Black Is… Black Ain’t

Jun 1, 1994

1h 27m

★ 6.1

Overview

African-American documentary filmmaker Marlon Riggs was working on this final film as he died from AIDS-related complications in 1994; he addresses the camera from his hospital bed in several scenes. The film directly addresses sexism and homophobia within the black community, with snippets of misogynistic and anti-gay slurs from popular hip-hop songs juxtaposed with interviews with African-American intellectuals and political theorists, including Cornel West, bell hooks and Angela Davis.

Genres

Documentary

Production Companies

Signifyin' Works

Black Is… Black Ain’t Trailers

Cast

Self

Marlon Riggs

Self

Angela Davis

Self

bell hooks

Self

Essex Hemphill

Self

Cornel West

Self

Maulana Karenga

Self

Barbara Smith

Self

Michele Wallace

James Brown changed the face of American music forever. Abandoned by his parents at an early age, James Brown was a self-made man who became one of the most influential artists of the 20th century, not just through his music, but also as a social activist. Charting his journey from rhythm and blues to funk, MR. DYNAMITE: THE RISE OF JAMES BROWN features rare and previously unseen footage, photographs and interviews, chronicling the musical ascension of “the hardest working man in show business,” from his first hit, “Please, Please, Please,” in 1956, to his iconic performances at the Apollo Theater, the T.A.M.I. Show, the Paris Olympia and more.

6.5

SLY LIVES! (aka The Burden of Black Genius)

Jan 23, 2025

An examination of the life and legacy of Sly & The Family Stone – the groundbreaking band led by the charismatic Sly Stone – that captures the band's reign while shedding light on the burden that comes with success for Black artists in America.

1.0

Poly-Love

Jan 21, 2016

A documentary that approaches polyamory from the intimate point of view of an Afro-American family who decided to live an authentic life without denying the option of diversity in their love and family.

No Image Available

0.0

Murder in America: The Lynching of Emmett Till

Invalid Date

Based on A Few Days Full of Trouble by Reverend Wheeler Parker, Jr. and Christopher Benson, the feature doc will explore two parallel tracks of the Till story. One set in motion by the last four years of an FBI investigation with details never before revealed, including significant new revelations of the case and its discoveries. The traumatic memory of Parker Jr., last surviving witness to the crime and Till’s cousin, drives that investigation. The second track is a deep immersion into the latest, proprietary findings, as high schoolers prepare for a reenactment of the murder trial of two of Till’s killers, Roy Bryant and J.W. Milam.

8.0

Daughters

Aug 9, 2024

Four young girls prepare for a special Daddy Daughter Dance with their incarcerated fathers, as part of a unique fatherhood program in a Washington, D.C., jail.

8.0

Paris Is Burning

Mar 13, 1991

Where does voguing come from, and what, exactly, is throwing shade? This landmark documentary provides a vibrant snapshot of the 1980s through the eyes of New York City's African American and Latinx Harlem drag-ball scene. Made over seven years, PARIS IS BURNING offers an intimate portrait of rival fashion "houses," from fierce contests for trophies to house mothers offering sustenance in a world rampant with homophobia, transphobia, racism, AIDS, and poverty. Featuring legendary voguers, drag queens, and trans women — including Willi Ninja, Pepper LaBeija, Dorian Corey, and Venus Xtravaganza.

6.5

Little White Lie

Nov 21, 2014

Lacey Schwartz grew up in a typical upper-middle-class Jewish household in Woodstock, NY, with loving parents and a strong sense of her Jewish identity - despite the open questions from those around her about how a white girl could have such dark skin. She believes her family's explanation that her looks were inherited from her dark-skinned Sicilian grandfather. But when her parents abruptly split, her gut starts to tell her something different. At age of 18, she finally confronts her mother and learns the truth: her biological father was not the man who raised her, but a black man named Rodney with whom her mother had had an affair.

