Tag Archives: film review

“Mathematical. Ethical. Available.” The Fantastic Four: First Steps

26 July 2025

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Perhaps it is just the ravages of living in this present timeline, but this summer it seems as though all of us are just ready for some good-hearted, brightly-lit escapism (see: Superman). The Fantastic Four: First Steps, the latest installment in the sprawling 20-year epic that is Disney’s Marvel Cinematic Universe, couldn’t be timelier. There have been a *few* previous attempts to bring Marvel’s “first family” to the big screen with varyingly debatable levels of quality. It puts a big ol’ nerdy smile on my face to declare Hollywood finally got it just right. Chef’s kiss. At first you don’t succeed, try again … try again … try again.

Director Matt Shakman, working from a kitchen’s sink script (seriously, there are like 83 writers on this thing … which normally is a huge red flag), delivers a tightly paced, deeply immersive experience. In order to offer a self-contained fresh start (don’t worry, you don’t need to have watch 412 previous films and tv episodes to know what’s going on), the film is set on a “parallel earth” (because that’s now a thing) where mid-century futurist chic rules the day. From an art/production design perspective, the film is sumptuous. Saarinen wept.

I think most of us take for granted the degree of difficulty to pull off a convincing world, with its own unique visual language, that feels both familiar and exotic at the same time (see: Star Wars, Black Panther, Lord of the Rings). This film deserves all the Oscars for this design feat. Eye candy galore. And the distinctive look is aided and abetted by composer Michael Giacchino’s evocative, percolating score – one of his best yet!

Blessedly, the creative spark doesn’t end there. As fanciful as the setting appears, the movie is grounded in its own humanity, but not lazily gritty and dark and heavy (sorry, not sorry, Zack Snyder). The stakes are real and impactful – our intrepid heroes do have to save humanity from a globe-eating giant named Galactus (because it is a summer blockbuster after all), but the saving isn’t just for saving’s sake. Shakman leans into the longstanding familial dynamic among team leader Reed Richards (an arch, brilliant, befuddled, debonair Pedro Pascal), his spouse Sue Storm (a luminous, stately Vanessa Kirby), her brother Johnny Storm (a wry, spritely, slightly haunted Joseph Quinn), and honorary uncle Ben Grimm (a warm, big-hearted, anguished Ebon Moss-Bachrach). We care about the fate of the world because we care about them. Their joys and fears are our joys and fears – this is as much a dramedy about the ties that bind as it is about people who stretch and flame on and turn invisible and clobber, while rocking some very natty Spandex couture.

(Say this about producer Kevin Feige and the Marvel machine: they know how to cast a film.)

Deftly, the film skips through any origin-retelling and jumps four years into our heroes’ nascent world-saving careers. The film employs an Ed Sullivan-style chat show as a narrative device to catch up anyone who somehow doesn’t already know that our quartet got bombarded by “cosmic rays” on a space voyage and thereby developed their strange and wondrous abilities. We get a greatest hits overview of all their victories, vanquishing no end of fever dream silver age villains (Red Ghost! The Wizard! Giganto! Mole Man!), and we are quickly apprised of how beloved The Fantastic Four have become, bringing world peace and utopia, with their good-natured wisdom and heroics. (As an aside, it’s also interesting in this present moment that both Fantastic Four and Superman depict worlds where noble heroes save us from our darker impulses and from our free-wheeling animosity for “the other.”)

Into this blissful global existence, a shiny metallic herald arrives on a boogie board. We’ve seen the Silver Surfer onscreen before, but Julia Garner brings a world-weary gravitas we haven’t yet observed in such a tragically drawn character (a plot point which I won’t spoil here). She ominously advises this Jetsons-esque planet’s inhabitants to “get their affairs in order” because the big, purple Cuisinart named Galactus (a frighteningly detached and unrelenting Ralph Ineson) is on his way to gobble them up.

As a galactic hail Mary, the Four pursue the Surfer back to Galactus’ home base to, well, attempt to talk him out of it. That … doesn’t go well, and he demands Sue’s unborn child in trade for potentially sparing Earth. Understandably, Reed and Sue are, like, “Nope!” and high tail it back home to divine a different hail Mary altogether. Beyond that, I’ll let you see for yourself how the plot resolves itself, but as “comic book-y” as it all sounds, the wrap up is believable, accessible, and affirming.

Scene stealer alert! Paul Walker Hauser has what amounts to a glorified cameo as another longstanding Marvel villain Mole Man (yes, you read that correctly), and he is utterly brilliant, lovable, infuriating, and iconic in his screen time. We can only hope that there is an alternate Hollwood in the space/time continuum where the filmmakers were brave and silly enough to dump Galactus and focus the entire film on Mole Man’s love/hate relationship with the Fantastic Four. Hauser’s scenes crackle with unpredictability and comic sparkle – and not in what has become that clichéd Marvel “bro humor” way, but the kind of elegant comedy that spins from altogether relatable jealousy and misdirected tension. “Johnny, don’t be mad. I didn’t dress you.” – a quip from Hauser that is far funnier onscreen than it reads here, both from the context of the scene and from Hauser’s delivery, dripping with pointed sarcasm.

