Jakob Eiseman, Editor

“The United States vs. Billie Holiday” — Hulu

A new biopic from director Lee Daniels (“Precious,” “The Butler,”) is coming to Hulu on Friday, Feb. 26 in the form of “United States Vs. Billie Holiday.” The film will follow the famous American jazz singer and Philadelphia born Billie Holiday, played by Andra Day (“Marshall,” “Ben-Hur,”) in a part of her career where she was continually pursued by the United States government for refusing to stop sing her song “Strange Fruit,” which is about the mistreatment of Black men in the south. Rising to fame in the 1930s, Holiday was targeted by racist groups and Jim Crow activists for her music and positions on integration and politics. The government conducted a sting operation, led by Agent Jimmy Fletcher, played by Trevante Rhodes (“Moonlight,” “Bird Box,”) who was meant to bust Holiday on drug charges. Although Holiday suffered an untimely death in 1959, her music would go on to inspire many key figures of the civil rights movement, and the director thought that the message of this biopic would mean more in today’s social climate than any other. 

“Supervillain: The Making of Tekashi 6ix9ine” — Showtime 

The oft belittled mumble rapper Daniel Hernandez, also known as Tekashi 6ix9ine, is getting a biographical docuseries on Showtime. The miniseries, which debuted on the service on Sunday, Feb. 21, will follow how a heinous person who has done so much wrong and is so hated by the media was allowed to succeed in American pop culture. Hernandez not only plead guilty to the use of a child in a sexual performance after posting a video that showed the alleged assault of a 13-year old girl, but also plead guilty to nine felony charges of varying weight, was caught beating his mother and girlfriend and gave out the personal details of his fellow gang members in a court of law and was sentenced to several years in prison. “Supervillain,” which is narrated by Giancarlo Esposito (“Breaking Bad,” “The Usual Suspects,”) and features Hernandez himself in interviews has a twofold purpose, according to director Karam Gill: to show the world what is wrong with the rap industry’s glorification of gang culture, and to create a product that will gain more fame and popularity than Hernandez himself.

P5S: Persona 5 Strikers — PS4, PS5, Switch

Editor’s Note: The Collegian is not comparing this next piece of media to the serious and socially conscious pieces above. Although the film and television portions of this column carry very serious messages, the Collegian also finds it important to discuss positivity and exciting trends in the entertainment industry.

Persona 5 Strikers, which was released in Japan in February 2020, finally released in the West on Tuesday, Feb. 23 after a year of waiting for its localization. The game is a direct sequel to 2017’s Persona 5, which is currently rated as one of the best role-playing games of the 2010s. Persona 5 Strikers is not a turn based role-playing game like those that came before it, but a real-time action game developed by the team that created Dynasty Warriors and Hyrule Warriors, which was featured in the Collegian in November 2020. Persona 5 Strikers retains its talented English voice cast from the previous entries with Xander Mobus playing the unnamed lead character, Max Mittleman playing Ryuji Sakamoto, Erika Harlacher playing Ann Takamaki and Matt Mercer playing Yusuke Kitagawga. The game features the “Persona” series’ unique style with flashy, comic-book-like visuals, imagery alluding to French author Maurice Leblanc and fast moving, action-packed animated scenes.

eisemanj1@lasalle.edu

Jakob Eiseman, Editor

Header Image: NBC, Walt Disney Studios, Searchlight Pictures, edit courtesy of Jakob Eiseman

“Young Rock” — Peacock

A story about the life of Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson is going to be told as an NBC original semi-fictionalized comedy called “Young Rock.” Probably a play on the popular but critically detested CBS series “Young Sheldon,” the series will feature vignettes from several parts of The Rock’s life at age from age 10 to the present. Johnson will play himself in present day segments with Adrian Groulx playing him at age 10, Bradley Constant playing him at age 15 and Uli Latukefu (“Alien Covenant,” “Marco Polo”) playing him at age 18 to 20. The series is directed by Jeffrey Walker who was a director on “Modern Family” as well as “Riot.” “Young Rock” premiered on Tuesday, February 16 at 8 p.m. and will be available for streaming on Peacock later this week.

“Flora & Ulysses” — Disney+

While Disney+ is in the middle of releasing its superhero show “WandaVision,” with several other coming in several weeks, and HBO Max is promoting its next superhero movies, Disney has decided to release a more lighthearted, family movie that plays on the tropes of the oversaturated superhero media market, making fun of and leaning into parts of those movies that critics love to hate on. “Flora & Ulysses” is a story about a 10-year-old, Flora, who is already upset with the way the world is. One day, her pet squirrel gains the powers of a small, fluffy superhero, and Flora and her pet go around town saving people. The movie is a feel-good story that will no doubt be cheesy and fun. The movie was released on Disney+ on Monday, February 15.

