Best Black Dramas of All Time
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- DirectorJohn SingletonStarsCuba Gooding Jr.Laurence FishburneHudhail Al-AmirFollows the lives of three young males living in the Crenshaw ghetto of Los Angeles, dissecting questions of race, relationships, violence, and future prospects.
- DirectorQuentin TarantinoStarsPam GrierSamuel L. JacksonRobert ForsterA flight attendant with a criminal past gets nabbed by the ATF for smuggling. Under pressure to become an informant against the illegal arms dealer she works for, she must find a way to secure her future without getting killed.
- DirectorMichael SchultzStarsGlynn TurmanLawrence Hilton-JacobsGarrett MorrisIn 1964 on Chicago's Near-North Side, the lives of four carefree high school seniors and best friends, including an aspiring playwright and an all-city basketball champion, takes a tragic turn.
- DirectorFernando MeirellesKátia LundStarsAlexandre RodriguesLeandro FirminoMatheus NachtergaeleIn the slums of Rio, two kids' paths diverge as one struggles to become a photographer and the other a kingpin.
- DirectorSpike LeeStarsDenzel WashingtonAngela BassettDelroy LindoBiographical epic of the controversial and influential Black Nationalist leader, from his early life and career as a small-time gangster, to his ministry as a member of the Nation of Islam and his eventual assassination.
- DirectorAlbert HughesAllen HughesStarsTyrin TurnerLarenz TateJune Kyoto LuA young street hustler attempts to escape the rigors and temptations of the ghetto in a quest for a better life.
- DirectorRon SheltonStarsWesley SnipesWoody HarrelsonRosie PerezBlack and white basketball hustlers join forces to double their chances of winning money on the street courts and in a basketball tournament.
- DirectorTaylor HackfordStarsJamie FoxxRegina KingKerry WashingtonThe story of the life and career of the legendary rhythm and blues musician Ray Charles, from his humble beginnings in the South, where he went blind at age seven, to his meteoric rise to stardom during the 1950s and 1960s.
- DirectorCraig BrewerStarsTerrence HowardLudacrisAnthony AndersonWith help from his friends, a Memphis pimp in a mid-life crisis attempts to become a successful hip-hop emcee.
- DirectorRick FamuyiwaStarsElayn J. TaylorOmar EppsRichard T. JonesWhile dealing with a friend's cold feet on his wedding day, a writer reminisces about his youth with his best friends.
- DirectorRidley ScottStarsDenzel WashingtonRussell CroweChiwetel EjioforAn outcast New York City cop is charged with bringing down Harlem drug lord Frank Lucas, whose real life inspired this partly biographical film.
- DirectorCary Joji FukunagaStarsAbraham AttahEmmanuel AffadziRicky AdelayitorA drama based on the experiences of Agu, a child soldier fighting in the civil war of an unnamed African country.
- DirectorSteven SpielbergStarsDanny GloverWhoopi GoldbergOprah WinfreyA tale spanning forty years in the life of Celie, an African-American woman living in the South who survives incredible abuse and bigotry.
- DirectorBoaz YakinStarsDenzel WashingtonWill PattonWood HarrisIn 1971 Virginia high school football was everything to the people of Alexandria. But when the school board was forced to integrate an all-black school with an all-white one, the very foundation of football's tradition was put to the test.
- DirectorAntoine FuquaStarsDenzel WashingtonEthan HawkeScott GlennA rookie cop spends his first day as a Los Angeles narcotics officer with a rogue detective who isn't what he appears to be.
- DirectorRyan CooglerStarsMichael B. JordanSylvester StalloneTessa ThompsonThe former World Heavyweight Champion Rocky Balboa serves as a trainer and mentor to Adonis Johnson, the son of his late friend and former rival Apollo Creed.
- DirectorBarry JenkinsStarsMahershala AliNaomie HarrisTrevante RhodesA young African-American man grapples with his identity and sexuality while experiencing the everyday struggles of childhood, adolescence, and burgeoning adulthood.
