BlackClassicMovies.com is pleased to share its Top 100
List of the best African-American films available today.
You'll find lots of great movies ranging from intense dramas
to hilarious comedies.
The list includes box office films, made-for-tv movies,
cable tv releases and documentaries. These movies are a true
showcase of African-American film talent and history.
What's even better is that you can buy these great African-American movies on DVD!
Have you seen all of the movies on the
BlackClassicMovies.com Top 100 list?
Where can you see top African-American entertainers of the 1940s? In the movie Stormy Weather. Bill “Bojangles” Robinson, Lena Horne, Cab Calloway, Fats Waller and The Nicholas Brothers are some of the legends who strut their stuff in this great, African-American classic film.
One of the few all-black cast movies made by a major studio at the time, Stormy Weather has stood the test of time.
This Black Classic Movie provides an opportunity to see one stellar performance after another of outstanding African-American stars – many of whom were rarely captured on film.
And for Bill “Bojangles” Robinson and Fats Waller, it would also turn out to be their last film appearance.
With a career spanning over six decades, Lena Horne is a legendary entertainer.
Most famous as a beautiful and talented singer, Lena Horne is also a pioneering actress. When she signed her contract with MGM Studios in 1942, she became the first African-American woman to be given a Hollywood contract with the stipulation that she not be forced to play a maid or mammy.
Lena Horne’s contract was a major milestone and it also brought with it the hope for more positive portrayals of African-Americans on the movie screen. However, it came with a price.
Lena Horne never had to play a racial stereotype and she became one of the most famous and glamorous African-American women of the time. But, she did not get to do many movies. By the time she finished her contract with MGM, Lena Horne was disillusioned with Hollywood.
Nevertheless, the films that she did make are classics and mark an era in Hollywood filmmaking that is also an important part of Black film history.
There was a time when Hollywood wasn’t making African-American movies and movie theatres were segregated. This is when independent Black filmmakers stepped in and made films specifically for African-American audiences.
These films, often referred to as “Race Movies” (or “Race Films”) were prolific in the early 1900s. Featuring all-black casts, they represent a special era in African-American film history.
Learn more about Race Movies and their pioneering filmmakers by watching the DVD – Movies of Color: Black Southern Cinema.
Stormy Weather
Movies of Color: Black Southern Cinema
Black Movies
