This post from 2012 originally appeared on TheDefendersOnline.com.

By Ralph Richardson

While I was organizing and agonizing over this very important list of Top 25 African American films of all time, I used some parameters to guide me. First, what is an African American movie? It has to be:

– a movie about the black experience;
– and/or a movie that is written, produced and/or directed by black people;
– and/or it has to be a movie with a black person in the lead role.

Secondly, what criteria would I use to select and rate each film? The barometers I used were cultural influence, internet polling, and box office revenue, spiced up with a dash of my own personal bias.

I am an NYC-based filmmaker, so I come to this Top 25 list with a wonderful joy and love for film, and since my mother took me to the movies every week since I was 3, I also have a pretty good knowledge of this grand art form. The first movie I remember going to see was George Romero’s Night of The Living Dead. For some reason, the movie was playing at the theatre five years after its release–talk about shelf life.

The second movie I remember seeing is Shaft. What an opening sequence: Isaac Hayes’s booming soundtrack with Richard Roundtree in the dead of winter cutting boldly through NYC. These films and many others have helped to shape my references, my view and in some ways my identity. As I finish up my film, Sex, Drugs, and Comedy, I feel comforted that I have a wide array of great films to lean on.

I present to you the top 25 African American films of all time:

25. Friday (1995) — Directed by F. Gary Gray, “Friday” is the story about a day in the lives of two best friends, Craig (Ice Cube) and Smokey (Chris Tucker). When Smokey smokes all the weed he is supposed to sell, Big Sherm threatens to kill Smokey, if Smokey doesn’t have his money by the end of the night. Made with a small budget of $3.5 million, it went on to gross $32.5 million, and has spawned two sequels. This movie made Chris Tucker and Ice Cube huge stars. Friday is one of the funniest and most quotable comedies in American Film. Here are some of my favorite quotes: “I got mind control over Debo,” “You ain’t got to lie Craig, you ain’t gotta lie,” and “Damnnnnn”.

24. Purple Rain (1984) — Written and Directed by Albert Magnoli, this semi-biographical movie showcases one of the all-time biggest rock stars, Prince Rogers Nelson. This balls-to-the-walls musical drama is arguably the best rock musical of all time. Anchored by one of the best albums of all time (Time magazine ranked it 15th greatest album), the Purple Rain soundtrack went on to sell over 14 million albums. The film boasts lively appearances by Clarence Williams III of Mod Squad fame, Morris E. Day, and Appollonia. Prince and the Revolution won an Oscar for Best Original Song Score: Purple Rain. The film grossed over $70 million. “Let’s Go Crazy. Let’s get nuts.”

23. Cabin In The Sky (1943) — Directed by Vincente Minnelli, who adapted the film from the musical, is based on the German Legend of Faust, the classic German legend who makes a pact with the devil in exchange for knowledge. Little Joe, a degenerate gambler, promises his wife, Petunia, he’ll change and that he will confess his sins at church. But before he does, Little Joe slips out the side door to play one more game of craps. He gets into a fight, gets shot, and dies. Little Joe makes a deal with the devil, and gets 6 months to become a good husband. The film boasts grand performances by Lena Horne (who had an affair with the director), Louie Armstrong, and Duke Ellington. In the 1940s, movie theaters, mostly in the south, refused to show films with prominent black performers. MGM took a considerable financial risk by approving the film. Nominated for an Oscar for Best Music and Original Song for Happiness Is a Thing Called Joe. No box office is recorded; DVD came out in 1996.

22. Eve’s Bayou (1997) – Kasi Lemmons wrote and directed this gem that launched the careers of Jurnee Smollett and Meagan Good and showcases the complexity and full richness of black family life with Samuel Jackson playing a privileged doctor father and Lynn Whitfield as his perfectly coiffed wife, and Debi Morgan as his psychic and troubled sister. Set against the lush backdrop of 1962 rural Louisiana, the film celebrates the diversity of the African-American experience with its presentation of authentic Creole culture. Roger Ebert said, “If this film isn’t nominated for any Academy Awards then the Academy isn’t paying attention.” Unfortunately for this confident, powerful film, it wasn’t. Made for around $5 million, Eve’s Bayou made $15.2 million on just a little over 600 screens.

