Top 100 Black Films Ever

[Cali]

1. “Do the Right Thing” (1989; directed by Spike Lee; with Ossie Davis, Ruby Dee, Spike Lee, Robin Harris)

2. “The Color Purple” (1985; Steven Spielberg; Whoopi Goldberg, Danny Glover, Oprah Winfrey)

3. “Claudine” (1974; John Berry; Diahann Carroll, James Earl Jones)

4. “Malcolm X” (1992; Spike Lee; Denzel Washington, Angela Bassett)

5. “Sounder” (1972; Martin Ritt; Cicely Tyson, Paul Winfield, Kevin Hooks)

6. “Carmen Jones” (1954; Otto Preminger; Dorothy Dandridge, Harry Belafonte, Pearl Bailey, Diahann Carroll)

7. “Super Fly” (1972; Gordon Parks Jr.; Ron O’Neal, Carl Lee)

8. “Cooley High” (1975; Michael Schultz; Glynn Thurman, Lawrence Hilton-Jacobs, Garrett Morris)

9. “Hoop Dreams” (1995; Steve James; William Gates, Arthur Agee)

10. “Coming to America” (1988; John Landis; Eddie Murphy, Arsenio Hall, James Earl Jones)

11. “Ray” (2005; Taylor Hackford; Jamie Foxx, Regina King)

12. “The Autobiography of Miss Jane Pittman” (1974; John Korty; Cicely Tyson)

13. “Bamboozled” (2000; Spike Lee; Damon Wayans, Savion Glover, Jada Pinkett Smith)

14. “Cotton Comes to Harlem” (1970; Ossie Davis; Godfrey Cambridge, Raymond St. Jacques)

15. “Richard Pryor: Live in Concert” (1979; Jeff Margolis)

16. “Shaft” (1971; Gordon Parks; Richard Roundtree, Moses Gunn)

17. “Dreamgirls” (2006; Bill Condon; Jamie Foxx, Beyonce Knowles, Eddie Murphy, Jennifer Hudson)

18. “Friday” (1995; F. Gary Gray; Ice Cube, Chris Tucker)

19. “Baby Boy” (2001; John Singleton; Tyrese Gibson, Taraji P. Henson, Snoop Dogg)

20. “A Raisin in the Sun” (1961; Daniel Petrie; Sidney Poitier, Claudia McNeil, Ruby Dee)

21. “The Five Heartbeats” (1991; Robert Townsend; Robert Townsend, Michael Wright, Leon)

22. “Watermelon Man” (1970; Melvin Van Peebles; Godfrey Cambridge)

23. “City of God” (2002; Fernando Meirelles and Katia Lund; Alexandre Rodrigues)

24. “Glory” (1989; Edward Zwick; Denzel Washington, Morgan Freeman, Andre Braugher)

25. “Menace II Society” (1993; Allen and Albert Hughes; Tyrin Turner, Lorenz Tate, Jada Pinkett Smith)

26. “Tsotsi” (2005; Gavin Hood; Presley Chweneyagae, Terry Pheto)

27. “The Emperor Jones” (1933; Dudley Murphy; Paul Robeson)

28. “Eve’s Bayou” (1997; Kasi Lemmons; Samuel L. Jackson, Debbi Morgan, Vondie Curtis-Hall)

29. “Lilies of the Field” (1963; Ralph Nelson; Sidney Poitier)

30. “Soul Food” (1997; George Tillman Jr.; Vanessa Williams, Vivica A. Fox, Mekhi Phifer)

31. “Black Caesar” (1973; Larry Cohen; Fred Williamson, Gloria Hendry)

32. “Boyz N the Hood” (1991; John Singleton; Laurence Fishburne, Cuba Gooding Jr., Ice Cube)

33. “She’s Gotta Have It” (1986; Spike Lee; Tracy Camilla Johns, Spike Lee, Tommy Redmond Hicks)

34. “Island in the Sun” (1957; Robert Rossen; Harry Belafonte, Dorothy Dandridge)

35. “In the Heat of the Night” (1967; Norman Jewison; Sidney Poitier)