“Nomadland” — Hulu

“Nomadland” is a drama and slice-of-life story about a woman who lost her home as a result of the American housing bubble and the Great Recession. Fern, played by Frances McDormand (“Fargo,” “Almost Famous”), is a sassy, adventurous woman who, having lost her job in Empire, Nevada, sells all of her belongings and takes a van down the highway into the country to live as a nomad. Along the way she picks up seasonal jobs and learns to live in her van until she meets a group of fellow nomads who have been gathered for years, learning to live off the land and continuously travel to observe the American countryside. Along her journey Fern meets several colorful characters who live a unique way of life and who each have their own flaws and drama that drive the story forward. “Nomadland” makes its streaming premiere on Hulu on Friday, February 19.

eisemanj1@lasalle.edu

Jakob Eiseman, Editor

“Rock Camp the Movie” — VOD

Directed by Doug Blush (“20 Feet from Stardom,” “Icarus”) and Renee Barron (“Eat. Race. Win.,” “Project Accessory,”) “Rock Camp the Movie” is a documentary following four members of the Rock ‘n’ Roll Fantasy Camp, an annual event 20 years running in which budding stars, amateur performers, rock legends and everyone in between come to south Florida for a four day camp full of workshops, concerts, performances and meet and greets. With Rock ‘n’ Roll Fantasy Camp 2020 being cancelled and 2021 being delayed due to the coronavirus pandemic, the film will be a look into the culture and style of the event without having to actually gather in Florida. Some celebrity guests that appear in or have interviews in “Rock Camp the Movie” include Alice Cooper, Roger Daltry, members of Judas Priest, Gene Simmons, Tony Franklin and Sammy Hagar. The documentary follows several members of the camp whose goal is to play on stage with their heroes. “Rock Camp the Movie” premiered in theaters in mid-January and is now available for online VOD streaming for $12 on the film’s website as of this week.

“The Equalizer” — CBS, Paramount+

If you watched the 2021 Super Bowl and its gratuitous CBS advertisements then you probably know all there is to know about “The Equalizer.” But, in case you missed it — “The Equalizer” is a reboot of the oft rebooted 1980s drama series of the same name about a retired government agent who becomes a vigilante, protecting the citizens of New York from different types of criminals. This time around, the main character is not played by British actor Edward Woodward, but Queen Latifah, known for her rap career and appearances in major musicals such as “Hairspray.” Latifah, playing former agent Robyn McCall, will turn to the streets of New York to enact her own justice after becoming disillusioned with the government’s methods. While this reboot is different from the 2014 Denzel Washington reboot, it still seems heavily inspired by the original, almost to a fault. “The Equalizer” premiered on CBS and Paramount+ immediately following the Super Bowl on Sunday, Feb. 7.

Super Mario 3D World + Bowser’s Fury — Nintendo Switch

After seven years, the number one game on the Nintendo Wii U finally makes its way into modernity by getting an updated port on the Nintendo Switch. The financial failure that was the Wii U nearly knocked Nintendo out of the console industry until Super Mario 3D World released in 2013 to high critical acclaim and record-breaking sales for the system. It, partnered with the Super Smash Bros. series, single-handedly saved the Wii U from an early grave. Now that nearly every other Wii U title has migrated to the modern Nintendo Switch (which has been the best-selling device on the market for three years now), it was time for the critical darling to finally make its way over. Super Mario 3D World + Bowser’s Fury is an updated and tuned-up version of the classic game in the “Mario” franchise with added content in the form of the Bowser’s Fury set of levels and online multiplayer. Super Mario 3D World + Bowser’s Fury releases exclusively for the Nintendo Switch on Friday, Feb. 12 for $59.99.

eisemanj1@lasalle.edu

Jakob Eiseman, Editor

Header Image: PlayStation, YouTube, HBO; edit courtesy of Jakob Eiseman

“The Investigation” ー HBO, HBO Max

From Tobias Lindholm, one of the most critically acclaimed film directors in the Scandinavian Peninsula, comes a new crime thriller miniseries about a missing persons investigation in Sweden. “The Investigation” is based on a true story and follows a police commissioner and a prosecutor as they attempt to find the evidence to convict a suspect connected to the murder or kidnapping of a journalist conducted underwater in a submarine. The series is a new take on Lindholm’s signature dramatic style popularized by his films “The Hunt (2012),” “A Hijacking” and “A War,” as it is a six-part miniseries instead of a feature-length film. “The Investigation” stars Søren Malling, a famous Danish film actor, as Jens Møller, the lead detective at the Copenhagen Police Department, and Pilou Asbæk, known in the west for his roles in “Game of Thrones,” “Ghost in the Shell” and “Overlord,” as Jakob Buch-Jepsen, the chief prosecutor attempting to bring the suspected killer to court. “The Investigation” episode one premiered on HBO and HBO Max on Feb. 2.