If I have any quibble (and I really don’t), the film sands down the rougher extremes of Reed, Johnny, and Ben. Kirby’s Sue is perfection – she nails the emotional high wire act of being an alpha-level matriarch who carries the weight of worlds both immense and confined on her shoulders. “I will not sacrifice my child for this world, and I will NOT sacrifice this world for my child” she observes in a powerful speech to, well, every resident of our Big Blue Marble.

Pascal is a fabulous presence, and one of his innate gifts is imbuing morally ambiguous characters with a compelling lovability. The script fights him a bit on this here, not giving him quite enough opportunity for us to worry that Reed’s pursuit of scientific truth (and quite frankly hero worship) might lead him to throw everyone over for victory. That said, it is quite chilling at the Four’s Sunday family dinner when he calmly intones that potentially sacrificing his only child is “Mathematical. Ethical. Available.”

Similarly, Ben and Johnny are missing some of the emotional extremes that make their characters more interesting in print: for Ben, a sense of outsider loss and insecurity from existing as a lumbering pile of orange rocks, and, for Johnny, the mammoth chip on his shoulder that he isn’t the brainiest member of the group, offsetting that with reckless daredevilry. Again, these are minor character nuances, the absence of which doesn’t detract at all from what Shakman delivers, and perhaps we will see more of this in future installments … of which I hope there are many! 

 The future foundation is bright again for the MCU.

“What would I do with mutant dinosaurs from an accounting perspective? Is that REALLY what we are asking?” Jurassic World Rebirth

12 July 2025

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My God, Jurassic World Rebirth is an astonishingly stupid movie. The kind of movie that makes me angry I saw it. I don’t want to devote any more time to the damn thing by writing about it, to be honest, but I have … thoughts.

Here’s the thing. The overarching conceit – 32 years in – just doesn’t work anymore if it ever actually did past the first installment. As an audience, can we in good faith care about, worry over, or invest in the humans in peril if they are such nitwits that they willingly return to the former park setting, research lab, holding island, WHATEVER where chaos has already ensued countless times? Shouldn’t we in fact feel utter sorrow for the dinosaurs at this point? They asked for NONE of this, happily extinct until “life found a way” with greedy entrepreneurs who only worried about whether they “could not if they should” (and all the other pseudo-philosophical bromides that have peppered this film franchise).

Have these films become my generation’s version of those Irwin Allen disaster pics of yore where random celebs at various points of their careers survive an airport on fire in the middle of a hurricane which is also on fire? Paging Shelley Winters.

Rebirth director Gareth Edwards is one of our more interesting filmmakers, particularly with this kind of capitalistic science run amuck enterprise. Why didn’t he finally flip the script on its head and give us a film where without equivocation humans were the real enemies?! That would have been interesting. No one would have bought a ticket, but at least there would have been a raison d’etre.

What do we get? An L.L. Bean catalog costumed romp through Spielberg’s greatest hits:

  • Beautiful cinematography of sweeping jungle vistas
  • The epic swell of John Williams’ iconic theme (a LOT)
  • Random yuppie family members inexplicably in peril – people who should be nowhere near ANY of this but by dumb luck and poor life choices are
  • Chic product-placed SUVs
  • One whimsically likable and infinitely merchandisable pocket dino to contrast with those mean big ol’ SCARY ones just looking for a meal
  • Thumbnail tragic back stories ONLY for the characters who will clearly survive so we are manipulated into fretting over them
  • A handful of other people, each of whom will clearly get offed every seventeen and a half minutes because they’re painted as marginally unlikable
  • Absolutely zero grief from the survivors (UNLESS it’s a red herring death of a cast member who will reappear from the jungle ten minutes later)
  • Internal logic that is all over the map – e.g. don’t make a sound to inadvertently attract the dinos UNLESS we need you to scream and wail in the next scene with little existential consequence
  • Flippant jokes made amidst the carnage to show how chill the characters really are
  • Characters who periodically whoop and holler with glee at unearned “victory” or “in awe” moments – like they are attending a college football game
  • AND a terrifically talented and terrifically wasted cast who would have been better served playing Pickleball than showing up for this drivel

Scarlett Johansson plays a kind of remixed Lara Croft mercenary version of Chris Pratt’s and Laura Dern’s characters from earlier films. Mahershala Ali is the wise and world-weary boat captain with a secret heart of gold. Jonathan Bailey fares the best of the three as the Sam Neill/Jeff Goldblum arch-but-sexy-nerd “voice of reason” paleontologist. Bailey manages to wring some gold from the lines he’s given, landing a few zingers along the way – my favorite: “What would I do with mutant dinosaurs from an accounting perspective? Is that REALLY what we are asking?” Or maybe I just found that funny because it felt like an indictment of Universal Pictures still pumping these movies out.