5.6

Brother Outsider: The Life of Bayard Rustin

Jan 20, 2003

Documentary on Bayard Rustin, best-remembered as the organizer of the 1963 March on Washington.

8.0

Disco: Soundtrack of a Revolution

Dec 16, 2023

From the sweaty basement bars of 70s New York to the glittering peak of the global charts, how disco conquered the world - its origins, its triumphs, its fall and its legacy.

6.7

Tongues Untied

Mar 16, 1990

Marlon Riggs, with assistance from other gay Black men, especially poet Essex Hemphill, celebrates Black men loving Black men as a revolutionary act. The film intercuts footage of Hemphill reciting his poetry, Riggs telling the story of his growing up, scenes of men in social intercourse and dance, and various comic riffs, including a visit to the "Institute of Snap!thology," where men take lessons in how to snap their fingers: the sling snap, the point snap, the diva snap.

5.6

Hair Piece: A Film for Nappy Headed People

Jan 1, 1984

An animated satire on the question of self-image for African American women living in a society where beautiful hair is viewed as hair that blows in the wind and lets you be free. Lively tunes and witty narration accompany a quick-paced inventory of relaxers, gels, and curlers. This short film has become essential for discussions of racism, African American cinema, and empowerment.

0.0

Pride of the Buffalo Soldier

Apr 1, 2017

African American soldiers throughout the 19th and 20th Centuries faced discrimination and segregation, yet many still chose to fight for their country.

5.0

Maurice Hines: Bring Them Back

Nov 10, 2019

Maurice Hines, a charming, gay African-American entertainer navigates the complications of show business while grieving the loss of his more famous, often estranged younger brother, tap dance legend Gregory Hines.

7.8

Uncle Tom

Jun 19, 2020

In a collection of intimate interviews with some of America's most provocative black conservative thinkers, Uncle Tom takes a different look at being black in America.

6.7

Kokomo City

Jul 28, 2023

Four Black transgender sex workers in Atlanta and New York City break down the walls of their profession.

8.0

Yooper Creoles: Finnish Music in Michigan's Copper Country

Jan 1, 2019

When the immigrants came to America, their cultures entered the "great melting pot." In Michigan's Upper Peninsula Finnish immigrants mixed their musical traditions with many other cultures, creating a sound that was unique to the "Copper Country."

7.2

What You Gonna Do When the World's on Fire?

Aug 16, 2019

Summer 2017, a string of brutal police killings of young African American men has sent shockwaves throughout the country. A Black community in the American South tries to cope with the lingering effects of the past and navigate their place in a country that is not on their side. Meanwhile, the Black Panthers prepare a large-scale protest against police brutality.

0.0

I Am a Man: Black Masculinity in America

Aug 4, 1998

Award-winning filmmaker Byron Hurt explores what it means to be a Black man in America. Traveling to more than fifteen cities and towns across the country, Hurt gathers reflections on Black masculinity from men and women of a variety of socioeconomic backgrounds and a host of leading scholars and cultural critics. What results is an engaging and honest dialogue about race, gender, and identity in America. Features bell hooks, Michael Eric Dyson, John Henrick Clarke, Kevin Powell, Andrew Young, Dr. Alvin Poussaint, MC Hammer, Jackson Katz, and many others.

5.8

Kiki

Apr 3, 2016

25 years after Paris is Burning, we dive back into the fierce world of voguing battles in the Kiki scene of New York City, where competition between Houses demands leadership, painstaking practice, and performances on point. A film collaboration between Kiki gatekeeper, Twiggy Pucci Garçon, and Swedish filmmaker Sara Jordenö, we’re granted exclusive access into this high stakes world, where tough competitions act as a gateway into the daily lives of LGBTQ youth of color in NYC. The new generation of ballroom youth use the motto, “Not About us Without Us”. Twiggy and Sara’s insider-outsider approach to their stories breathes fresh life into the representation of a marginalized community who demand visibility and real political power.