''Imperial Dreams'' is an American
drama film
In film and television, drama is a category or genre of narrative fiction (or semi-fiction) intended to be more serious than humorous in tone. Drama of this kind is usually qualified with additional terms that specify its particular super-g ...
written and directed by Malik Vitthal. The film had its world premiere at
2014 Sundance Film Festival
The 2014 Sundance Film Festival took place from January 16, 2014 until January 26, 2014 in Park City, Utah, United States, with screenings in Salt Lake City, Ogden, and Sundance Resort in Utah. The festival opened with ''Whiplash'' directed by Da ...
on January 20, 2014. It won the ''Audience Award'' at the festival. The film was released as a Netflix original film on February 3, 2017.
Plot
A 21-year-old reformed gangster Bambi's devotion to his family, particularly his son Daytone, and his family's future are put to the test when he is released from prison and returns to his violent old stomping grounds in
Watts, Los Angeles
Watts is a neighborhood in southern Los Angeles, California. It is located within the South Los Angeles region, bordering the cities of Lynwood, Huntington Park and South Gate to the east and southeast, respectively, and the unincorporated comm ...
. Themes include mass incarceration, the importance of education, racial profiling by police, and the many obstacles present in the system that prevent those interested in rehabilitation from surviving when placed back in society.
Cast
*
John Boyega
John Adedayo Bamidele Adegboyega (born 17 March 1992), known professionally as John Boyega, is a British actor and producer. He first rose to prominence in his native Britain for his role as Moses in the sci-fi comedy film '' Attack the Block ...
as Bambi
*
Rotimi Akinosho as Wayne
*
Keke Palmer
Lauren Keyana "Keke" Palmer (born August 26, 1993) ( ) is an American actress, singer and television personality. Known for playing leading and character roles in comedy and drama productions, she has received a Primetime Emmy Award, five NAACP ...
as Samaara
*
Glenn Plummer
Glenn E. Plummer (born August 18, 1961) is an American film and television actor best known as Timmy Rawlins in '' ER'' (1994-2007), and Vic Trammel in ''Sons of Anarchy'' (2008-2009).
Biography
Plummer was born in Richmond, California.
Career ...
as Uncle Shrimp
*
Kellita Smith
Kellita Smith (born January 15, 1969) is an American actress, model and comedian. She is best known for her role as Wanda McCullough, Bernie Mac's wife on the FOX sitcom ''The Bernie Mac Show''.
Life and career
Born in Chicago, Illinois, She ...
as Tanya
*
De'Aundre Bonds
De'Aundre Bonds is an American actor.
Career
Bonds has mostly appeared as a guest actor on television shows; however, he was also featured in the Spike Lee film ''Get on the Bus'', in ''Tales from the Hood'' and in the Rick Famuyiwa film ''The Wo ...
as Gideon
*
Sufe Bradshaw
Sufe Bradshaw ( ; born November 30, 1979) is an American actress, best known for her role as Sue, the secretary and scheduler with an acerbic wit, to Vice-President Selina Meyer, in the HBO comedy series ''Veep''. Her prior acting credits include ...
as Detective Gill
* Jernard Burks as Cornell
*
Nora Zehetner
Nora Angela Zehetner (born February 5, 1981) is an American film and television actress.
Early life
Zehetner was born in El Paso, Texas, the daughter of Nancy Lynne (née Nelson) and John Carol Zehetner. She attended elementary school in Richar ...
as Janine
*
Anika Noni Rose
Anika Noni Rose (born September 6, 1972) is an American actress and singer. She is best known for voicing Tiana, Disney's first African-American princess, as seen in ''The Princess and the Frog'' (2009). She was named a Disney Legend in 2011.
S ...
as Miss Price
*
Maximiliano Hernández
Maximiliano Hernández (born September 12, 1973) is an American actor. He is best known for portraying Agent Jasper Sitwell in the Marvel Cinematic Universe and FBI Agent Chris Amador in the first season of ''The Americans''.
Early life
A nati ...
as Detective Hernandez
* Ethan and Justin Coach as Daytone
Production
The title ''Imperial Dreams'' references a point in the movie where the nature of emperors of the projects is expounded upon. It's also a reference to the housing projects where the movie takes place,
Imperial Courts
Imperial Courts is a public housing project located in Watts, Los Angeles, California.
It is located at 11541 Croesus Avenue on Imperial Highway, between Grape Street and Mona Boulevard, near I-105 Freeway. The federally subsidized project of ...
, in Watts.
Reception
''Imperial Dreams'' received positive reviews from critics. Review aggregator
Rotten Tomatoes
Rotten Tomatoes is an American review-aggregation website for film and television. The company was launched in August 1998 by three undergraduate students at the University of California, Berkeley: Senh Duong, Patrick Y. Lee, and Stephen Wang ...
reports that 91% of 11 film critics have given the film a positive review, with an average rating of 7.3 out of 10.
Geoffrey Berkshire of ''
Variety
Variety may refer to:
Arts and entertainment Entertainment formats
* Variety (radio)
* Variety show, in theater and television
Films
* ''Variety'' (1925 film), a German silent film directed by Ewald Andre Dupont
* ''Variety'' (1935 film), ...
'', in his review called the film "Bighearted yet surprisingly nuanced." Justin Lowe by his review for ''
The Hollywood Reporter
''The Hollywood Reporter'' (''THR'') is an American digital and print magazine which focuses on the Cinema of the United States, Hollywood film industry, film, television, and entertainment industries. It was founded in 1930 as a daily trade pap ...
'' praised the film in calling it "An assured debut that stands to connect with a diverse audience." Chase Whale of ''
Indiewire
IndieWire (sometimes stylized as indieWIRE or Indiewire) is a film industry and review website that was established in 1996. The site's focus was predominantly independent film, although its coverage has grown to "to include all aspects of Hollyw ...
'' graded the film B+ by saying that "John Boyega first wowed audiences with his dynamite performance in ''
Attack the Block
''Attack the Block'' is a 2011 British science fiction comedy horror film written and directed by Joe Cornish and starring John Boyega, Jodie Whittaker and Nick Frost. It was the film debut of Cornish, Boyega and composer Steven Price.
The f ...
''. Once again playing the anti-hero, Imperial Dreams is another victory lap for this young actor, who's going to go on to do big, big things."
See also
*
List of hood films
This is a list of hood films – films focusing on the culture and life of African-Americans, Hispanic Americans, and/or in some cases, Asian Americans living in segregated, low-income urban communities, as well as comparably deprived and crime-ri ...
References
External links
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Imperial Dreams
2014 films
American drama films
Sundance Film Festival award winners
Films produced by Andrea Sperling
Films produced by Jonathan Schwartz
English-language Netflix original films
Hood films
2014 drama films
2010s English-language films
2010s American films