This is the first major collection of criticism on Black American cinema. From the pioneering work of Oscar Micheaux and Wallace Thurman to the Hollywood success of Spike Lee, Black American filmmakers have played a remarkable role in the development of the American film, both independent and mainstream. In this volume, the work of early Black filmmakers is given serious attention for the first time. Individual essays consider what a Black film tradition might be, the relation between Black American filmmakers and filmmakers from the diaspora, the nature of Black film aesthetics, the artist's place within the community, and the representation of a Black imaginary. Black American Cinema also uncovers the construction of Black sexuality on screen, the role of Black women in independent cinema, and the specific question of Black female spectatorship. A lively and provocative group of essays debate the place and significance of Spike Lee. Black American Cinema demonstrates the wealth of the Black contribution to American film and the complex course that contribution has taken.
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Book Description
Editorial Reviews
Review
Manthia Diawara's Black American Cinema shows how refreshingly far away from decorous consensus the field of Black cinema study is today, in a varied and provocative montage of opinions, personal histories, position statements, and historical criticism. -- Journal of Communication, Summer 1995
...essays in Black American Cinema make the book a worthy addition to the small shelf of Black cinema criticism. -- Journal of Communication, Summer 1995
...essays in Black American Cinema make the book a worthy addition to the small shelf of Black cinema criticism. -- Journal of Communication, Summer 1995
About the Author
Manthia Diawara is Professor of English at the University of Pennsylvania.
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews
2 of 3 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
A good anthology on Black Film,
By A Customer
This review is from: Black American Cinema (AFI Film Readers) (Paperback)
From the early pioneers of Black Film like Oscar Micheaux in the 1930's to the present day era of filmmakers including Spike Lee, this book adequately covers it all, with a fair amount of time devoted on independent cinema. Interesting read. Especially useful for the academic world.
3.0 out of 5 stars
Good textbook,
By ANDREA (So Cal) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Black American Cinema (AFI Film Readers) (Paperback)
The reading is a bit complex. A lot of information. But, it seems to be a good read thus far in my school quarter.
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Inside This Book
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First Sentence:
The release of D. W. Griffith's The Birth of a Nation in 1915 defined for the first time the side that Hollywood was to take in the war to represent Black people in America. Read the first page Key Phrases - Statistically Improbable Phrases (SIPs): (learn more)
biracial buddy formula, spatial narration, race movies, phallocentric gaze, black filmmaking, sweet sweetback, oppositional gaze, buddy films, female spectatorship, feminist film criticism, secondary desire, slow fade, dominant cinema, feminist film theory, independent cinema, film movement Key Phrases - Capitalized Phrases (CAPs): (learn more)
New York, Los Angeles, The Color Purple, Julie Dash, Yellow Mary, Daughters of the Dust, Spike Lee, Ibo Landing, Oscar Micheaux, Grandma Nana, Third World, United States, Old Mister, East Austin, Little Colonel, Little Sister, Bush Mama, Killer of Sheep, Manthia Diawara, Van Peebles, Alice Walker, World War, Charles Burnett, Langston Hughes, School Daze New!
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Front Cover | Table of Contents | First Pages | Index | Back Cover | Surprise Me!
The release of D. W. Griffith's The Birth of a Nation in 1915 defined for the first time the side that Hollywood was to take in the war to represent Black people in America. Read the first page Key Phrases - Statistically Improbable Phrases (SIPs): (learn more)
biracial buddy formula, spatial narration, race movies, phallocentric gaze, black filmmaking, sweet sweetback, oppositional gaze, buddy films, female spectatorship, feminist film criticism, secondary desire, slow fade, dominant cinema, feminist film theory, independent cinema, film movement Key Phrases - Capitalized Phrases (CAPs): (learn more)
New York, Los Angeles, The Color Purple, Julie Dash, Yellow Mary, Daughters of the Dust, Spike Lee, Ibo Landing, Oscar Micheaux, Grandma Nana, Third World, United States, Old Mister, East Austin, Little Colonel, Little Sister, Bush Mama, Killer of Sheep, Manthia Diawara, Van Peebles, Alice Walker, World War, Charles Burnett, Langston Hughes, School Daze New!
Books on Related Topics | Concordance | Text Stats Browse Sample Pages:
Front Cover | Table of Contents | First Pages | Index | Back Cover | Surprise Me!
Citations (learn more)
This book cites 113
books:
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100
books
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- Daughters of the Dust: A Novel by Julie Dash on 12 pages
- She's Gotta Have It by Spike Lee on 12 pages
- Slow Fade to Black (Galaxy Books) by Thomas Cripps on 10 pages
- Do the Right Thing by Spike Lee on 5 pages
- Sweet Sweetback's Baadasssss Song: A Guerilla Filmmaking Manifesto by Melvin van Peebles on 5 pages
See all 113 books this book cites
- Feminism and Film by Maggie Humm on 8 pages
- The Birth of Whiteness: Race and the Emergence of United States Cinema by Daniel Leonard Bernardi on 6 pages
- Representing Blackness: Issues in Film and Video (Rutgers Depth of Field Series) by Valerie Smith on 5 pages
- An Accented Cinema : Exilic and Diasporic Filmmaking by Hamid Naficy on 5 pages
- Representing Blackness: Issues in Film and Video (Rutgers Depth of Field Series) by Valerie Smith on 4 pages
See all 100 books citing this book
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