Seriously, the film is sharp enough to cast three smart, winning, box office draws who can act but then has them wander around cavalierly for two and a half hours like they are at a blood-splattered country club. It felt like this was the direction they were given: “Yes, we know being surrounded by frantically carnivorous dinos should elicit some authentic reactions of abject fear, but we think it would be better if you portrayed your characters like they were in a Hallmark movie on their way to a county fair after grabbing a low-fat soy macchiato at Starbucks and some workout gear at lululemon. Can you make that work?”

There are simply no stakes in this film. I suppose I should tell you the hook for all the mayhem THIS time. In short, people in this Jurassic universe just don’t care about dinos anymore – they’ve moved on. Ho hum. And the remaining dinos can’t survive anywhere but a few equatorial islands. THAT could have been an interesting concept to explore in detail – how jaded and indifferent we have become as a society through the lens of dinosaurs becoming extinct, not literally but in popularity. We cavalierly cast aside such a miracle of science because it ceases to entertain; not to mention the planet’s atmosphere is so effed up these amazing creatures can’t survive here anyway. But, no, that’s just a passing thought in the first 10 minutes to set up an excursion to the equator to draw DNA from THREE – count ‘em THREE – very specific dinos (one by sea, one by land, one by air … naturally) in order for big pharma to develop a cure for heart disease. Yup, that’s why these nincompoops travel to hell on earth and get themselves killed (or mostly killed). For MacGuffins. Bailey’s character is stuck being the Jiminy Cricket conscience, periodically chastising with comments like “Science is for ALL of us, not SOME of us” and “WE don’t rule the earth … we just THINK we do.” Sigh.

Hey, Amblin Entertainment and Universal Pictures, the next time – and that is a fiscal inevitability – you start cranking up your marketing machinery to gestate another one of these Jurassic babies, just take a moment and remember what Jeff Goldblum cautioned alllllll the way back in 1993 (and I repeat for those in the back): “You were so preoccupied with whether or not you could, you didn’t stop to think if you should.”

“You have a flying saucer, but you couldn’t get a faster garage door?” Superman (2025)

12 July 2025

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Writer/director/mega geek James Gunn’s new cinematic take on DC Comics’ mainstay Superman is indeed, well, SUPER. Sorry, not sorry for the corny lead in. In fact, Gunn’s film (and one could argue his entire oeuvre) pops corn into anarchic, infectious punk rock. For some reason, “being punk” is a running theme in the caped blockbuster – in this case, grace and decency being a new form of rebellion. Even more inexplicably it works. I suppose many of us are just hungry for nice, a concept so out of vogue that it seems revolutionary now.

Gunn runs headlong into every goofy trope that makes Superman interesting. He owes a good bit to Grant Morrison and Frank Quitely’s miraculous run on the All-Star Superman comic book, written twenty years ago, remixing half-baked silver age futurism, radioactive monsters, pocket universes, and merchandisable sidekicks into an infectious summertime confection that packs a poignant punch just when it seems ready to spin into fizzy incoherence. Gunn is that kid who takes every toy from the box, piles them in the middle of the room, and curiously spins a compelling yarn from absurdity.

Before I go further, there is nothing “political” about this film (not sure when that word became anathema but here we are anyway). This is ironic since one of the many, many narrative conceits is that the big blue boy scout has gotten himself into a social media quagmire after intervening in geopolitics, preventing two warring nations from blowing each other up. This is a film about kindness and compassion, delivered with such bonkers glee that I’m hard pressed to identify how anyone could be offended by it. Although many will try, glomming onto the media hype to eke out a moment of attention (or ratings). Gunn is savvy enough to lay a meta trap for these types by depicting in movie universe how supervillains big and small vilify the good-hearted and the downtrodden to score their own points. If hyperventilating real-world pundits WANT to be aligned with bald baddie Lex Luthor then more power to them, I suppose.

This is about as comic book-y a movie as I’ve ever seen, and on the balance that is a breath of fresh air. The film is unashamed to be bright and cluttered, buoyant and episodic, with not one whiff of “grounded and gritty.” That said, Gunn also finds ways to embrace every type of Superman that has come before, with Easter Eggs and callbacks to every movie era, unafraid to acknowledge, nay embrace, that we in the audience have long term memories. The smartest move the film makes is working in John Williams’ iconic 1970s/80s theme to the score as a periodic emotional exclamation mark. Oh, and we even get some of the swooping neon font used previously in the Christopher Reeve films for this take’s opening and closing credits. Those touches never seem pandering – homage maybe but utterly welcome. They cue us that we are back on familiar ground where Superman can be fun.