- DirectorDenzel WashingtonStarsDenzel WashingtonDerek LukeJoy BryantAntwone Fisher, a young navy man, is forced to see a psychiatrist after a violent outburst against a fellow crewman. During the course of treatment a painful past is revealed and a new hope begins.
- DirectorErnest R. DickersonStarsOmar EppsTupac ShakurJermaine HopkinsFour inner-city teenagers get caught up in the pursuit of power and happiness, which they refer to as "the juice".
- DirectorCurtis HansonStarsEminemBrittany MurphyKim BasingerFollows a young rapper in the Detroit area, struggling with every aspect of his life; he wants to make it big but his friends and foes make this odyssey of rap harder than it may seem.
- DirectorAlbert HughesAllen HughesStarsLarenz TateKeith DavidChris TuckerA Vietnam vet adjusts to life after the war while trying to support his family, but the chance of a better life may involve crime and bloodshed.
- DirectorBen ChaceSam FleischnerStarsKevin BewersdorfSean BonesCarl BradshawMax lives in Brooklyn. He enjoys playing soccer, skateboarding, and drinking with his friends at local bars. Last summer he and his girlfriend, Willow, won a free cruise to Jamaica but two days before the trip she dumps him cold. When his friends flake, Max winds up alone on the high seas, navigating the crowds of gray-haired cruisers. Over the course of several days he flirts with the staff photographer, drinks cocktails with the boat's celebrity juggler and has several strange encounters with the only other loner.
- DirectorAlbert MagnoliStarsPrinceApollonia KoteroMorris DayA young musician, tormented by an abusive situation at home, must contend with a rival singer, a burgeoning romance, and his own dissatisfied band, as his star begins to rise.
- DirectorPenny MarshallStarsDenzel WashingtonWhitney HoustonCourtney B. VanceAn angel comes to Earth to help a preacher save his church and his family.
- DirectorQuentin TarantinoStarsJamie FoxxChristoph WaltzLeonardo DiCaprioWith the help of a German bounty-hunter, a freed slave sets out to rescue his wife from a brutal plantation owner in Mississippi.
- DirectorEriq La SalleStarsDon CheadleJames Earl JonesMichael BeachA dramatization of the life of Earl 'The Goat' Manigault (Don Cheadle), with a lot of factual based occurrences. A reformed junkie returns from prison to clean up his act and devote the rest of his life to the young kids of Harlem. 1996 was the 25th anniversary of the first tournament named after him.
- DirectorTed BafaloukosStarsLeroy 'Horsemouth' WallaceRichard 'Dirty Harry' HallMonica CraigHorsemouth sets himself up in business selling records but when gangsters steal his bike things start to turn nasty. As tensions build, Horsemouth and friends plot to end the gangsters reign of terror and restore justice to the people of Kingston.
- DirectorRobert TownsendStarsRobert TownsendMichael WrightLeonThe story of the rise and fall of an African American vocal group.
- DirectorDoug AtchisonStarsAngela BassettLaurence FishburneKeke PalmerAkeelah, a young gifted girl, comes from a dysfunctional family and is on the verge of quitting school. She discovers that she has a high aptitude for spellings and enters a spelling bee contest.
- DirectorBruce BeresfordStarsMorgan FreemanJessica TandyDan AykroydAn old Jewish woman and her African-American chauffeur in the American South have a relationship that grows and improves over the years.
- DirectorKasi LemmonsStarsDon CheadleChiwetel EjioforBruce McFeeThe story of Washington D.C. radio personality Ralph "Petey" Greene, an ex-con who became a popular talk show host and community activist in the 1960s.
- DirectorLee DanielsStarsGabourey SidibeMo'NiquePaula PattonIn New York City's Harlem circa 1987, an overweight, abused, illiterate teen who is pregnant with her second child is invited to enroll in an alternative school in hopes that she can re-route her life in a better direction.
