Odyssey Gohain
6. Free Angela and All Political Prisoners (2012)
‘Free Angela and all Political Prisoners’ is a can’t-miss documentary about Angela Davis. She was one of the many women whose voice was significant in the Civil Rights Movement. The documentary talks about her life as an educator and activist whose affiliation with the Communist Party and the Black Panthers landed her on the FBI’s Ten Most Wanted list while she questioned the political propaganda in America. The documentary shows every detail of her personal to her widely publicized life- from her early years as a student in the U.S. to her arrest and trial.
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5. What’s Love Got to Do With it (1993)
Watch ‘What’s Love Got to Do with it’ for the inspiring and the heart wrenching story of legendary soul singer, Tina Turner. Angela Bassett gives life to the character as Tina discovers her love for singing, falls in love and faces physical abuse from Ike Turner played by Laurence Fishburne. The world of show business is a different realm altogether where so many personal stories collide for an artist to perform on stage or in front of the camera. Tina Turner’s story is one of them.
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4. Beasts of the Southern Wild (2012)
The film is about Hushpuppy played by Quvenzhané Wallis who lives with her father, Wink played by Dwight Henry. They belong to the Southern Louisiana bayou community called the Bathtub. The story revolves around nature, climate change and relationships as Hushpuppy and Wink face a storm approaching their community. Wallis became the youngest Oscar nominee in history for her portrayal of Hushpuppy. Watch this film as it shines light on the fringes of the American society through Hushpuppy with a unique blend of innocence and struggle as she confronts the challenges of her life and nature.
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3. The Help (2011)
The film revolves around Skeeter played by Emma Stone who aspires to be a writer and chooses to write about black women who spend their lives taking care of white families. She receives help from Aibileen, played by Viola Davis and Minny Jackson, played by Octavia Spencer who are maids with their own stories of trauma. The film is set in the 1960s when segregation between black and white people still existed. ‘The Help’ is all about the change that begins in a whisper. The best part about ‘The Help’ is that you do not need a tissue in your hand to complete this movie. There are bits and pieces of laughter that completes this movie and a powerful cast gives it a special place in the kingdom of films.
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2. Hidden Figures (2016)
Do you know Black history is way more than slavery and the Civil Rights Movement? It also includes people like Katherine Johnson, Dorothy Vaughan and Mary Jackson who were the genius behind one of the greatest operations in history: the launch of astronaut John Glenn into orbit. ‘Hidden Figures’ is all about these three mathematicians who struggled to deserve equality, respect and equal attention for the contributions they had made. History has different pockets after all. How often do we hear about women in space?
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1. 12 Years a Slave (2013)
‘12 Years a Slave’ is a true story from the per-Civil War era. Solomon Northup played by Chiwetel Ejiofor is a free black man from upstate New York. He has a life that cannot be envisioned by other members of his own race working in the cotton fields. His life takes a horrific turn when he is kidnapped and sold for slavery in the South to work for an abusive owner played by Michael Fassbender. There he meets Patsy and others subjected to slavery with whom he shares his dreaded faith. On his 12th year of working as a slave, he is rescued by a Canadian abolitionist which changes his life forever. This film was Lupita Nyong’o’s first feature film that also earned her first Oscar for playing Patsy. You may have to press the fast forward button when you see her scream and go numb as she bears those lashes from her master.
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