21. Antwone Fisher (2002) — Based on a true story, Antwone Fisher (Derek Luke) is symbolic of the young black man of today: “My mother is on crack and I don’t know how my father is or was.” He also suffered various kinds of childhood abuse. How is a young man supposed to navigate life facing obstacles so grand and wide” Denzel Washington plays the naval psychiatrist who helps Antwone confront some of the demons from his childhood trauma. Antwone penned the screenplay, then his memoir, Finding Fish, released shortly before the film’s debut. In Denzel’s directorial debut, he shows a strong and steady hand. This film launched Derek Luke’s career. Box office plus DVD sales were $50 million.

20. Hollywood Shuffle (1987) — Written, directed, and produced by Robert Townsend, this film is a classic American satire about Hollywood and it’s relationship to black talent. Robert leaves no stone unturned from his skit on “Black Acting School” taught by white teachers to the skit “Sneaking in The Movies.” Made for a little under $100k, this film that could grossed over $5million at the box office. Check out Keenan Ivory Wayans, Damon Wayans, Rusty Cundieff, Paul Mooney, and John Witherspoon in the beginning of their film careers.

19. Stormy Weather (1943) — Directed by Andrew Stone, and starring Lena Horne and acclaimed dancers Bill “Bojangles” Robinson and the Nicholas Brothers, the film is loosely based upon Robinson’s life and career. With a running time of only 77 minutes, the film has over 20 musical numbers with highlights including Fats Waller performing his classic, Ain’t Misbehavin’, Cab Calloway’s electric performance in his number, The Jumpin’ Jive, and the title song featuring the angelic voice of Lena Horne and the dancing of Katherine Dunham. Calloway, Waller and a host of other top artists make this movie fun and free. Stormy Weather is in the National Film Registry of the Library of Congress for its historical and cultural significance.

18. Ray (2004) — Directed by Taylor Hackford. The irrepressible musical genius, Ray Charles, is played to stunning effect by Jamie Foxx in this wonderful autobiography. “Ray” was a critical hit as well as a box office fave. Jamie Foxx won the Oscar for best actor in a leading role. The film also won the Oscar for best sound mix and was nominated for four other Oscars, including Best Picture. Ray has incredible performances by Kerry Washington, Clifton Powell, and the magical Regina King. Ray Charles approved and worked with the film up until his death. The film grossed over $135 million worldwide.

17. The Spook Who Sat By The Door (1973) — Based on the novel by Sam Greenlee and produced and directed by Ivan Dixon (Hogan’s Heroes), this is one of the most subversive films ever made. This brilliant satire about the civil rights struggles in the ’60s, tells the story of a non-threatening Black man who rises in the CIA, only to quit and use his training to start the Black revolution in Chicago. Starring Lawrence Cook (Cotton Comes to Harlem, Colors), and Paula Kelly (Solent Green, Uptown Saturday Night). Kelly was the first woman to pose full frontal nude for the August 1969 issue of magazine. Soon after its release, The Spook Who Sat By the Door was removed from theaters as a result of its powerful revolutionary message. Prior to its release on DVD in 2004, it was a relatively difficult film to get.

16. Lady Sings the Blues (1971) — Directed by Sidney J. Furie. Starring Diana Ross, Billy Dee Williams and Richard Pryor, the film is loosely based on Billie Holiday’s autobiography of the same name. Classic Scene: when Billie Holiday (Diana Ross) is being booed while singing, Louis (Billie Dee Williams) comes over to Billie and hands her a $50 dollar bill. Billie is stunned. Louis replies in a sexy tone: “Do you want my arm to fall off?” Diana Ross got an Oscar nod for her stark portrayal of the best jazz singer in America. Other Oscar nominations were: Best Art Direction-Set Decoration, Best Music, Scoring Original Song Score and/or Adaptation, Best Costume Design, and Best Screenplay. It made $11.2 million at the box office — a nice tidy sum at the time.

15. The Color Purple (1985) — Based on the Pulitzer Prize-winning Alice Walker novel of the same title, and directed by Steven Speilberg, The Color Purple tells the story of Celie (Whoopi Goldberg) who faces poverty, racism, and rape by her father, along with verbal, emotional and physical abuse by her husband, Mister (Danny Glover). Celie, refusing to give in to those powerfully negative forces, finds her voice, her self determination, and her self worth. Also starring Oprah Winfrey and made for just $15 million, it went on to gross over $160 million, and was nominated for 11 Oscars including Best Picture, Best Leading Actress (Whoopi Goldberg) and Best Supporting Actress (Oprah Winfrey). Though nominated for 11, it did not win any. This ignited controversy because many critics considered it the best picture that year, including Roger Ebert. And other critics, including Spike Lee, felt that Steven Spielberg was a poor choice to direct a black film of such magnitude.

