Eddie Murphy, Arsenio Hall and the artisans behind the award-winning “Coming 2 America” broke down the highly successful sequel to the 1988 film and the return of the barbershop trio. Murphy…
Perfection is rarely achieved in movies, but this heaven-sent concert doc hits the sweet spot. Over two days in January 1972, the Queen of Soul, Aretha Franklin — she was 29 at the time — sweeps into the New Temple Missionary Baptist Church in Watts in front of a congregation and testifies to God in song. The blessed thing took nearly half a century to come out because director Sydney Pollack failed to sync the image with the sound. Then digital angels stepped in, and glory, glory, hallelujah!
Perfection is rarely achieved in movies, but this heaven-sent concert doc hits the sweet spot. Over two days in January 1972, the Queen of Soul, Aretha Franklin — she was 29 at the time — sweeps into the New Temple Missionary Baptist Church in Watts in front of a congregation and testifies to God in song. The blessed thing took nearly half a century to come out because director Sydney Pollack failed to sync the image with the sound. Then digital angels stepped in, and glory, glory, hallelujah!
Perfection is rarely achieved in movies, but this heaven-sent concert doc hits the sweet spot. Over two days in January 1972, the Queen of Soul, Aretha Franklin — she was 29 at the time — sweeps into the New Temple Missionary Baptist Church in Watts in front of a congregation and testifies to God in song. The blessed thing took nearly half a century to come out because director Sydney Pollack failed to sync the image with the sound. Then digital angels stepped in, and glory, glory, hallelujah!
Perfection is rarely achieved in movies, but this heaven-sent concert doc hits the sweet spot. Over two days in January 1972, the Queen of Soul, Aretha Franklin — she was 29 at the time — sweeps into the New Temple Missionary Baptist Church in Watts in front of a congregation and testifies to God in song. The blessed thing took nearly half a century to come out because director Sydney Pollack failed to sync the image with the sound. Then digital angels stepped in, and glory, glory, hallelujah!
Perfection is rarely achieved in movies, but this heaven-sent concert doc hits the sweet spot. Over two days in January 1972, the Queen of Soul, Aretha Franklin — she was 29 at the time — sweeps into the New Temple Missionary Baptist Church in Watts in front of a congregation and testifies to God in song. The blessed thing took nearly half a century to come out because director Sydney Pollack failed to sync the image with the sound. Then digital angels stepped in, and glory, glory, hallelujah!
Perfection is rarely achieved in movies, but this heaven-sent concert doc hits the sweet spot. Over two days in January 1972, the Queen of Soul, Aretha Franklin — she was 29 at the time — sweeps into the New Temple Missionary Baptist Church in Watts in front of a congregation and testifies to God in song. The blessed thing took nearly half a century to come out because director Sydney Pollack failed to sync the image with the sound. Then digital angels stepped in, and glory, glory, hallelujah!
Perfection is rarely achieved in movies, but this heaven-sent concert doc hits the sweet spot. Over two days in January 1972, the Queen of Soul, Aretha Franklin — she was 29 at the time — sweeps into the New Temple Missionary Baptist Church in Watts in front of a congregation and testifies to God in song. The blessed thing took nearly half a century to come out because director Sydney Pollack failed to sync the image with the sound. Then digital angels stepped in, and glory, glory, hallelujah!
Perfection is rarely achieved in movies, but this heaven-sent concert doc hits the sweet spot. Over two days in January 1972, the Queen of Soul, Aretha Franklin — she was 29 at the time — sweeps into the New Temple Missionary Baptist Church in Watts in front of a congregation and testifies to God in song. The blessed thing took nearly half a century to come out because director Sydney Pollack failed to sync the image with the sound. Then digital angels stepped in, and glory, glory, hallelujah!
Eddie Murphy, Arsenio Hall and the artisans behind the award-winning “Coming 2 America” broke down the highly successful sequel to the 1988 film and the return of the barbershop trio.
Murphy said the cult following of the first film had garnered an audience that just didn’t go away, and that inspired the reunion with co-star Arsenio Hall.
In conversation with Variety’s senior artisans editor Jazz Tangcay for the “Coming 2 America” Amazon Variety Streaming Room, Hall and Murphy were joined by co-hair department heads Stacey Morris and Carla Farmer, as well as character makeup designer Mike Marino.
Farmer and Morris discussed pulling inspiration from the Afropunk movement to create the looks of Zamunda, the film’s fictional royal kingdom. Additionally, the duo wanted to implement a tribal aesthetic that was both urban and edgy. Said Morris, “There’s a hairstyle called Amasunzu style and it originates from the Tutsi tribe. They used to wear it back in the 1920s. During my research, I saw these styles and I said, ‘Oh, this is perfect for Wesley Snipes’ character.'”
In the film, Murphy and Hall transform into Clarence, Morris and Sweets with the help of prosthetics and Marino’s work. Calling Marino’s toolkit “top-shelf stuff,” Murphy said, “When you look and you see no trace of yourself, then it just raises the level of what you’re doing.”
Adds Hall, “When Stacey [Morris] was talking about the guys aging, Mike [Marino] wanted to show me different things like liver spots and moles that he thought would happen to the barber or the preacher over the years. He approached it scientifically.”
With the film shooting in Atlanta, Farmer and Morris had to ship over 50 cases of hair and supplies from L.A. since they didn’t know what supplies would be available to them in Georgia.
Marino says each transformation required 13-20 items, including headpieces and neckpieces. He incorporated bags under the actors’ eyelids and added details such as nose hairs. Says Marino, “After that, Ruth Carter adds costumes. There’s just so much work going on.” Each day, the process is repeated, since the prosthetics could not be reused.
Watch the full conversation above.