- DirectorBenh ZeitlinStarsQuvenzhané WallisDwight HenryLevy EasterlyFaced with both her hot-tempered father's fading health and melting ice-caps that flood her ramshackle bayou community and unleash ancient aurochs, six-year-old Hushpuppy must learn the ways of courage and love.
- DirectorDenzel WashingtonStarsDenzel WashingtonViola DavisStephen McKinley HendersonA working-class African-American father tries to raise his family in the 1950s, while coming to terms with the events of his life.
- DirectorSteven SpielbergStarsDjimon HounsouMatthew McConaugheyAnthony HopkinsIn 1839, the revolt of Mende captives aboard a Spanish owned ship causes a major controversy in the United States when the ship is captured off the coast of Long Island. The courts must decide whether the Mende are slaves or legally free.
- DirectorBrian GibsonStarsAngela BassettLaurence FishburneRaéVen KellyThe story of singer Tina Turner's rise to stardom and how she gained the courage to break free from her abusive husband, Ike Turner.
- DirectorGina Prince-BythewoodStarsSanaa LathanOmar EppsGlenndon ChatmanMonica and Quincy love and play basketball together through many life challenges from childhood to adulthood.
- DirectorCharles Stone IIIStarsMekhi PhiferWood HarrisChi McBrideA young man from Harlem, forced to cope with the 1980s drug scene, builds an illegal empire, only to have a crisis of conscience.
- DirectorNick CassavetesStarsDenzel WashingtonRobert DuvallGabriela OlteanJohn Quincy Archibald takes a hospital emergency room hostage when his insurance won't cover his son's heart transplant.
- DirectorCraig BrewerStarsChristina RicciSamuel L. JacksonJustin TimberlakeA God-fearing bluesman takes to a wild young woman who, as a victim of childhood sexual abuse, looks everywhere for love, never quite finding it.
- DirectorDarnell MartinStarsAdrien BrodyJeffrey WrightBeyoncéChronicles the rise of Chess Records and its recording artists.
- DirectorGeorge Tillman Jr.StarsVanessa WilliamsVivica A. FoxNia LongOne person can keep a family together and, when that one person is gone, a family can be torn apart.
- DirectorSpike LeeStarsDenzel WashingtonMilla JovovichRay AllenA basketball player's father must try to convince him to go to a college so he can get a shorter sentence.
- DirectorNelson GeorgeStarsQueen LatifahVianca MercedesAnna Deavere SmithThe true-life story of a mother who overcame an addiction to crack and became a positive role model and an AIDS activist in the black community.
- DirectorGualtiero JacopettiFranco ProsperiStarsStefano SibaldiSusan HampshireDick GregoryTwo documentary filmmakers go back in time to the pre-Civil War American South, to film the slave trade.
- DirectorF. Gary GrayStarsJada Pinkett SmithQueen LatifahVivica A. FoxDesperation drives four inner-city women to bank robbery in Los Angeles, then they start mistrusting each other.
- DirectorStephen Milburn AndersonStarsGlenn PlummerByron MinnsLexie BighamA former gangster fresh out of prison wants to change his life for the better and must save his 10 year old son who has already chosen a gang life.
- DirectorMichael MannStarsWill SmithJamie FoxxJon VoightA biography of sports legend Muhammad Ali, focusing on his triumphs and controversies between 1964 and 1974.
- DirectorDamon RussellStarsCurtis SnowAbdullah MuhammadCurtis LockettThe story of Atlanta robbery boy and crack dealer, Curtis Snow, who stole a camera from some college kids in a dope deal and made a documentary about his life.
- DirectorJeff PollackStarsDuane MartinTupac ShakurLeonStory of a promising high school basketball star and his relationships with two brothers, one a drug dealer and the other a former basketball star fallen on hard times and now employed as a security guard.