I’ll admit there were times where Gunn’s script and the day-glo CGI lost me. I still have no clue what was happening interminably with some interdimensional rift threatening all of humanity, and I guess I don’t care. Gunn’s strength is always in the off-kilter character dynamics and the softer moments of human connection, arguably illuminated in how they stand out from the video game antics.

And the man knows how to CAST a film. David Corenswet is a rangy, floppy golden retriever to former Superman Henry Cavill’s sleek, GQ Dobermann, but the shift is needed here. (Cavill got saddled with one rotten screenplay after another so he’s not really to blame.) Corenswet’s Superman – and especially his Clark Kent – is kind of an adorable mess, which makes the character’s boundless co-dependent compassion that much more compelling. This Superman is every bit the sweet orphan who hopes to change the world by encouraging us all to find our better angels. When grilled by Lois Lane regarding his controversial intervention in that global firefight, he responds in pained befuddlement, “I wasn’t representing anyone but me. And doing good.” Oh, if we could only have more of that today.

Speaking of dogs, for the first time in film history, we also get the treat of seeing Superman’s canine companion Krypto on the big screen – he’s an even bigger mess than Supes: disobedient, reckless, and utterly perfect. One day, we’ll look back on all of Gunn’s films and realize the actual key to them is how much he understands and respects animals (I’m still a mess from that last Guardians of the Galaxy installment).

Rachel Brosnahan gives us a Lois Lane for the ages – yes, in love with Superman/Clark – but more in love with the truth, complete in her agency as a character. No damsel in distress, Lois is in fact key to helping rescue humanity from the precipice, with some smart reporting … while piloting a flying saucer.  Yes, you read that correctly.

Speaking of the spaceship, it’s owned by another superhero Mr. Terrific, a beautifully deadpan Edi Gathegi, whose smarts and tech prowess and cynicism are a nice palate cleanser from Superman’s “gee whiz” winsomeness. When Terrific and Lois team up in the film’s final act to rescue Superman from the clutches of Lex Luthor, the film crackles with comic energy. I can’t do this moment justice (and don’t want to spoil it), but just know that Brosnahan’s delivery of this line to Gathegi will bring down the house (as it did in my showing): “You have a flying saucer, but you couldn’t get a faster garage door?”

(I flash back to Carrie Fisher’s Princess Leia breaking through all the self-seriousness in the first Star Wars with her acerbic delivery of “Aren’t you a little short for a Stormtrooper?” Summer movies need those “get over yourself” bits.)

Nicholas Hoult, who would be remarkable just reading the phone book, nails Lex Luthor’s egomania, entitlement, and xenophobia without devolving into cartoon histrionics. For all of the cotton candy whimsy in this film, Hoult’s Luthor is genuinely terrifying, NOT because he’s chewing the scenery, but because he ISN’T. Hoult nails an inherent truth in the character. Yes, he’s monstrously envious of the adoration Superman receives and wants it for himself, but Luthor, like all great villains, thinks he himself is the hero, trying to save us from ourselves by redirecting our idol worship onto a more worthy subject … Lex Luthor. The subtle tears he sheds when his scheming inevitably falls short are a surprising but brilliant choice, Hoult’s haunted, beatific, yet spoiled brat face, a contortion of frustration, isolation, and grief.

Nathan Fillion is clearly having a ball as the petulant Green Lantern Guy Gardner, nailing the unearned swagger of a failed football hero, and Anthony Carrigan brings a nice touch of circus freak sadness to the shape-shifting Metamorpho. Skyler Gisondo is low-key hysterical as Jimmy Olsen, jettisoning the overeager insecurity we’ve seen in the character previously for a wily wit and opportunism that works nicely. 

But the pure heart of the film is provided by Ma and Pa Kent – Neva Howell and Pruitt Taylor Vince. Their scenes are brief but utterly charming, capturing deftly the folksy, insular world of farmers blessed with an adopted son who fell from the stars. Vince is one of those remarkable actors who just doesn’t get enough mainstream attention or praise – it’s criminal really. If you aren’t a puddle when he tells Clark/Superman how proud he is to be his father, well, YOU’re the monster!

The film isn’t perfect – it doesn’t need to be. The sheer exuberance offsets the flaws. At times I wondered if it wouldn’t have worked a bit better as a series, so the viewer could digest/compartmentalize the many subplots that are likely unnecessary but add to the entire enterprise’s escapist delight. The film bursts at the seams with too many ideas, too many characters, and yet miraculously still hangs together as a breezy, yet powerful reminder that kindness matters. When the theatre lights go up and you’ve happily sat through all the credits, not caring if there are any bonus scenes (there are two – and they’re just cute little touches – not attempts at sequel-driven world building), you’ll exit with a big, dumb silly grin on your face. That’s summer movie magic, right there.

