Since 1926, February has marked Black History Month in the United States. Observed as time of pride, education, and celebration in Black communities, the establishment of a recognized time to focus on Black history goes almost one hundred years to 1926 when what is now known as the Association for the Study of African American Life and History (ASALH) sponsored the first “Negro History Week.” Initially, the week was placed in the middle of February between the birthdays of Abraham Lincoln and Frederick Douglass, but over time, it gradually expanded to include all of February. Since 1976, it has become traditional for every American president to announce the beginning of the month by declaring a yearly theme. This year, President Biden has declared the theme as “African Americans and the Arts,” exploring the impact the Black community has had on “visual and performing arts, literature, fashion, folklore, language, film, music, architecture, culinary and other forms of cultural expression” in the United States. This year’s theme makes it the perfect opportunity for us at MXDWN to bring up some of the greatest films by Black creators about Black stories. For this year’s Black History Month, we have compiled a list of ten of the best films to watch in honor of the yearly celebration of Black history and culture.
American Fiction 2023
Based on Percival Everett’s 2001 novel Erasure, American Fiction is a very intentional social critique of stereotypical Black literature. When Professor Thelonious “Monk” Ellison finally gets fed up with how society profits off harmful cliches in Black literature, he dons a pen name and writes a satire critiquing all the work he sees. However, liberal America mistakes the book for serious literature, making it a critical and commercial success. Ellison is dismayed by this response as he is dragged into the world of “performative” Black literature that he so despised. Even though he goes through with huge publishing and movie adaptation offers, he consistently tries and fails to sabotage the whole project. With the year’s theme revolving around the arts, we must engage with this social critique to encourage audiences to think more deeply about how we choose to represent diversity in our country.
A Ballerina’s Tale 2015
The only documentary on this list, it felt fitting to include A Ballerina’s Tale when discussing Black icons, particularly with this year’s theme. The film follows the life of Misty Copeland, an American ballet dancer who, in 2015, became the first Black person to be promoted to principal dancer at American Ballet Theater, the leading ballet school in the United States. Besides her rise to prominence within the theater, the film also shows footage of her upbringing and the many challenges she faced within the ballet world, including issues with body image, injuries, and being underestimated and discriminated against because of her race. Misty Copeland continues to be an important member of the ABT company, so seeing a more personal side to her story makes her even more relatable and inspiring.
Bessie 2015
As a biopic of another iconic artist, Bessie shares the life story of American blues singer Bessie Smith, who came to fame in the 1920s and 30s and remains one of the most important blues artists in history. After the death of her parents when Bessie is very young, she and her siblings are raised by their abusive oldest sister. To help make ends meet, Bessie and her brother start working at local theater, where Bessie begins to dream of the stage. However, Bessie is constantly rejected and pushed aside by others until she is taken in by traveling performer and fellow blues artist Ma Rainey. From that time on, the film shows her career’s gradual rise, her multiple romantic relationships, and the continued challenges she overcomes as her success grows.
The Butler 2013
Inspired by the story of Eugene Allen as told in Wil Haygood‘s Washington Post article “A Butler Well Served by This Election,” The Butler follows Cecil Gaines, a Black man who worked as a butler in the White House for 34 years, going from Eisenhower to Reagan. The film’s structure shows an old Gaines in 2009 as he waits to greet the new president, Barack Obama. Gaines narrates the story, beginning at the very beginning, going from his troubled upbringing on a plantation, meeting his wife and starting a family, and going through his time at the White House. Watching history from the front row, Gaines sees the desegregation of schools, JFK’s assassination, the height of the Civil Rights movement, including the influence of the KKK and the Voting Rights Act of 1965, Nixon’s oppressive attitude, the Vietnam War, and so many other significant moments in recent US history. This is a powerful movie that shows one man’s experience watching the country develop from one of the most powerful buildings in the nation. His perspective highlights the very real influence each event had on Cecil and his family, making this period in history feel so much more personal.
Dope 2015
Unlike many of the films on this list, Dope is a coming-of-age comedy that follows three high school misfits, Malcolm, Jib, and Diggy, growing up in a “high crime” neighborhood in California. When Malcolm discovers that a huge amount of molly has been hidden in his backpack after a police raid at a party the trio found themselves at, the friends start up a complex scheme to get rid of the drugs before any damage can be done. Dope is a hilarious and well-made film that is a refreshing addition to the Black canon. The friendship between the three teens as they all try to find their places in the world and what the spaces they occupy mean to themselves and others in their community feels very real, making this film a real treat to watch.
