Muse: Must See Black Movies
by: Phill M Branch, Jr.
My alma mater, the American Film Institute (AFI) has made a franchise of making lists of the most important films of our time; most notably the “100 Years…100 Movies.” It takes itself very seriously in that regard. Orsen Welle’s 1941 classic “Citizen Kane” is number one.
It’s a great list. I love many, if not, most of the films, but you have to get down to number 72 on the list to find a film with an African American in a major role - The Shawshank Redemption. You’d have to go a few steps further to find an African American in the lead - Sidney Poitier’s In the Heat of the Night. Barely sliding in at number 96 is Spike Lee’s Do the Right Thing, the only film with a largely black cast and director.
I’ve come up with my own list, “The Must-See Black Movies.”
Nope, The Color Purple did not make the list and neither did The Best Man, or Waiting to Exhale. When pressed to think about a definitive collection of films that one should see, I felt there were more interesting choices.
- Do the Right Thing (1989) Is there a need for an explanation? The film explored issues of race and class in a way that no other film has done since
- Imitation of Life (1959) If only for the final scene, this movie is a must-see. It’s glamorous, campy and thought provoking. The film questions the worth of trying to be that you are not.
- Black Like Me (1964) It may not play well when you watch it now, but this story of a white journalist traveling through the South, with his skin dyed black, is remarkable. And it still leaves the question - does it really just take darker skin to be a black man?
- Blazing Saddles (1974) No one was safe in this Mel Brooks comedy. Blacks, gays, Jews, and just about everybody else gets a turn at being roasted. Released just shortly after the civil rights era, this film about a black sheriff in a bigoted town is both smart and funny.
- Tongues Untied (1990) Marlon Riggs Tongues Untied was a performance art film hidden under the guise of a documentary. It was a poetic look at black gay men's struggle to love themselves while being suppressed by both the white and black dominant heterosexual culture. Originally aired on PBS after a successful film festival run, a whopping 174 of the 284 affiliates chose not to air the film.
- Claudine (1974) One look at the “Maury” show and you can see why this film is important. Topics such as welfare, teen pregnancy, single-parenthood, black fatherhood and politics are all wrapped up neatly in what appears to be a light-hearted romantic drama. Read some statistics about black families and childbirth and you can see how this film was telling for the future. Did the welfare system help kill the black family unit? Not only does this film make you think, it’s fun and the Gladys Knight soundtrack is fantastic.
- Hollywood Shuffle (1987) After watching this movie you will see that we’ve been fighting the same battles for a long time. The “pimps and hoes” have turned into “gangsta and babymamas” in the new millennium, but the story is still the same. Sadly, our image in Hollywood hasn’t evolved much.
- Love Jones (1997) Simply, the best romantic drama of our generation. Period.
- Sparkle (1976) At its face, it just looks like a precursor to Dreamgirls, but if you look deeper, the film is one big, black power fist being help up in the air. It’s about overcoming and not being owned. Irene Cara and Lonette McKee give their best performances and the Curtis Mayfield score is a homerun.
- Killer of Sheep (1977) A masterpiece. This film, while not having a typical narrative plot, is an astoundingly real look at man just simply living his life in a working class Watts neighborhood. It would be easy to regard the subject matter as melancholy, but you can see the small joys of being happy with what you have. Even more remarkable is that this film was director Charles Burnett’s UCLA thesis film. It’s listed on the National Film Registry.
- Nothing But a Man (1964) This film rings with so much authenticity that it feels like a documentary. It’s the story of a man who struggles with not being the breadwinner for his family in a small southern town. In addition to the hard knocks of employment and racism, this film also tackles black elitism.
- Bea: A Black Woman Speaks (2003) An amazing portrait of Academy Award nominated actress Bea Richards. Directed by Lisa Gay Hamilton, this film takes you on a heartwarming, insightful journey through civil rights, Hollywood, womanhood and so much more.
- On the Outs (2004) Based upon the real stories of girls from the streets and juvenile jail, this film is an unflinching look at the choices young women are forced to make out on the streets. This film is realistic in the way it portrays life -full of humor, heartache, hope and setbacks.
- Hoop Dreams (1994) & 15. Heart of the Game (2005) Both of these documentaries take a complex look at inner-city sports and recruiting. Hoop Dreams is a certified classic, but Heart of the Game deserves to be considered as well.
Written wants to know, what would be on your list? What would you remove from the list that Phill’s assembled? E-mail phill.branch@writtenmag.com or join the on-line conversation at www.writtenmag.com and www.hampton06.blogspot.com