Lackawanna Blues (2005) (TV)

User Rating:

7.6/10   

Director:

George C. Wolfe

Writers (WGA):

Ruben Santiago-Hudson (play)
Ruben Santiago-Hudson (teleplay)

Release Date:

12 February 2005 (USA)

Genre:

Drama | Music

Tagline:

Play it. Sing it. Shout it. Feel it.

Plot:

In a story fueled by rhythm and blues, a young boy's life is shaped by love and the stories of a cast of characters in the boarding house where he lives in 1960s Lackawanna, New York.

Plot Keywords:

1960s | Boarding House | New York | 1950s | Blues Music

Awards:

Won Golden Globe. Another 25 wins & 25 nominations

Cast

S. Epatha Merkerson	...	Rachel "Nanny" Crosby
Marcus Carl Franklin	...	Ruben Santiago Jr. (as Marcus Franklin)
Mos Def	...	The Bandleader
Carmen Ejogo	...	Alean
Louis Gossett Jr.	...	Ol'lem Taylor
Macy Gray	...	Pauline
Terrence Howard	...	Bill Crosby (as Terrance Dashon Howard)
Ernie Hudson	...	Dick Barrymore
Delroy Lindo	...	Mr. Lucious
Rosie Perez	...	Bertha
Ruben Santiago-Hudson	...	Freddie Cobbs
Liev Schreiber	...	Ulysses Ford
Jimmy Smits	...	Ruben Santiago Sr.
Patricia Wettig	...	Laura's Mother
Charlayne Woodard	...	Bill's Woman

Runtime:

95 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Certification:

Canada:14A (Ontario) | UK:12 (DVD rating) | UK:15 (TV rating) | Australia:M | Singapore:M18 | USA:PG-13

Filming Locations:

Los Angeles, California, USA

Company:

HBO Films

Trivia:

Based on the autobiographical one-man show by Ruben Santiago-Hudson.

Goofs:

Continuity: When Rachel is getting $20 bills pinned on her, there are pinned bills on her right side including her arm, when they return to that scene, the bills are gone.

Quotes:

Rachel "Nanny" Crosby: Luck is you gettin' outta Georgia alive.

Movie Connections:

Featured in The 63rd Annual Golden Globe Awards (2006) (TV)

Soundtrack:

Boogie Woogie Country Girl

Killer performance for S. Epatha Merkerson

I always felt that Ms. Merkerson had never gotten a role fitting her skills. Familiar to millions as the Lt. on Law and Order, she has been seen in a number of theatrical releases, always in a supporting role. HBO's Lackawanna Blues changes that and allows this talented actress to shine as Nanny, successful entrepreneur in a world changing from segregation to integration. But the story is really about the colorful array of characters that she and her adopted son meet in a boarding house in Lackawanna, New York, a suburb of Buffalo.

The story could be set in any major African-American community of the 50's and 60's from Atlanta's Sweet Auburn to New York's Harlem. But the segregation-integration angle is only a subtle undercurrent in the colorful lives of the folks at Nanny's boarding house. The story revolves around Nanny's relationships with all kinds of people, played by some of the best actors in the business (I purposely did not say black actors--this ensemble is a stunning array of talent who happen to be black, except for Jimmy Smits, of course) I recommend this film as a fun and colorful look at a bygone day.