36. “Lady Sings the Blues” (1972; Sidney J. Furie; Diana Ross, Billy Dee Williams, Richard Pryor)

37. “When We Were Kings” (1996; Leon Gast; Muhammad Ali, George Foreman)

38. “Love & Basketball” (2000; Gina Prince-Bythewood; Omar Epps, Sanaa Lathan)

39. “What’s Love Got to Do With It” (1993; Brian Gibson; Angela Bassett, Laurence Fishburne)

40. “The Mack” (1973; Michael Campus; Max Julien, Don Gordon, Richard Pryor)

41. “To Sleep With Anger” (1990; Charles Burnett; Danny Glover, Sheryl Lee Ralph, Mary Alice)

42. “The Exile” (1931; Oscar Micheaux; Eunice Brooks, Stanley Morrell)

43. “Set It Off” (1997; F. Gary Gray; Jada Pinkett Smith, Queen Latifah, Vivica A. Fox)

44. “Sweet Sweetback …” (1971; Melvin Van Peebles; Melvin Van Peebles, Mario Van Peebles)

45. “Waiting to Exhale” (1995; Forest Whitaker; Whitney Houston, Angela Bassett, Loretta Devine)

46. “Nothing But a Man” (1964; Michael Roemer; Ivan Dixon, Abbey Lincoln)

47. “Blade” (1998; Stephen Norrington; Wesley Snipes, N’Bushe Wright)

48. “Devil in a Blue Dress” (1995; Carl Franklin; Denzel Washington, Don Cheadle)

49. “Sonkofa” (1993; Haile Gerima; Kofi Ghanaba)

50. “Love Jones” (1997; Theodore Witcher; Nia Long, Lorenz Tate, Isaiah Washington)

51. “A Rage in Harlem” (1991; Bill Duke; Forest Whitaker, Gregory Hines)

52. “A Soldier’s Story” (1984; Norman Jewison; Howard E. Rollins Jr., Adolph Caesar, Denzel Washington)

53. “Dead Presidents” (1995; Albert and Allen Hughes; Larenz Tate, Keith David, Chris Tucker)

54. “Hollywood Shuffle” (1987; Robert Townsend; Robert Townsend, Anne-Marie Johnson, Keenen Ivory Wayans)

55. “Car Wash” (1976; Michael Schultz; Richard Pryor, Bill Duke, Franklin Ajaye)

56. “The Learning Tree” (1969; Gordon Parks; Kyle Johnson, Alex Clarke, Estelle Evans)

57. “Stormy Weather” (1943; Andrew L. Stone; Bill Robinson, Lena Horne)

58. “I’m Gonna Git You Sucka” (1988; Keenen Ivory Wayans; Keenen Ivory Wayans, Jim Brown, Bernie Casey)

59. “Cabin in the Sky” (1943; Vincente Minnelli; Lena Horne, Louis Armstrong)

60. “Wattstax” (1973; Mel Stuart; Isaac Hayes, Richard Pryor, Albert King)

61. “Rosewood” (1997; John Singleton; Ving Rhames, Don Cheadle, Esther Rolle)

62. “To Sir, With Love” (1967; James Clavell; Sidney Poitier)

63. “New Jack City” (1991; Mario Van Peebles: Wesley Snipes, Ice-T)

64. “House Party” (1990; Reginald Hudlin; Christopher Reid, Christopher Martin, Robin Harris)

65. “The Green Pastures” (1936; Marc Connelly and William Keighley; Eddie “Rochester ” Anderson, Rex Ingram)

66. “Hotel Rwanda” (2004; Terry George; Don Cheadle, Sophie Okenedo)

67. “Home of the Brave” (1949; Mark Robson; James Edwards)

68. “Lean on Me” (1989; John G. Avildsen; Morgan Freeman, Robert Guillaume)

69. “Hallelujah!” (1929; King Vidor; Daniel L. Haynes, Nina Mae McKinney)

70. “The River Niger” (1976; Krishna Shah; Cicley Tyson, James Earl Jones, Lou Gossett Jr.)

