Entertainment
‘The Man in My Basement’ director breaks silence ahead of film drop
When the psychological thriller The Man in My Basement, starring Willem Dafoe and Corey Hawkins, hits theatres on Friday, director Nadia Latif hopes the audience will leave questioning who has written history.
“I want people to be thinking about who tells them stories … and actually to do their own kind of investigation into what they believe their place in the world to be,” Latif told Reuters following the film’s world premiere at the Toronto International Film Festival.
The movie, which is Latif’s feature directorial debut and an adaptation of a Walter Mosley novel of the same name, follows the story of a young Black man whose life is on the brink of crumbling. He is about to lose his family’s home when a stranger knocks on his door with a bizarre request — to rent his basement for a hefty sum.
Dafoe, who plays the mysterious tenant, said it did not take much thinking after he read the script to know he wanted to be a part of the film.
“I liked the story and I liked how it’s able to discuss certain things that are in the air of concern to me,” he told Reuters.
“Once (Latif and I) started talking, I realized I was deficient in some of my knowledge of some of the things that are talked about in the film, and I needed to be educated … and she was great at that.”
Throughout the film, Dafoe and Hawkins’ characters face off in a series of tense monologues, all set in the dingy basement, that confront themes of race, privilege, and history.
“I hope that people do feel unsettled by it. I think there’s some really kind of big, ugly things that are discussed within the film,” Latif said.
Jamie Lee Curtis is clearing the air after her remarks about Charlie Kirk’s death did not land as she expected.
Back in September, the actress appeared on the WTF with Marc Maron podcast and commented on the 31-year-old media personality’s tragic death.
“I disagreed with him on almost every point I ever heard him say, but I believe he was a man of faith, and I hope in that moment when he died that he felt connected to his faith,” she said at the time.
“Even though his ideas were abhorrent to me,” she added, “I still believe he’s a father and a husband and a man of faith. And I hope whatever connection to God means that he felt it.”
However, the Oscar winner faced online backlash over her remarks.
Now, during a recent chat with Variety, Curtis clapped back at the criticism noting, saying, “An excerpt of it mistranslated what I was saying as I wished him well, like I was talking about him in a very positive way, which I wasn’t. I was simply talking about his faith in God.”
She went on to say, “So it was a mistranslation, which is a pun, but not.”
“In the binary world today, you cannot hold two ideas at the same time: I cannot be Jewish and totally believe in Israel’s right to exist and at the same time reject the destruction of Gaza. You can’t say that, because you get vilified for having a mind that says, ‘I can hold both those thoughts. I can be contradictory in that way,'” she added.
It is pertinent to mention that Kirk was a conservative advocate, who founded a group named Turning Point USA.
He was shot dead during a public speaking event at Utah Valley University on September 10.
Jesse Eisenberg performed a magic trick in front of the public of New York City ahead of Now You See Me: Now You Don’t premiere in November.
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Entertainment
Bob Mackie reflects on legendary career as a fashion designer and working with stars like Tina Turner, Cher
Legendary fashion and costume designer Bob Mackie is known for his glamorous designs, dressing stars such as Cher, Tina Turner and Madonna for everything from red carpets to concerts.
Recently, Taylor Swift wore one of Mackie’s creations in several of her photos for her album, “The Life of a Showgirl.”
“It was kind of a surprise because I didn’t know she had those clothes,” Mackie told “CBS Mornings” on Tuesday, during an interview reflecting on his career. “She borrowed them from the place in Vegas, the big casino.”
Mackie had designed the costume more than 40 years ago for a Las Vegas show in the 1980s.
He explained he sketches his designs, but watching the stars perform is part of his process.
CBS News
“My philosophy is watch what they do, how they work on stage, how they walk, how they sit,” he said.
“It is very important. You can’t just put a dress on anybody.”
Mackie reflected on his work with Turner and Cher.
“You just don’t know until you meet them and watch them perform that they’re that woman, that kind of a girl. I mean Cher was never intimidated by one thing I ever put on her – ever,” Mackie said.
He added that Turner, “always knew what she wanted. She would say, ‘oh that’s too old fashioned, I can’t wear that.’ Then she would put it on and go, ‘oh. Well, that’s pretty good.'”
Harry Langdon / Getty Images 
Sarah Morris / Getty Images 
Now some of Mackie’s iconic designs are headed for auction in December.
“It’s OK. I don’t have it at home waiting for me. It’s just there and the girls kind of like seeing somebody else wear it. That’s fun,” he said.
The Washington Post 
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