Fruitvale Station 2013
Fruitvale Station is based on the story of Oscar Grant III, a 22-year-old man who was killed by a police officer in the early hours of New Year’s Day, 2009, in Fruitvale Station in Oakland, California. The storyline only lasts about 24 hours, beginning with actual footage of the incident taken on cell phones by witnesses. Fruitvale Station shows Grant going about his life on that last day of 2008. By creating this narrative structure, the film frames Oscar Grant as though his life could be anybody’s, like how he shared an argument with his girlfriend, Sophina, returned to his previous employer to ask for his job back, and even attended his mother’s birthday party. Eventually, the event that brought him and Sophina to that train station was the commute to see fireworks in San Francisco, which resulted in a fight with a man Grant knew in prison. While the content of this film can be very difficult to watch, it brings up the very real issue of police violence in the Black community and brings attention to just one man who could have been anybody, making the story more personal and impactful.
Girls Trip 2017
If you ever need a heartwarming film that will make you laugh out loud, Girls Trip is the place to go. The film is based on the three film writers Kenya Barris, Tracy Oliver, and Erica Rivinoja’s own experiences of hanging out with their girl friends. The plot follows life coach Ryan Pierce in her attempt to reunite with her college friends Sasha, Lisa, and Dina and travel to New Orleans, where Ryan will speak at the Essence Music Festival. All four women are in very different phases of life; Sasha is struggling after starting a celebrity gossip magazine, Lisa is a single mother and recent divorcee, and Dina is a free-spirited party animal who has recently been fired. Needless to say, the dynamic between the friends is not what it used to be, but between navigating their new perspectives on life with their fun college memories, this movie manages to bring up nostalgia, new drama, and hilarious mishaps as the group makes their way across the country.
Hidden Figures 2016
Hidden Figures has become so iconic it hardly needs an introduction. The film is based on the 2016 nonfiction book of the same name by Margot Lee Shetterly, which highlights the lives of three Black women who worked as mathematicians in the early days of NASA’s space program: Katherine Goble Johnson, Dorothy Vaughan, and Mary Jackson. All three women began working as lowly “computers” solving math problems in their all-female, all-Black work unit at Langley Research Center in 1961 in Hampton, Virginia. Slowly, their talents are recognized by superiors and promoted, but they remain underappreciated and discriminated against in many ways, like having their names removed from documents they helped author. Hidden Figures is an excellent film that shows how three intelligent women were able to break barriers and become some of the most influential individuals in science.
Moonlight 2016
Moonlight is a powerful coming-of-age film highlighting one young man’s journey to adulthood, addressing identity and sexuality among other growing pains. It is loosely based on Tarell Alvin McCraney’s unpublished semi-autobiographical work, In Moonlight Black Boys Look Blue. The film is split into three sections highlighting the protagonist’s childhood (Little), teenage years (Chiron), and early adulthood (Black), with each section referring to the name he used during that time of his life. The story is set at the height of the crack epidemic in Liberty City, Miami. The beginning of the film focuses on the relationship between Chiron, or “Little,” and the drug dealer Juan, who acts as mentor for the young boy and a refuge from his abusive addict mother. As the film goes on and Chiron grows up, he begins to realize his sexuality, the meaning of masculinity within the Black community, and the influence of addiction. Moonlight is consistently placed near the top of lists of greatest LGBTQ+ films, Black films, and coming-of-age films and has won multiple awards, including the Golden Globe Award for Best Motion Picture for Drama and Best Picture at the Academy Awards.
Selma 2014
No list for Black History Month would be complete without this film. Selma is another well-known film focusing on the 1965 Selma to Montgomery voting rights marches directed by James Bevel and led by Martin Luther King Jr., Hosea Williams, and John Lewis. The film begins with MLK receiving his Nobel Peace Prize in 1964. It continues through the civil rights icon’s perspective, showing the multiple protests and marches into Selma that he helped lead, the orchestration behind them, and the constant pushback activists faced. The powerful cinematography that included original footage from the time and David Oyelowo’s moving leading performance has won the film multiple awards and ensured its reputation as one of the most iconic films about the civil rights movement and a staple American history movie.
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