14. Carmen Jones (1954) — Directed by Otto Preminger, this film is an adaptation of the 1943 Broadway musical, Carmen, which hailed from the Georges Bizet opera, Carmen, and is set during WWII at an Army base. Dorothy Dandridge plays the wild woman, Carmen, whose sole ambition is to use what she’s got to get what she wants through lying, cheating, and stabbing. She sets her sights on the very nice and very engaged, Joe (Harry Belafonte). It isn’t long before Joe falls and fails for Carmen. Dorothy got the first Academy Award nomination for a black performer in a leading role. See a great performance by Pearl Bailey, and be sure to look out for a young Diahann Carroll.

13. Native Son (1951) — Written and Directed by Pierre Chenal, and based on Richard Wright’s book, Native Son, the first major black novel to speak against American racism in a strong and defiant voice, this tells the tale of Bigger Thomas (Richard Wright), a young man in Chicago who is hired as a white family’s chauffeur. Bigger gets drunk with the wealthy family’s rebellious daughter, Mary Dalton (Jean Wallace), and her boyfriend, and accidentally kills her. Read Percival Everett’s novel Erasure after you watch this film. There were several versions made of this radically vibrant book. This (the first) version was made in Argentina, because America would not have allowed such a powerful black movie. Wright, aged 42, played the protagonist, despite being twice the age of 20-year-old Bigger Thomas.

12. Boyz N the Hood (1991) – A coming-of-age story about three friends in hot, dusty South Central LA, starring Ice Cube, Cuba Gooding Jr., and Morris Chestnut, whose lives take divergent paths. Also starring Laurence Fishburne (pre-Morpheus) and written and directed by first-timer John Singleton, this film offers keen insight on what it means to grow up poor and Black in LA, and the difference in Black male destiny when a boy has a strong, positive man present in his life. Boyz N the Hood spawned the “hip hop” genre film that includes Juice, New Jack City and Menace II Society. John Singleton was nominated for two Oscars, best director and best screenplay. At age 24, he was the youngest person ever nominated for Best Director. In 2002, the United States deemed the film “culturally significant” and selected it for preservation in the National Film Registry. The film made $60 million at the box office.

11. Wattstax (1973) — Directed by Mel Stuart. Viewed as the Black Woodstock, this documentary was shot at the Los Angeles Coliseum on August 20, 1972. Wattstax had great performances by Isaac Hayes, The Staple Singers, and the Bar-Kays. What really separates this documentary from others, is the social commentary on race, class, and the Watts riots by Richard Pryor, Ted Lange (Isaac from the Love Boat), and a very young Jesse Jackson. In one scene, a stirring gospel song brings local church-goers to quiet tears, a moving affirmation of black song and the power to catch the spirit. The film was nominated for a Golden Globe award for Best Documentary Film in 1974.

10. Claudine (1974) — Directed by John Berry. Diahann Carroll stars as struggling single mother of six on welfare who falls in love with a garbage man from Harlem played by the great James Earl Jones. This movie is significant because it wasn’t a blaxploitaton film. That would be akin to having a #1 conscious Hip Hop record during the height of the gangsta rap era. Not only did Claudine break the box office with $79 million, Diahann Carroll was nominated for an Oscar for best actress.

9. City of God (2002) — Directed by Fernando Meirelles, City of God (Crime Drama) gives us a raw inside look at the growth of organized crime in the Rio de Janeiro suburb of Ciudad de Deus, between the end of the “60s and the beginning of the ’80s. Two boys, Rocket and Lil Ze, grow up in the same violent neighborhood but take different paths: one becomes a photographer, the other a drug dealer. Nominated for 4 Oscars, including Best Cinematography, Best Writing, Adapted Screenplay, Best Director, and Best Editing, it earned $30 million.

8. The Exile (1931) – Oscar Micheaux wrote and directed this first all-talking black independent feature, which was adapted from his first novel “Conquest” (1913). A young man named Jean (Stanley Morell) in post-World War I Chicago falls in love with a beautiful girl named Edith (Eunice Brooks). He soon realizes that she’s involved in the rackets. Jean goes back home to South Dakota, where he becomes a successful rancher, where he falls for a white girl (Nora Newsome). When Edith is later found murdered, Jean is blamed for the crime. Micheaux was the most prolific director in black movie history, making 44 films.

