R. Kelly Case Goes to the Jury
Sitting through reruns can be such a drag. Or it can just be really uncomfortable.
The eight-man, four-woman jury sitting in judgment of R. Kelly rewatched the sex tape at the center of the R&B star’s child-pornography trial before beginning their deliberations Thursday.
As part of their closing argument today, prosecutors replayed the 27-minute video, which they allege features Kelly having intercourse withand then urinating ona girl who was only 13 or 14 years old at the time.
Kelly is “directing her to dance, where to stand, when to stop urinating,” Assistant State’s Attorney Robert Heilengoetter told the jury as the video played.
There were no shocking statements in either side’s final summation of the case: The prosecution pressed for a conviction on all charges, which could land Kelly in prison for up to 15 years. The defense continued to argue that Kelly has been the victim of money-hungry acquaintances and is not the man on the tape.
Multiple witnessesfriends and relatives of the now 23-year-old alleged victim (who has since denied being the girl in the video) and former associates of Kelly’shave positively identified the “stars” of the home movie as Kelly and the female in question. Forensic video analysts also testified that it was highly unlikely the copy of the tape being used to prosecute Kelly was a fake.
Meanwhile, the Grammy winner’s team put its own expert on the stand, and he pretty much said anyone can do anything with computers these days. A private investigator spoke on Kelly’s behalf as well, saying the fiancé of the woman who attested to having a threesome with Kelly and the girl had tried to extort $300,000 from the singer to keep quiet.
“That’s what this is about: money, money, money,” defense attorney Sam Adam Jr. said during his closing argument.
The people who testified that it was Kelly on the tape, Adam continued, know it wasn’t himbecause “any solid man in that family, any solid woman in that family would have gone over there and broken his legs, would have gone over there and beat the crap out of him.”
Deliberations kicked off Thursday afternoon. After about an hour and a half, jurors asked for a transcript of purported threesome participant and “star witness” Lisa Van Allen, per the Chicago Tribune.
Both sides objected, saying the request was unreasonable because it would take several hours to print out a copy and delete sidebar dialogue. The defense, meanwhile, is pulling for the jury to get a copy, while the prosecution thinks they should have to review a transcript of the entire trial or get nothing at all.
Cook County Judge Vincent Gaughan sent the jury a note informing them that the transcript was not available at the time and that they should continue deliberating.
DVD Review: Hatchet
Hatchet, directed by Adam Green, is a disturbingly funny horror film about a group of tourists in New Orleans who end up on a haunted swamp tour. After their weird tour guide sinks their wimpy boat in gator infested waters, they are forced to wander the woods in search of civilization. In the dark and rainy forest, the tourists encounter Victor Crowley, a vengeful deformed maniac who calls the swamp home, setting out to kill anyone who dares venture on his land.
I love scary movies, but am also deathly afraid of them. Unfortunately, I was forced to watch this one alone. Hatchet literally made me cover my eyes and scream “ewww!” atleast 7 times. The film is chock full of bad acting and cheesy dialogue, but is bloody as hell, and hilarious and laughable at the same time. The characters types are stereotypical of horror films, and the storyline is pretty generic as well until the end (but too bad I can’t ruin that for you). Victor Crowley is one gross looking deformed person, and his hunting methods aren’t exactly pleasant. Hatchet is a great on the couch at home movie night film (in fact, I will probably make my boyfriend watch this with me again this weekend). Oh yeah, and props on main character Ben’s Newbury Comics shirt. I’ll be sleeping with the lights on tonight.
Son of Rambow in April 2008
Son of Rambow was probably the biggest hit of the 2007 Sundance Film Festival, sparking a record bidding war, which ended with Paramount Vantage taking home the goods. The film was originally set to hit theaters on July 20th 2007, but was pushed back to an unknown 2008 date without reason. Many people speculated that the studio might have wanted to release the film closer to the release of Sylvester Stallone’s John Rambo. Who knows if that is true or not. I just caught this gem in Toronto and LOVED LOVED LOVED it.
Director Garth Jennings revealed that the film would hit theaters in April 2008 on Friday night at a screening of the film during the Toronto International Film Festival. No further details were given. So there you have it. The film’s official plot synopsis follows:
SON OF RAMBOW is the name of the home movie made by two little boys with a big video camera and even bigger ambitions. Set on a long English summer in the early 80’s, SON OF RAMBOW is a comedy about friendship, faith and the tough business of growing up. We see the story through the eyes of Will, the eldest son of a fatherless Plymouth Brethren family. The Brethren regard themselves as God’s ‘chosen ones’ and their strict moral code means that Will has never been allowed to mix with the other ‘worldlies,’ listen to music or watch TV, until he finds himself caught up in the extraordinary world of Lee Carter, the school terror and maker of bizarre home movies. Carter exposes Will to a pirate copy of Rambo: First Blood and from that moment Will’s mind is blown wide open and he’s easily convinced to be the stuntman in Lee Carters’ diabolical home movie. Will’s imaginative little brain is not only given chance to flourish in the world of film making, but is also very handy when it comes to dreaming up elaborate schemes to keep his partnership with Lee Carter a secret from the Brethren community. Will and Carter’s complete disregard for consequences and innocent ambition means that the process of making their film is a glorious rollercoaster that eventually leads to true friendship. They start to make a name for themselves at school as movie makers but when popularity descends on them in the form of the Pied Piper-esque French exchange student, Didier Revol, their unique friendship and their precious film are pushed, quite literally, to breaking point.
Reeves: “You WILL see the Cloverfield monster”
Shock Til You Drop recently sat down with Cloverfield director Matt Reeves, and asked him a few questions about the film. In regards to fans concerns that the choice of ‘hand-held’ camera style would hide the monster, Reeves had this to say:
We wanted this to be as if someone found a Handicam, took out the tape and put it in the player to watch it. What you’re watching is a home movie that then turns into something else. But the other thing I noticed was that the “Blair Witch” guys obviously didn’t have the resources to make a big movie and this was a great way to tell their story. They used that to their advantage to create great suspense. We’re creating great suspense while you see the great features of this monster. The other thing I think is very exciting is this monster is huge and you see everything. You see it in a way that is if you’re shooting it with a Handicam. If you’re hiding under a car, you see it that way, and there are other moments - I can guarantee you - you are seeing this monster in a huge way.
Awesome. Glad to see that they aren’t skimping on the monster itself.
For the rest of the (very informative) interview, head over to Shock Til You Drop.