- DirectorMario Van PeeblesStarsWesley SnipesIce-TAllen PayneA crime lord ascends to power and becomes megalomaniacal while a maverick police detective vows to stop him.
- DirectorSpike LeeStarsDenzel WashingtonSpike LeeWesley SnipesJazz trumpeter Bleek Gilliam makes questionable decisions in his professional and romantic lives.
- DirectorGordon Parks Jr.StarsRon O'NealCarl LeeSheila FrazierThe daily routine of cocaine dealer Priest who wants to score one more super deal and retire.
- DirectorJack HillStarsPam GrierAntonio FargasPeter BrownA voluptuous vigilante takes a job as a high-class prostitute to get revenge on the mobsters who murdered her boyfriend.
- DirectorRick FamuyiwaStarsTaye DiggsSanaa LathanYasiin BeyFriends since childhood, a magazine editor and a hip-hop record executive stumble into romantic territory.
- DirectorGregory NavaStarsHalle BerryVivica A. FoxLela RochonThree women each claim to be the widow of 1950s doo-wop singer Frankie Lymon, claiming legal rights to his estate.
- DirectorLee DavisStarsDanny GloverSergej TrifunovicMichelle RodriguezThe feature film directing debut of Spike Lee protege Lee Davis takes viewer into world of taxi drivers.
- DirectorLeon IchasoStarsWesley SnipesMichael WrightKhandi AlexanderA drug dealer tries to get out of the life and start anew with his girlfriend, but the transition is tragically difficult.
- DirectorChris RockStarsChris RockKerry WashingtonGina TorresA married man who daydreams about being with other women finds his will and morals tested after he's visited by the ex-mistress of his old friend.
- DirectorRobert MulliganStarsGregory PeckJohn MegnaFrank OvertonAtticus Finch, a widowed lawyer in Depression-era Alabama, defends a Black man against an undeserved rape charge, and tries to educate his young children against prejudice.
- DirectorJoseph SargentStarsCliff McMullenYasiin BeyLuray CooperA dramatization of the relationship between heart surgery pioneers Alfred Blalock and Vivien Thomas.
- DirectorCarol MayesStarsMichael GreeneHoward S. MillerVirginia CapersThis romance story focuses on Fox Giovanni (V.Dillard) who is a hardworking; overly competitive stockbroker who thinks money is the most important thing in life. Her health suffers from that and she ends up having to take time off and spend time away from the hustle and bustle of New York City. She heads south to reconnect with her estranged foster mother, finds out something about family and true love. She ends up falling in love with Van (A. Payne). It's really a good love story about two people who really don't want to be in love, but it's kind of forced on them. It's a situation that neither one of them want to have that experience of being vulnerable or in love.
- DirectorJulie DashStarsAllison DeanRichard T. JonesPhil MorrisA young socialite hires a bodyguard to protect her, when an ex-convict begins stalking her.
- DirectorDaniel PetrieStarsSidney PoitierClaudia McNeilRuby DeeA substantial insurance payment could mean either financial salvation or personal ruin for a poor black family.
- DirectorTerry GeorgeStarsDon CheadleSophie OkonedoJoaquin PhoenixPaul Rusesabagina, a hotel manager, houses over a thousand Tutsi refugees during their struggle against the Hutu militia in Rwanda, Africa.
- DirectorMichael RoemerStarsIvan DixonAbbey LincolnJulius HarrisA black man and his school-teacher wife face discriminatory challenges in 1960s America.
- DirectorGuy GreenStarsSidney PoitierShelley WintersElizabeth HartmanA blind, uneducated white girl is befriended by a black man who becomes determined to help her escape her impoverished and abusive home life by introducing her to the outside world.
- DirectorJohn KortyStarsCicely TysonEric BrownRichard DysartStory of a black woman in the South who was born into slavery in the 1850s and lives to become a part of the civil rights movement in the 1960s.
- DirectorJ.R. JarrodStarsJ.R. JarrodAndrea 'Indy' AndradeCrayton RobeyA rape accusation against the president of a student political coalition brings war to its members.