“Life in a Day 2020” ー YouTube

On July 25, 2020, over 300,000 people around the globe filmed themselves living their daily lives and sent it in to director Kevin Macdonald’s team to be compiled for this ambitious documentary. The same task was undertaken ten years ago and is available on YouTube and currently sits at over 17 million views. This time, “Life in a Day 2020” was picked up and funded by YouTube itself, meaning that Macdonald and producer Ridley Scott (“The Martian,” “Blade Runner”) had a much larger budget for editors, music, graphics and outreach teams to learn more about individual submissions. “Life in a Day 2020” will capture a unique view on the world as most people’s videos will no doubt touch on the coronavirus pandemic. The film has already become a Sundance official selection for 2021 and is fluctuating around a 70 score on Rotten Tomatoes at the time of publication. “Life in a Day 2020” premieres on YouTube on Feb. 6.

“Destruction AllStars” ー PlayStation 5

Destruction AllStars is a vehicular destruction derby put into interactive form. The PlayStation 5 exclusive title comes from Liverpool based Lucid Games, the developers of Need for Speed Payback and Geometry Wars. Destruction AllStars was announced at the “PS5 Reveal Showcase” in June 2020 with a price tag of $69.99 and set to release alongside the new hardware on Nov. 12, 2020. After critics and fans took note of the game’s cartoony style, gratuitous violence and lack of visible gameplay in trailers, the title was pushed to February and made a PlayStation Plus title, meaning those that subscribe to the service can own the game for no extra charge. The game, which released on Feb. 1 is stylish, leans into chaos and confusion and takes inspiration from two massively popular multiplayer games: Rocket League, which pits players in a car to play soccer, and Fortnite which popularized consistently updated multiplayer worlds and is still the number one game in America to this day.

eisemanj1@lasalle.edu

Jakob Eiseman, Editor

Header Image: TechCrunch

Three weeks ago, the advisory board at the social media giant, Twitter, made the decision to permanently ban the user account of former U.S. President Donald Trump after he sent out several tweets that contained misinformation, inciting violence at the U.S. Capitol. Earlier this week, a program was opened up by Twitter’s board with hopes of stopping misinformation early on from any Twitter user, public or private. The move is being made with the hopes that it will stop any further crime from being committed by followers of those who spread misinformation on the platform.

🐦 Today we’re introducing @Birdwatch, a community-driven approach to addressing misleading information. And we want your help. (1/3) pic.twitter.com/aYJILZ7iKB

— Twitter Support (@TwitterSupport) January 25, 2021

The program is called Birdwatch, a play on the company’s mountain bluebird logo. Birdwatch was ruled out to a small group of users this week in order to test both its effectiveness as well as the technology behind it. The 1,000 or so users with access to Birdwatch can leave notes on tweets to provide context or to correct tweets containing misinformation. As of right now, the test notes can only be observed by Twitter’s staff and other Birdwatch members, but the goal is to expand this program to more people and enable all public Twitter users to see the notes.

Notes can be rated on their effectiveness by other Birdwatch members. The final product will function similar to Wikipedia’s community edit system in which many Birdwatchers can leave notes on a single tweet, and negatively rate notes that do not add context or are in themselves misinformed. A press release from Twitter details that they conducted “more than 100 qualitative interviews with individuals across the political spectrum who use Twitter, and we received broad general support for Birdwatch.” The feedback given in these interviews helped shape the program and helped choose participants for the pilot program.

Twitter confirmed the existence of Birdwatch last year, but it was not expected to be released this quickly, which has many users skeptical  of the effectiveness of the program. Only time will tell how Birdwatch shapes out when it is ruled out to the public, but for now, the team wants to keep everything as transparent as possible, with Birdwatch data being available to the public on its website and the code for the ranking system being available for free on GitHub.

The executives at Twitter have been very public in their efforts to combat misinformation without coming off as a suppressor of free speech after the banning of former President Trump, and Birdwatch is their effort to put the battle against propaganda in the public’s hands. Some political commentators see Birdwatch as a tool for Twitter to censor its users, and hide themselves from criticism by putting the responsibility on users rather than administrators. Others see Birdwatch as a bright future for a social media platform that is infamous for becoming a megaphone for conspiracy theorists and those that wish to spread lies.

For those interested in becoming a Birdwatcher, applications are open on their website.

eisemanj1@lasalle.edu