71. “Purple Rain” (1984; Albert Magnoli; Prince, Morris Day, Apollonia Kotero)

72. “Introducing Dorothy Dandridge” (1999; Martha Coolidge; Halle Berry)

73. “Krush Groove” (1985; Michael Schultz; Blair Underwood, Sheila E.)

74. “Coffy” (1973; Jack Hill; Pam Grier)

75. “Sugar Cane Alley” (1983; Euzhan Palcy; Garry Cadenat)

76.“When the Levees Broke: A Requiem in Four Parts” (2006; Spike Lee; Ray Nagin, Terence Blanchard, Harry Belafonte)

77. “Cornbread, Earl and Me” (1975; Joe Manduke; Jamal Wilkes, Moses Gunn, Laurence Fishburne)

78. “Juice” (1992; Ernest R. Dickerson; Tupac Shakur, Omar Epps, Queen Latifah)

79. “Uptown Saturday Night” (1974; Sidney Poitier; Sidney Poitier, Bill Cosby, Harry Belafonte)

80. “Jungle Fever” (1991; Spike Lee; Samuel L. Jackson, Wesley Snipes, Ossie Davis, Ruby Dee)

81. “Killer of Sheep” (1977; Charles Burnett; Henry G. Sanders)

82. “The Cool World” (1963; Shirley Clarke; Rony Clayton)

83. “Buck and the Preacher” (1972; Sidney Poitier; Sidney Poitier, Harry Belafonte)

84. “Putney Swope” (1969; Robert Downey Sr.; Arnold Johnson)

85. “Paris is Burning” (1991; Jennie Livingston; Paris Dupree)

86. “The Harder They Come” (1973; Perry Henzell; Jimmy Cliff)

87. “Daughters of the Dust” (1991; Julie Dash; Cora Lee Day, Alva Rogers)

88. “The Spook Who Sat by the Door” (1973; Ivan Dixon; Lawrence Cook)

89. “CSA: The Confederate States of America” (2004; Kevin Willmott; William Willmott)

90. “Fresh” (1994; Boaz Yakin; Sean Nelson, Giancarlo Esposito, Samuel L. Jackson)

91. “Miracle in Harlem” (1948; Jack Kemp: Stepin Fetchit, Sheila Guyse)

92. “Guess Who’s Coming to Dinner” (1967; Stanley Kramer; Sidney Poitier, Beah Richards)

93. “Hustle & Flow” (2005; Craig Brewer; Terrence Howard, Taraji P. Henson, Anthony Anderson)

94. “Cry Freedom” (1987; Richard Attenborough; Denzel Washington)

95. “Akeelah and the Bee” (2006; Doug Atchison; Keke Palmer, Laurence Fishburne, Angela Bassett)

96. “Wild Style” (1982; Charlie Ahearn; Fab Five Freddy, Grandmaster Flash)

97. “Aaron Loves Angela” (1975; Gordon Parks Jr.; Kevin Hooks, Irene Cara)

98. “Sparkle” (1976; Sam O’Steen; Phillip Michael Thomas, Irene Cara, Lonette McKee )

99. “Undercover Brother” (2002; Malcolm D. Lee; Eddie Griffin, Dave Chappelle, Billy Dee Williams)

100. “Imitation of Life” (1959; Douglas Sirk; Mahalia Jackson)


Edwards' Top 100 Black Films

 

[Blunt]

The list is great, but the order is truly bizarre. Is this just one guy's personal preferences (which is fine) or a real attempt at an objective ranking based on merit (which is ludicrous)?

 

[God-Of-War-420]

White Chicks

 

[Doo Rag]

MALCOLM X should be #1 i think.....TUPAC RESURRECTION and THE LAST DRAGON should be on the list...and he needs to take off UNDERCOVER BROTHER...but its defintely this guys opinion what the top 100 are..there is nothing really based on fact unless you poll every black person in America.

 

[geechiedan]

isn't that all of them???

seriously when you do a TOP 100 of ANYTHING you end up including shit that would NEVER make be on anyones list just to fill it out....VH1 and the E channel always does this shit and have many WTF?s on their lists...

 

[divine]

baby boy was a disgrace

and how this that garbage surpass Rosewood????

Edward is off base

get off Edwards dick and go make your own list.

