Capsule Reviews: 'They Cloned Tyrone,' 'Flamin' Hot' & 'The League'

This piece was written during the 2023 WGA and SAG-AFTRA strikes. Without the labor of the writers and actors currently on strike, the films being covered here wouldn't exist.

by Philip Price

They Cloned Tyrone

Photo: Netflix

“They Cloned Tyrone” is of the best of the post-‘Get Out’ generation at mixing genres and tone around social commentary. Not sure the commentary comes together as seamlessly as the rest of the movie is sure it will, but the filmmaking is assured enough to convince the viewer to stay with the story. On the cusp of being great, but a lot of fun nonetheless, much of this due to the performance Jamie Foxx turns in. I’m optimistic Foxx will pick more projects like this in the future and that director Juel Taylor will have the opportunity to make more like it.
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“They Cloned Tyrone” is streaming on Netflix. 

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Flamin' Heart

Photo: Disney/Hulu

While a quick Google search of Richard Montañez, the hero at the center of Eva Longoria's directorial debut “Flamin' Hot,” will offer some conflicting reports on the truth of the story this film tells it would seem (as always) that the truth is somewhere in the middle meaning “Flamin' Hot” is probably about as historically accurate as something like “Argo.” While there may or may not be cause for some type of moral debate around the authenticity of Montañez's story what I tend to look for when these types of questions arise is the intent of the film. If Longoria's intent was purely to heap praise and adoration upon Montañez said complications around whether or not this guy is telling the absolute truth might be more relevant, but that is not why Longoria seemingly chose this as her first film. It's obvious Longoria desired to tell this story because outside of it following the underdog "American Dream" arc it is about a Hispanic underdog who not only wants to prove to himself, his father and his community that he's more than what society has labeled him, but also wants to prove to white corporate America that both he and his community are good enough; that he and they are worth listening to. To this end, “Flamin' Hot” is just inspiring and entertaining enough without ever feeling like it captures the spice that made its namesake a national craze.

“Flamin’ Hot” is streaming on Hulu and Disney+. 

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The League

Photo: Magnolia Pictures

As someone who isn't an avid sports fan in general and even less enthusiastic about baseball I'm not sure how much of what is included in Sam Pollard's documentary “The League” is common knowledge to those who are and how much of what is presented here is rather revelatory. Either way, Pollard presents a sturdy, clear-eyed look into what is a seemingly (if not unsurprisingly) overlooked aspect of baseball's history: the Negro League.

This is rather by the books as far as documentaries go a la lots of archival footage and talking head interviews but given I didn't know much about the subject matter beforehand I found this enlightening, but I was fascinated by the conflicted feelings this seemed to conjure for many of the subject matter experts that were interviewed. Beyond being introduced to characters such as Andrew "Rube" Foster who deserves his own narrative feature and batting phenom Josh Gibson whose eyes, in any picture, have the ability to pierce your soul there is this complicated notion of avoiding integration. Not necessarily avoiding it, but at least acknowledging how much the owners and many of the players involved in the Negro League would have to give up in order to get in.

Writing and watching from a place of privilege I was disappointed in myself for not recognizing that even when the needle was moved in the right direction morally and socially for the world at large it still came at a cost for those who'd already lost and sacrificed more than they should have.

You can rent “The League” for $6.99 on Amazon Prime Video.