What defines a Black movie?
Or Tressie Souders, among the first directors to make movies with a woman’s vision.
But the answer to the question quickly got complicated.
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Don’t fail to see it."
The film’s director, Harry A. Gant, however, was white.
Still a Black film?
Is any film helmed by a Black director inherently Black?
And what about those that have headlining Black stars but little to say about the Black experience?
It wasn’t easy, folks.
Disney
A few guidelines helped.
SeveralSpike Leefilms were easy calls, and the director himself sat down to discuss them.
Steven Spielberg’sThe Color Purple yes!
The historical slave drama put an idealized John Quincy Adams (Anthony Hopkins) at its heroic center.
In general, White Savior Formulas were nixed, despite their employing some stellar Black actors.
So whileMahershala AliandOctavia Spencerdelivered Oscar-winning performances inGreen BookandThe Help,those films didn’t fit here.
Yet ultimately the overwhelming aesthetic of both directors made it hard to categorize these movies as Black films.
What we could agree on was this: All of these films, and more, deserve praise.
Oh, and Mr. Lee has something to say.
“And I have no problem with being called a Black filmmaker.
‘That’s who I am.
That’s who my ancestors are.”
EW’sA Celebration of Black Filmis available onAmazonand wherever magazines are sold.
