I saw the premier of this film last summer at the Billy Holiday Theater in Brooklyn. It is currently making the rounds at both national and international film festivals. It's the story of a nice kid from Brooklyn who turns into a murderous thug. Charlie shows no remorse in his path of destruction. His family and associates are sucked into a spiral of drug-related violence as money and power drive Charlie to the shocking final scenes of this film.
Shot on video with a cast of real New York people, don't expect to see a lot of fancy effects and pretty Hollywood faces here. Its just a great action movie with excellent martial arts sequences choreographed by Writer, Director and Actor Kenya Cagle. Cagle and is co-director Gail Rorant follow in the footsteps of John Cassavettes in a latter day "true cinema." Based on a true story, Goodnite Charlie is a compelling depiction of a youth gone bad in the modern urban environment.
The actors did a great job in emotional and realistic portrayals, with stand out performances by Nafeesha Pasha as Charlie's mother, and James Anthony Jackson as his uncle Leon. The dynamic between Charlie played by Ernest Dancy and his uncle Kenneth played by Kenya Cagle who lays everything on the line for him tells the tragic and classical story a youth who thinks he can conquer the world by breaking all the rules.
I played the Lawyer in this film and it was a truly enjoyable experience being part of it. Seeing the film brought to the big screen was the greatest pleasure since so many true indies either never even get finished or never make it to DVD. Bigtime Hollywood actor and producer Bill Duke was at the premier and expressed congratulations and thanks to all those involved. I truly hope to see a limited theatrical release or at the very least a DVD release. There is an audience for this film out there, and I am confident that it will find it eventually.
The remarkable casting of previously undiscovered talent by Anisha Gennario was both realistic and fresh. The sound track was notably original, featuring memorable Hip Hop tracks by Pop Gaskins including the title track "Goodnite Charlie" and some great R&B by Ayanna Gabriel who also sang live at the Premier. The script by Cagle was very authentic and a pleasure, but the third act was maybe a bit too long for its own good. The sound of the film was pretty good on the whole, with a couple of small scenes that could benefit from overdubbing to be heard. Another round of unbiased editing and some more post-production would make this film an indie 10! Oh, and don't forget that Lawyer!!