 

[snail1]

Good list, order questionable.

 

[Jbird81]

BABY BOy should not be above a lot of these movies especially menace and boyz in the hood. Thats definately questionable.

 

[london]

What is your definition of black film

 

[hgbdark]

get off Edwards dick and go make your own list.

this is edward's list and since he put his ass out there..he has to expect and take the ass chewing he is getting. i respect that he took time to put together such a list...but he has shit for brains. the fact that he has hoop dreams and coming to america in the top ten...and sparkle, guess who's coming to dinner and imitation of life in the bottom ten tells you that this was just one mans' opinion and not a serious film critique.i've remeber seeing all but six of these films and there are some classics that today would win academy awards...but shit like dreamgirls, undercover brother,fresh and others lightweight fare dont belong in the top 200. there are no documtaries or socially conscious films such as 'Black Like Me' that are missing. the top 100 anything should ring out ...i'm a bad muthafucker. this list is full of limp dick films. but again, this is just one man's opinion who was too lazy to do his own list........

 

[Peanutbutta]

The list is great, but the order is truly bizarre. Is this just one guy's personal preferences (which is fine) or a real attempt at an objective ranking based on merit (which is ludicrous)?

Damn I am going to have to agree with BLUNT!

 

[BRUHA]

What is your definition of black film

I always ask people the same thing whenever they define something as a black movie.

But regardless of the definition...How in the fuck is "A Soldier's Story" down at #52??? You gotta be fucking kidding me.

 

[Dert Bagg]

LMAO @ Undercover Brotha being on the list @ all.
And Baby Boy in the TOP TWENTY of Black Films??? Bbbbbbbbbwaha.

 

[Brown Hornet]

Shawn Edwards is one of the biggest hack film critics in the country. Here is his review for the Britney Spears flick, CROSSROADS:

Crossroads is a perfect teen dream. It has everything that makes a movie totally cool: laughs, adventure, spirit, hot music, drama and of course BRITNEY! Britney rocks! She is like a comet. A talent of her magnitude only comes around once in a lifetime and you can't take your eyes off her when she is on screen in this totally cool and delightfully hip movie.

The guy looses his load over every horrible movie that gets released...I think he gets paid by studios to give their crappy movies good reviews.

 

[Massive G]

list seems way off the mark, but good post anyway

 

[Blunt]

LMAO @ Undercover Brotha being on the list @ all.

Undercover Brother is a terrific parody of both spy films and "blaxploitation" films. Easily one of the best comedies of the decade, and certainly far and away better than the Wayans type lowbrow "black comedies" that are usually out there.

 

[Dert Bagg]

Shawn Edwards is one of the biggest hack film critics in the country. Here is his review for the Britney Spears flick, CROSSROADS:

Crossroads is a perfect teen dream. It has everything that makes a movie totally cool: laughs, adventure, spirit, hot music, drama and of course BRITNEY! Britney rocks! She is like a comet. A talent of her magnitude only comes around once in a lifetime and you can't take your eyes off her when she is on screen in this totally cool and delightfully hip movie.

The guy looses his load over every horrible movie that gets released...I think he gets paid by studios to give their crappy movies good reviews.

Yeah apparently he is one of those critics.

More Edwards Gems:

Chronicles of Riddick - "One of the best sci-fi films ever! Extraordinary! A true classic that's not to be missed! Vin Diesel is ecstatically superb."
Are We There Yet? - "A family film that's perfect for everyone. It will have you laughing from beginning to end."
White Chicks – "The funniest comedy of the year. The Wayans brothers have delivered another comedy classic."
Barbershop 2: Back In Business – "The best comedy of the year!"
Cradle 2 the Grave – "Thrilling! DMX and Jet Li are electrifying in this fact paced nonstop action flick."

And this dude has made a documentary about his list it.
The movie Premieres TODAY!!!!!

[FRAME]http://entertainment.pitch.com/search/events.php?eventSearch=1&oid=190125[/FRAME]

 

[Dert Bagg]

LMAO @ "One of the Best Comedies of the Decade." Is that on the DVD Insert?

