For years, filmmakers including Spike Lee and Justin Lin have been trying to bring the explosive riots that rocked L.A. in the aftermath of the acquittal of the cops who brutally assaulted Rodney King to life on the big screen. But the machinations of Hollywood just never allowed it happen. So somewhat ironically, it will take a foreign filmmaker making her English language debut to bring one of the crucial events in recent L.A. history to cinemas.
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Deniz Gamze Erguven, the director behind the acclaimed, Oscar-nominated “Mustang,” will helm the simply titled “Kings.” Halle Berry has signed up to star in the movie playing a mother in South Central, with the story involving a romance with a white man. I’m really hoping the can’t-we-all-get-along messaging in the movie is a bit more nuanced than these bare details, but given her breakout film, it’s worth giving Erguven the benefit of the doubt.
The project is being shopped around Cannes, but let’s hope this is the version that finally gets off the ground. And given how “American Crime Story: The People v. O.J. Simpson” and the upcoming documentary “O.J.: Made In America” puts the spotlight back on the riots, and provides context for why they they were a vital reflection of race relations in the city, there may be more interest from distributors and financiers to help get this movie into production. As for Berry, it may just be the best role she’s had in a long time. [Screen Daily]