Kam Black Film List

Blacktrospective 2005

A Look Back at the Best (and Worst) in Black Cinema

By Kam Williams

2004 may have been the Year of the Foxx (Jamie, that is) but 2005 has certainly turned out to be a breakout year for Terrence Howard. The versatile thespian received rave reviews for his powerful performances in a half-dozen feature films, most notably, Crash, Hustle & Flow, Animal and Four Brothers.

He also appeared in Get Rich or Die Tryin’ and The Salon, and a couple of made-for-TV movies, Lackawanna Blues and Their Eyes Were Watching God. Just like Jamie, he has a shot at landing Oscar nominations in both the lead (for Hustle & Flow) and supporting (for Crash) actor categories.

But Terrence wasn’t the only brother or sister in the industry to distinguish him or herself, so for better or worse. So without further ado, in the interest of celebrating excellence and of eradicating mediocrity in movies, permit me to present Blacktrospective 2005, an annual report card which shines a light on black overachievement and underachievement in cinema.

Best Black Films of 2005

1. Crash

2. Coach Carter

3. Hustle and Flow (Review)

4. Hitch

5. The Gospel

6. Four Brothers

7. G

8. The Reception

9. Guess Who

10. In the Mix

Documentaries

1. The Vanishing Black Male

2. Calypso Dreams

3. The Untold Story of Emmett Till

4. Emmanuel’s Gift

5. After Innocence

6. Darwin’s Nightmare

7. Aristide and the Endless Revolution

8. Congo: White King, Red Rubber, Black Death (Review)

9. Mad Hot Ballroom

10. The Swenkas

Best Actors

1. Terrence Howard (Crash, Animal, Hustle & Flow, Four Brothers)

2. Samuel L. Jackson (Coach Carter)

3. Clifton Powell (The Gospel)

4. Will Smith (Hitch)

5. Ving Rhames (Animal)

6. Larenz Tate (Crash)

7. Blair Underwood (G)

8. Boris Kodjoe (The Gospel)

9. Ludacris (Crash)

10. Bernie Mac (Guess Who)

Best Actresses

1. Thandie Newton (Crash)

2. Wanda Sykes (Monster-in-Law)

3. Taraji Henson (Hustle & Flow, Four Brothers, Animal)

4. Paula Jai Parker (Hustle & Flow, Animal)

5. Tamyra Gray (The Gospel)

6. Zoe Saldana (Guess Who)

7. Nona Gaye (The Gospel)

8. Wendy Raquel Robinson (Rebound)

9. Dianne Reeves (Good Night, and Good Luck)

10. Gabrielle Union (The Honeymooners)

Best Directors

1. Hisani Dubose (The Vanishing Black Male)

2. Thomas Carter (Coach Carter)

3. Keith Beauchamp (The Untold Story of Emmett Till)

4. Rob Hardy (The Gospel)

5. John Singleton (Four Brothers)

6. Christopher Scott Cherot (G)

7. Kevin Rodney Sullivan (Guess Who)

8. Angela Robinson (Herbie: Fully Loaded)

9. Tim Story (Fantastic Four)

10. Billie Woodruff (Beauty Shop)

Worst Movies

1. Get Rich or Die Tryin’

2. Roll Bounce

3. The Man

4. King’s Ransom

5. Death of a Dynasty

Worst Actors

1. 50 Cent (Get Rich or Die Tryin’)

2. The Rock (Be Cool)

3. Bow Wow (Roll Bounce)

4. Ice Cube (xXx 2, Are We There Yet)

5. Chris Rock (The Longest Yard)

Worst Actresses

1. Tyler Perry (Diary of a Mad Black Woman)

2. Regina Hall (Miss Congeniality 2, King’s Ransom)

3. Rosario Dawson (Sin City)

4. Nia Long (Are We There Yet)

5. Kimberly Elise (Diary of a Mad Black Woman)

Note: Thanks to fellow film critic Wilson Morales of BlackFilm.com for his very valuable assistance in researching this article, although all the lists strictly reflect the opinion of Kam Williams.

posted 18 December 2005

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AALBC.com's 25 Best Selling Books

Fiction

#1 - Justify My Thug by Wahida Clark
#2 - Flyy Girl by Omar Tyree
#3 - Head Bangers: An APF Sexcapade by Zane
#4 - Life Is Short But Wide by J. California Cooper
#5 - Stackin' Paper 2 Genesis' Payback by Joy King
#6 - Thug Lovin' (Thug 4) by Wahida Clark
#7 - When I Get Where I'm Going by Cheryl Robinson
#8 - Casting the First Stone by Kimberla Lawson Roby
#9 - The Sex Chronicles: Shattering the Myth by Zane

#10 - Covenant: A Thriller by Brandon Massey

#11 - Diary Of A Street Diva by Ashley and JaQuavis

#12 - Don't Ever Tell by Brandon Massey

#13 - For colored girls who have considered suicide by Ntozake Shange

#14 - For the Love of Money : A Novel by Omar Tyree

#15 - Homemade Loves by J. California Cooper

#16 - The Future Has a Past: Stories by J. California Cooper

#17 - Player Haters by Carl Weber

#18 - Purple Panties: An Eroticanoir.com Anthology by Sidney Molare

#19 - Stackin' Paper by Joy King

#20 - Children of the Street: An Inspector Darko Dawson Mystery by Kwei Quartey

#21 - The Upper Room by Mary Monroe

#22 – Thug Matrimony by Wahida Clark

#23 - Thugs And The Women Who Love Them by Wahida Clark

#24 - Married Men by Carl Weber

#25 - I Dreamt I Was in Heaven - The Rampage of the Rufus Buck Gang by Leonce Gaiter

