REVIEW: TWO DISTANT STRANGERS

  

4/5

Strangers Things.

29 Mins. Starring: Joey Bada$$, Andrew Howard & Zaria. Directors: Travon Free & Martin Desmond Roe. 

Poet Tupac Shakur once told us to "learn to see me like a brother instead of two distant strangers," like the 'T.H.U.G.' ('The Hate You Give'..."little infants f###s everybody") book/movie adaptation inspiration. That's just 'The Way It Is' (whilst we wish some things WOULD change) by Bruce Hornsby and The Range that 2Pac sampled for his greatest hit 'Changes' play through the Beats of rapper/actor Joey Bada$$ ('Mr Robot', Inspectah Dek in Hulu's 'Wu-Tang Clan: An American Saga') as between a rolled paycheck from his freelancing graphic design work and a loose leaf cigarette, he's just trying to get home to his faithful like a Yankee dog Jeter, waiting for him like Hachi after spending the night and what he hopes brings a next night at the wonderful Zaria's place. New York City cop Officer Merk (aptly named) played by Andrew Howard ('Tenet') even scarier than the Russian mobster who was pushing Bradley Cooper to the brink in the city for 'Limitless' has different ideas however. A gold toothed, bald pitbull let off his leash and determined to put more than the cuffs on this young black man whose just trying to get on with his life that matters. Far too many seconds later and he can't breathe. Sound familiar? Does he pass out or pass away? Because the next morning he wakes back up on the edge of tomorrow to live this nightmare that was far from a dream all over again. 'Groundhog Day'. But there's nothing Bill Murray funny about this Oscar nominated short directed by former college basketball star and 'The Daily Show's' Travon Free and Showtime's 'Kobe Bryant: Muse' director Martin Desmond Roe and produced by Sean 'P. Diddy' Combs, the NBA's Brooklyn Nets superstar Kevin Durant and Utah Jazz All Star point guard Mike Conley that will stay with you long after you've rubbed your eyes. 

Poet Tupac Shakur once told us to "learn to see me like a brother instead of two distant strangers", like the the 'T.H.U.G.' ('The Hate You Give'..."little infants f###s everybody") book/movie adaptation inspiration. That's just 'The Way It Is' (whilst we wish some things WOULD change) by Bruce Hornsby and The Range that 2Pac sampled for his greatest hit 'Changes' play through the Beats of rapper/actor Joey Bada$$ ('Mr Robot', Inspectah Dek in Hulu's 'Wu-Tang Clan: An American Saga') as between a rolled paycheck from his freelancing graphic design work and a loose leaf cigarette, he's just trying to get home to his faithful like a Yankee dog Jeter, waiting for him like Hachi after spending the night and what he hopes brings a next night at the wonderful Zaria's place. New York City cop Officer Merk (aptly named) played by Andrew Howard ('Tenet') even scarier than the Russian mobster who was pushing Bradley Cooper to the brink in the city for 'Limitless' has different ideas however. A gold toothed, bald pitbull let off his leash and determined to put more than the cuffs on this young black man whose just trying to get on with his life that matters. Far too many seconds later and he can't breathe. Sound familiar? Does he pass out or pass away? Because the next morning he wakes back up on the edge of tomorrow to live this nightmare that was far from a dream all over again. 'Groundhog Day'. But there's nothing Bill Murray funny about this Oscar nominated short directed by former college basketball star and 'The Daily Show's' Travon Free and Showtime's 'Kobe Bryant: Muse' director Martin Desmond Roe and produced by Sean 'P. Diddy' Combs, the NBA's Brooklyn Nets superstar Kevin Durant and Utah Jazz All Star point guard Mike Conley that will stay with you long after you've rubbed your eyes. Same song? Well Joey Bada$$ honouring Tupac and all we've lost before and after him really is bad ass in this acclaimed role that affords even more than the dollars in his name. We already knew Jo-Vaughn Virginie Scott was a real actor in Malek's mainframe, but now he's about to change the Academy...forget the game. This isn't one as after some compelling chemistry set in bed, bringing beauty and the optimistic brooding for more to a one night stand and some Oprah like charisma with his Skype like phone calls with his dog that are truly a treat, we really see what this man is made of. Capturing the anxiety and aggravation of what it means to be a POC in American when the land of the free is turned into a police state. They see the hood and they ignore the glasses. They see the money and they ignore the worth. They see the cigarette and thinks it's weed. Now who's really smoking something? Andrew Howard's horrifying and haunting officer of the law shooting straight (but not actually) out of a Kendrick Lamar move like video is not alright. He's the one who needs to be stopped and searched as his kind continues to push people's back against the wall until they can't take it anymore. And still they aren't resisting, with their hands in the air. But does this blue blood care until real red runs? Howard in the end almost looks like a caricature here, but he's merely capturing just how much of one certain officers of the law who don't uphold their end really are. Cloaked in racism like a hood, hidden behind a badge. If only these two distant strangers from different worlds could take a ride along and get to know each other. Finding some common ground on this sidewalk. At least we're sure Andrew in real life is nice, despite how 'Limitless' convincing he is at how puerile, pure evil, bad he can be. A terrifyingly good actor that won't give us a break like when he chased Cooper around NYC until he stopped and searched him for another substance abuse. The only respite Joey gets from this bad a$$hole is at home with Zaria. In a moving morning before the mourning that he wishes could last just a day or two longer. Or even a minute in this New York apartment as they crack a few eggs, break bread and even a few bottles as they show that two distant strangers from the night before can really mean so much more the morning after. Despite this man's permanent copped hangover that giving us horrific headaches shows us we all need to wake up. Sure, this half-hour short film akin to Netflix's animated school-shooting sobering short, 'If Anything Happens I Love You' owes a lot to 'Groundhog Day' and the sci-fi 'Live. Die. Repeat' of Tom Cruise's 'Edge Of Tomorrow'. But the world owes more than an apology to this type of repeating narrative that shows the only thing that isn't stranger here is the story. 

