Be Kind Rewind – Catch the Spirit!
By Michael Nazarewycz
The 2013 Film Independent’s Spirit Awards were recently announced, and
among the contenders are audience faves like Silver Linings Playbook
and Moonrise Kingdom. But the Spirit Awards are nothing
new. In fact, you could say the Spirits come from the 1980s, as the
first awards were handed out in 1986!
In honor of the awards, here are a pair of films that took home prizes at
the first two Film Independent’s Spirit Awards!
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After
Hours
1985
Starring Griffin Dunne and Rosanna Arquette
Directed by Martin Scorsese
Spirits Winner, Best Feature
In this wickedly dark comedy, Griffin Dunne plays an unhappy word
processor in New York City. One night he meets a pretty young woman (Arquette)
and they hit it off. He gets her phone number, and when he calls her,
she invites him to her place in SoHo. He goes, but the night doesn’t go
quite as he planned, as he finds himself in one bizarre situation after
another, including almost having his head shaved. This film also tied
with Blood Simple for Best Director.
She’s
Gotta Have It
1986
Starring Tracy Camilla Johns, Tommy Redmond Hicks, John Canada Terrell,
and Spike Lee
Directed by Spike Lee
Spirits Winner, Best First Feature
Spike Lee’s first joint tells the tale of Nola Darling (Johns), the three
men she has simultaneous relationships with – Jamie (Hicks), Greer
(Terrell), and Mars (Lee) – and how those relationships shape her view
on love. More than just his first film, She’s Gotta Have It
would also set Lee’s signature filmmaking style and introduce the world
to the character of Mars Blackmon ... a fictional character that would
go on to pitch Nike sneakers in commercials with basketball legend
Michael Jordan.
Check out other Be Kind Rewind
issues:
Michael Nazarewycz is a
US-based Writer for UK-based
Filmoria.com.
He also blogs at
ScribeHard On Film. He can be reached via Twitter
@ScribeHard.
