By CATHERINE KELLY
Mk:hlg.n CltlHn
All the movies with young
Black men offer exactly the
same sex and violence, and
''Above the Rim" is not any
different, maybe even worse.
The storyline and dialogue
were painfully slow and just
plain horrible.
The plot portrays Kyle-Lee
Watson (Duane Martin) as a
hi gh school basketball star
trying to play well enough to
be drafted by Georgetown col­
lege.
He lives with his single
mother (Tanya Pinkins) and
is being lured into the "perks"
of street basketball tourna­
ments by Birdie (Tu pac
Shakur). Shep (Leon) is the
stoic high school security
guard, ex-star basketball
player and brother of Birdie.
The plot was rather mean­
dering and vague at times
and periodically infused with
talk of women, basketball
scenes and bad jokes by not­
quite-Funny-man Marlon
Wayans. The movie basically
boiled down to the same tired
rah, rah that didn't quite go
over with the crowd or the
reviewer.
Duane Martin, like most
high school basketball stars
was cocky and needed work
on his attitude to reach his
goal, Georgetown. The portly,
fatherly, white coach was
By JERYL BARGINEAR
�c_hl an Citizen __
Angela Winbush is a re­
spected veteran of the music in­
dustry and has worked with the
best in the business. This album,
simply entitled 'Angela 'Win­
bush', is no exception.
Ms. Winbush has shared a
lifelong affinity with music hav­
ing en bred in the church nd
embedded with profound gospel
roots. Within her artistry one
can hear a fusion of influences
funneled into a mold casting an
alloyed Angela with a style of
her own.
A native of St. Louis.Angela'
musical tal en w recognized
early on she was encoura d
to pursue h r passion by a local
music t cher. Sh took h ,
nrolling at Howard University,
W shington, D. ., where h
studi und r th tutelage of
voc I coach who instruc d
Rob rta Flack and Donny
Hatha way - th t is history.
Embarking on an illus riou
car r, Angela Winbush sang
with St vie Wonder's Wond r­
lov and in 1985/86 was reputa­
bly known for h r vocal/writing
contributions to Ren & An I
with num r one R&B hit 'Your
Sm�le" and number two hit 'You
Don't Hao To Cry." She cam
into h r own as a solo art' t in
1'9 7 .
IR ALBUM in
, Ms. Winbush pro
a source of gravity at-
(
portrayed as always being
there helping along his Black
basketball team.
Tupac Shakur, the 'coach'
of the tournament team was
the "evil" counter part.
TUPAC S AKUR
tem pted Duane Martin to
play for his team using
money and women. The
white director, Jeffrey Pol­
lack contrasted the age old
'fatherly' white male image,
against that of the young
Black 'entrepreneur.' Tupac
Shakur. The white coach was
the good guy, Tupac Shakur
was the bad guy.
The role of the Black
woman, Tonya Pink ina,
Duane Martin's single
mother was as offensive as
the rest of the movie. She,
was often busy at war and
rarely had time out for her
on. She often made plans
with him that she had to
break because of work.
However, when she was
linked romantically with
Leon she made the time for
movies, dinners and evenings
out that she did not make for
her son. This was both unre­
alistic and insulting, insinu­
ating that the Black mother
would ditch her son for a
chance at a date.
The movie, supposedly
speaking to and for Black
men was a weak voice.
Leon, Duane's mother's ro­
mantic interest and ex-high­
school basketball star turned
ff rtl nsuality. Her voice is
pristine, lyrics lucid and her
b ckground singers are second
to non - th ir voi ring with
th natural harmony of hum­
min irds re dy to p ad th ir
win and fly unto solo rs
ofth ir own.
Th horough arr nging and
prod ucing of the album was
toy cop was portrayed as the
only one that could turn
around Duane.
Leon was the only charac-
ter who could steer Duane in
the right direction so he could
get to Georgetown, provide
his mother companionship
and get Tupac Shakur (hi
brother) off of everyone's
back.
does not mean that· they stay
blood.
So not only did white Hol­
lywood single-handedly per­
petrate a shoot-out of Black
people on a basketball court
but it sent a stunning blow to
the Black family structure of
Am rica. Family is some­
thing that has alway n
valued and put before v ry­
thing. (Who d n' r m m­
r grandmother saying ke
c r of your littl bro h r or
. ?
I r ..
Tupac Shakur w kill
in th end (money making
Black men n v r win) by th .
hurt ego of Marlon Wayans.
This movie lik countle s
oth r Hollywood films off r
no alternativ nd no r I
hope (unl s you can play
k b 11).
The lack community
ou Id b v ry u pici u f
th BI ck imag pre ch­
ing white valu s. A critic
from the Village Voice, el­
wyn S yfu Hi nd fter re­
vi wing Above th Rim sid,
"P rsonally, if you'r going to
11 my story b dly, I'd rather
you . hut the fuck up." h v
to ay that I would agr .
Angela Winbush: Flexible fusion
made possible by th virtu of
her p ere, Ms. Winbush x­
plains:
"1 didn't have to hurry up and
do a record and (Elektra Chair­
man) Bob Krasnow gave me th
total creative control I was ac­
customed to. It makes it rally
easy when someone trusts you
lik that - you can be comfort­
able, and le the real you om
through," Winbush aid.
Each track h a life of 1
own; a distinctive yle, an indi­
viduality wher Angela x r­
cises her fl xibility as
recording artist as sh t1 ip from
a classic song-stylis on "Baby
Hold On," (on which th Isley
influence is pervasiv ) 0 a funky
R&B singer on th pul ting
"Treat U Rite ", wri ten by
Book r.
L 0 WAS AL 0 given
the opportunity to be assis­
tant to the white coach. In­
st ad of stepping up and
taking his challenge the
Black male w repr n
weak, vacillating cr a­
tur who only thinks for s If.
I t took him the whole movi ,
(up until h I fiv min­
u ) to t P up to his chal­
I ng .
u t when you b gan to
think th t things could not
ny worse, th climax of
th mOVIe proved they could.
Af r the tournament game
W WOf) champion by th
whi te coach nd Leon, th
or los r Tupac hakur told
on of hi play r's 'h ndle
your .'Th pl y rpro d
to h t . n and then
hot th player.
arli r Tupa
DUe n ju
W
hat
Duane Martin (left) and Marlon W yans.