As the nation celebrated Father’s Day, folks were shedding tears over Philly’s own Kevin Hart’s performance in “Fatherhood.” The movie was released on Netflix in perfect time to celebrate the holiday.
Kevin Hart’s exceptional performance made the film an amazing tribute to fatherhood. Hart is known for his comical roles that have spanned his career. But, here you see a different Hart.
Hart portrays a widowed new dad coping with doubts, fears, heartache, and dirty diapers as he sets out to raise his daughter on his own. Starring: Kevin Hart, Alfre Woodard, and comedian Lil Rel Howery, the heart-wrenching story is based on the true-life story, “Two Kisses for Maddy: A Memoir of Loss and Love” by Matthew Logelin and stars Hart as Logelin – a man who becomes a single dad after his wife tragically dies the day after giving birth.
Excited about his news of being a dad, Matthew started a personal blog during Liz’s pregnancy to stay connected with family and friends. When Liz died, he began using that space to share his heartbreak and open up about his struggles with parenthood. He found an outpouring of support from friends and strangers—thousands of people read his posts, and many left comments, with some offering parenting advice and others expressing sympathy over Logelin’s loss.
Mathew’s popular blog took both him and Maddy to Internet stardom. They conducted many television interviews and created the Liz Logelin Foundation, which provides financial support to widows and widowers with young families. Logelin wrote that he was inspired to create a charitable foundation after receiving support from other widows in the aftermath of his wife’s death, “So strong and large was the community that spontaneously formed around us. It seemed not only natural but necessary to harness the strength of that network and turn it into something—something that could help ease the pain and lighten the load felt by widows and widowers with children everywhere.
Hart said, “There was so much going on in the character’s head. So I had a lot of stuff to think about while doing it, a lot of things to pull from, but it all added value to performance.”
He said playing a more serious role wasn’t like other movies where he would want to be over the top funny. “But in this case, for me, it was about the drama. It was about making sure that I was believable in what I lost and the hurt and pain that I was experiencing.
It was a tear-jerker, 11 minutes in the movie you will be balling. One of Kevin Hart’s best roles. Job well done.
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If you didn’t know this, you know now!!! Dr. Dre is set to produce the upcoming Marvin Gaye biopic “What’s Going On” for Warner Bros.
Interscope Records founder Jimmy Iovine is also producing alongside Andrew Lazar, with one-half of the Hughes Brothers, Allen Hughes, onboard as director. As a part of a duo, he’s best known for directing the classic West Coast movie, “Menace II Society” starring the likes of Jada Pinkett Smith, Samuel L. Jackson, MC Eiht, and Too $hort.
With a budget upwards of $80 million, “What’s Going On,” is set to have the biggest budget ever for an African American music biopic. The Marvin Gaye estate and Motown Records are also on board, with the singer’s widow Jan Gaye serving as an executive producer alongside Suzanne de Passe.
An actor hasn’t been cast to play Gaye just yet, but production is set to begin in 2022, with the film set to arrive in 2023 through theaters and HBO Max.
“This is so personal for me,” Hughes said. “When I made my first film with my brother, we were fortunate to get ‘What’s Going On’ into the trailer for “Menace II Society,” and it was a game-changer in elevating the marketing of that film. Every film of mine but the period film “From Hell” had some Marvin Gaye in it, and I’ve just always connected to him. He’s the artist’s artist, with this ethereal voice that just comes out of the heavens. There have been plenty of great artists, and then Marvin, in his own lane.
“When you listen, in one measure, you feel like you’ve read a novel. Such a rich inner life in that voice, heavenly but riddled with pain, agony, and ecstasy at the same time. When he gained his independence in the ’70s, with that album “What’s Going On”, then “Trouble Man” and “Let’s Get It On”, “I Want You” and his final masterpiece, “ Here, My Dear,” when it comes to vocal orchestrations and the way he layered his voice, he’s Mozart.”
He added, “You’ve heard of all these big-name directors that have tried for 35 years to consolidate these rights. This started with Dre, saying, ‘Let’s do this together,’ and then Jimmy came on, and Andrew Lazar, and we worked with the estate, with Motown and some other things that needed to be tied down, and we got it done.” Well, That’s The Philly Beat!