“This is where I’m from, but you’re where I belong.” Paddington in Peru and Captain America: Brave New World

27 February 2025

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Advanced warning, this will be a short one. I admit, I escaped to the movie theater today, my place of comfort and retreat, while mover men clambered all around our house packing up all of our worldly possessions. (Side note: today and tomorrow are vacation days for me, although given all that activity it’s hardly what I would call a rejuvenating 48 hours.)

Yesterday, I stayed in the house on conference calls, while the movers were doing their work, and I just couldn’t take it again today. I’m so excited about the future, but it feels like the end of an era to be honest, watching as 20+ years of beloved possessions are packed away by very nice, but complete strangers, seeing a house we have loved so much look increasingly like a war zone. Plus, if one more worker came around the corner and said to me, “Gosh, there sure is a lot more stuff than was in the estimate,” I was likely to scream bloody murder.

So how did I pass the time? By catching up with a double feature of sequel entries in beloved franchises, two films that are perfectly serviceable, completely entertaining, but don’t hold the luster of their predecessors: Paddington in Peru and Captain America: Brave New World.

Surprising no one who has seen the previous two Paddington films, that one was the stronger entry here. It doesn’t quite have the arch, scruffy wit of its forebears, but it still retains all of the warmth and sweetness. I may have cried some ugly tears at the end. It could simply be from exhaustion with this move, but I was deeply affected as Paddington rediscovered his roots in deepest, darkest Peru. The little CGI bear is ably supported by a wonderful cast, including new additions, Olivia Colman, as a literal singing, slightly devious nun and Antonio Banderas, as a non-singing, slightly devious boat captain. Both have a hell of a time, chewing every bit of scenery in their wake, and it works very well.

But the secret weapon of these films remains Paddington, so winsomely voiced by Ben Whishaw. All it takes is one melty glance from the little bear and the film has you in the palm of its hand. When Paddington explains to his adopted human family – The Browns – “This is where I’m from [Peru], but you’re where I belong,” I dare your heart not to pang. It’s worth your time if looking for a late February escape.

Captain America: Brave New World is fine, but seems like a shadow of the superhero spy, clockwork genius of Captain America: Winter Soldier or even Captain America: Civil War. Brave New World fills in all the expected story beats smoothly, but still feels like a diet soda, full of fizz and empty calories. The cast is uniformly excellent and deserves a better script, notably, a gruff and flinty Harrison Ford – is there any other kind of Harrison Ford at this point? Anthony Mackie is terrific as the new Captain America, full of steely swagger and enough side-eyed bewilderment to keep his character interesting. I hope the Marvel machine makes better use of him in the future.

I should also admit that I had to field about four work calls and two calls from the movers during Brave New World so it’s quite possible I missed something integral to the plot, but it says something about the film that every time I returned it didn’t feel like I’d actually missed much at all.

From DBusiness: Clark Hill Director of Marketing Roy Sexton Named to Outstanding 100 LGBTQ+ Executives Role Model List for 2024

26 November 2024

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Thank you, R.J. King, Tim Keenan, and DBusiness Magazine, for your consistent and kind support and for all you do for Southeast Michigan and Detroit.

Original article here.

Roy Sexton, director of marketing at Clark Hill and 2024 International Immediate Past President of the Legal Marketing Association, has been named to the INvolve Outstanding 100 LGBTQ+ Executives Role Model List for 2024.

This is his second year in a row being recognized by the organization.

The Outstanding LGBTQ+ Role Model Lists supported by YouTube showcase LGBTQ+ business leaders and allies who are breaking down barriers and creating more inclusive workplaces across the world. They aim to represent the wide range of impactful and innovative work being done for inclusion across different countries, organizations and sectors, and celebrate the diverse range of inspiring individuals who have made it their personal mission to make a difference.null

“Roy Sexton leads Clark Hill PLC’s marketing, branding, and communications efforts. INvolve wrote. “In 2024, Roy was named one of Corp! Magazine’s ‘Most Valuable Professionals in Michigan.’ He was listed in Crain’s Detroit ‘Notable LGBTQ in Business’ in 2021 and ‘Notable Leaders in Marketing’ in 2023. In 2022, Clark Hill’s marketing campaign received Best Marketing Campaign from Managing Partners’ Forum in London, celebrating professional services organizations. The campaign was noted for its focus on values, diversity, inclusion.

“Roy hosts the monthly Expert Webcast series “All the World’s YOUR Stage: Authentic Culture Drives Authentic Growth,” discussing the importance of inclusion, allyship, authenticity, personal/professional branding with nationally recognized executives and thought leaders. Each episode has a monthly reach of at least 20,000 impressions. In 2023, Roy was the international president of the 4,000-member Legal Marketing Association. Throughout his tenure, Roy prioritized DEI issues, putting them front and center on all education and messaging efforts.”