- DirectorNorman JewisonStarsSidney PoitierRod SteigerWarren OatesA black Philadelphia police detective is mistakenly suspected of a local murder while passing through a racially hostile Mississippi town, and after being cleared is reluctantly asked by the police chief to investigate the case.
- DirectorGabriele MuccinoStarsWill SmithThandiwe NewtonJaden SmithA struggling salesman takes custody of his son as he's poised to begin a life-changing professional career.
- DirectorGeorge C. WolfeStarsS. Epatha MerkersonMarcus Carl FranklinYasiin BeyIn a story fueled by rhythm and blues, a young boy's life is shaped by love and the stories of a cast of characters in the boarding house where he lives in 1960s Lackawanna, New York.
- DirectorRaoul PeckStarsIdris ElbaCarole KaremeraPamela NomveteWhen the Hutu nationalists raised arms against their Tutsi countrymen in Rwanda in April 1994, the violent uprising marked the beginning of one of the darkest times in African history which resulted in the deaths of almost 800,000 people.
- DirectorEdward ZwickStarsMatthew BroderickDenzel WashingtonCary ElwesRobert Gould Shaw leads the U.S. Civil War's first all-black volunteer company, fighting prejudices from both his own Union Army, and the Confederates.
- DirectorDouglas SirkStarsLana TurnerJohn GavinSandra DeeAn aspiring white actress takes in an African American widow whose mixed-race daughter is desperate to be seen as white.
- DirectorStanley KramerStarsSpencer TracySidney PoitierKatharine HepburnA couple's attitudes are challenged when their daughter introduces them to her African-American fiancé.
- DirectorCharles Stone IIIStarsKeke PalmerRochelle AytesEvan RossThe story of Legendary hip hop/r&b/pop trio TLC.
- DirectorJ.D. CochranStarsSharif AtkinsJ. August RichardsRon CanadaTravis Balden had it all; high-profile job, gorgeous wife, limitless opportunity. His estranged brother, Rick, in contrast, earns a modest living as a repo man and generally lives life solo. After a corporate scandal provokes Travis to commit a murder/suicide, Rick noses around to prove to his family that Travis wasn't the golden boy they always thought. Ultimately, he must decide whether his own judgment is clouded to uncover why Travis went over the edge, as the brothers' interwoven stories merge at the truth.
- DirectorJames ClavellStarsSidney PoitierJudy GeesonChristian RobertsIdealistic engineer-trainee and his experiences in teaching a group of rambunctious white high school students from the slums of London's East End.
- DirectorStanley KramerStarsTony CurtisSidney PoitierCara WilliamsTwo chained-together escaped convicts, White and Black, must learn to get along in order to elude capture.
- DirectorRobert TownsendStarsVing RhamesAlfre WoodardJesika ReynoldsA drag queen takes in a drug addict and her daughter and helps raise the daughter.
- DirectorRalph NelsonStarsSidney PoitierLilia SkalaLisa MannA travelling handyman becomes the answer to the prayers of nuns who wish to build a chapel in the desert.
- DirectorPhil Alden RobinsonStarsDanny GloverVicellous ShannonVondie Curtis-HallA tale about a young man's bout in the 1960s, in Mississippi, before Blacks were allowed to vote, and did sit ins at White establishments. The harrowing ordeals people wanting the same opportunities had to go through.
- DirectorBoaz YakinStarsSean NelsonGiancarlo EspositoSamuel L. JacksonDeath and violence anger a twelve-year-old drug courier, who sets his employers against each other.
- StarsCicely TysonErika AlexanderBlair UnderwoodMama Flora reflects on her life from the 1910s through to the 1970s while trying to help her granddaughter get her life right and be a better mother for her son, all while bringing the family she has left back together.