7. Imitation of Life (1934) — Directed by John M Stahl. This great film is based on the 1933 novel by Fannie Hurst. White widow Bea Pullman and her daughter, Jessie, take in black housekeeper Delilah Johnson (Louise Beavers) and her daughter, white-looking Peola (Fredi Washington). Delilah and Peola quickly become like family to Jessie and Bea, who make millions off of Delilah’s pancake recipe. As Peola grows up (the tragic mulatto myth), she learns she can pass for white and abandons her mother and her race. This film gives a grand view of race from both sides, but is not without well-deserved criticisms. Referenced in Toni Morrison’s novel The Bluest Eye, the film examines black internalized self-hatred, from a white point-of-view. The (1959) remake, starring Lana Turner as Bea and a white actress (Susan Kohner) as Peola, was nominated for an Oscar. In 2005, Imitation of Life (1934) was selected for preservation in the United States, and it was named in 2007 as one of “The 25 Most Important Films on Race.”

6. What’s Love Got To Do With It? (1993) — Directed by Brian Gibson, written by Tina Andrews, and based on the Tina Turner bio, I, Tina, this is the first film to pair Angela Bassett and Laurence Fishburne in leading roles. This brilliant film is about one woman’s struggle to fight physical and mental abuse and win. Halle Berry, Whitney Houston and Robin Givens auditioned for the role of Tina Turner. Houston won the role, but was very pregnant. Fishburne turned down the role of five times, until he learned that had finally taken the role of Tina Turner. Fishburne and Bassett were so magnificent and believable as Ike and Tina, that you forgot that you were watching a movie. Fishburne and Bassett were both nominated for Oscars. The film’s soundtrack featured the hit song, I Don’t Wanna Fight, which went number one in seven countries. The movie grossed nearly $70 million in theaters, and another $30 million in rentals.

5. Cooley High (1975) — Directed by Michael Schultz and written by Eric Monte (Co-creator of TV hits Good Times and What’s Happening). What was supposed to be the black American Graffiti became the greatest black coming-of-age story in Hollywood history. Set in the “60 in Chicago, starring Glynn Turman (Men of Honor, The Wire), Lawrence Hilton Jacobs (Welcome Back Kotter), and a bevy of Motown hits, this film was fun, fresh and poignant. The story is about the wild adventures and relationships of Leroy “Preach” Jackson, who wants to be a poet, and Richard “Cochise” Morris, a top-flight basketball player who just received a scholarship to college. One lives, one dies, and “It’s so hard to say goodbye to yesterday.” According to the Los Angeles Times, Eric Monte filed a lawsuit against producer Norman Lear (Sanford and Son, All in the Family) for stealing his ideas for Good Times, The Jeffersons (an All in the Family spin-off) and What’s Happening! Eric won the lawsuit, but was blackballed from the industry.

4. A Soldier’s Story (1984) — Directed by Norman Jewison, based upon Charles Fuller’s Pulitzer Prize-winning Off-Broadway production, A Soldier’s Play. Near the end of World War II, Captain Davenport (Howard Rollins Jr, the late Oscar nominee for Ragtime) has to investigate the murder of an abusive sergeant (Adolph Caesar) in the deep south. This film is filled with incredible performances from Art Evans, David Allen Grier, and Robert Townsend, but the big surprise came in the form of Denzel Washington in his Hollywood debut. A Soldier’s Story was nominated for three Academy Awards: for Best Picture, Adolph Caesar (Supporting Actor), and Screenplay Adaptation. Caesar, Washington and Allen Young appeared in both the movie and the original off-Broadway play. The film went to make $30 million.

