The 50 Most Influential Black Films: A Celebration of African-American Talent, Determination, and Creativity [Paperback]

S. Torriano Berry (Author), Venise T. Berry (Author)

Product Details

• Paperback: 312 pages
• Publisher: Citadel (November 1, 2000)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0806521333
• ISBN-13: 978-0806521336
• Product Dimensions: 9 x 6 x 1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 15.4 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (2 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,577,797 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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9 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars A Real Conversation Starter, January 13, 2002

By 

Ibochild (Los Angeles, CA USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The 50 Most Influential Black Films: A Celebration of African-American Talent, Determination, and Creativity (Paperback)

This is a great idea for a book. With roughly a century of black film history, it's about time that somebody documented it in terms of quality and relative importance.

The book starts with a discussion of the Jack Johnson vs. Jim Jeffries heavyweight fight film. The U.S. Congress was apparently so threatened by the sight of Johnson beating up a white man, that they banned all film fights from interstate distribution.

This sets the stage so to speak of the book's discussion of fifty films which it deems important. Rather than rank them numerically, the book groups the films by decade (except for silent films which are grouped together). It begins with THE RAILROAD PORTER (1912) and ends with THE BEST MAN (1999). Also included is a special section on influential independent films.

Invariably in a book like this, there will be disagreement about the selection of films (for example, only three films from the 1950s are included as opposed to a whopping eleven in the 1990s). However, for every time that you scratch your head wondering why a certain film was included (or excluded), there'll be another film that you'll totally agree with the selection. This is the real fun of the book.

This book gives the black film fan ample fuel to promote discussions for hours about the merits of a particular film. Also included are interviews with key participants in several of the films. Some are very informative, some are down right amusing. One in particular is director Euzhan Palcy's interview regarding the making of A DRY WHITE SEASON. In it she talks about working with Marlon Brando (who received an Oscar nomination for his performance). You might be quite surprised by what she says about him.

Because it covers partically the entire span of film history, it's a great introduction for those who know little of black film prior to the 1970s. A wide variety of genres are covered from musicals to historical dramas. The book also provides a mix of commercial films and little seen independent ones. For most people, the book will remind you of some films and make you aware of new ones.

At just 312 pages, the book is a quick read. Unless you're a film scholar, you're bound to discover a wealth of information about a number of films. For the serious film buff, the entries might be too brief.

However, the regular movie goer should be right at home with this book. You'll find it written in plain English, free of technical jargon. If you have a party and things are getting a bit dull, put this book on the coffee table and see if things suddenly perk up.

The only way to find out is to get the book.

2 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Excellent Read!, June 3, 2003

By A Customer

This review is from: The 50 Most Influential Black Films: A Celebration of African-American Talent, Determination, and Creativity (Paperback)

Great information presented in an entertaining manner. All about black films -- it answered questions I didn't even know I had.