- DirectorBuzz KulikStarsJames CaanBilly Dee WilliamsJack WardenBased on the real-life relationship between teammates Brian Piccolo and Gale Sayers and the bond established when Piccolo discovers that he is dying.
- DirectorJohn M. StahlStarsClaudette ColbertWarren WilliamRochelle HudsonA struggling widow and her daughter take in a Black housekeeper and her fair-skinned daughter; the two women start a successful business but face familial, identity, and racial issues along the way.
- DirectorDenzel WashingtonStarsDenzel WashingtonForest WhitakerKimberly EliseA drama based on the true story of Melvin B. Tolson, a professor at Wiley College Texas. In 1935, he inspired students to form the school's first debate team, which went on to challenge Harvard in the national championship.
- DirectorNorman JewisonStarsDenzel WashingtonVicellous ShannonDeborah Kara UngerThe story of Rubin 'Hurricane' Carter, a boxer wrongly imprisoned for murder, and the people who aided in his fight to prove his innocence.
- DirectorSteve McQueenStarsChiwetel EjioforMichael Kenneth WilliamsMichael FassbenderIn the antebellum United States, Solomon Northup, a free Black man from upstate New York, is abducted and sold into slavery.
- DirectorTheodore MelfiStarsTaraji P. HensonOctavia SpencerJanelle MonáeThe story of a team of female African-American mathematicians who served a vital role in NASA during the early years of the U.S. space program.
- DirectorThomas CarterStarsCuba Gooding Jr.Kimberly EliseAunjanue Ellis-TaylorBiography of Ben Carson who grew up to be Dr. Ben Carson, a world famous neurosurgeon at Johns Hopkins.
- DirectorBruce BeresfordStarsEddie MurphyBritt RobertsonNatascha McElhone"Mr. Church" tells the story of a unique friendship that develops when a little girl and her dying mother retain the services of a talented cook - Henry Joseph Church. What begins as a six month arrangement instead spans into fifteen years and creates a family bond that lasts forever.
- DirectorJim JarmuschStarsForest WhitakerHenry SilvaJohn TormeyAn African-American Mafia hit man who models himself after the samurai of old finds himself targeted for death by the mob.
- DirectorThomas CarterStarsSamuel L. JacksonRick GonzalezRobert Ri'chardControversy surrounds high school basketball coach Ken Carter after he benches his entire team for breaking their academic contract with him.
- DirectorDee ReesStarsAdepero OduyeKim WayansAasha DavisA Brooklyn teenager juggles conflicting identities and risks friendship, heartbreak and family in a desperate search for sexual expression.
- DirectorBrian GibsonStarsLynn WhitfieldRubén BladesDavid DukesBorn poor in St. Louis, Missouri, Josephine Baker achieved fame and fortune through her sizzlingly exotic, erotic performances. Starting life on the American Vaudeville circuit, success takes Josephine to Paris where her semi-nude dancing causes an international sensation. Through her marriages to an Italian pseudo-count and an orchestra leader, to her bond with army officer Sydney Williams, Josephine's life is a rollercoaster ride of love and rejection from both her lovers and her country. But semi-nude, or head-to-toes in sequins; in battle fatigues or rags - her beauty and ambition ensured that Josephine Baker will always be remembered as the first, and possibly most loved, truly international star.
- DirectorVondie Curtis-HallStarsTupac ShakurTim RothThandiwe NewtonTwo friends try to kick their drug addiction after a friend dies from an overdose, when they try to enroll in a detox program, things quickly go wrong.
- DirectorMichael CampusStarsMax JulienDon GordonRichard PryorGoldie returns from five years at the state pen and winds up King of the pimping game. Trouble comes in the form of two corrupt white cops and a crime lord who wants him to return to the small time.
- DirectorGeorge Tillman Jr.StarsJamal WoolardAnthony MackieDerek LukeThe life and death story of The Notorious B.I.G. (a.k.a. Christopher Wallace), who came straight out of Brooklyn to take the world of rap music by storm.