3. In the Heat of the Night (1967) — Directed by Norman Jewison, is based on the John Ball novel of the same name, published in 1965. Sidney Poitier, coming off his 1963 Oscar for Best Actor in a Leading Role (Lilies of the Field), plays an intelligent police detective, Virgil Tibbs, from Philadelphia, who has to collaborate with bigoted Police Chief Bill Gillespie (Rod Steiger) to solve a murder investigation in a racist small town in Mississippi. This film is a milestone because of this forced collaboration during the turbulent 60s. The film also stars Lee Grant (Valley of the Dolls) and Warren Oates (The Wild Bunch). In one of the most quotable scenes of all time, Gillespie says, “Well, you’re pretty sure of yourself, ain’t you, Virgil? Virgil, that’s a funny name for a nigger boy to come from Philadelphia. What do they call you up there?” A defiant Virgil responds, “They call me Mister Tibbs.” Poitier’s strong confidence and quite dignity paved the way for the more boisterous and assertive Blaxploitation genre to prosper. The film, which won five Oscars, including Best Picture and Best Actor (Rod Steiger), was followed by two sequels, They Call Me MISTER Tibbs! in 1970, and The Organization, in 1971. It also became the basis of a television series, In the Heat of the Night, starring Carroll O’Connor, Howard Rollins, Alan Autry, David Hart, and Anne-Marie Johnson.

2. Body and Soul (1925) — Directed by Oscar Micheaux, the Godfather of black film, and starring one of the greatest American actors of all time, Paul Robeson, in his film debut at 27. This powerful silent film has Robeson playing two characters: the angelic Sylvester Jenkins and his evil brother, the “Reverend” Isaiah, an ex-con. Jenkins pretends to fall in love with a young member of his congregation, Isabelle Perkins (Mercedes Gilbert), so that he can get close enough to steal money from Isabelle’s mother, Mother Jane (Julia Theresa Russell, Micheaux’s sister-in-law), and convinces the young woman to take the blame for his crime. When the film was ready to be released, Micheaux was denied approval of his cut on the grounds it would “tend to incite to crime” and had to chop it down so that it could be shown. Body and Soul is one of three surviving silent films created by Micheaux, and is considered a lost film.

1. Do the Right Thing (1989) — Spike Lee, the father of modern black film, and one of the Kings of Indie cinema, gives an honest and brutal film about race in America. In one of the hottest day on record, in a Bedford-Stuyvesant neighborhood of Brooklyn, underlining racial animosity bubbles up front and center, between the frustrated black locals, the new Korean grocery, and the established Sal’s Pizzeria. With a small budget, this searing film went on to claim box office success and two Oscar nominations for best supporting actor (Danny Aiello) and best screenplay (Spike Lee). The film also boasts a strong, memorable cast including: Ossie Davis, Ruby Dee, Samuel L, Jackson, Giancarlo Esposito, Bill Nunn, and John Turturro, and the feature film debut of dancer/choreographer Rosie Perez and comedian Martin Lawrence. Who could forget Radio Raheem’s “D motha f D,” Robin Harris’s “If Tyson ever dreams about whippin’ my ass, he better wake up and apologize,” and Rosie Perez’s opening dance sequence to Fight the Power by Public Enemy. Despite the protests from many reviewers that the film was horrible and would incite black audiences to riots, it was a commercial success (made $45 million) and critical hit. In 1999, it was deemed “culturally significant” by the United States Library of Congress, and selected for preservation in the National Film Registry, one of five films to do so in its first year of eligibility. In 2007, the American Film Institute listed the film as the ninety-sixth greatest American Movie in Film History.

Honorable Mention:

• She’s Gotta Have It, (1986) — Spike Lee ignites the New Wave Black film revolution
• Sweet Sweetback’s Baadasssss Song, (1971) — Melvin Van Peoples says good bye to the “magical negro” movies and hello to bad-ass blaxploitation.
• Glory (1989) — Denzel Washington and Morgan Freeman are masterful in this film about an all-Black regiment during the Civil War. Denzel won his first Oscar for Best Supporting Actor.
• Black Orpheus (1959) — Carnivale in Rio de Janiero is the place where this Orpheus and Eurydice story is retold. Won Oscar for Best Foreign Film.
• To Sleep With Anger (1990) — Charles Burnett’s jewel of a film is anchored by Danny Glover’s turn of a sly and evil drifter.

It was a lot of fun compiling this list of great films. If you have your own list, don’t hesitate to share it. If you would like to read more about great African American films or simply buy them, here are a few sites for you: BlackClassicMovies.com, BlackFlix.com, Amazon.com — African-American Films: Some Of The Best. And there is also Esther Iverem’s brilliant book, We Gotta Have It: 20 Years of Blacks in the Movies.

Happy Holidays!

Ralph Richardson is a filmmaker who lives in Brooklyn with his family.

 

Comment(s)

• § Rina   said on : 08/09/13 @ 03:30

  Thanks for your post. I haven’t seen these movies, but I’d like to.