Arts Express: Will Smith Talks Concussion

Concussion

A conversation with Will Smith, David Morse and Concussion director, Peter Landesman.

And, navigating the socio-economic minefield on screen when exposing big business malfeasance, in this case the NFL suppression of chronic traumatic brain injury inflicted on football players, leading to their premature mental deterioration, homelessness, fatal illnesses and suicides.

Part whistlblower biopic, part corporate horror thriller, Concussion features Will Smith as that courageous Pittsburgh Nigerian immigrant who struggled against corporate interests to bring the buried truth to light and save the lives of athletes, Dr Bennet Omalu.

LISTEN TO THE SHOW HERE

Zomba Prison Project Nominated for Grammy

Prisoners in the African nation of Malawi, some of them among the many women convicted of witchcraft there, have been nominated for a Grammy Award. The music created with basic instruments within the prison under the auspices of the Zomba Prison Project, is part of their album titled ‘I Have No Everything Here.’

Star Wars: The Emperor’s Old Clothes

This intrepid film critic’s negative review, and some of the over 160 hate mail poison pen letters that landed in the Arts Express mailbag, for doing so. And, what Star Wars has to do with the Pentagon as the most prolific props department in Hollywood, and Obama at a sitdown screening with the US military.

Mad Hatter Dining at Alice’s Teacup Teahouse

A literary themed lunch at this storybook bistro. And what the whimsical eatery has to do with scones, crumpets, tarts, Ella Fitzgerald, and fairy dusting the visiting children.

Actors Talking Strange In The Golden Age Of Hollywood

Katherine Hepburn, Bette Davis, strange accents, stranger origins. The Arts Express Best Of The Net Hotspot this week.

Arts Express

Thursdays 2pm ET: Airing on WBAI Radio in NY 99.5 FM, and streaming live and archived everywhere at wbai.org.

Prairie Miller is a New York multimedia journalist online, in print and radio, who reviews movies and conducts in-depth interviews. She can also be heard on WBAI/Pacifica National Radio Network’s Arts Express.