POWER – My Rating: 8/10

Power is a very intriguing story of a young Black male who is struggling to end his double life style. Ghost played by Omari Hardwick, is a Wealthy, successful Manhattan nightclub owner by night and a drug kingpin 24/7. Although he is suspected of being a drug dealer, it’s been hard for the FBI and police to pin him down, especially since his name, “Ghost” is renowned but no one has ever seen him, except his wife and a couple of friends. Before he is found out, Ghost who  goes under the name of James St. Patrick wants to dump his ghetto wife, Tasha St. Patrick (Naturi Naughton) and life style upon opening a new night club in California. In the mean while, unbeknownst to Ghost, he’s having an affair with (Lela Loran, played by Angela Valdes) the very FBI agent who has been trying to find out what Ghost looks like and make the bust.
This thriller is pretty entertaining and the acting is superb. The first season has come to an end with a fantastic finale.  Power airs on Showtime and is worth checking out!

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SPARKLE (2012) – My rating: 8/10

A Good Modern Musical!                                                                                            Sparkle was a pretty decent movie/musical. I was saddened watching Whitney Houston perform for the last time. Her voice sounded pretty good, not nearly as bad as the press reported it. Had she lived, I believe Whitney’s talent for acting was good enough to sustain her while she worked to bring her voice up to speed or not.

I have been a fan of Jordan Sparks and have followed her career since she won American Idol. I must say, she is a pretty good actress. I waited with baited breath for her to belt out a couple of songs, as it turns out, it was a long wait but well worth it when she finally did. The performance was not “Dream Girls” status, but was excellent given the script, songs and story Jordan had to work with.

The movie was about 3 sisters, veering for stardom, trying to follow in the footsteps of the Supremes, only bigger. Sister played by Carmen Ejogo was the lead singer and Dee played by Tika Sumpter was studying to be a doctor. Both actresses brought good singing and acting to the movie. Some of their costumes were eye opening. I was a little disappointed however, when stories of 2 character’s (levi, played by Omari Hardwick and Black, played by Celo Green) fell a little short. I definitely wanted more.

I was impressed with the performance of Mike Epps as he played a bully and comedian looking for acceptance from his audience. Sparkle is full of talent and tells a pretty good story. The Choir was fantastic as was the performance of Derek Luke who played Stix, a love interest for Sparkle. I recommend this movie — you won’t be bored. If you are a Whitney fan, you’ll be pleased with her performance as well — REST IN PEACE WHITNEY HOUSTON!!!!!