INvolve is a consultancy and global network driving diversity and inclusion in business. Through the delivery of advisory solutions, awareness workshops, talent development programs, INvolve drives cultural change and create inclusive workplaces where all individuals can succeed. They publish annual role model lists recognizing and celebrating business leaders and future leaders who are breaking down barriers at work and inspiring the next generation of diverse talent.

“I’m thrilled to have been named amongst these incredible LGBTQIA+ leaders for the second year in a row,” Sexton says. “People often fail to realize the importance of visibility and representation. These awards aren’t about the momentary personal ‘sugar rush’ of recognition. Rather they demonstrate to the business community the essential value of celebrating those willing – and brave enough – to integrate the personal and professional sides of their lives. And more importantly, to talk about it. As a young gay man in the late ‘90s and early ‘00s, such a list would have given me far greater confidence that there would be a place for me in this world. I’m grateful – and hopeful – that I in turn can serve some small role in helping send that message to the LGBTQIA+ community today.”

From The Sun Times News: “These awards aren’t about the momentary personal ‘sugar rush’ of recognition.” INvolve Outstanding 100 LGBTQ+ Executives Role Model List 2024

16 November 2024

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Thank you, Sun Times News!

Original article here.

Roy Sexton, Director of Marketing at Clark Hill and 2024 International Immediate Past President of the Legal Marketing Association, has been named to the INvolve Outstanding 100 LGBTQ+ Executives Role Model List for 2024. This is his second year in a row being recognized by the organization.

Other honorees include David Hynam, Chief Executive, LV=; Dame Julia Hoggett DBE, CEO, London Stock Exchange PLC; Jen Carter, Global Head of Technology at Google; David Furnish, CEO/Chair of Rocket Entertainment Group/Elton John AIDS Foundation; Emily Hamilton, Vice-President Change, RS Group; Suresh Raj, Chief Growth Officer, McCann New York; Eugenio Pirri, Chief Executive Officer, Dorchester Collection; Travis Torrence, U.S. Head of Legal, Shell; Josh Graff, Managing Director for EMEA/LATAM and VP Enterprise Solutions Group, LinkedIn; and Robyn Grew, CEO, Man Group.

The Outstanding LGBTQ+ Role Model Lists supported by YouTube showcase LGBTQ+ business leaders and allies who are breaking down barriers and creating more inclusive workplaces across the world. They aim to represent the wide range of impactful and innovative work being done for inclusion across different countries, organizations and sectors, and celebrate the diverse range of inspiring individuals who have made it their personal mission to make a difference.

In their recognition, INvolve wrote, “Roy Sexton leads Clark Hill PLC’s marketing, branding and communications efforts. In 2024, Roy was named one of Corp! Magazine’s ‘Most Valuable Professionals in Michigan.’ He was listed in Crain’s Detroit ‘Notable LGBTQ in Business’ in 2021 and ‘Notable Leaders in Marketing’ in 2023. In 2022, Clark Hill’s marketing campaign received Best Marketing Campaign from Managing Partners’ Forum in London, celebrating professional services organizations. The campaign was noted for its focus on values, diversity, inclusion. Roy hosts the monthly Expert Webcast series All the World’s YOUR Stage: Authentic Culture Drives Authentic Growth, discussing the importance of inclusion, allyship, authenticity, personal/professional branding with nationally recognized executives and thought leaders. Each episode has a monthly reach of at least 20,000 impressions. In 2023, Roy was the international president of the 4,000-member Legal Marketing Association. Throughout his tenure, Roy prioritized DEI issues, putting them front and center on all education and messaging efforts.”

INvolve is a consultancy and global network driving diversity and inclusion in business. Through the delivery of advisory solutions, awareness workshops, talent development programs, INvolve drives cultural change and create inclusive workplaces where all individuals can succeed. They publish annual role model lists recognizing and celebrating business leaders and future leaders who are breaking down barriers at work and inspiring the next generation of diverse talent.

About the recognition, Sexton observed, “I’m thrilled to have been named amongst these incredible LGBTQIA+ leaders for the second year in a row. People often fail to realize the importance of visibility and representation. These awards aren’t about the momentary personal ‘sugar rush’ of recognition. Rather they demonstrate to the business community the essential value of celebrating those willing – and brave enough – to integrate the personal and professional sides of their lives. And more importantly, to talk about it. As a young gay man in the late 90s and early 00s, such a list would have given me far greater confidence that there would be a place for me in this world. I’m grateful – and hopeful – that I in turn can serve some small role in helping send that message to the LGBTQIA+ community today.”

