
Producer Danny Rosner optioned Phillip M. Kenny’s recently published book about the hotel. “I have all the rights,” he told me.
He asked Pitt to play the hotel’s Italian owner, Emmanuel Martinez, a courageous activist in the French Resistance movement, who helped Jews, refugees and spies escape Nazi terror during World War II , while the Germans were requisitioning his hotel.
“If we can help Pitt and Jolie put their differences aside, they are world-class talents and they fit like a glove for this story,” Rosner said.
The former couple fell in love 20 years ago on the set of Mr. and Mrs. Smith. They had six children before divorcing five years ago. But they are still in dispute over their vineyard in France .
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A comedy-drama about dementia seems like a tough sell. But “Here’s Yianni!” » – with Joe Cortese and Julia Ormond – captivates festival audiences around the world.
It closes the Dances With Films Fest in Manhattan on Sunday night, and Cortese, who plays the title role, is thrilled. “Everyone loves it. It won the Best Film award at the Arpa Festival in Los Angeles. We won Best Actor and Best Actress at the Fort Lauderdale Film Festival. We received rave reviews at the Turin Festival in Italy,” said the veteran actor.
“We are heading towards Saint-Augustin,” he adds.
The film was filmed in Asbury Park over 23 days and stars Eric Roberts and Kevin Pollack. Pal Diane Warren helped produce and also contributed to the “Remember to Remember” theme.
The story is about an aging Greek restaurant owner who fancies himself a talk show host. The film also deals candidly with family fallout.
The story is thin, but Cortese says almost everyone comes away with “a smile on their face and a tear in their eyes.” So if you go tonight, bring some Kleenex.
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Consuelo Vanderbilt Costin — a seventh-generation descendant of railroad magnate Cornelius Vanderbilt — is having a busy December.
The entrepreneur and recording artist just hosted an event in Miami with ARTEdeFashion, a platform for Latin creatives to connect with the global luxury market. The power rally took place at the New World Center in Miami Beach.
After flying to New York, she will host an event at the Mark Hotel on Wednesday for her new line of handbags, a collaboration with designer Ximena Kavalekas.
“Being an entrepreneur isn’t just about starting a business,” she said. “It’s about turning uncertainty into opportunity.”
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The Children’s Oncology Support Fund dinner hosted by founder Thomas Pierce and Monica Elias at Coco’s at Colette attracted an exceptional crowd.
At the 32-person dinner were Ivy Getty, the great-granddaughter of J. Paul Getty; Kayla, Kimberly and Steven Rockefeller, grandson of Nelson Rockefeller; Candace Bushnell, author of “Sex and the City”; and skincare mogul Peter Thomas Roth.
Young ballerinas donated by Youth America Grand Prix performed the “Dance of the Sugarplum Fairy” and Michael James Scott, who plays the genie in “Aladdin,” sang Christmas hymns.
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Annette Tapert Allen, Alex Hitz, George Gurley, Grace and Chris Meigher and Carolyne Roehm hosted a book night at Doubles for socialite Katherine Bryan’s new coffee table decorating tome, “Great Inspiration.”
Guests included Mai Hallingby, Sharon Bush, Cece Cord, Susan Gutfreund, Joan Jedell, Muffie Potter Aston, Grace Hightower, Mark Gilbertson, Debbie Bancroft and Wilbur Ross.