Non-fiction

#1 - Malcolm X: A Life of Reinvention by Manning Marable
#2 - Confessions of a Video Vixen by Karrine Steffans
#3 - Dear G-Spot: Straight Talk About Sex and Love by Zane
#4 - Letters to a Young Brother: MANifest Your Destiny by Hill Harper
#5 - Peace from Broken Pieces: How to Get Through What You're Going Through by Iyanla Vanzant
#6 - Selected Writings and Speeches of Marcus Garvey by Marcus Garvey
#7 - The Ebony Cookbook: A Date with a Dish by Freda DeKnight
#8 - The Isis Papers: The Keys to the Colors by Frances Cress Welsing
#9 - The Mis-Education of the Negro by Carter Godwin Woodson

#10 - John Henrik Clarke and the Power of Africana History by Ahati N. N. Toure

#11 - Fail Up: 20 Lessons on Building Success from Failure by Tavis Smiley

#12 -The New Jim Crow: Mass Incarceration in the Age of Colorblindness by Michelle Alexander

#13 - The Black Male Handbook: A Blueprint for Life by Kevin Powell

#14 - The Other Wes Moore: One Name, Two Fates by Wes Moore

#15 - Why Men Fear Marriage: The Surprising Truth Behind Why So Many Men Can't Commit by RM Johnson

#16 - Black Titan: A.G. Gaston and the Making of a Black American Millionaire by Carol Jenkins

#17 - Brainwashed: Challenging the Myth of Black Inferiority by Tom Burrell

#18 - A New Earth: Awakening to Your Life's Purpose by Eckhart Tolle

#19 - John Oliver Killens: A Life of Black Literary Activism by Keith Gilyard

#20 - Alain L. Locke: The Biography of a Philosopher by Leonard Harris

#21 - Age Ain't Nothing but a Number: Black Women Explore Midlife by Carleen Brice

#22 - 2012 Guide to Literary Agents by Chuck Sambuchino
#23 - Chicken Soup for the Prisoner's Soul by Tom Lagana
#24 - 101 Things Every Boy/Young Man of Color Should Know by LaMarr Darnell Shields

#25 - Beyond the Black Lady: Sexuality and the New African American Middle Class by Lisa B. Thompson

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Sister Citizen: Shame, Stereotypes, and Black Women in America

By Melissa V. Harris-Perry

According to the author, this society has historically exerted considerable pressure on black females to fit into one of a handful of stereotypes, primarily, the Mammy, the Matriarch or the Jezebel. The selfless Mammy’s behavior is marked by a slavish devotion to white folks’ domestic concerns, often at the expense of those of her own family’s needs. By contrast, the relatively-hedonistic Jezebel is a sexually-insatiable temptress. And the Matriarch is generally thought of as an emasculating figure who denigrates black men, ala the characters Sapphire and Aunt Esther on the television shows Amos and Andy and Sanford and Son, respectively.

Professor Perry points out how the propagation of these harmful myths have served the mainstream culture well. For instance, the Mammy suggests that it is almost second nature for black females to feel a maternal instinct towards Caucasian babies.

As for the source of the Jezebel, black women had no control over their own bodies during slavery given that they were being auctioned off and bred to maximize profits. Nonetheless, it was in the interest of plantation owners to propagate the lie that sisters were sluts inclined to mate indiscriminately.

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Sex at the Margins

Migration, Labour Markets and the Rescue Industry

By Laura María Agustín

This book explodes several myths: that selling sex is completely different from any other kind of work, that migrants who sell sex are passive victims and that the multitude of people out to save them are without self-interest. Laura Agustín makes a passionate case against these stereotypes, arguing that the label 'trafficked' does not accurately describe migrants' lives and that the 'rescue industry' serves to disempower them. Based on extensive research amongst both migrants who sell sex and social helpers, Sex at the Margins provides a radically different analysis. Frequently, says Agustin, migrants make rational choices to travel and work in the sex industry, and although they are treated like a marginalised group they form part of the dynamic global economy. Both powerful and controversial, this book is essential reading for all those who want to understand the increasingly important relationship between sex markets, migration and the desire for social justice. "Sex at the Margins rips apart distinctions between migrants, service work and sexual labour and reveals the utter complexity of the contemporary sex industry. This book is set to be a trailblazer in the study of sexuality."—Lisa Adkins, University of London

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The White Masters of the World

From The World and Africa, 1965

By W. E. B. Du Bois

W. E. B. Du Bois’ Arraignment and Indictment of White Civilization (Fletcher)

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Ancient African Nations

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Negro Digest / Black World

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The Death of Emmett Till by Bob Dylan / The Lonesome Death of Hattie Carroll / Only a Pawn in Their Game

Rev. Jesse Lee Peterson Thanks America for Slavery / George Jackson / Hurricane Carter

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The Journal of Negro History issues at Project Gutenberg

The Haitian Declaration of Independence 1804 / January 1, 1804 -- The Founding of Haiti

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BLACK CLASSIC BOOKS

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update 5 August 2008