From Detroit Legal News: “People often fail to realize the importance of visibility and representation.” INvolve Outstanding 100 LGBTQ+ Executives Role Model List 2024

14 November 2024

3 Comments

Thank you, Detroit Legal News’ Sheila Pursglove, Brian Cox, Brad Thompson, Tom Kirvan, and team for all this support you show our professional community. It means a lot.

Original article here.

Roy Sexton, director of Marketing at Clark Hill and 2024 International Immediate Past President of the Legal Marketing Association, has been named to the INvolve Outstanding 100 LGBTQ+ Executives Role Model List for 2024. This is his second year in a row that Sexton has been recognized by the organization. 

The Outstanding LGBTQ+ Role Model Lists supported by YouTube showcase LGBTQ+ business leaders and allies who are breaking down barriers and creating more inclusive workplaces across the world. They aim to represent the wide range of impactful and innovative work being done for inclusion across different countries, organizations and sectors, and celebrate the diverse range of inspiring individuals who have made it their personal mission to make a difference.

In their recognition, INvolve wrote, “Roy Sexton leads Clark Hill PLC’s marketing, branding and communications efforts. In 2024, Roy was named one of Corp! Magazine’s ‘Most Valuable Professionals in Michigan.’ He was listed in Crain’s Detroit’s ‘Notable LGBTQ in Business’ in 2021 and ‘Notable Leaders in Marketing’ in 2023. In 2022, Clark Hill’s marketing campaign received Best Marketing Campaign from Managing Partners’ Forum in London, celebrating professional services organizations. The campaign was noted for its focus on values, diversity, inclusion. Roy hosts the monthly Expert Webcast series All the World’s YOUR Stage: Authentic Culture Drives Authentic Growth, discussing the importance of inclusion, allyship, authenticity, personal/professional branding with nationally recognized executives and thought leaders. Each episode has a monthly reach of at least 20,000 impressions. In 2023, Roy was the international president of the 4,000-member Legal Marketing Association. Throughout his tenure, Roy prioritized DEI issues, putting them front and center on all education and messaging efforts.”

INvolve is a consultancy and global network driving diversity and inclusion in business. Through the delivery of advisory solutions, awareness workshops, talent development programs, INvolve drives cultural change and create inclusive workplaces where all individuals can succeed. 

About the recognition, Sexton said, “I’m thrilled to have been named amongst these incredible LGBTQIA+ leaders for the second year in a row. People often fail to realize the importance of visibility and representation. These awards aren’t about the momentary personal ‘sugar rush’ of recognition. Rather they demonstrate to the business community the essential value of celebrating those willing – and brave enough – to integrate the personal and professional sides of their lives. And more importantly, to talk about it. As a young gay man in the late ‘90s and early 2000s, such a list would have given me far greater confidence that there would be a place for me in this world. I’m grateful – and hopeful – that I in turn can serve some small role in helping send that message to the LGBTQIA+ community today.”

Other honorees include David Hynam, Chief Executive, LV=; Dame Julia Hoggett, DBE, CEO, London Stock Exchange PLC; Jen Carter, Global Head of Technology at Google; David Furnish, CEO/Chair of Rocket Entertainment Group/Elton John AIDS Foundation; Emily Hamilton, Vice-President Change, RS Group; Suresh Raj, Chief Growth Officer, McCann New York; Eugenio Pirri, Chief Executive Officer, Dorchester Collection; Travis Torrence, U.S. Head of Legal, Shell; Josh Graff, Managing Director for EMEA/LATAM and VP Enterprise Solutions Group, LinkedIn; and Robyn Grew, CEO, Man Group.

“It’s not helpful. It’s actually debilitating.” INvolve – The Inclusion People #Pride 2024: Debunking misconceptions.

26 June 2024

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From INvolve – The Inclusion People: “Can you recognize myths and misconceptions from reality? 💡 For Pride Month 2024, we spoke to three of our 2023 Outstanding Role Models who debunked some misconceptions and myths about LGBTQ+ communities. Hear what they have to say here.

“Hear from: Roy Sexton, Director of Marketing, Clark Hill; Joelle Archer, Vice-President Research Creative Suite, Morgan Stanley; Deon Pillay CMgr MCMI, Head of Marketing Technology Enablement and Governance, Legal & General Investment Management (LGIM) … who are using this space to debunk misconceptions.

“Allies – you are crucial for change. Take on board the learnings that these Role Models are sharing and consider how you can best avoid slipping into biases, or perpetuating misconceptions and also how you can leverage your power, influence and platform to support and elevate your LGBTQ+ colleagues.”

View here.

TRANSCRIPT for my contribution: So for me, at least in my lived experience the last few years where I’ve had some increasingly visible leadership roles, it’s that well-meaning allies think I am open to unsolicited advice.

