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Black History Month Films: Home

So Many Films!

We have both documentaries and feature films on display to mark Hispanic Heritage Month this year--check them out now! You'll find links to most of them below. 

Looking for more? There's a lot! This is just a very small selection of what is available out there--and what you'll find right here in the library.

Films & Documentaries on Display

Black in Latin America With Henry Louis Gates, Jr.: Discover African influence in Latin America with Henry Louis Gates, Jr. in this documentary. 

Black Panther: After his father's death, T'Challa must not only take on the mantle of kingship but cope with enemies old and new.

Boyz n the Hood: Three friends struggle to survive in South Central LA.

Carmen Jones: See Dorothy Dandrige as Carmen and Harry Belfonte as Joe in this musical based on Bizet's opera Carmen

Chi-Raq: Spike Lee adapts the ancient Greek play Lysistrata for a new day, setting it on Chicago's contemporary South Side.

The Color Purple: This film, based on Alice Walker's award-winning novel of the same title, tells the story of two sisters and their disparate lives after they are forcefully separated.

Creed: Follow Adonis Creed as he trains with Rocky and ascends in the world of boxing in Ryan Coogler's award-winning film.

Crooklyn: Follow Spike Lee through a bold picture of family life in a crowded but cozy Brooklyn neigbhorhood in this semi-autobiographical film.

Daughters of the Dust: A large African-American family prepares to leave Georgia's Sea Islands and move north in this award-winning, trailblazing film directed by Julie Dash.

Devil in a Blue Dress: When Easy Rawlins has trouble finding work despite being a decorated veteran, he starts working as a private eye and is hired to track down a missing socialite - but trouble's on her heels. The film is based on Walter Mosley's novel Devil in a Blue Dress, the first book in his Easy Rawlins series.

Fences: Denzel Washington adapts and stars in August Wilson's Fences, the story of a Black garbage collector in 1950s Pittsburgh prone to taking out his frustrations on his family.

Get Out: A young Black man's trip to meet his white girlfriend's parents turns horrific in this award-winning horror film by director Jordan Peele.

Glory: This multiple-award-winning film is based on the story of the first African-American regiment to fight for the North in the Civil War.

Hidden Figures: Three African-American women use their mathematical genius to help propel the United States to the moon in this adaption of Margot Lee Shetterly's book of the same title.

I Am Not Your Negro: Raoul Peck uses James Baldwin's unfinished Remember This House to tell the tale of race in America.

In Living Color: Keenen Wayans' sketch comedy show, built around short skits, rap music, and dance. Enjoy the show? Check out the other seasons - and read some analysis of them!

Invictus: Recently released from his long imprisonment and elected President of South Africa, Nelson Mandela works with the South African rugby team to bring together their country.

Killer of Sheep: A sensitive man from Watts in Los Angeles finds himself numbed by his work in a slaughterhouse.

Leadbelly: Gordon Parks' biographical film follows Huddie Leadbetter, the great blues singer, from his late teens to just before his release from a second prison term in the '30s.

Lee Daniels' The Butler: Lee Daniels directs this film based on the true-life story of Cecil Gaines, who served seven presidents in his career as the White House butler.

Loving: Step into the lives of the couple whose marriage would eventually bring down anti-miscegenation laws in this film based on Mildred and Richard Loving and Loving vs. Virginia. 

Lumumba: Patrice Lumumba leads the Congo to independence from Belgium in Raoul Peck's award-winning biographical film.

Malcolm X: Spike Lee directs this tale of Malcolm X's life and activism. 

Maya Angelou: And Still I Rise: This documentary takes viewers on a tour of Maya Angelou's life and poetry and includes interviews with those who knew her best.

Miracle at St. Anna: Spike Lee's film, based on James McBride's novel of the same title, tells the story of four members of the Buffalo Soldiers trapped behind enemy lines in a small village in Italy during WWII after one saves an orphaned boy's life.

Moonlight: Barry Jenkins' trailblazing, Oscar Award-winning film follows Chiron through his childhood, adolescence, and young adulthood as he grabbles with identity, sexuality, and abuse.

The No. 1 Ladies' Detective Agency: In this series based on Alexander McCall Smith's series of novels, Mma Ramotste opens the only woman-run Private Detective Agency in Botswana. 

Poetic Justice: Justice and Lucky connect on the road only to run into the violence they thought they left behind in this romantic drama directed by John Singleton.

A Raisin in the Sun: In this film based on the award-winning play by Lorraine Hansberry, the Youngers must contend with the upheavals that come following a bequest - and a move into a new (and entirely white) neighborhood on Chicago's South Side.

Selma: The story of the campaign for voting rights that culminated in the Selma to Montgomery March, this film was directed by Ava DuVernay.

Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse: Afro-Latino Miles Morales joins the Spider-verse in this animated film.

Straight Outta Compton: F. Gary Gray directs the story of the five young men in Compton - Eazy-E, Dr. Dre, Ice Cube, DJ Yella, and MC Ren - who band together to form N.W.A. 

To Sir, With Love: Sidney Poitier portrays a teacher in a poor English neighborhood who sets aside traditional methods to work with students rejected by other schools.

Tupac: Resurrection: Influential rapper Tupac tells his own story in this 2003 documentary.

When the Levees Broke: A Requiem in Four Acts: This documentary, directed by Spike Lee, delves into the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina.

Whose Streets?: Follow director Sabaah Folayan into the streets of Ferguson in this 2017 documentary.  

The Wiz: Swept away to Oz by a blizzard, a Harlem kindergarten teacher must find her way home again. 

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