 

[NnubianN]

Porgy & Bess with Sidney Poitier, Dorothy Dandrige, Sammy Davis, Brock Peters. The music that came out of this movie has been done up by jazz greats across the spectrum. The acting was superb. The storyline about boy meets girl, boy loves girl, boy loses girl, boy follows girl is legend. It's been banned from TV becsuse it's looked upon as a negative portrayal of Blacks in the shadow of the birthing of the Civil rights movement. If you ever get the chance to rent it...do so. You'll enjoy it

 

[Blunt]

LMAO @ "One of the Best Comedies of the Decade." Is that on the DVD Insert?

You must be a Big Momma's House 2, How High or Half-Baked fan. A real "sophisticated" cat.

 

[XXXplosive]

What, no POOTIE TANG on the list???

 

[TRUFICTION]

Damn I am going to have to agree with BLUNT!

CO SIGN

"EMPEROR JONES" BY PAUL ROBESON SHOULD BE RIGHT AT THE TOP NOT #27
THEN MARIO VAN PEEBLES "SWEET BACK"
THESE TWO WERE PIONEERS IN THE GAME..........
WITHOUT THEM A LOT MORE THINGS IN THE MOVIE INDUSTRY
WOULD HAVE TAKEN A LOT LONGER TO GET DONE.

 

[geechiedan]

What is your definition of black film

apparently anything that feature black people prominently...because Lillies Of The Fields is on it and it only had Sidney Poitier in it..

if thats the case then why isn't the Matrix trilogy on there...blacks were featured very prominently

or the Blues Brothers...in fact the studio considered it a black movie and didn't expect it to make much money according to the director.

how is krush groove and wild style on the list and not beat street or breakin?

 

[Dert Bagg]

LMAO still @ Blunt and his endlessly googled fact-o-pinions.
No wiki-quotes about the comic yet?.....I'll wait...

 

[PLEX]

Damn, I was almost scared 2 look n this thread @ 1st, but Im glad I did. Good shit on this list. Glad 2 say Ive seen @ least half of em. 100

 

[alexw]

whoever created this list was smoking some real good narcotics

Imitation of Life....100
Sparkle.............98

both deserve to be in the top 10

and some of these films arent even black films

and where is the "The Last Fuckin Dragon"

this dudes an idiot

 

[Word]

word ima download some of these.

 

[cbm_redux]

Every movie Spike Lee made between 1986 & 1994.

However, perhaps my favorite black oriented movie of all is Christopher Scott Cherot's original version of Hav Plenty, before Babyface fucked it up with an innapropriate soundtrack and a slapped-on happy ending.

This one of the very few black movies wherein middle class black characters are actually motivated by middle class sensibilities, as opposed to a movie like "The Brothers," where a group of educated black professionals sound like nigga who hang out on the corner all day, drinking that wine.

 

[younggiftedandblack]

That list is crazy. While most of the flicks are good the order is all out of wack.

Correct me if I'm wrong, but I didn't see Dave Chappelle's Block Party up there.

 

[DUCE DUCE]

Damn I wish I would have seen this before i went to blockbuster today...I picked up "Clockers"...anybody seen it?

 

[Fab1]

As a movie lover i don't care if black or white folk's made them some of those movie a awful. and to be called great black movie's is doing a injustus to some truley great films. Made by black and white folk's

 

[godofwine]

The list is great, but the order is truly bizarre. Is this just one guy's personal preferences (which is fine) or a real attempt at an objective ranking based on merit (which is ludicrous)?

Truth. Did I just agree with Blunt? Love Jones all the way down at 50. And cbm_redux said spoke on Hav Plenty. A good movie. I saw it in the theaters. The ending could have been better, but shit...if Spike Lee's movies are on here and you know he can't end a movie worth a crap, this movie should be on there too. Shit, you put "Fresh" on there. Fresh!

Decent list. Jacked up order.

 

[vabrotha2]

How could you forget HARLEM NIGHTS!!!!!
It just had damn near every black comedian on that movie!

 

[knightmelodic]

Cabin In the Sky is #59???????????????

 

[jumbo0307]

soul plane didnt make the list? they really fuckin up