EURweb |
THE FILM STRIP: Anthony Mackie, Wayne Brady & Eva Pigford on 'Crossover.'
Mackie says ‘Crossover’ is no ‘Above the Rim’; Brady got daily beat downs in the hood.
“This is a story of two kids coming of age and trying to make their hustle work. From the first day that we arrived, there was no necessary hierarchy on the set and a lot of that had to do with the producing team. It was really easy to do because there was no pressure in trying to emulate Tupac or anybody in ‘Above the Rim.’"
The film makes some powerful statements about education and Mackie definitely wants that message to impact on audiences.
“There is not a lot of emphasis on school and I catch a lot of flack because of the fact that I went to school. One thing I wanted people to come away from this movie with is that basketball is a means to an end. You realize that when more than half of the veterans of the NBA, in some way, shape or form, are struggling once they retire. Everybody doesn't have the financial riches and stability of Magic Johnson as we see. Everybody doesn't have those resources. My dad always told me to ‘Use your best foot to get your education,’ and 'use your education to take you to the next level’ and that's what the film is basically saying.
“What Vince Carter did was monumental when he went back to school to graduate after he had left school early and came back the day of the playoff game because he didn't want to miss his graduation in North Carolina. I felt that was so overlooked and so underplayed in the world of hatred towards NBA players and I felt that there should have been a huge confetti parade for him for doing that. I just want this movie to highlight that. I want people to recognize that just because you don't make it to the NBA doesn't mean that you are a failure.”
Also meeting with a group of writers to discuss “Crossover” was Wayne Brady. The Emmy Award-winning former TV host wanted to make clear the role he played.
"A couple of folks have tried to say, 'Oh, so you're the bad guy in the movie, but he isn't the bad guy,” Brady says. “He's selfish. That doesn't make someone a bad guy. He has his own agenda and his agenda was to get out of Detroit by using the star player. That was his agenda and he just happened to set into motion a chain of events. It had nothing to do with being evil. I mean that's a very human thing."
At one point, The Film Strip mentioned how articulate he was, which opened a can of worms.
"My answer is, and I hope this doesn't sound corny, but a lot of it stems from my mother,” he explained. “My family is from the Virgin Islands, so one lesson I learned as a two-year-old was to speak properly so that folks can understand you. It doesn't mean that maybe when I'm with my friends I'm not a little more lax, or whatever. But I do understand that in a society that is communication based, if you wanna work—and you as a writer know—the last thing you want to do is to be misunderstood. That's just the way she brought me up and sometimes I ran into trouble with that as a kid.
"Not only did I speak the way that I speak, but I also had an accent. So the kids in my neighborhood beat me morning, noon and night. On the bus, off the bus and it didn't help that I was bussed from my neighborhood to another school for the gifted program a few days a week. When I got off that bus, they were there waiting for me. So it kind of taught you to A) defend yourself and B), be able to stick to your guns.
“At first I was a little resentful of my mom and kind of went left because I wanted to prove to the other kids in my neighborhood that I was down, or I was like them. But too many of those kids--and now it's a story that is very much clichéd--I grew up with are dead. On my block there's a kid named Eddie that I used to get beaten up by him and he would make me hang around with him. He's now in a wheel chair and his brother is dead.
"Girls I used to think were so hot and wouldn't talk to me [aren't all that hot now]. This one girl that lived right across the street from me—and I hope she does read this—because she has like 14 babies; and that's not a hyperbole. I drove by one day and she's like, 'Hey, Wayne Brady, remember me?'
“In my yard one day this girl named Tisha said something to me I’ll never forget. I'm 34 years old and this happened when I was about 12 or 13. I said something like, 'Tisha, I think you're so pretty. 'Wayne,' she said, 'You are a real ugly black muthaf**cker.' Ok, yeah, how do you process that? Yeah, that's a grudge that I kept. But God bless her, because stuff like that kind of pushed me.'
Well, Wayne, they say success is the best revenge.
.jpg)
Eva Pigford in 'Crossover'
Eva Pigford says let there no doubt in anyone’s mind, “I’m definitely the villain in ‘Crossover.’” Although she says that was not her reality, she grew up around girls like that. A reflection of the film itself, Pigford is a college grad.
“I figured I could either go into law, which is a stage, or theater which is a stage. So American Top Model gave me visibility and was my ticket into the [film] industry.”
Considering the choices she made in the film, subject of real life men entered the conversation.
“I want a well-groomed man. Nice guys. If you see my ex-boyfriends, you’ll [see what I’m taking about].”
"Crossover" opens today, Friday, August 31, in theaters throughout North America. For MORE info visit: www.sonypictures.com/movies/crossover/.
Win $25,000!!!
... in Lawry's Tasty Traditions Recipe Contest!
Hurry! Deadline is 9/30/06. For more info visit:
http://www.lawrys.com
.jpg)
