What to Watch This Weekend: April 17, 2020

Redbox: Just Mercy

Just Mercy is an inspiring, timely, and sadly appropriate movie for our times.  It has Oscar-worthy acting, amazing cinematography, and tells an important story that that doesn't leave a heart untouched or an eye dry at its conclusion.  For more information, check out our review!

Redbox: Underwater
Underwater's intense action, climactic score, and good characters are sunk by a plot that dives into nonsense halfway through this short film.  However, it is still worth a rental to see the interesting premise and suspenseful action.  For more information, check out our review!

Digital: Pigeon Kings
PigeonKings explores the competitive aerobatic pigeon scene in south central LA through two men's passion for the sport and community.  For more information, check out our review!

Streaming (Netflix): #BlackAF

#BlackAF provides a great balance of comedy and storytelling, while taking risks in being unfiltered, bold, and honest.  For more information, check out our review!

Streaming (Amazon): The Lighthouse

The Lighthouse has a distinctive and recognizable style, along with Oscar-worthy performances from its two leads.  For more information, check out our review!

Streaming (Netflix): Sergio

The Lighthouse has a distinctive and recognizable style, along with Oscar-worthy performances from its two leads.  For more information, check out our review!

Streaming (Netflix): School Life

School Life teaches some valuable life lessons about growing up and finding your place in life, with an enjoyable cast of characters in a French high school drama. For more information, check out our review!

Streaming (HBO): It: Chapter 2
It Chapter Two reunites the Losers with the iconic clown, but does so in an unnecessarily long way.  The film has a fantastic cast and a ton of tension, but the long run time and ridiculous CG effects spoil the overall experience.  For more information, check out our review!

Streaming (Showtime): A Dog's Journey

If you want something uplifting this weekend, check out this audience-loved movie about a dog who lives multiple lives to try and come back to his original owner. 

Review: Pigeon Kings

Release date: April 14, 2020
Running time: 81 minutes
Starring: Keith London, Darrian Hogg

Pigeon Kings explores the competitive pigeon breeding and aerobatics subculture in south central Los Angeles.  The documentary focuses on two men, Keith London--the regional champion and top bird of the area--and Darrian Hogg--a younger competitor who is trying to perfect his craft and learn from Keith.  The two are preparing for qualification in the Roller Pigeon World Cup, which is held every year and covers pigeon teams from all over the world.  

Pigeon Kings has some beautiful cinematography, with absolutely gorgeous shots of south central LA and of its pigeon competitions.  The filmmakers stick to the area of competition--without having too many LA glamour shots--but do a great job composing realistic but beautiful shots of south central.  These are both of the competition and the birds themselves.  Seeing the birds in flight is really something to behold; there are some truly amazing images of these roller pigeons doing what they do best.  The roller pigeon world cup is an organized competition with judges and scoring, but the judging in the film takes place at each competitor's house, with competitors, judges, and spectators all standing in the streets.  It is really something to see and makes me sad I never experienced it myself when I lived in LA.  I had no idea that this sub culture existed but the documentary makes clear that there is an entire scene here, with rival clubs, local celebrities, and pigeon coops throughout the city. 

But this film is more than just about the competition.  The main focus is on London and Hogg, and Pigeon Kings really shows how much they care about the birds, their community, and their sport, sometimes to the detriment of their personal lives.  The film has many instances of them giving advice to each other, or helping the younger generation become interested in this sport.  And it shows them not only competing, but also putting in the time to prepare for the competition; working late into the night taking care of their birds in order to get them ready for the ultimate qualification.  And this passion also has an effect on their personal lives, which Pigeon Kings highlights as well. 

My main critique of the film is that I simply wanted more.  I wanted to know more about these birds, their unique flying ability, and the origins of this competition.  I also wanted to know more about the World Cup and this interesting competition.  I wanted to see what this scene was like and know about competitors around the world.  And although the film focuses on South Central and the local competitors, the film's main focus is on London and Hogg.  However, I would have liked to see more of the south central clubs and see how they interacted.  It seems like the film touches on all of these things without going into too much depth.  But when my main criticism of a film is that I simply wanted more of it, then that is usually a good sign.

Pigeon Kings explores the competitive aerobatic pigeon scene in south central LA through two men's passion for the sport and their community.  

Watch it.