Cosmic Slop (film)
{{Short description|1994 anthology television film}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=April 2025}}
{{Infobox television
| image = Cosmic Slop (1994) poster.jpg
| image_alt =
| caption = Television release poster
| genre = {{Plainlist|
}}
| creator = Reginald Hudlin
| presenter = George Clinton
| based_on = {{Plainlist|
- {{based on|"The Space Traders"|Derrick Bell}}
- {{based on|"Tang"|Chester Himes}}
}}
| writer = {{Plainlist|
- Trey Ellis ("Space Traders")
- Warrington Hudlin ("The First Commandment")
- Kyle Baker ("Tang")
}}
| director = {{Plainlist|
- Reginald Hudlin ("Space Traders")
- Warrington Hudlin ("The First Commandment")
- Kevin Rodney Sullivan ("Tang")
}}
| starring =
| music = John Barnes
| country = United States
| language = English
| executive_producer = {{Plainlist|
- Reginald Hudlin
- Warrington Hudlin
}}
| producer = Ernest Johnson
| editor = {{Plainlist|
- Stephen Semel ("Space Traders")
- Richard Candib ("The First Commandment")
- Victor DuBois ("Tang")
}}
| cinematography = Peter Deming
| runtime = 83 minutes
| company = {{Plainlist|
- HBO
- Hudlin Bros.
}}
| budget =
| network = HBO
| released = {{Start date|1994|11|08}}
}}
Cosmic Slop is a 1994 American anthology television film created by Reginald Hudlin, who executive produced with his brother Warrington Hudlin.{{cite book|last=Moon|first=Spencer|date=1997|title=Reel Black Talk: A Sourcebook of 50 American Filmmakers|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=0YQvCbc5pBcC&pg=PA168|publisher=Greenwood Publishing Group|page=168|isbn=978-0313298301}} The film is hosted by musician and Parliament-Funkadelic frontman George Clinton, and derives its title from the 1973 album and song of the same name by Clinton and Funkadelic.{{cite news|last=Duffy|first=Mike|date=November 8, 1994|title=HBO's 'Cosmic Slop' is pleasantly weird|url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/106345480/detroit-free-press/|work=Detroit Free Press|location=Detroit, Michigan|access-date=July 26, 2022}}
Cosmic Slop features three short segments. The first, "Space Traders", was directed by Reginald Hudlin, written by Trey Ellis, and based on the short story "The Space Traders" by Derrick Bell. The second, "The First Commandment", was written and directed by Warrington Hudlin. The third, "Tang", was directed by Kevin Rodney Sullivan, written by Kyle Baker, and based on the short story "Tang" by Chester Himes.{{cite book|last1=Berry|first1=S. Torriano|authorlink1=S. Torriano Berry|last2=Berry|first2=Venise T.|author-link2=Venise T. Berry|date=2015|title=Historical Dictionary of African American Cinema|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=8NJbCQAAQBAJ&pg=PA223|series=Historical Dictionaries of Literature and the Arts|publisher=Rowman & Littlefield|page=223|isbn=978-1442247017}} The film's ensemble cast includes Robert Guillaume, Jason Bernard, Edward Edwards, Larry Anderson, Nicholas Turturro, Richard Herd, Paula Jai Parker, and Chi McBride.
Cast
="Space Traders"=
{{Cast list|
- Robert Guillaume as Gleason Golightly
- Michele Lamar Richards as Gail Golightly
- Jason Bernard as Bernard Shields
- Bob Gunton as President Ellis
- Edward Edwards as Chief of Staff
- George Wallace as "Piggy"
- Brian Reddy as Vice President
- Larry Anderson as "Stryker" O'Rourke
- Brock Peters as Minister Coombs
- Ebonie Smith as Jennifer
- Craig Kirkwood as Lenny
- Liz Larou as Ute
- Special appearances by:
- Bertice Berry
- Franklin Cover
- Casey Kasem
- Roxie Roker
}}
="The First Commandment"=
{{Cast list|
- Nicholas Turturro as Father Carlos
- Efrain Figueroa as Padrino
- Richard Herd as Cardinal
- J. Kenneth Campbell as Mr. Spivey
- Daryl Mitchell as Mover #1
- Eugene Allen as Mover #2
- Noelle Balfour as The Saint
- Bob Wisdom as Captain Jackson
- Marcus Saldago as Young Man In The Botanica
- George Logan as Male Drug Dealer
- Kelly Jo Minter as Female Drug Dealer
- Ana Mercedes as Blessed Woman
- John Witherspoon as Homeless Man #1
- Chino Fats Williams as Homeless Man #2
- Bowlegged Lou as Homeless Man #3
}}
="Tang"=
- Paula Jai Parker as Tang
- Chi McBride as "T-Bone"
- Reno Wilson as The Messenger
Release
Cosmic Slop premiered on HBO at 10:00 pm Eastern Standard Time on November 8, 1994.
Reception
Ken Parish Perkins of the Chicago Tribune likened Cosmic Slop to "a multicultural Twilight Zone filled with political and racial angst," calling it "offbeat, humorous and disturbingly effective."{{cite news|last=Perkins|first=Ken Parish|date=November 7, 1994|title=Red flag issues: 'Cosmic Slop' rushes in where TV often fears to tread|url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/106345253/chicago-tribune/|work=Chicago Tribune|location=Chicago, Illinois|access-date=July 26, 2022}} Perkins concluded that "the Hudlin brothers have created a politically charged anthology that doesn't flinch or apologize for its views. This could ultimately prove unsettling, even to the usually risk-taking executives at HBO." Mike Duffy of the Detroit Free Press wrote that Cosmic Slop "suffers erratic, hit-and-miss moments," save for the "Tang" segment; Duffy wrote that "Tang" "echoes the provocative intelligence of the original Twilight Zone", and praised the performances of Baker and McBride.
References
{{Reflist}}
External links
- {{IMDb title|id=0109487|title=Cosmic Slop}}
{{Reginald Hudlin}}
{{Kevin Rodney Sullivan}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Cosmic Slop (Film)}}
Category:1994 television films
Category:1994 science fiction films
Category:1994 in American television
Category:1990s English-language films
Category:1990s science fiction drama films
Category:1990s supernatural films
Category:American anthology films
Category:American drama television films
Category:American science fiction drama films
Category:American science fiction television films
Category:American supernatural drama films
Category:Films about extraterrestrial life
Category:Films about race and ethnicity
Category:Films based on American short stories
Category:Films based on multiple works
Category:Films based on science fiction short stories
Category:Films directed by Reginald Hudlin
Category:Films directed by Kevin Rodney Sullivan