Truth of the matter is, it has taken me 51 years to get to the place of authenticity, where I feel comfortable in my own skin, and when allies come forward and try to manage me for style, offering me points on how I dress, or how I speak or how I use social media or how visible I am …

It’s not helpful. It’s actually debilitating.

What we really want is support on substantive issues and opportunities where we can be present with our authentic selves.

So if you are thinking that as a gay man, I’m interested in your advice on how to dress for success?

I’m not.

Summertime madness … join me for Answering Legal’s “Law Firm Summer Reboot Camp”

4 June 2024

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I will be appearing for the second year in a row at Answering Legal’s virtual Law Firm Summer Reboot Camp!

Secure your ticket here.

Register for the camp and you’ll gain access to 18 live panel conversations and six live podcast recordings this July and August.

ANSWERING LEGAL PRESENTS: Law Firm Summer Reboot Camp

Come join us at our 3rd annual Law Firm Summer Reboot camp! This year’s camp, which remains completely virtual, is expanding to two weeks. We’ll be hosting panels from July 23rd thru July 26th, then again from August 13th thru August 16th.

By signing up for our camp, attendees will gain access to 18 live panel conversations and six live podcast recordings, in which they’ll receive expert advice on reinventing their practice for the final stretch of 2024 and beyond.

This year’s camp will cover a wide variety of different topics!

July 23rd and August 13th will feature legal tech discussions.

July 24th and August 14th will feature legal marketing discussions.

July 25th and August 15th will feature law office management discussions.

July 26th and August 16th will focus on a variety of different topics, with special guest hosts.

All camp attendees will get to follow our live conversations virtually, and can submit questions for guest panelists via chat. Once registered, you’ll receive email reminders of when camp conversations are set to begin.

As the weather heats up, we’ll be gradually announcing the special guests who will be joining us virtually at summer bootcamp.

While you wait, check out some videos from last summer’s camp.

9Sail’s “Tip of the Law” podcast – “Harnessing Strategic Focus in Legal Marketing” with host Joe Giovannoli and guest yours truly … #lma24 #lmamkt

31 May 2024

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Thank you, 9Sail and Joe Giovannoli! Appreciate all you do for our profession and our community …

Join us on the latest episode of the Tip of the Law podcast, where host Joe Giovannoli sits down with Roy Sexton, Director of Marketing at Clark Hill and past president of the Legal Marketing Association – LMA International board. Discover how Roy’s unique journey from English major, theater practitioner, and healthcare exec to legal marketing has shaped his innovative approach.

In this episode, Roy shares invaluable insights on:

🔹 Strategic focus in legal marketing
🔹 Building expertise and credibility
🔹 The importance of internal support and storytelling

Don’t miss out on Roy’s expert tips to elevate your legal marketing strategies and drive meaningful results.

Listen here.

Full episode description …

On a recent episode of the Tip of the Law podcast, host Joe Giovannoli was joined by legal marketer Roy Sexton, Director of Marketing at Clark Hill Law and past president of the Legal Marketing Association. Roy has decades of experience in the legal marketing field and offered some invaluable insights into how firms can maximize their efforts. 

One key takeaway was the importance of strategic focus. Roy emphasized that firms need to analyze their data and prioritize the practice areas that have the highest revenue potential, rather than trying to please every attorney equally. Marketing dollars and resources are best spent amplifying the messaging around top revenue generators. 

Roy also stressed the importance of attorneys establishing themselves as subject matter experts. By publishing content that builds expertise in their specialty fields, attorneys can signal to potential clients the areas a firm specializes in. This includes posting about events, speaking engagements, and podcast appearances on platforms like LinkedIn. Not only that, but by promoting podcast clips and interviews on social media, the attorneys perpetuate the marketing cycle and raise awareness for all parties.

When it comes to content, Roy said repetition, focus, and quality are often where firms fall short. Firms must consistently repeat high-quality messages around a select few priority topics to truly make an impact. Another best practice- and Roy’s takeaway tip for legal marketers- is creating a weekly digest highlighting recent marketing activities and efforts. This engages the internal team while giving marketers newsworthy content.

Overall, Roy provided many thought-provoking insights that firms can apply to strengthen their strategies. By analyzing data, prioritizing key areas, empowering attorneys as experts, and optimizing efforts, firms can maximize the impact of their marketing investments. 

Key takeaways:

  1. Law firms should strategically focus their marketing efforts and resources on the practice areas that have the highest revenue potential rather than trying to please all attorneys equally. 
  2. Attorneys can build expertise and credibility by publishing content on their own profiles that establishes them as subject matter experts in their fields of practice.
  3. Law firms need to incorporate repetition, focus, and strategy into their marketing plans in order to achieve success. 
  4. Creating a weekly digest of marketing activities is an effective way for marketers to keep the internal firm updated on efforts while also giving them content to engage with.