Poet Tupac Shakur once told us to "learn to see me like a brother instead of two distant strangers", like the 'T.H.U.G.' ('The Hate You Give'..."little infants f###s everybody") book/movie adaptation inspiration. That's just 'The Way It Is' (whilst we wish some things WOULD change) by Bruce Hornsby and The Range that 2Pac sampled for his greatest hit 'Changes' play through the Beats of rapper/actor Joey Bada$$ ('Mr Robot', Inspectah Dek in Hulu's 'Wu-Tang Clan: An American Saga') as between a rolled paycheck from his freelancing graphic design work and a loose leaf cigarette, he's just trying to get home to his faithful like a Yankee dog Jeter, waiting for him like Hachi after spending the night and what he hopes brings a next night at the wonderful Zaria's place. New York City cop Officer Merk (aptly named) played by Andrew Howard ('Tenet') even scarier than the Russian mobster who was pushing Bradley Cooper to the brink in the city for 'Limitless' has different ideas however. A gold toothed, bald pitbull let off his leash and determined to put more than the cuffs on this young black man whose just trying to get on with his life that matters. Far too many seconds later and he can't breathe. Sound familiar? Does he pass out or pass away? Because the next morning he wakes back up on the edge of tomorrow to live this nightmare that was far from a dream all over again. 'Groundhog Day'. But there's nothing Bill Murray funny about this Oscar nominated short directed by former college basketball star and 'The Daily Show's' Travon Free and Showtime's 'Kobe Bryant: Muse' director Martin Desmond Roe and produced by Sean 'P. Diddy' Combs the NBA's Brooklyn Nets superstar Kevin Durant and Utah Jazz All Star point guard Mike Conley that will stay with you long after you've rubbed your eyes. Heard all this before? Because this situation has been tired. You may think some of Roe and Free's dynamic direction borders on absurd, but that's just how brutal the world has become these days to people being filmed on a camera phones who haven't done anything wrong at all. When really even with our pressing need to document and expose all this as evidence, they should just be helped. Who will give a hand when all this is being brushed off peoples shoulders like blood off a uniform that says it's supposed to "protect" and "serve"? Still to this day, despite the marches in millions we walked around the planet for, even in the face of a pandemic. Like Stopping Asian Hate, Black Lives will ALWAYS Matter beyond a trending topic that some use for likes before going back to the back patting, self-congratulatory side of social media like the job is done. Like Kobe said, it's not. It's a bigger issue and one that should influence generations so we don't have to tell these stories again. A time were we can see change and hope again like when as Jay-Z said, "Rosa Parks sat so Martin Luther King could walk. Martin Luther King walked so Obama could run. Obama's running so we can all fly." Away from the gravestone of this pavement. Damaging the fallen petals of these roses that have grown from concrete, its time to celebrate the tenacity of those who don't give up, no matter if some people never even give them a chance. It's time for everybody to care until we can all breathe fresh air. Instead of waking up everyday and seeing no changes. As 'Pac advised us far too long ago, "let's change the way we treat each other. You see, the old way wasn't workin'. So it's on us to do what we gotta do to survive." Now live and let live. And make that change. Because it really matters. And after all-despite the fact that we all have to keep at a social distance right now-aren't strangers just two people that haven't met yet? TIM DAVID HARVEY.

Further Filming: Forget that...

Trayvon Martin. George Floyd. Breonna Taylor. Sandra Bland. Freddie Gray. Ahmaud Arbery. Tamir Rice. Eric Garner. Philando Castile. Michael Brown. Alton Sterling. Atatiana Jefferson. Walter Scott. Oscar Grant. Samuel DuBose. Stephon Clark. Elijah McClain. Marvin Scott III. Jenoah Donald. Patrick Warren. Xzavier Hill. Bennie Edwards. Casey Goodson Jr.. Aiden Ellison. Quawan Charles. Walter Wallace Jr.. Jonathan Price. Kurt Reinhold. Dijon Kizzee. Damian Daniels. Anthony McClain. Julian Lewis. Maurice Abisdid-Wagner. Rayshard Brooks. Priscilla Slater. Robert Forbes. Kamal Flowers. David McAtee. James Scurlock. Calvin Horton Jr.. Tony McDade. Dion Johnson. Maurice Gordon. Cornelius Fredericks. Steven Taylor. Daniel Prude. Barry Gedeus. Manuel Ellis. Lionel Morris. Jaquyn O’Neill Light. Darius Tarver. Miciah Lee. Dominique White. And sadly too, too many more.

SAY. THEIR. NAMES.